Systemic functional linguistic and disciplinary literacy development in multilingual K-12 schools in the United States

Abstract

This chapter explores Halliday's theory of systemic functional linguistics (SFL) and the work of scholars who have used this theory to apprentice diverse learners to read, write, and critically analyze disciplinary texts. After discussing the differences between everyday and discipline-specific ways of constructing knowledge with language and other meaning-making systems, this chapter explains an SFL perspective of grammar, register, genre, and an aligned pedagogical approach called the Teaching and Learning Cycle. Next, the authors provide a brief review of critiques of SFL pedagogy. They conclude with recommendations for future SFL-informed research and practice in K-12 schools in the US.