Negotiating Current Approaches to Literacy Instruction and Policies with Multilingual Learners: A Comparative Case Study

Drawing on multiple case study methods, this article examines how two elementary teachers in differing classroom contexts (English as a second language and English medium) enacted and adapted literacy instruction for their multilingual learner (ML) students. We analyze their practice in relation to approaches to teaching reading informed by the science of reading (SoR) movement. Specifically, we ask: (1) What literacy instructional practices did teachers enact and/or adapt to support their MLs? and (2) How did those practices align or not align with current approaches to literacy instruction informed by SoR discourse? To examine these cases, we adopt a social literacies perspective that allows us to consider how autonomous and ideological conceptions of literacy are negotiated through reading instruction. Our findings show that in negotiating these approaches teachers made curricular adaptations with autonomy and flexibility. Collectively, the experiences of these teachers demonstrated their (1) stance toward MLs, (2) expertise to adapt the curricula, and (3) agency to adapt curricula allowed them to enact ML-centered pedagogy. We discuss implications for literacy stakeholders working with MLs (teachers, literacy coaches, school and district administration), arguing for institutional change that supports the design and adaption of literacy instruction in ways that center MLs’ assets, needs, and experiences.