Bio


My research focuses on the teaching and learning of literary interpretation and writing in under-resourced urban high schools, with an emphasis on the links between in- and out-of-school interpretive practices. I am also interested in ways that AI and digital media (for example, natural language processing models like ChatGPT; visual representations of text like word clouds; and radio production) can be used as frameworks for teaching reading and writing to middle and high school students. Before pursuing an academic career, I taught secondary English at a Chicago public school for ten years. While there, I founded and ran a youth radio program that used digital audio production as a tool to help make writing and analysis relevant and real-world for students, and to build bridges between in- and out-of-school worlds.

Academic Appointments


Administrative Appointments


  • Assistant Professor, Stanford Graduate School of Education (2015 - Present)

Honors & Awards


  • Stanford Graduate School of Education Guild Teaching Award, Stanford Graduate School of Education (2023)
  • Stanford Graduate School of Education Guild Teaching Award, Stanford Graduate School of Education (2021)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations


  • High school English and radio teacher, Chicago Public Schools (1997 - 2009)

Professional Education


  • PhD, Northwestern University, Learning Sciences
  • Master of Arts, University of Chicago, Teaching of English
  • Bachelor of Arts, Cornell University, American Studies

Research Interests


  • Curriculum and Instruction
  • History of Education
  • Literacy and Language
  • Secondary Education
  • Teachers and Teaching
  • Technology and Education

Stanford Advisees


All Publications


  • Backtalk: ChatGPT: A powerful technology tool for writing instruction PHI DELTA KAPPAN Beck, S. W., Levine, S. R. 2023; 105 (1): 66-67
  • One text, two worlds, third space: Design principles for bridging the two-worlds divide in teacher education TEACHING AND TEACHER EDUCATION Trepper, K., Levine, S., Lomeli, K., Garcia, A. 2023; 129
  • High school mathematics teachers' noticing of inequitable talk JOURNAL OF MATHEMATICS TEACHER EDUCATION Stovall, J., Pimentel, D. R., Carlson, J., Levine, S. R. 2023
  • INSIGHTS INTO TEACHERS' FUNDS OF KNOWLEDGE: COMPARING LANGUAGE ARTS TEACHERS' STANCES TOWARD THE SAME POEMS IN EVERYDAY AND SCHOOL SETTINGS L1 EDUCATIONAL STUDIES IN LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE Levine, S., Sigvardsson, A. 2023; 23 (2): 1-27
  • What if it WereOtherwise? Teachers Use Exams from the Past to Imagine Possible Futures in the Teaching of Literature READING RESEARCH QUARTERLY Levine, S., Moore, D. P., Bene, E., Smith, M. W. 2022

    View details for DOI 10.1002/rrq.488

    View details for Web of Science ID 000890361200001

  • Situated Expertise in Literary Interpretation: An Expert-Expert Study of High School and PhD Students Reading Canonical Hip-Hop and Poetry COGNITION AND INSTRUCTION Levine, S. 2022
  • Guest editorial: Introduction to special issue on disciplinary literacy in English teaching and teacher education ENGLISH TEACHING-PRACTICE AND CRITIQUE Rainey, E. C., Levine, S. 2022; 21 (1): 1
  • Authority and authenticity in teachers' questions about literature in three contexts ENGLISH TEACHING-PRACTICE AND CRITIQUE Levine, S., Hauser, M., Smith, M. W. 2022
  • How Feeling Supports Students' Interpretive Discussions About Literature JOURNAL OF LITERACY RESEARCH Levine, S., Trepper, K., Chung, R., Coelho, R. 2021
  • A Century of Change in High School English Assessments: An Analysis of 110 New York State Regents Exams, 1900-2018 RESEARCH IN THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH Levine, S. 2019; 54 (1): 31–57
  • Using Everyday Language to Support Students in Constructing Thematic Interpretations JOURNAL OF THE LEARNING SCIENCES Levine, S. 2019; 28 (1): 1–31
  • THEORY, DESIGN, AND TEACHER EXPERIENCE IN A LITERATURE-FOCUSED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT L1 EDUCATIONAL STUDIES IN LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE Levine, S., Trepper, K. 2019; 19
  • Epistemic cognition in literary reasoning Handbook of epistemic cognition Lee, C. D., Goldman, S. R., Levine, S., Magliano, J. 2016: 165-183
  • Opening George Hillocks's Territory of Literature English Education Levine, S., Bernstein, M. 2016; 48 (2): 127
  • Helping high school students read like experts: Affective evaluation, salience, and literary interpretation Cognition and Instruction Levine, S., Horton, W. 2015; 33 (2): 125-153
  • Teaching writing with radio English Journal Levine, S., Franzel, J. 2015: 21-29
  • Making interpretation visible with an affect‐based strategy Reading Research Quarterly Levine, S. 2014; 49 (3): 283-303
  • Using affective appraisal to help readers construct literary interpretations Scientific Study of Literature Levine, S., Horton, W. S. 2013; 3 (1): 105-136