Disciplinary Literacy Labs: Bringing Relevance and Authenticity to the Classroom
This fall and winter, all secondary (grades 6-12) core content area teachers participated in Disciplinary Literacy (DL) job-embedded labs, where learning takes place within the classroom as teachers observe other teachers. The goal of this professional learning was to foster an understanding of how elements of disciplinary literacy show up within instruction and to help teachers identify things they want to commit to in their own practice.
Disciplinary Literacy focuses on helping students to read, write, and think in a way that is specific to an academic field or a career. For example, students are challenged to think like mathematicians in Math, to read sources carefully like historians in Social Studies and to write like a poet in ELA.
The labs were structured so that District instructional coaches led small groups of teachers through a lesson on disciplinary literacy. Then, teachers had the opportunity to observe two lessons where DL practices were happening and debrief with the host teachers.
Cait Seguin, Instructional Support Specialist, shared, “It has been evident through the observations and conversations that teachers are gaining confidence in implementing disciplinary literacy through small, actionable changes. There is a strong emphasis on creating a "new culture" in classrooms, where literacy practices are intentionally taught within each discipline, promoting deeper student engagement and student-led learning. Ultimately, teachers see DL as a powerful tool for increasing student agency, improving literacy, and making thinking visible in ways that support diverse learners.”
The Teaching and Learning Department thanks all who participated in the teacher labs, and especially thanks teachers for opening their classroom and hosting their peers for valuable professional learning!
