Toward Disciplinary Literacy for Deeper Learning: A Multiple-Case Study of Middle School Teachers

• In Event: Roundtable Session 49
  In Roundtable Session: Middle School Literacy and Language

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore eight middle school teachers’ uses of disciplinary literacy strategies in the classroom after they participated in a six-week MOOC-Ed, Disciplinary Literacy for Deeper Learning. The research questions were: (a) how do middle school teachers perceive the literacy demands within their discipline; and (b) what disciplinary literacy strategies (English, science, social studies, and mathematics) do middle school teachers use? Preliminary analysis revealed that teachers in different disciplines used disciplined-specific strategies, although they did not attribute their strategies to being an expert within a discipline. Of particular interest was teachers’ resistance to the term discipline literacy as a result of the interdisciplinary culture within middle schools.

Authors

• Abbey C.K. Graham, Academy School District 20

• Hiller A. Spires, North Carolina State University

• Shea N. Kerkhoff, North Carolina State University