Sheltered Instruction in the Secondary Science Classroom Seattle-Tacoma, Washington November 8-9, 2012 Sara Tolbert, Ph.D. University of Arizona
Agenda 8:30 AM Effective Science Teaching for English Language Learners: An Overview 9:45 AM Constructivism and The 5E Learning Cycle 11:15 AM Developing Academic Language through Science Inquiry 12:00 PM LUNCH on your own 1:00 PM Facilitating Authentic Literacy Practices: Reading and Writing in Inquiry Science for ELLs 2:45 PM Assessing English Learners in Secondary Science 4:15 PM Wrap-up 4:30 PM End of Session
Introductions Post-IT: 1 strategy you currently use to support emergent bilinguals (ELLs) in science 1 question you have about how to support ELL students in science Introductions pair interviews: name, school, favorite thing about teaching, why you are here KWL
Driving questions for the session How can we help emergent bilingual students: Access rigorous content in science Develop academic language through science Access grade level reading in science Develop science understandings through authentic writing practices Demonstrate what they have learned via equitable assessment tools?
How can we help emergent bilingual students access rigorous content in science? EFFECTIVE SCIENCE INSTRUCTION FOR ENGLISH LEARNERS
Background 45% of the U.S. population under 19 years of age are racial/ethnic minorities. Over 1 in 5 students speak a home language that is not English. The population of LEP (Limited English Proficient federal term) students doubled from 1993 to 2007. Achievement (opportunity) gaps persist. National Center for Education Statistics (2011), US Census (2010)
Language & Science The Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core Standards (WA has signed on to both) call for increased attention to language & literacy development in science teaching & learning. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=play er_embedded&v=z19luxxie7m&noredirect=1
Prior Research We are all language teachers. Language acquisition BICS/CALP (4-10 years) Constructivist, sociocultural approaches to instruction support language and literacy development while improving math and science learning outcomes. 1 1 Lee & Luykx, 2006; Nasir & Cobb, 2007
Conceptual framework guiding practice in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms Constructivism individuals (students) construct new knowledge from prior knowledge and through NEW [hands-on, minds-on] experiences Sociocultural theory individuals (students) make sense of new experiences with unique intellectual, social, cultural, and linguistic resources from their homes and communities Learning is an ACTIVE, SOCIAL process.
Effective science teaching for English language learners (ESTELL) Collaborative Inquiry Science Talk (Scientific Discourse) Language & Literacy Development Contextualizing Science Activity Scientific Reasoning & Inquiry (S&E Practices) Think-Pair-Share: How do your current practices connect with these best practices?
CONSTRUCTIVISM AND THE 5E LEARNING CYCLE
Traditional approaches to instruction do not work well for emergent bilingual students (ELLs). Gunckel, 2010
Constructivist approaches are more authentic to the discipline and enhance content learning for all students. Gunckel, 2010
Lesson cycle for inquiry science 5E Inquiry lesson cycle (BSCS, 1989; Bybee et al, 2006) Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate
Engage: What do you think you know about JIGSAW: Bromothymol blue? Human breath? Water?
Literacy tools to support inquiry science
Literacy tools to support inquiry science BEGINNING IDEAS What are my questions? (What do you want to find out?) QUESTION WALK - Place your question on your desk. Walk around silently and read the questions your classmates have generated.
Literacy tools to support inquiry science Discuss with a partner and generate a hypothesis. Write your hypothesis (if/then statement). Label the materials you plan to use to conduct your investigation. What is your plan? What did you do?
Literacy tools to support inquiry science Record your results using a table, chart, picture, etc. (attach to the lab sheet) Summarize what you observed during your experiment. What claims can you make? What is your evidence? What new questions do you have?
Mini-conference - Share your findings, conclusions, & new questions We observed that Based on the results of these investigations, I conclude that I now wonder
What language/literacy skills are Graffiti addressed in this activity?
5E Learning Cycle with 6 th E (Express) Engage Evaluate Explore Elaborate Explain Express
6 th E? 6 th E - Express (Duran et al, 2011): inserting a conscious pause in the learning cycle (p. 57) Modified Elaborate phase: a three-tiered, student-specific, and differentiated Elaborate phase to meet each student s individual needs (p. 58)
Word wall Elodea Observe Indicator Solution Acid Base Photosynthesis Carbon dioxide Solution Confer Hypothesis Conclude Emerge (emergent) Acquisition Vehicle Cycle Differentiate Conduct Record Predict Generate
! How can we help emergent bilingual students develop academic language in science?! DEVELOPING ACADEMIC LANGUAGE IN SCIENCE!
LISELL Language-rich Inquiry Science for English Language Learners (Year 3) National Science Foundation funded-project University of Georgia Cory Buxton & Martha Allexsaht-Snider, principal investigators
General Academic Vocabulary BICS/CALP Everyday vocabulary (Tier 1) General purpose academic vocabulary (Tier 2) Content-specific academic vocabulary*(tier 3) Averil Coxhead (1998) Academic Word List Linguistic Blindspots *Beck, McKeown, & Kucan (2002)
Academic Language
Integrating academic language practices with science inquiry in LISELL Teaching language-rich science inquiry is a meaning-making, problem-solving pursuit necessary to scientific thinking and understanding. Interactive science notebooks Indirect AND direct vocabulary instruction
Using the academic language of science Build word consciousness (e.g., prefixes, suffixes, cognates) Make explicit the abstract and depersonalized nature of scientific language Break down the dense nature of scientific language Facilitate multiple ways to express science ideas
Using the academic language of science Facilitate opportunities to practice talking science Tap into students own ways of thinking and talking about science as a BRIDGE to formal science language and ideas Provide opportunities for students to practice writing in the scientific genre (YES, complete sentences!)
