Disciplinary Literacy
AGENDA
• Overview of the Common Core State Standards
for English Language Arts & Literacy in
History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical
Subjects
• Role of content teacher in literacy practices
• Examining classroom practices
• Question and answer opportunities with ADE
Panel
Big Shifts
• Appropriate Text Complexity
• Increased Reading of Informational Texts
 Disciplinary Literacy
• Close Reading
• Text-dependent Questions
• General Academic and Domain-specific Vocabulary
• Argumentative Writing
• Short and Sustained Research Projects
http://ideas.aetn.org/commoncore/strategic-plan
Why do we need literacy standards for
History/ Social Studies, Science, and Technical
Subjects?
8th Grade: Only one third were able to perform
at a proficient level involving more sophisticated
disciplinary comprehension expectations. Only
3% scored advanced.
12th Grade: Only 5% scored at advanced levels,
able to read specialized and complex texts.
NAEP, 2009
International Studies
• 4th grade U.S. students performed among the
best in the world
• 8th grade U.S. students performed
considerably lower
• 10th grade U.S. students ranked among the
lowest of the nations studied
Carnegie Council on Advancing Adolescent Literacy, 2010
“Only 51 percent of 2005 ACT-tested high school
graduates are ready for college-level reading –
and , what’s worse, more students are on track
to being ready for college-level reading in eighth
and tenth grade than are actually ready by the
time they reach twelfth grade.”
American College Testing Program, 2006
College Readiness
• Almost half of the 3 million people in the United States who
start their first year of college will drop out before they
earn their degree, and 30% will drop out after their first
year.
• At the community college level, out of 6 million students, 1
million will take remedial courses.
• Students who take remedial courses are highly likely to
drop out.
• Inadequate preparation is repeatedly cited as a central
factor in the disappointing college success rates.
The College Completion Agenda: 2010 Progress Report, Lee & Rawls, 2010
The reading level of documents, technical
manuals, and other materials required by entry
level positions in most fields far exceed the
reading level of many students.
Meeting the Challenge of Adolescent Literacy, Judith Irvin, et al
“All courses in high school, not just English and
social studies but mathematics and science as
well, must challenge students to read and
understand complex texts.”
American College Testing Program (2006)
Common Core
State Standards for
__________________________________________________
English Language Arts
&
Literacy in History/Social Studies,
Science, and Technical Subjects
Shared Responsibility
“The Standards insist that instruction in reading,
writing, speaking, listening, and language be a
shared responsibility within the school.”
CCSS, page 4
“…ultimately, our students are expected to
develop as competent readers, writers, and
thinkers in all academic disciplines.”
Developing Readers in the Academic Disciplines, Doug Buehl
Students Who are College and Career Ready (CCR):
• Demonstrate independence.
• Build strong content knowledge.
• Respond to the varying demands of audience, task,
purpose, and discipline.
• Comprehend as well as critique.
• Value evidence.
• Use technology and digital media strategically and capably.
• Come to understand other perspectives and cultures.
CCSS, page 7
Demonstrate Independence
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Comprehend and evaluate complex texts
Construct effective arguments
Convey intricate or multifaceted information
Discern a speaker’s key points, request
clarification, and ask relevant questions
become self-directed learners
Build Strong Content Knowledge
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Across a wide range of subject matter
Engage with works of quality and substance
Learn through research and study
Read purposefully to gain discipline-specific
expertise
• Refine and share their knowledge through writing
and speaking
Respond to Varying Demands
• Adapt their communication in relation to
audience, task, purpose, and discipline
• Know the different disciplines call for different
types of evidence
Comprehend as Well as Critique
• Engaged, open-minded, and discerning readers
and listeners
• Understand what the author is saying
• Question the author’s assumptions and premises
• Assess the veracity of claims
• Assess the soundness of reasoning
Value Evidence
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Cite specific evidence
Use relevant evidence
Exhibit clear reasoning
Constructively evaluate others’ use of
evidence
Use Technology and Digital Media
• Employ technology thoughtfully
• Search online to acquire useful information
• Integrate online sources with other
information
• Select tools best suited for their goals
Understand Other Perspectives
and Cultures
• Actively seek to understand other
perspectives and cultures
• Communicate effectively with people of varied
backgrounds
• Evaluate other points of views critically and
constructively
K-5 Informative/Explanatory Reading And Writing
• Build wide background in content areas
• Read closely
• Answer text explicit questions and make
inferences
• Read complex texts
• Write opinions and informative/explanatory
pieces
• 50% of the text read should be nonfiction.
