Grades 6 to 12 School-Wide Practices in Disciplinary Literacy

Document Purpose

The purpose of this document is to increase Michigan’s capacity to improve adolescents' literacy by identifying effective practices that can be implemented at the organizational level in secondary schools. To meet the needs of all learners, organizational practices must support literacy development in ways that systematically impact learning throughout schools. Each of the eight recommended school-wide practices should occur in all Michigan middle and high school learning environments. These Essential School-Wide Practices in Disciplinary Literacy: Grades 6 to 12 should be viewed, as in practice guides in medicine, as presenting a minimum ‘standard of care’ for Michigan’s students; where all efforts, structures, resources, and people involved in creating effective learning environments for students share a clear, common vision for equitable learning and development, and this vision is clearly communicated, understood, and used to drive this work. As rigorous as this resource is, it is not a checklist of activities, a guide to implementation science or change theory, nor is it a how-to on team development. The processes leaders use to enact the Essential Practices will lead to continuous improvement that supports disciplinary literacy.

Essential School-Wide Practices in Disciplinary Literacy: Grades 6 to 12 

6-12 Disciplinary Literacy Task Force