Marcia A. Invernizzi


Marcia Invernizzi is an American professor, author, and researcher in the field of Reading Education. At the University of Virginia Curry School of Education, she teaches reading education. As founder of the Book Buddies program, she is known as a leader in early literacy intervention.

Education

Invernizzi graduated from Washington College in 1972 with a B.A. in English. She then taught English and reading in various schools in Virginia and Maryland. During that time, she earned her M.Ed. in reading education from the University of Virginia. In 1985 she earned her PhD in reading education, also from the University of Virginia.

Career

Invernizzi became an assistant professor at the University of Virginia in 1985. She became an associate professor in 1993 and then a full professor in 2001. Invernizzi was awarded the Thomas G. Jewell professorship in 2002 and the Henderson professorship in 2004.
Invernizzi is currently the Henderson Professor of Reading Education at the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education. She teaches in the department of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education. Invernizzi has been the director of the McGuffey Reading Center since 1990. She is co-creator of the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening tool used in the state of Virginia for assessing students' literacy skills.
At Washington College's annual George Washington's birthday convocation on February 25, 2011, Invernizzi was awarded an honorary degree, Doctor of Letters.
In 2013, U.VA.Innovations named Invernizzi as their Innovator of the Year. She is the first from the Curry School of Education to receive this honor.

Research and Contributions

Literacy Assessment

Invernizzi co-created the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening tool. PALS is provided by the state of Virginia for their schools' use. This tool is designed to measure specific components of literacy to identify struggling readers in order to provide interventions as early as possible. While this tool is considered reliable, and having good construct, concurrent, and predictive validity, educators should consider data from a variety of sources when making high-stakes decisions. The results may also be used in the Response to Intervention process.

Literacy Instruction

The Words Their Way series of instructional resources for literacy educators was co-authored by Donald R. Bear, Invernizzi, Shane Templeton, and Francine Johnston. The books provide screening tools to assess students' skills in various areas of literacy. It provides lessons teachers can use based on the assessment to specifically address areas of weakness and move students forward in the development. Companion websites, reproducibles, and materials on CD-ROM are useful resources for educators. Special attention to addressing the special needs of English language learners are incorporated as well. Some of the books in the series are specifically designed for ELL students.

Reading Interventions

Book Buddies is a program for providing one-on-one reading interventions for struggling elementary school students. Recognizing the positive effects of individualized instruction and the fiscal limitations for schools to provide this, Dr. Invernizzi set out to devise a program that would benefit students without burdening the schools. In the Book Buddies program, volunteers receive training and follow the lessons that are provided.
In Talking Tutoring, a four-part series of webcasts produced by WETA/Reading Rockets, a panel of experts including Invernizzi, Carole Prest, and Ann Hoover, discuss struggling readers, the need for tutors, various tutoring models and the effect of tutors on reading success. Inversizzi refers to the National Assessment of Educational Progress report indicating American students are in need of intervention. The panel discusses reading research, various models of tutoring from small group to one-on-one, tutoring training, and responds to audience questions.

Publications

Selected publications
Selected Publications :
Selected Book Chapters