The Balance of Information and
Literacy Texts in K-5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7yQk6a501s
Literacy Development
Disciplinary
Literacy
Intermediate
Literacy
Basic Literacy
Shanahan and Shanahan (2008)
Comprehension Strategies All Good
Readers Use
Pre-reading
• Review vocabulary
• Make predictions
• Review text features
Comprehension Strategies All Good
Readers Use
While reading
• Monitor for understanding; rereading if needed
• Draw a visual representation of the unfolding
argument
• Asking questions about the main ideas as they
unfold
• Make note of unfamiliar words, concepts, ideas
to research later
Comprehension Strategies All Good
Readers Use
After reading
•Summarizing and restating the text’s main
points
•Comparing notes with other students
•Discussion
Literacy Development
Disciplinary
Literacy
Intermediate
Literacy
Basic Literacy
Shanahan and Shanahan (2008)
PARCC Model Content Frameworks
“The bridge between CCSS and PARCC Assessments”
• Support implementation of the Common Core
State Standards
• Inform the development of item specifications
and blueprints for assessments in grades 3-8 and
high school
• http://www.parcconline.org
“Asking a teacher to become a reading teacher is
distinctly different from asking a teacher to help
students master texts within the teacher’s own
field. In fact, subject-area teachers are best
qualified to help their students master texts in each
course. Subject-area teachers should not be
expected to teach basic reading skills, but they can
help students develop critical strategies and skills
for reading texts in each subject.”
Southern Regional Education Board, 2009 Policy Statement, page 5
“To become competent in a number of
academic content areas requires more than just
applying the same old skills and comprehension
strategies to new kinds of texts. It also requires
skills and knowledge and reasoning processes
that are specific to particular disciplines. “
Literacy Instruction in the Content Areas, Heller and Greenleaf (2007)
Norms and Conventions of History
Reading
• History is interpretative, and authors and
sourcing are central in interpretation
(consideration of bias and perspective)
• Often seems narrative without purpose and
argument without explicit claims (need to see
history as argument based on partial evidence;
narratives are more than facts)
• Single texts are problematic (no corroboration)
Norms and Conventions of Science
Reading
• Text provides knowledge that allows prediction of
how the world works
• Full understanding needed of experiments or
processes
• Close connections among prose, graphs, charts,
formulas (alternative representations of constructs
an essential aspect of chemistry text)
• Major reading strategies include corroboration and
transformation
Chemistry Note Taking
“Structured Summary”
Shanahan, Timothy, 2012
Substances Properties
Processes
Interactions
Atomic
Expression
Norms and Conventions of Math
Reading
• Goal: arrive at “truth”
• Importance of “close reading” an intensive
consideration of every word in the text
• Rereading a major strategy
• Heavy emphasis on error detection
• Precision of understanding essential information
Disciplinary Reading Range and Content
• Is critical to building knowledge in content areas
• Requires an appreciation of the norms and
conventions of each discipline
• Necessitates an understanding of domain-specific
words and phrases
• Calls for an attention to precise details
• Demands the capacity to evaluate intricate
arguments, synthesize complex information , and
follow detailed descriptions of events and
concepts
Grade Span Specific Standards
• Reading History/Social Studies (RH) page 61
• Reading Science and Technical Subjects
( RST) page 62
Disciplinary Writing Range and Content
• Key means of asserting and defending claims
and showing what is known
• Considers audience, task, and purpose
• Uses technology strategically
• Emphasizes writing arguments and
informative/explanatory pieces
Grade Span Specific Standards
• Writing History/Social Studies, Science and
Technical Subjects
( WHST) pages 64-66
*note that narrative writing is not applicable as
a separate requirement
Literacy in Other Disciplines
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zHWMfg_8r0
What can instructional leaders do to support
content teachers?
• Be sure that content teachers have a clear and consistent message about
their roles and responsibilities as they relate to literacy instruction (Heller
& Greenleaf, 2007);
• Give teachers initial and ongoing professional development in vocabulary
and comprehension support (Deshler et al., 2001; Jacobs, 2008);
• Help teachers in adapting literacy strategies to meet the unique needs of
their content areas (Reed, 2008; Siebert & Draper, 2008);
• Give content teachers incentives and appropriate tools, for incorporating
reading and writing instruction (Bryant, Linan-Thompson, Ugel, Hamff, &
Hougen, 2001; Heller & Greenleaf, 2007) .
Alliance for Excellent Education
2011-2012 Disciplinary Literacy
Professional Learning Opportunities
Science:
•6-8 Implementing CCSS in Science
•6-8 Argument
•9-12 Implementing CCSS in Science
•9-12 Argument
History/Social Studies:
•6-8 Argument
•6-8 CCSS – Reading through a Historian Lens
•9-12 Argument
•9-12 CCSS – Reading through a Historian Lens
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Resources
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy in
History,/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects,
http://corestandards.org/assets/CCSSI_ELA%20Standards.pdf
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy in
History,/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects, Appendix A,
http://corestandards.org/assets/Appendix_A.pdf
Publishers’ Criteria for English Language Arts and Literacy, Grades K-2,
http://www.corestandards.org/assets/Publishers_Criteria_for_K-2.pdf
Publishers’ Criteria for English Language Arts and Literacy, Grades 3-12,
http://www.corestandards.org/assets/Publishers_Criteria_for_3-12.pdf
PARCC Model Content Frameworks for English Language Arts/Literacy, Grades 311,http://www.parcconline.org/sites/parcc/files/PARCC%20MCF%20for%20ELA%2
0Literacy_Fall%202011%20Release%20%28rev%29.pdf