°Ā±šāv±š talked about how scientists need literacy skills in order to be scientists. They canāt do their jobs without reading, writing, listening, and communicating.
Our recent webinar explored this intersection from a broader level: the power of language in the science classroom.
How can science teachers remove language barriers to make sure all students are able to access prior knowledgeāand acquire more? And how can teachers leverage language to create optimal learning conditions for their science students? Why should they?
Letās find out what webinar co-hosts Eric Cross and Susan Gomez Zwiep, Ph.D., had to say!
Language and science sense-making
Contrary to stereotype, scientists arenāt just loners in labs. Susan Gomez Zwiep, former middle school science teacher and senior science educator at BSCS Science Learning, credits a colleague with this pearl: āIf Iām just doing science myself, and not talking to anybody, thatās not science. Thatās just me in my head.ā
So science teachers need to give students every possible opportunity to get out of their heads. And if language is a barrierāwhether students are learning English, or challenged by science vocabāteachers can help remove it.
This principle is especially important in the context of phenomena-based learning, says Gomez Zwiep. āRather than telling students ideas, and then proving those ideas correct by showing them a phenomenon, we show them the phenomena and engage them in science sense-making to develop that understanding,ā she says. āLanguage is central to science sense-making and communicating that sense-making.ā
Students also bring their prior knowledge to scientific sense-making. And, as Gomez Zwiep points out, prior knowledge is often embedded in the language a student uses at home, or just their own non-scientific vernacular. āI have to use that when I first engage with the phenomenon,ā she says. āOtherwise, I’m limiting the resources that kids bring to the learning environment.ā
Language in a āsafeā science classroom
āIf I had to learn science in my second language, I would be struggling with not only everyday vocabulary, but also content-specific vocabulary,ā says Eric Cross, host of æģ²„appās Science Connections podcast. āYou would never actually know what I knew or what I was bringing to the table.ā
The goal is to create an environment where students feel comfortable exploring, using whatever language is accessible to them, and then guiding them to conclusionsāand precise scientific language. āA classroom requires trust. It requires relationship building,ā says Gomez Zwiep. āIf a student is worried about saying something a particular way, thatās where all their cognitive energy is going instead of actually talking about the science.ā
The key? Put scientific ideas first, and the language will come. āWe used to wait until kids had English in order to learn science. And now we’re starting to see that language emerges from learning experiences,ā says Gomez Zwiep. āSo it’s a product of learning, not a prerequisite.ā
Literacy in your science classroom
You can integrate science and literacy right away, starting with .
Explore more:
Science blogs
- “Science or literacy instruction? You donāt have to choose!ā
- “Instructional strategies for integrating literacy into your science classroomā
Science Connections podcast episodes
- S3, E2: How science strengthens literacy and language development
- S3, E3: Instructional strategies for integrating science and literacy
