DISCIPLINARY LITERACY:
TEACHING AND LEARNING
ACROSS MODES, MEDIA, AND
GENRES BEYOND 4TH GRADE
November 12, 2014
Boston University
Dr. Katherine Frankel
Assistant Professor
Tonight’s Agenda
2
Key Definitions
¨  From “every teacher a teacher of reading” to “every
content teacher a teacher of disciplinary literacy”
¨  Modes, Media, Genres… and Purpose
¨  Three Examples
¨  Resources
¨ 
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Warm Up
• 
• 
Read the two documents (Periodic Table of the
Elements and Letter from Birmingham Jail).
Pay attention to how you read each text:
• 
What is your reading process?
What strategies do you use to comprehend the text?
• 
What kinds of annotations do you make?
• 
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Key Definitions
4
¨ 
Disciplinary Literacy
¤  Advanced
literacy instruction embedded within contentarea classes such as math, science, social studies, and
literature
(Shanahan & Shanahan, 2008, p. 40)
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Key Definitions
5
¨ 
Modes
¤  Resources
for representation and communication that are
culturally and socially fashioned
(Kress, 2003, p. 45)
¤  Examples: writing, image, music
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Key Definitions
6
¨ 
Media
¤  Means
of representation and communication that are
culturally and socially fashioned
¤  Examples: book, canvas, LP
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Key Definitions
7
¨ 
Genres
¤  Expressions
of social relations (e.g., participants, roles,
purposes, contexts)
(Kress, 2003, p. 47)
¤  Examples: diary, painting, jazz
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Key Definitions: Examples
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Modes
à
Media
à
Genres
Writing
Book
Diary
Image
Canvas
Painting
Music
LP
Jazz
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Turn and Talk
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
Turn to the person next to you.
Introduce yourself (if necessary).
Share one way you communicate using a mode, in a
particular medium, and through a specific genre.
Discuss why you use this particular mode/medium/
genre for this communicative purpose.
Jot down some notes! We will return to this shortly.
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From “every teacher a teacher of
reading”…
¤ 
¤ 
¤ 
Assumes that literacy instruction looks the same across grade
levels and content areas (e.g., certain reading
comprehension strategies will work for all texts and contexts
in which reading occurs)
Assumes that literacy instruction is something that happens in
addition to content instruction
Does not provide an instructional model for what it means to
be a teacher of reading in the context of a specific
discipline (Alvermann & Moje, 2013)
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From “every teacher a teacher of
reading”…
RAND Model of Reading
Comprehension
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…to “every content teacher a teacher
of disciplinary literacy”
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¨ 
Acknowledges that reading and learning become less
generalizable as students move through the grades
¤  Example:
¨ 
words like of, is, and the
à
words like paradigm, rhombus, and esoteric
Acknowledges that students’ reading abilities vary
across texts and disciplines
¤  Example:
a student who reads and comprehends novels with
ease might have difficulty comprehending her science or
math textbook
¨ 
Recognizes the need for an advanced literacy
curriculum and pedagogy for all students, not just for
those who struggle (Shanahan & Shanahan, 2008)
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…to “every content teacher a teacher
of disciplinary literacy”
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…to “every content teacher a teacher
of disciplinary literacy”
14
¨ 
Shanahan & Shanahan (2008)
¤  Determined
“reading facilitators” in math, chemistry, and
history from think-aloud transcriptions
n  Chemistry:
“transformation of information”
n  Math: “precision of meaning”
n  History: “paying attention to the author/source”
¤  These
“facilitators” correspond with the norms and
expectations of each of the disciplines
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…to “every content teacher a teacher
of disciplinary literacy”
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Chemistry
Math
History
structured note-taking/
structured summarization (in
a chart format)
math-structured note-taking
strategy (big idea,
explanation, example)
history events chart (focus
on relationships between
events)
A strategy “[is] not just about understanding text; it [is] also about understanding the
essence of [a discipline]” (Shanahan & Shanahan, 2008, p. 54).
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Group Check In
• 
• 
Think about the mode, medium, and genre you
discussed with your partner a few minutes ago
and consult your notes if necessary.
Ponder the following questions:
• 
• 
• 
For what purpose do you use this particular mode/medium/genre?
Why is this mode/medium/genre well suited to this purpose?
Please consider sharing your ideas with the
group.
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Modes, Media, Genres… and Purpose
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¨ 
Disciplinary literacy requires a theoretical shift like
the one described by Kress (2003):
“The theoretical change is from linguistics to semiotics
– from a theory that accounted for language alone to
a theory that can account equally well for gesture,
speech, image, writing, 3D objects, colour, music and
no doubt others” (p. 36).
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Modes, Media, Genres… and Purpose
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Mode and meaning are inextricably intertwined
¨  Design is central:
“Reproduction is no longer an issue: what is required
now is the ability to assess what is needed in this
situation now, for these conditions, these purposes, this
audience – all of which will be differently configured
for the next task” (Kress, 2003, p. 49).
¨  Different modes have different affordances and
constraints
¨ 
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Turn and Talk
• 
• 
• 
• 
Turn to a different person near you.
Introduce yourself (if necessary).
Examine the “No Smoking” sign.
Discuss the affordances of each of the modes in
this sign and their potential purposes.
Specifically, in a café setting, “which type of
situation does each of [these modes] fit
best?” (Kress, 2003, p. 52).
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Modes, Media, Genres… and Purpose
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Some modes (e.g., speech, dance, gesture, action,
music) operate using time-based logics.
¨  Other modes (e.g., image, sculpture, architectural
arrangement) operate using space-based logics.
