Hybridization, Resistance, and Compliance: Negotiating Policies to Support Literacy Achievement

This article discusses a veteran teacher’s literacy pedagogy in response to policies at the district, state, and national level. The yearlong ethnographic case study analyzed the teacher’s resistance, compliance, and innovative hybridization of both “official” and “unofficial” curriculum. The author collected data through weekly co-planning sessions with the teacher and intern, field observations, analysis of policy documents and curricular frameworks, and formal and informal interviews. Findings showed that the teacher’s hybridized literacy pedagogy engaged students and yielded significant growth in literacy as measured by authentic and standardized assessments. The paper concludes by offering implications for teacher educators and K-12 practitioners.