Robert
Calfee is a cognitive psychologist with interests in the effect of
schooling on the intellectual potential of individuals and groups.
He earned his degrees at UCLA, did post-graduate work at Stanford,
and spent five years in Psychology at the University of Wisconsin,
Madison. In 1969 he returned to Stanford University to join the
School of Education. In 1998 Dr. Calfee was appointed
Professor and Dean of the Graduate School of Education at the
University of California Riverside, serving as Dean for five
years. Dr. Calfee has
studied literacy assessment, effective instructional practices for
helping all students become competent readers and writers, and
methods for assisting schools to become learning communities.
His Project READ-Plus and The Inquiring School programs have been implemented in
hundreds of schools across the country. Dr. Calfee
has conducted workshops and seminars for teachers and administrators
from elementary, middle, and high schools, and works directly with
teachers and schools to demonstrate innovative techniques. He is a
frequent invited speaker at conferences across the country, author
of over 200 published research articles and numerous books in the
fields of education and psychology.
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Interests:
Educational psychology;
educational research methods; language, literature, and culture.
Major areas of
research and professional activity:
Major interests have evolved
over the past two decades from a focus on assessment of beginning
literacy skills to a concern with the broader reach of the school as
a literate environment. Theoretical efforts are directed toward the
nature of human thought processes, and the influence of language and
literacy in the development of problem-solving and communication.
Research activities include Reading and Writing About Science
Project, Project READ -Plus, Word Work, Text
Analysis Project, Methods for Alternative Assessment. These projects
all combine theoretical and practical facets directed toward
understanding and facilitating school change.
Professional notes:
Board of Directors,
National Society for the Study of Education, 1995-present; Board of
Directors, Society for Scientific Study of Reading, 1995-present;
Vice-chair, State of California Commission for the Establishment of
Academic Content and Performance Standards, 1996-present; Member,
Committee on Equivalency and Linkage of Educational Tests (NRC,
NAS), 1998.
Representative
Publications:
Chambliss, M. J. &
Calfee, R. C. (1998). Textbooks for Learning: Nurturing
Children's Minds. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell Publishers, Inc.;
Calfee, R. C., & Patrick, C. (1995). Teach our children well.
Stanford, CA: The Portable Stanford Series, Stanford Alumni
Association;
Calfee, R. C., &
Patrick, C. (1995). Teach our children well. Stanford, CA:
The Portable Stanford Series, Stanford Alumni Association;
Berliner, D. C., &
Calfee, R. C. (1996). Handbook of Educational Psychology. New
York: Macmillan;
Calfee, R. C. (1997).
Assessing the development of learning over time. In J. Flood, S. B.
Heath, & D. Lapp (Eds.). Handbook for literacy educators:
Research on teaching the communicative and visual arts. New
York: Macmillan;
Calfee, R. C. (1998).
Leading middle-grade students from reading to writing. In R. C.
Calfee, & N. N. Spivey (Eds.). The reading-writing
connection: The ninety-seventh yearbook of the National Society for
the Study of Education. Chicago, IL: Chicago University Press;
Calfee, R. C., and Norman,
K. A. (in press). Psychological perspectives on the early reading
wars: The case of phonological awareness. Teachers College Record
(Special Issue).