Building word consciousness
Make explicit the nature of scientific language
Nature of science language, continued
Break it down!
Break it down!
Facilitate multiple ways to express ideas
Facilitate multiple ways to express ideas Identity issues in science what are some other ways to encourage students to use scientific language/discourse without appropriating a scientist identity?
LISELL Lesson Starters Designed to highlight more of the Tier 2 General Academic Words Unlike the technical Tier 3 words, Tier 2 words can often require more explicit instruction, or front-loading. 5-10 new Tier 2 words per week 5-10 min per day of explicit vocabulary instruction or as a sponge activity
How can we help emergent bilingual students (1) access grade level reading in science and (2) develop science understandings through authentic writing practices? FACILITATING AUTHENTIC LITERACY PRACTICES: READING AND WRITING IN INQUIRY SCIENCE FOR ELLS
Literacy and Science: Each in the Service of the Other (Pearson, et al, 2010) State and federal policies have, for better or worse (mostly worse), marginalized disciplinary curricula, including science, in deference to a massive, almost manic, devotion to literacy teaching and learning (Cervetti, Pearson, Bravo, & Barber, 2006) Reading and writing is part of doing science. Literacy instruction can be used to support, not supplant, inquiry science.
Literacy and Science: Each in the Service of the Other (Pearson, et al, 2010) Without systematic attention to reading and writing within subjects like science and history, students will leave schools with an impoverished sense of what it means to use the tools of literacy for learning or even to reason within various disciplines (Pearson, et al, 2010) More than making texts available Textbased inquiries explicit support
Strategies for Reading From learning to read in elementary schools to reading to learn in secondary schools Many students to not successfully make this transition HUGE disadvantage for secondary and postsecondary success High school teachers can learn to focus on targeted reading comprehension strategies Proficiency with reading strategies is positively correlated with science achievement (Herman, et al, 2010)
Reading & Writing in Science The Questions Game for Accessing Grade Level Reading Skim the article 15 min(hand, et al, 2002) Write 3 questions you have about the article on your colored notecard. Find someone with a different colored notecard. Share your questions. Jot down potential responses on the back of your notecard. Then, converse with your partner about those potential responses. Together, create 3 new questions you now have about the reading.
Reading & Writing in Science Find another pair. Share your 3 new questions. In your pair, discuss potential responses to the new pair s questions. Come back together with the new pair. Discuss all 6 questions. Create 3 new questions that you still have as a group. Share with the whole class. These are our potential questions for further study.
Text Rendering with 5E article, if time Go through the article and find/circle or mark a few phrases that strike you as interesting. POPCORN read your phrase and BRIEFLY describe why you found it interesting. (No one is allowed to respond at this time.)
Other strategies to support reading 5E cycle Explanation/Elaboration phases Annotated readings students are taught how to identify and mark important information Dual-entry journals structured readerresponse log Summarization digest/communicate information to an external audience (necessary skill in science!) Reciprocal reading/teaching
Reciprocal Teaching/Reading (Palinscar & Brown, 1984) Questioning A student assumes the role of "teacher" and reads aloud a segment of a passage as group members follow along silently. The group members then pose questions that focus on main ideas. Summarizing The "teacher" answers and summarizes the content. Clarifying The group discusses and clarifies remaining difficulties in understanding. Predicting The group then makes a prediction about future content. Next, a second student takes on the role of teacher for a subsequent segment of text. from SEDL Free Resources for Building Reading Proficiency at the Secondary Level
Science Writing Heuristic In your small group, generate activities that you might use at each phase of the SWH (see Teacher template) As long as low-challenge, multiple-choice tests serve as the primary metric for measuring student learning and teacher quality it will be difficult for teachers to take the risk of promoting genuine inquiry in their classes. (Pearson, et al, 2010)
How do we help emergent bilingual students demonstrate what they have learned via equitable assessment tools? ASSESSMENT FOR ELLS IN SCIENCE
Assessment for ELs Assessing ELs through written or spoken language brings up questions of validity and fairness (Siegel, 2007) Linguistically modified items increase achievement of ELs Goal is to maintain complexity of content while decreasing linguistic complexity Accommodation Strategies More comprehensible (decrease linguistic complexity) Using L1 (but not fully translating test!) Glossaries Visual Supports Extending Time Limits
McCes framework for equitable classroom assessments Classroom assessments for ELs should: 1. match the learning goals of the original items and match the language of instruction; 2. be comprehensible for ELs, both linguistically and culturally; 3. challenge students to think about difficult ideas, without watering down content; 4. elicit student understanding; and 5. scaffold the use of language and support student learning. (Siegel, 2007)
Analyzing the language demands of state assessments in science What s new on state assessments? How can you be both true to your discipline AND help prepare students for state tests? Activity: Analyze the language demands (tier 1/tier 2 words, etc) Are these fair questions for English learners? Would you recommend any changes?
Assessments Grade 8 WA State EOC Biology WA State Grade 8 NAEP Grade 12 NAEP
Driving questions for the session How can we help emergent bilingual students: Access rigorous content in science Develop academic language through science Access grade level reading in science Develop science understandings through authentic writing practices Demonstrate what they have learned via equitable assessment tools?
Wrap-up Outcome statements: (revisit original questions) I think I feel I wonder I learned
Evaluations Thanks! Sara Tolbert stolbert@gmail.com