¨  Multimodal texts have mixed logics.
¨ 
¨ 
In the case of the “No Smoking” sign, the image and
the writing have different affordances and serve
different purposes.
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Group Check In
• 
• 
Return to Kress’ question: Which type of
situation does each of these modes fit best?
Please consider sharing your ideas with the
group.
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Example 1: Diary vs. Concept Map
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“Write a story of the journey of a
red blood cell around the body.”
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“Construct a concept map…of
blood circulation.”
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Example 2: Reading Like A Historian
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¨ 
¨ 
“[History students] believe that they are reading to
learn ‘the facts’ and fail to take into account potential
bias unless they are explicitly taught to do
so” (Shanahan & Shanahan, 2008, p. 50).
Reading Like A Historian purports to address this
concern by “[engaging] students in historical inquiry.
Each lesson revolves around a central historical question
and features sets of primary documents…Instead of
memorizing historical facts, students evaluate the
trustworthiness of multiple perspectives on historical
issues. They learn to make historical claims backed by
documentary evidence.”
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Example 2: Reading Like A Historian
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Example: Pocahontas Document-based Lesson (Reisman, 2012)
¨  Central question: Did Pocahontas save John Smith’s life?
¨  Documents:
Excerpt from Disney’s Pocahontas movie
¤  Timeline
¤  Primary sources (John Smith’s 1608 and 1624 accounts)
¤  Secondary sources (1966 and 1991 historical interpretations)
¤ 
¨ 
Questions to ask of historical documents in general:
Who wrote the document?
¤  Why did he/she/they write it?
¤  What else was going on at the time?
¤  Do other sources agree or disagree with this account?
¤ 
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Critical Analysis
• 
Consider the following questions in relation to
the upcoming video:
• 
• 
• 
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What modes do the students use to make meaning? Does
meaning change across modes?
How do the various modes work together (or not) to make
meaning?
In what ways is this assignment well suited to its stated purpose
(i.e., to understand the Jim Crow era in the context of a high
school history class)? In what ways is it not well suited to its
purpose?
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Example 3: Student Digital Video
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¨ 
¨ 
Student Digital Video: For Colored Only
From: A Literacy Pedagogy for Multimodal
Composing (Miller, Thompson, Lauricella, & Boyd,
2012)
¤  “A
reframing of teaching that connects the literacy
identities and practices of our students through
purposeful multimodal activities in supportive social
spaces to potentially change classrooms and
learning” (p. 117).
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Critical Analysis
• 
• 
• 
Form a group of 3 or 4.
Introduce yourself (if necessary).
Consider the following questions:
• 
• 
• 
K. Frankel Table Talk
What modes do the students use to make meaning? Does meaning
change across modes?
How do the various modes work together (or not) to make meaning?
In what ways is this assignment well suited to its stated purpose (i.e.,
to understand the Jim Crow era in the context of a high school
history class)? In what ways is it not well suited to its purpose?
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Teaching and Learning across Modes,
Media, and Genres
Moving from a mindset of “every teacher a
teacher of reading” to “every content teacher
a teacher of disciplinary literacy” requires that
we expand traditional notions of what it means
to be literate.
¨  Disciplinary literacy includes reading and
writing, but it also involves the ability to make
meaning across multiple modes, media, and
genres in the context of specific disciplines.
¨ 
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A Challenge
• 
• 
In the next week, replace one assignment that
would normally require writing with a task that
asks students to make meaning in a different
mode or combination of modes.
When selecting a mode or modes, be sure to
attend to the purpose of the assignment (i.e.,
consider the affordances and constraints of the
mode(s) in relation to the knowledge objectives).
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Resources
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Kress, 2003, Literacy in the New Media Age
¨  Miller & McVee, 2012, Multimodal Composing in
Classrooms: Learning and Teaching in the Digital
World
¨  Stanford History Education Group, Reading Like A
Historian
¨ 
¤  Curricular
resources (open access) available at
http://sheg.stanford.edu/rlh
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References
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Alvermann, D. E., & Moje, E. B. (2013). Adolescent literacy instruction and the discourse of “every teacher a
teacher of reading.” In D. E. Alvermann, N. J. Unrau, & R. B. Ruddell (Eds.), Theoretical models and processes
of reading, 6th Edition (pp. 1072-1103). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.
Kress, G. (2003). Literacy and multimodality: A theoretical framework. Literacy in the new media age (pp.
35-59). New York, NY: Routledge.
Miller, S. M., Thompson, M. K., Lauricella, A. M., & Boyd, F. B. (2012). A literacy pedagogy for multimodal
composing: Transforming learning and teaching. In S. M. Miller & M. B. McVee (Eds.), Multimodal composing
in classrooms: Learning and teaching in the digital world (pp. 114-129). New York, NY: Routledge.
National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010).
Common Core State Standards for English language arts and literacy in history/social studies, science, and
technical subjects with Appendices A-C. Washington, DC: Authors.
Periodic Table of the Elements. Retrieved from: http://www.vertex42.com/ExcelTemplates/periodic-tableof-elements.html
Reisman, A. (2012). The ‘Document-Based Lesson’: Bringing disciplinary inquiry into high school history
classrooms with adolescent struggling readers. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 44(2), 233-264.
Shanahan, T., & Shanahan, C. (2008). Teaching disciplinary literacy to adolescents: Rethinking content-area
literacy. Harvard Educational Review, 78(1), 40-59.
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Thank You!
Dr. Katherine Frankel
Assistant Professor
Boston University
[email protected]
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