Reconciling Disciplinary Literacy Perspectives With Genre‐Oriented Activity Theory: Toward a Fuller Synthesis of Traditions

Abstract

A persisting gap in the field of disciplinary literacy is lack of conceptual clarity around the term discipline. In this theoretical article, the author explains some concerns with existing definitional imprecision and argues that genre-oriented activity theory offers a way to reconceptualize the focus of disciplinary literacy, especially in relation to academic, professional, and other literacies. The author provides an overview of Rhetorical Genre Studies, focusing on a genre-oriented activity theory model from David Russell, to demonstrate how genres within activity might be used to productively reframe some of the scholarship of disciplinary literacies. Specifically, the notion of genres as recurrent mediating tools used within multilayered, laminated activity systems may offer a more complex frame for exploring disciplinary literacies. The author offers a brief review of previous disciplinary literacy research to show how the field might benefit by incorporating a genre-oriented approach and closes with research questions for future study. I n his Richard Braddock Award-winning article, "Ways of Knowing, Doing, and Writing in the Disciplines," Carter (2007) analyzed undergraduate program outcomes at the college level and proposed four metadisciplines, each oriented around a shared motive such as problem solving, empirical inquiry, research from sources, or performance. He viewed these metadisciplines as overarching structures stretching across individual disciplines. Surprisingly, Carter (2007) suggested that the field of writing/ composition, as a member of the performance-oriented metadiscipline, was closer to dance performance than to literary analysis in terms of many of its central values and assumptions. Yet, within most school settings, writing is generally housed in the same unit as literature, often within English language arts departments (at the K-12 level) or within departments of English (at the college level). Thus, Carter's approach to categorization breaks open some traditional assumptions about the relations between disciplines and school-based subject areas, as well as relations among disciplines.More significantly, Carter's (2007) work can be used to illuminate a continuing gap in disciplinary literacy scholarship and pedagogy: the lack of definitional clarity around the notion of discipline. Although he proposed structures even larger than disciplines that

The Use of Authentic Reading Materials and Cooperative Learning Strategy to Improve Reading Comprehension Ability of Vocational School Students Ujang Suparman

“…Since their interest and motivation raise by using the authentic materials, the frequency of reading also elevates, consequently their vocabulary mastery develops, and finally their comprehension achievements also increase. This finding is in line with the findings of the previous research (Schüller et al 2016;Rios, 2017;Fisher, 2018;Liebrund, 2015;Manese et al 2017;Cho et al 2017).…”

“…This finding is relevant to the finding of previous research. The finding as shown in Table 2 above is relevant to what was found by previous reserach (Chen, 2020;Malmir et al, 2020;Hamilton et al, 2016, Zawoyski et al, 2014, Northrop, 2017, Schüller et al, 2016, Rios, 2017, Suk, 2016, Pae, 2018, Zhang, 2014, Wright et al, 2016, Baye et al, 2018, Cho et al, 2017, Menese et al, 2017, Liebfreund, 2015, Fisher, 2018, Learned, 2016, Suk, 2016, where they have found that there was significant improvement in their students' reading ability after being given the treatment.…”

“…Many studies have been conducted pertaining to the use of authentic materials (Berardo, 2006;Al Azri, et al 2014;Chen, 2020;Boyacý, et al, 2017, Oguz et al 2008, reading comprehension (Hamilton et al, 2016, Zawoyski et al, 2014, Northrop, 2017, Schüller et al, 2016, Rios, 2017, Suk, 2016, Pae, 2018, Zhang, 2014, Wright et al, 2016, Baye et al, 2018, Cho et al, 2017, Menese et al, 2017, Liebfreund, 2015, Fisher, 2018, Learned, 2016, Suk, 2016 and learning strategies (Hamilton et al, 2016, Reynolds, 2014, Juste et al, 2016, Gozalo-Delgado et al, 2020, Irgatoðlu et al, 2022, Parra, 2016, Sholahuddin et al, 2021, Reynolds et al, 2017, Rios, 2017, Schüller et al, 2016, Northrop, 2017, Zawoyski et al, 2014, Hamilton et al, 2016, Malmir et al, 2020, Chen, 2020. But the problems remain unresolved, that is, whether there is a positive correlation between the use of authentic materials and students' reading comprehension achievement; secondly whether there is a positive correlation between the use of cooperative learning strategy and students' reading comprehension achievement, and finally whether there is a positive composite correlation among the use of auth...…”

Reframing Literacy in the Discipline of Science with the Disciplinary Literacy Observation Tool (DLOT)

“…There is a lack of consensus over definitions and recommended pedagogy for disciplinary literacy in secondary classrooms—specifically, what defines a discipline, narrow interpretations of ways of knowing and doing, and how to best have adolescents learn about disciplines (Fisher, 2018). Tensions also exist between the evidence‐based practice of providing explicit, systematic instruction to support literacy demands for students with LD in science and the constructivist, inquiry‐focused learning emphasized in reform‐based science instruction (Mason & Hedin, 2011).…”

“I just want to word it better”: developing disciplinary literacies in an after-school spoken word poetry team

“…Some scholars have critiqued a narrow focus on the knowledge and skills taught in official academic contexts as exemplifying disciplinary expertise. Fisher (2018), citing Shanahan and Shanahan's (2008) emphasis on university faculty as paragons of disciplinary expertise, argues that "in many cases, academic expertise has been placed at the apex of disciplinary literacy performance" (p. 239), leading to a neglect of what disciplinary practitioners actually do. If we take seriously Moje's (2015) call that "students need the opportunity to apprentice into the ways of producing and communicating knowledge valued in the disciplines" (p. 258), this must extend beyond the knowledge and skills prized in formal academic contexts.…”