GRDG 620 - Literacy and Linguistically Diverse Learners - Sheryl Scales

No matter what field you are in, professional organizations are designed to help you.  They help with:

• Networking
  • Conferences
  • Member directories
  • Committee memberships
  • Social Media/Listservs
• Advocacy
  • Large organizations lobby for the profession at the national level
  • Smaller organizations may organize for focused legislation or regional concerns
• Professional Development
  • Continuing Education (CE) courses
  • Certificate programs
  • Webinars
  • Conferences
• Keeping Current
  • Blogs
  • Newsletters
  • Magazines
• Other Discipline Specific Assistance
  • Lesson plans in Education
  • Assistance navigating the IRB process (Institutional Review Boards - federal regulations for research on human subjects)
  • Discounts for necessary software or equipment
• Scholarly Communication within the field
  • Scholarly, sometimes peer-reviewed, journals published by the organizations
  • Grants to support scholarship in the field
  • Awards for recognition of outstanding achievement

Examples of professional organizations in the field of education
(note - Union organizations like NYSUT or AFT are not included in this list):

Large National Overarching Organizations:

• National Education Association (NEA):  An enormous advocacy organization with many of their resources focused on current, controversial-at-some-level topics.  See https://www.nea.org/about-nea 
• National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)

Content Area Organizations:

• National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)
• National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM)
• National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)
• National Science Teaching Association (NSTA)

Sub-discipline Organizations:

• TESOL International Association
• International Literacy Association (ILA)
• National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET)
• Council for Exceptional Children

Regional Organizations, often subdivisions of a national organization with a specialty focus:

• New York State Council of Educational Associations (NYSCEA) - an organization of organizations!  See the list of New York Educational Organizations here.
• NYS TESOL
• Science Teachers Association of New York State (STANYS)

It's also important to become familiar with other non-profit, government support organizations or professional organizations in a related field for example:

• Reading Rockets
• National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA)
• American Library Associations (ALA) (handles many awards in children's literature)

Here is a list of Education Professional Associations & Organizations

Note: You should always investigate any organization before joining it.  Consider the Association of American Educators (AAE) and what the Center for Media and Democracy's Sourcewatch site says about it.