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Disciplinary Literacy in Action
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Disciplinary Literacy in Action
How to Create and Sustain a School-Wide Culture of Deep Reading, Writing, and Thinking

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September 2018 | 368 pages | Corwin

“Much of the professional literature has focused on what disciplinary literacy entails; this valuable contribution explores how it can be implemented in complex school settings.”

—Doug Buehl, Author of Developing Readers in the Academic Disciplines

 
What happens when middle and high school teachers who know their content very well are told they should be teaching reading and writing too? Is there a bit of resistance? A decrease in self-efficacy? An overturning of curricula? In Disciplinary Literacy in Action, ReLeah Cossett Lent and Marsha Voigt show us a better way.

 

In this sequel to ReLeah’s bestselling This Is Disciplinary Literacy, the authors provide educators with what they’ve wanted all along: a framework that keeps their subjects at the center and shows them how to pool strengths with colleagues in ongoing communities of professional learning (PL) around content-specific literacy.

 

In each chapter, and with a blend of lively disciplinary literacy teaching ideas and razor-sharp insights on developing teacher efficacy and leadership, ReLeah and Marsha take educators through a powerful PL cycle they can replicate in their school. The authors know it works not just because the research says so, but also because they have spent years refining the model in schools, districts, and regions. With this book, you will be ready for

  • Collaborative learning that preserves discipline-specific content yet keeps innovative daily practices of reading, writing, thinking, and doing at the forefront
  • Planning by autonomous literacy leadership teams with administrative support
  • Implementation augmented by peer and disciplinary literacy coaching
  • Reflection that leads to ongoing collective problem solving

In the end, it all comes back to how content teachers can best help students use literacy in all its forms to learn more deeply. With Disciplinary Literacy in Action, you have a proven framework for doing just that. This is the resource to lean on as you work to ensure all students use literacy as a tool to think, create, and communicate in any endeavor.


 
List of Figures
 
Acknowledgments
 
About the Authors
 
INTRODUCTION
What to Expect From This Book

 
 
CHAPTER 1: DISCIPLINARY LITERACY AND COLLABORATIVE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING: A PARTNERSHIP THAT WORKS
Literacy Initiatives and PLCs: What Went Wrong?

 
Collaborative Disciplinary Literacy Learning: A Story of Success

 
Meet Our Disciplinary Literacy Learning Community

 
Benefits of Collaborative Disciplinary Literacy Professional Learning

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
CHAPTER 2: UNLOCKING DISCIPLINARY LITERACY
What Is Literacy in the 21st Century?

 
Content Area Literacy Versus Disciplinary Literacy

 
Disciplinary Literacy Instruction in Action

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
HOW TO CREATE A SCHOOL-WIDE CULTURE OF DISCIPLINARY LITERACY
 
CHAPTER 3: CREATING A SCHOOL-WIDE CULTURE OF DISCIPLINARY READING
Why Read in Every Discipline?

 
Wide Reading in All Disciplines: There’s No Downside

 
Reading Strategies: When and How

 
Vocabulary: The Key to All Content Reading

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
CHAPTER 4: CREATING A SCHOOLWIDE CULTURE OF DISCIPLINARY WRITING
Exploring Disciplinary Writing

 
Writing to Learn in the Discipline Areas

 
Following the Pros: Disciplinary Mentor Texts

 
Feedback: From Master to Apprentice

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
CHAPTER 5: CREATING A SCHOOL-WIDE CULTURE OF DISCIPLINARY THINKING
Learning to Think in Disciplinary Ways

 
Curiosity Drives Disciplinary Thinking

 
Students and Teachers: Thinking Like Insiders Together

 
Making Disciplinary Thinking Visible

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
HOW TO SUSTAIN A SCHOOL-WIDE CULTURE OF DISCIPLINARY LITERACY
 
CHAPTER 6: BUILDING DISCIPLINARY LITERACY (DL) LEARNING COMMUNITIES
The Problem With PLCs

 
Fixing the Problem Through DL Learning Communities

 
Tips for Creating Interdisciplinary

 
Common Subject Literacy Learning Communities

 
The All-Important First Meeting

 
Supporting DL Learning Communities

 
Moving Toward Collective Efficacy

 
Sustaining DL Learning Communities

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
CHAPTER 7: WHAT MATTERS MOST IN A DISCIPLINARY LITERACY (DL) LEARNING COMMUNITY
Collective Inquiry

 
Autonomy and Authority

 
Meaningful Collaboration

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
CHAPTER 8: FROM TEACHER LEARNER TO TEACHER LEADER
Disciplinary Literacy Develops Deep Leadership

 
Disciplinary Literacy Leadership Roles

 
The Power of Disciplinary Literacy Leadership

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
CHAPTER 9: LEADING THE DISCIPLINARY LITERACY CHARGE
Administrative Leaders as Learners

 
Disciplinary Literacy Coaching: The Glue That Holds It All Together

 
Fostering Disciplinary Literacy Dialogue

 
Resources for Continued Learning

 
 
