This study examined the literacy use of one young adolescent male, identified as learning disabled in a middle-school classroom. The case study focused on the strategies he used, his knowledge about his own language abilities and disabilities, and the social contexts for literacy learning that seemed to best support his language use. Throughout this year-long qualitative study, data sources included field notes, interviews, work samples, and audio and videotapes. Results indicated that the student's literacy use was strongly affected by the context in which he was asked to read and write. Unsophisticated literacy behaviors were produced in traditional academic contexts, while more sophisticated uses were exhibited in contexts that bridged the student's personal and cultural knowledge to literacy use in the classroom. Results point to the complex nature of changing schooling for older students who have been identified as unsuccessful.
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