Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how digital technologies were introduced in a collaborative literacy intervention to address a population long underserved by traditional schools: the Aboriginals of Canada. Design/methodology/approach: Situated within a critical ethnographic project, this paper examines how digital technologies were introduced. The questions focused on: how can critical multiliteracies be used to engage students, in both academic and digital literacies development? In what ways does participation in multimodal media production provide evidence of teachers and students' critical literacy development?Findings: Digital literacies as a part of multiliteracies were developed in teaching contexts where learning is challenged by many factors. Research limitations/implications: The paper reports on the achievement and the struggles that remain. Implications for further research and teacher education are also drawn from the experience of implementing a broader definition of literacy in academic settings with Aboriginal students of Canada. Originality/value: The inclusion of a digital curriculum provides possibilities for greater academic success for marginalized students in both mainstream and alternative schools. (Contains 3 figures and 2 notes.)