Incorporating Evidence-Based Literacy Practices into Middle School Content Areas

As students enter middle school, their acquisition of content knowledge relies heavily on their ability to read and understand complex grade-level text (Vaughn et al., 2013). However, national trends reveal that many middle school students lack these skills. In fact, 66% of all eighth-grade students who completed the 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress reading assessment scored less than proficient, and 91% of eighth-grade students with disabilities scored below proficient (U.S. Department of Education [USDOE], 2019). To support reading comprehension and content acquisition among middle school students with reading disabilities and difficulties, content area teachers must employ evidence-based literacy instruction. This type of instruction is especially crucial in the content areas because the majority of students with disabilities—those who typically struggle with reading comprehension—receive at least 80% of their instruction in the general education setting (USDOE, 2016). The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) practice guide on improving adolescent literacy (Kamil et al., 2008) provides recommendations on using evidence-based literacy practices to support the literacy skills of students with and without disabilities. These recommendations include providing all students explicit vocabulary and reading comprehension strategy instruction and opportunities to participate in text-based discussions in engaging literacy lessons.