Coda
 
Appendix A: Disciplinary Literacy in English Language Arts
 
Appendix B: Disciplinary Literacy in Math
 
Appendix C: Disciplinary Literacy in Science
 
Appendix D: Disciplinary Literacy in Social Studies
 
Appendix E: Disciplinary Literacy in Art
 
Appendix F: Disciplinary Literacy in a World Language
 
Appendix G: Disciplinary Literacy in Health
 
Appendix H: Disciplinary Literacy in Music
 
Appendix I: Technology or Digital Literacy
 
Appendix J: Disciplinary Literacy in Physical Education
 
References
 
Index

Supplements

“Lent and Voight’s Disciplinary Literacy in Action is an invigorating tonic for all educators interested in improving instruction and learning. By highlighting the intersectionality of disciplinary learning, literacy acquisition, and professional learning, the authors provide readers with a critical framework to improve instruction that serves as a foundation to prepare students for college, career, and citizenship. Peppered with visual and narrative examples of effective and efficient learning environments, the text can easily be employed to support the professional learning experiences of pre-service, novice, and experienced teachers.”

Enrique A. Puig, Ed.D.
Director of the Morgridge International Reading Center and President-Elect of the Florida Literacy Association

“Disciplinary literacy, argue Lent and Voigt, is a process rather than a product. You don't check disciplinary literacy off your to-do list -- you engage in it daily, pursuing its paths toward the long-term flourishing of all of our kids. If there is more important work than this, I can't think of what it is. I can't imagine a better or more capable guide for the deep and practical exploration of this work than Disciplinary Literacy in ActionEach page shines with wisdom and research, and every chapter is rooted in what actually goes on in schools. I expect that teachers, teams, and administrators will turn this into a well-worn text.”

Dave Stuart, Jr.
Author of These 6 Things: How to Focus Your Instruction on What Matters Most

Disciplinary Literacy in Action is a ‘must have’ resource for all Junior and Senior High Schools. Rich with suggestions, this ‘how–to’ for implementing disciplinary literacy immerses the reader in teacher experiences that paint a picture of how transformative this approach can be.  With their call to action that “it is no longer enough for students to memorize material and call it learning”, this book offers guidance on how to sustain a disciplinary literacy culture within an entire school and district. The authors deliver an open invitation to teacher to engage students in content learning as experts do.”

Kim Tackaberry
Designer of Professional Learning, Calgary Regional Consortium

“Much of the professional literature has focused on what disciplinary literacy entails; this valuable contribution explores how it can be implemented in complex school settings. The authors articulate a fresh examination of disciplinary literacy through the lens of professional learning communities. They bring an experienced and savvy perspective to the promises and pitfalls of PLCs and especially appreciated are the teacher voices interspersed throughout the discussion that illuminate collective inquiry and meaningful collaboration in action. This book is a welcome resource that will resonate with teachers and school literacy leaders.”

Doug Buehl
Author of Developing Readers in the Academic Disciplines

“In the book This Is Disciplinary Literacy, ReLeah Lent supported English teachers and content area teachers alike with strong rationale and concrete practices for reading, writing, inquiry, and collaboration across the disciplines.  Lent’s new book with Marsha Voigt, Disciplinary Literacy in Action, is the next step. This book can serve as manual for individuals and school teams who want to gain even more traction and build a culture of literacy learning and leadership. Learning from hours on site with leaders, teachers, and students who have developed communities of literacy learning, Lent and Voigt share moves that can serve as an apprenticeship for practitioners.”

Lynn Angus Ramos
English Language Arts Curriculum and Instruction Coordinator, DeKalb County School District

In this detailed and delightful book, ReLeah Lent and Marsha Voigt harness the science of learning into crystal-clear signposts for getting students to read and write, think and problem solve in the ways that mathematicians, foreign language learners, historians, or artists do. A must-read for transformative action in teacher-scholars of all academic disciplines, this book will change how you think about your content area, and how you teach it!”

Wendy Ostroff, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Cognitive and Developmental Science, Sonoma State University

Disciplinary Literacy in Action provides a balanced, timely, and instructive approach to solving complex problems of practice related to disciplinary literacy.  The authors harnesses the power of collaborative dialogue, problem-solving, and reflection and provide authentic, discipline-specific guidance to teachers and leaders about the skills required in reading, writing, and thinking in all content areas.  This book provides content area teachers and school leaders with relevant tools about how to structure and use professional learning communities to support classroom-based and school-wide disciplinary literacy efforts.  Lent and Voigt honor the role of the content area teachers in making informed decisions about the literacies of their discipline, invite the reader to listen in content area teaching and student learning, and present a call to action about the power of disciplinary professional learning communities to impact teacher, student, and school success.”

Vicky Zygouris-Coe, Ph.D.
Professor of Education, University of Florida

Disciplinary Literacy in Action by ReLeah Lent and Marsha Voigt offers both practical advice and keen insights about how to engage learners in authentic and meaningful ways across the disciplines. The authors answer the critical question: How do we ensure our students develop the necessary literacy tools to be successful in discipline-specific ways? With the clarity of real examples, readers will find themselves inspired by a blueprint to ensure all students are well prepared for a world that awaits them.”

Judy Wallis, Ed.D.
Literacy Consultant, Author, and former Language Arts Director

Sample Materials & Chapters

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1


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