Term

Fall 2025

Capstone

Capstone Project

Degree Name

MAT

Facilitator(s)

Jana Lo Bello Miller and Betsy Parrish

Content Expert

Angela Froemming

Abstract

The research question addressed in this project is : “How can multilingual teachers successfully co-teach with special education teachers in delivering effective genre-based pedagogy in literacy?” This capstone project addresses the critical educational gap facing dual-identified students–English learners (ELs) with significant disabilities–who require specialized support for both language development and disability-related needs. Despite federal mandates requiring both services, over 832,000 dual-identified students enrolled in U.S. public schools often fall through academic gaps due to fragmented services and deficit-based approaches that fail to recognize their intersectionalities. Teachers report feeling underprepared at ensuring these students have equal access to classroom curriculum. The paper and project explores how multilingual and special education teachers can successfully collaborate to deliver effective genre-based instruction that honors students’ intersectional identities. Drawing primarily from Kimberlé Crenshaw's intersectionality framework, which examines how multiple social identities create unique experiences of discrimination and privilege, the study also incorporates Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles for creating accessible curriculum and Michael Halliday's systemic functional linguistics theory. The project integrates genre-based pedagogy with a Federal Setting IV special education classroom’s existing Unique Learning Systems curriculum to develop a procedural genre writing unit that fulfilled twelfth grade standards. It includes accommodations for students with autism spectrum disorder and developmental cognitive delay disorder and has leveled materials for differing ability levels. It is designed as a ready-to-use unit for teachers with limited preparation time. The goal of the project is to demonstrate that dual-identified students can engage in rigorous academic writing when instruction is designed through asset-based, intersectional lenses.

Project Type

Curriculum

Keywords

Curriculum, ESL/ ELLs, Special Education, Genre

dc_type

text

dc_publisher

DigitalCommons@Hamline

dc_format

application/pdf

dc_source

School of Education Student Capstone Projects

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Education Commons

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