As I have been reviewing the text, “Engaging Students in Disciplinary Literacy, K-6”, I have found what they describe as “components of a coherent instructional framework for fostering disciplinary reading.” I felt these components were important to my inquiry journey because they demonstrate what effective disciplinary literacy instruction should look like in the classroom. I am focusing on elementary grade levels so this information is proving to be important in my inquiry. The components they shared; I will describe below.
- The Reading Context
This component refers to the fact that as readers we read the different text differently. It may vary because of our experiences or because of the type of text that it is. For example, historians do not read the text as truth, instead, they try to interrupt what they read. They are looking for facts versus bias and questing what they read. Understanding how to read different text to gain more meaningful experience with the text is something that has to be explicitly taught.
- Knowledge of the Comprehension Process
Having an understanding of the comprehension process will help any teacher, regardless of discipline, provide better disciplinary literacy instruction. These text advocates for a transactional model of reading. This means that the reader and text each bring something to the table. The teacher brings background knowledge which can impact their understanding of the text.
- Know Your Students
It is important to know your students as people, for who they are outside of the academic setting. This will help connect students to books that they will get the most meaningful experiences from.
- Knowledge of Text and Text Features
This text states that it is important to consider three features which include, gene, text structures, and graphics/graphic features. These are likely to be encountered in multiple different ways for students. Therefore, teaching them to understand the difference and how to interact with them will benefit them in every discipline.
- Knowledge of Instructional Practices and Assessment
Instructional practices that this text focuses on include, considering text complexity and rigor, close reading, pre-teaching (frontloading), use text-dependent questions, teach annotation. This text shares that this helps ensure quality instructional practices in all disciplines.
I think that these components would be beneficial no matter what discipline you are teaching. I think these could help bring disciplinary literacy into many subjects because it will better help teachers to prepare these types of lessons. This is a great addition to my inquiry process because it is helping me to find more ways to create meaningful experiences in the elementary classroom.
(Quinnell, J. 2014)
Resource:
Brock, C. H., Goatley, V. J., Raphael, T., Trost-Shahata, E., Weber, C. M., & Palincsar, A. S. (2014). Engaging students in disciplinary literacy, K-6: Reading, writing, and teaching tools for the classroom. New York: Teachers College Press, Columbia University.
Quinnell, J. (2014, June 25). Disciplinary Literacy. Retrieved from https://funnytimes.com/54035/
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