Multimodal Disciplinary Literacy and Teacher Agency: An Ethnographic Case Study in an Elementary ESOL Classroom

Abstract

This study explores how an elementary ESOL teacher in a rural U.S. school enacted agency to support multilingual learners' (MLs) engagement with disciplinary literacy in science. Drawing on frameworks of disciplinary literacy and multimodal pedagogy, the study investigates how science instruction can move beyond remediation and instead foster MLs' full participation as sense‐makers and knowledge producers. Through ethnographic case study methods, including classroom observations, interviews, and student artifacts, we examine how the teacher co‐constructed inquiry‐based, multimodal science lessons that integrated language and content learning. Findings highlight three interrelated instructional strategies: (a) centering students' everyday experiences in science modeling, (b) leveraging multimodal representations to support conceptual and linguistic development, and (c) fostering dialogic routines that positioned MLs as capable contributors to scientific discourse. Set in a rural context, the study underscores the critical role of ESOL teacher agency in reimagining science education for equity. We argue that disciplinary literacy in science must be broadened to include multilingual, multimodal ways of knowing and doing, especially in under‐resourced schools. This work contributes to growing conversations about how rural educators can enact linguistically inclusive, inquiry‐driven science instruction that affirms the identities and assets of MLs.