Engaging Learners with Culturally Sustaining Disciplinary Literacy

An accessible, research-backed guidebook for teaching culturally sustaining disciplinary literacy (CSDL) in the classroom

Too often, disciplinary literacy and equity-focused instruction are treated as separate endeavors, leaving teachers unsure how to integrate rigorous content learning with practices that honor students' diverse identities. Many educators want to make their instruction more inclusive but lack models that show what this looks like across subjects. In Engaging Learners with Culturally Sustaining Disciplinary Literacy, Jenelle E. Williams and Rachelle S. Savitz provide a new, proven framework designed to equip teachers to engage students in rigorous literacy practices through authentic disciplinary learning while affirming who students are and what they need to thrive.

Featuring authentic classroom examples drawn from a network of teachers across the disciplines, this resource provides strategies applicable to all 6th–12th grade disciplinary educators, including ELA, social studies, math, science, art, music, and PE teachers. Each chapter highlights actionable approaches that identify how to support student motivation, voice, and agency while meeting curricular goals. Chapter 7 pulls it all together with a complete instructional unit that shows how literacy, content learning, and cultural relevance can be woven together in the classroom.

Within these pages, readers will find concrete tools—such as layered text sets, discussion protocols, and authentic assessment approaches—that empower teachers to build learning environments where students' cultural and linguistic identities are recognized as assets for learning.