Exploring Critical Literacy for Elementary Students with Disabilities

ABSTRACT The field of special education lacks an understanding of how students with learning and other disabilities engage with the ideological and contestable nature of the texts they read. Using qualitative methods, I explored a critical literacy model designed with techniques known to benefit students with disabilities. Over the course of three months, I individually worked with three elementary students of color with disabilities, using mnemonics and other explicit strategies to read texts relevant to their lived experiences. Findings reveal students’ nuanced responses that signify the necessity of truth, vulnerability, and self-worth when understanding advantage. Their insights challenged the notion that a single correct understanding of power relations exists, as each student highlighted power’s interpersonal nature, resisting my structural interpretations. Despite the model’s intent toward multiple perspectives of text, the discussion remained teacher directed. This study opens possibilities for future research exploring critical literacy and disability.