Disciplinary Literacy and Content Area Reading Strategies: Intentionality and Collaboration

Abstract

Due to stagnate or falling adolescent reading scores as shown on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (2007) and the inclusion of literacy standards as part of the Common Core standards titled “Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science & Technical Subjects,” (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010a) an interest in adolescent literacy, and what it means to teach literacy in a core subject area, has reemerged. Even prior to the literacy standards being released, studies re-exploring the topic of content area literacy through a new lens, disciplinary literacy, had been published. Since then, much has been written about teaching from a disciplinary literacy stance. This literature review explores the following research questions relating to disciplinary literacy: What is the relationship between disciplinary literacy and content area reading strategies/literacy and why might it matter? Why might content area reading strategies and disciplinary literacy be presented as an “either/or” proposition? In what ways, if at all, does a disciplinary literacy approach impact student learning in the academic core, grades 6-12 and what are the implications for teachers?