Jeff Zwiers teaches in the Stanford Teaching Education Program and works for Stanford's Center to Support Excellence in Teaching.
He received his Ed.D. from the University of San Francisco and has taught English, Spanish, science, and history in high school, middle school, and elementary school.
Jeff says that he became a teacher to "positively influence the social linguistic, ethical, and cognitive development of students." His areas of specialty are academic language and literacy.
Jeff is also a consultant on the Guatemala Education Reform in the Classroom project to develop effective systems of bilingual education and teacher training across the country. He has published articles and books on literacy, cognition, and academic language.
Susan O'Hara is executive director of the Center for Cooperative Research and Extension Services for Schools (CRESS) at the University of California, Davis. Cofounder of the Academic Language Development Network, Susan has extensive experience in teacher professional development, math and science education, and effective practices for teaching English learners.
Prior to assuming her current position, Susan was an associate professor and executive director of the Center to Support Excellence in Teaching at Stanford University, as well as a professor of education at Sacramento State University. She received a bachelor's degree in mathematics and mathematical physics from University College Dublin and a master's degree in applied mathematics from the University of Southern California. In addition, Susan earned her doctorate in education -- with an emphasis on math, science, and technology education -- from UC Davis.
Coauthor (with Robert Pritchard) of Teaching Vocabulary with Hypermedia, 6-12, Susan has written numerous articles for professional publications, including the Journal for Education of Students Placed at Risk and the Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy.
Susan has called Dublin, Ireland, and Lesotho, in southern Africa, "home"
Robert Pritchard is a professor of education at Sacramento State University. A frequent consultant for schools, districts, and departments of education, Robert brings extensive experience as a former ESL teacher and reading specialist to his work with teachers and administrators. Having lived in and taught in diverse environments -- from inner-city Newark, New Jersey, to the Republic of Palau -- Robert developed a passion for teaching culturally and linguistically diverse learners.
"I taught for five years before I made the decision to make teaching my career," Robert says. "I realized that what I loved most about my interaction with children was helping them learn and grow. And the areas my students needed the most support in were language and literacy development. So that became -- and has remained -- my professional focus."
Robert received a bachelor's degree in political science from Susquehanna University; a master's degree in education from California State University, Hayward; and a doctorate degree in reading education and second language learning from Indiana University.
"The personal connections we make, the words we speak, and the actions we take influence children their entire lives," Robert says.
Among his areas of specialty are language and literacy development, with a focus on diverse learners; professional development for teachers; and innovative uses of technology.
"Effective professional development -- in other words, job embedded, sustained, and collaborative -- provides opportunities for practice, research, and reflection that deepen teacher content knowledge and pedagogical skills. These in turn impact student learning, which is the ultimate goal of professional development."
Common Core Standards in Diverse Classrooms: Essential Practices for Developing Academic Language and Disciplinary Literacy, coauthored with Jeff Zwiers and Susan O'Hara, is Robert's latest book. He has authored numerous publications related to language and literacy development of culturally and linguistically diverse learners, and is a regular presenter at national research conferences.
