Implementing a Scripted Literacy Curriculum: A Culturally Responsive Approach Ashley Marie Keith A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Washington 2020 Reading Committee: Brinda Jegatheesan, Co-Chair Nancy Hertzog, Co-Chair Dixie Massey Program Authorized to Offer Degree: Education ©Copyright 2020 Ashley Marie Keith University of Washington Abstract Implementing a Scripted Literacy Curriculum: A Culturally Responsive Approach Ashley Marie Keith Co-Chairs of the Supervisory Committee: Brinda Jegatheesan Nancy Hertzog College of Education This qualitative case study researched the strategies fifth-grade teachers used to integrate culturally responsive instructional practices when using a scripted literacy curriculum. Research recommendations in the fields of differentiated instruction and multicultural education are often in direct conflict with the pedagogical philosophy of cultural literacy, the body of research associated with E.D. Hirsch’s Core Knowledge curriculum. This study addressed expressly this tension. Data collection included observations, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis with three participants. Data analysis involved open-coding, analytic coding, and then thematic coding. The results showed that teachers who modified the curriculum used two specific culturally responsive strategies: developing a caring classroom community and supporting access to challenging curriculum through entry task activities. The results demonstrated a potential intersection of culturally responsive teaching, differentiated instruction, and multicultural education. Keywords: culturally responsive, Core Knowledge, cultural literacy Table of Contents Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 7 Contextualizing the Problem....................................................................................................... 7 School Measures to Address the Achievement Gap ................................................................. 11 Statement of the Problem .......................................................................................................... 14 Statement from the Researcher ................................................................................................. 15 Literature Review.......................................................................................................................... 18 Differentiation ........................................................................................................................... 21 Multicultural Education ............................................................................................................ 44 Literacy Instruction ................................................................................................................... 61 Cultural Literacy ....................................................................................................................... 73 Methods......................................................................................................................................... 92 Research Design........................................................................................................................ 92 Context of Study ....................................................................................................................... 94 Participants ................................................................................................................................ 95 Data Collection ......................................................................................................................... 98 Data Analysis .......................................................................................................................... 106 Trustworthiness ....................................................................................................................... 109 Subjectivity ............................................................................................................................. 110 Limitations .............................................................................................................................. 113 Findings....................................................................................................................................... 118 Entry Task Activities .............................................................................................................. 118 Intentional Community Development..................................................................................... 133 Traditional Instruction ............................................................................................................ 148 Authoritarian Management ..................................................................................................... 155 Discussion ................................................................................................................................... 165 Entry Tasks Grant Access to Challenging Core Knowledge Texts ........................................ 165 Classroom Community Supports Engagement ....................................................................... 171 Traditional Models .................................................................................................................. 175 Authoritarian Management and Disengagement .................................................................... 177 Pattern Matching ..................................................................................................................... 180 Implications................................................................................................................................. 189 Implications for the Core Knowledge Sequence .................................................................... 189 Implications for Multicultural Education................................................................................ 191 Implications for Differentiated Instruction ............................................................................. 192 Recommendations ................................................................................................................... 194 Summary ................................................................................................................................. 201 References ................................................................................................................................... 203 Appendix A: Selection Criteria for Literature Review ............................................................... 218 Appendix A-1: Differentiated Instruction ............................................................................... 218 Appendix A-2: Multicultural Education ................................................................................. 218 Appendix A-3: Literacy Instruction ........................................................................................ 218 Appendix A-4: Core Knowledge Curriculum ......................................................................... 218 Appendix B: District Demographic Data 2016-2017 ................................................................. 220 Appendix C: Data Collection Summary ..................................................................................... 221 Appendix D: Teacher Interview Protocol ................................................................................... 222 Appendix E: Site Visit Observation Protocol ............................................................................. 223 Appendix F: Tables of Codes ..................................................................................................... 224 Appendix F-1: Pre-codes ........................................................................................................ 224 Appendix G: Tables of Data Analysis ........................................................................................ 231 Appendix G-1: Example Data Coding for Theme of Entry Tasks.......................................... 231 Appendix G-2: Example Data Coding for Theme of Classroom Community........................ 231 Appendix G-3: Research Question #1 Results........................................................................ 232 Appendix G-4: Research Question #2 Results........................................................................ 234 Introduction High quality instruction has the potential to close the achievement gap between White students and students of color, as well as the gap between students in poverty and students who do not qualify for NSLP. Because the practices of differentiated instruction are so closely aligned with what research considers high-quality instruction, it is highly possible that differentiating instruction can help close the achievement gap. Exploring differentiated instruction in school settings that are racially, ethnically, socioeconomically, and linguistically diverse can illuminate the possibilities of closing the achievement gap through differentiated instruction. Teachers who actively differentiate instruction are theoretically more likely to modify their curriculum and instructional practices to make learning relevant for their students. They are also