Research on TESOL materials development has focused primarily on instructional materials for contexts in which students are learning English separate from academic content (e.g., science, mathematics). This research could benefit from expansion given the increasing number of contexts in which students are learning content and English language simultaneously. In U.S. K–12 education specifically, a fast‐growing population of English learners (ELs) is expected to achieve academically rigorous content standards that reflect new ways of thinking about content, language, and their integration. Thus, developing instructional materials based on the standards has necessitated shifts from traditional to contemporary approaches. The purpose of this article is to illustrate how instructional materials for ELs in the content areas have evolved over time. After describing conceptual shifts in the fields of content area education and language education that underpin the evolution of instructional materials, the researchers present traditional and contemporary elementary science units. Then, they analyze the units in relation to key features of traditional and contemporary materials for ELs in the content areas. Finally, they discuss how materials development in content learning contexts could expand the scope of TESOL materials development by providing a fresh perspective on ongoing debates and tensions in this vibrant research area.
The purpose of this study is to present a conceptual framework that integrates science and language learning for all students, including English learners (ELs). This framework is grounded in the mutually supportive nature of science instructional shifts, spurred by
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10083836
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Science Education
- Volume:
- 103
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 0036-8326
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- p. 317-337
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract The latest content standards in U.S. K–12 education are academically rigorous for all students, including a fast‐growing population of English learners (ELs). Because these standards are different from previous standards in terms of not only their rigor but also their theoretical underpinnings, enacting instruction aligned to the standards will require shifts in how teachers conceptualize the nature of content and language learning. In this article, the authors argue that instructional strategies traditionally used with ELs in the content areas need to be rethought in light of contemporary theoretical perspectives. After providing a brief overview of these perspectives in content area education and language education, the authors highlight three instructional strategies: (a) preteaching vocabulary, (b) providing sentence frames and starters, and (c) using visual aids. They describe how each strategy has traditionally been used and tensions that may arise in using the strategy in light of contemporary perspectives. Drawing on examples from their curriculum development work in linguistically diverse elementary science classrooms, the authors propose ways that teachers can adapt when and how they use each of these strategies to deliver more theoretically sound instruction. Implications of the adapted strategies for teachers working with ELs in content classrooms are discussed.
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With the release of the consensus report English Learners in STEM Subjects: Transforming Classrooms, Schools, and Lives, we highlight foundational constructs and perspectives associated with STEM subjects and language with English learners (ELs) that frame the report. The purpose here is to elevate these constructs and perspectives for discussion among the broader education research community. First, we provide an overview of the unique contributions of the report to move the ELs and STEM fields forward. Second, we describe ELs in terms of their heterogeneity and the inconsistency of educational policies that affect their learning opportunities in STEM subjects. Third, we describe contemporary views on STEM subjects and language with ELs that indicate that instructional shifts across STEM subjects and language are mutually supportive. Fourth, we describe promising instructional strategies to promote STEM learning and language development with ELs. Lastly, we close the article by reimagining STEM education with ELs and offer potential next steps. These foundational constructs and perspectives on STEM subjects and language with ELs are critical because they provide the conceptual grounding for the design of the education system for ELs. The report could contribute to building a knowledge base for ELs in STEM subjects and language as education research, policy, and practice converge to reimagine what is possible to both support and challenge ELs to learn academically rigorous content standards that are expected of all students.
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