In this article, we argue that the goal of reading literary text is the creation of interpretation, and we advocate for a research-based disciplinary literacy heuristic that centers on reading and interpreting literary text. The heuristic serves as a guide for designing instruction that incorporates important instructional principles for…

This study involves translating, cross-culturally adapting, and validating the "Literary Response Questionnaire" (LRQ) for 413 Spanish adolescents. It explores the evolution of literary education in Spain and its alignment with the Reading Responses paradigm. The LRQ, adapted across various locations, is validated in Spanish through…

As a component of dialogic writing response, question posing is an essential strategy for crafting meaningful writing experiences. The author used qualitative content analysis to explore the question-posing feedback provided by eight secondary English teacher candidates in response to literary essays by ninth graders. Findings indicate that…

This study investigates the extent to which students' use of different discussion strategies fosters a balance between attending to the technical elements of authored texts and responding empathetically. Because small-group discussion is a common approach to literary study, the analysis focuses on two small-group discussions of "Charlie…

This article argues that exploration of media coverage of a story like the Boston Marathon bombings, including online comments posted by readers, can support youth in reflecting on and thinking critically about a tragedy while offering opportunities for literacy pedagogy consistent with the goals of the Common Core State Standards for English…

This article describes an urban middle school community that took part in a yearlong literacy engagement--a whole-school read of a young adult novel. The authors, three researchers from a nearby university, documented the yearlong event and the effect it had on the school's academic and social spaces. Relying on the perspective that literacy is…

Fifteen graduate students enrolled in an English methods class were organized into three book clubs to participate in online literature discussion. Participants' posts about their reading included evidence of group harmony, text focus, text connections, and aesthetic responses. The findings suggest that an online format allows for natural,…

In 2006, a secondary English and feminist studies teacher created a course and designed a study around a reading exchange for eighth-grade girls from two vastly different communities. Girls from a school in a northeastern state read young adult novels and wrote about their reading and related topics with girls from Washington, DC on a wikispace…

In this article, the author describes her multimodal teaching practices in her "Adolescent Literacy Methods" course at a graduate university in the United States. By doing so, she highlights content teacher's understanding and use of various multimodal texts to effectively teach adolescents inside the classroom. In lieu of this, she raises…

Students in an eighth-grade, urban, low-achieving reading class were introduced to critical literacy through engagement in Image Theatre. Developed by liberatory dramatist Augusto Boal, Image Theatre gives participants the opportunity to examine texts in the triple role of interpreter, artist, and sculptor (i.e., image creator). The researchers…

This article describes a study of both textual and reader response analyses of "The Skin I'm In" by Sharon Flake. Because gender and race constitute central themes in the narrative, Black feminist thought and feminism undergirded the textual critique. Critics' reviews, scholarly articles, and published author interviews also supported the textual…

In response to the challenge of meeting the needs of today's learners, teachers must know how to teach and facilitate new literacies and instructional technologies. This article introduces the concept of an electronic reading workshop (ERW), in which participants read eBooks, respond to literature in digital response journals, participate in…

Two high school teachers of Deaf students and two teacher educators present this article about the use of graphic novels as an important genre for teaching literacy and academic skills in the high school classroom. During a summer session for failing Deaf students at a state-sponsored school, two English teachers taught and documented their…

Assuming that readers' emotional responses can enhance readers' metacognitive experiences and inform literary analysis, this study of 11th-grade poetry readers features instruction that models both cognitive and affective reading processes. The author: (1) Presents a case for more explicit attention to emotion in language arts classrooms; (2)…

This practitioner-research study investigated the reading behaviors of preservice teachers from diverse content disciplines as they engaged in reading multiple texts pertaining to a historical topic. Through participant-observer field notes, reader response journals, reflective essays, and participant debriefing, the authors examined the…