Search for: All records

Abstract The limited availability of research instruments that reflect the vision of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) restricts the field's understanding of whether and how teachers are making instructional shifts called for by the standards. The need for such instruments is particularly urgent with teachers of multilingual learners (MLs), who are called on to make shifts in how they think about and enact instruction related to both science and language. The purpose of this study was to develop and gather validity evidence for a questionnaire that measures elementary teachers' beliefs, preparedness, and instructional practices for teaching NGSS science with MLs. We report on the development of the questionnaire over three phases that elicited multiple sources of validity evidence: (a) domain specification and expert review, (b) item writing and cognitive interviews, and (c) piloting and final item selection. Data included feedback from experts in science and language domains, cognitive interviews with 48 teachers, and a pilot with 310 teachers. Results indicated that the questionnaire differentiates among teachers with different levels of the underlying constructs and also that teachers' scores relate to their characteristics (e.g., familiarity with the NGSS). We highlight two implications for emerging research on NGSS‐based instrumentation: (a) the difficulty of communicating with teachers about science and language instructional shifts while teachers are still developing their understanding of such shifts and (b) the potential of emerging NGSS‐based instruments to inform professional development. We close with future directions for our research project specifically and the field of science education broadly. 

Abstract As the vision inA Framework for K‐12 Science Educationand the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) takes hold in schools and classrooms, there is an urgent need for teacher professional development (PD) programs that align with NGSS‐designed curriculum materials and address the unique strengths and needs of diverse student groups, including multilingual learners (MLs). The purpose of this article is to propose our conceptual framework for PD programs that aligns with current reform efforts and is grounded in the mutually supportive nature of contemporary science and language instructional shifts. Specifically, we examine our previous NGSS‐designed curriculum development project with MLs and review the literature in science education and language education with MLs. Our conceptual framework for PD programs is grounded in the perspective ofsymmetrythat teacher professional learning experiences should be symmetrical to the learning experiences we organize for students. Grounded in this perspective, our conceptual framework consists of three design principles that describe how PD programs can guide teachers to (a) develop an asset‐oriented view of MLs and instructional practices for recognizing and leveraging their assets, (b) integrate science and language in mutually supportive ways with MLs, and (c) develop more sophisticated instructional practices for integrating science and language with MLs over time. We describe contributions of our conceptual framework, which could generate a new research agenda and inform PD programs aimed at facilitating uptake of NGSS‐designed curriculum materials in linguistically diverse science classrooms. 

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 was to investigate how computational modeling promotes systems thinking for English Learners (ELs) in fifth-grade science instruction. Individual student interviews were conducted with nine ELs about computational models of landfill bottle systems they had developed as part of a physical science unit. We found evidence of student engagement in four systems thinking practices. Students used data produced by their models to investigate the landfill bottle system as a whole (Practice 1). Students identified agents and their relationships in the system (Practice 2). Students thought in levels, shuttling between the agent and aggregate levels (Practice 3). However, while students could think in levels to develop their models, they struggled to engage in this practice when presented with novel scenarios (e.g., open vs. closed system). Finally, students communicated information about the system using multiple modalities and less-than-perfect English (Practice 4). Overall, these findings suggest that integrating computational modeling into standards-aligned science instruction can provide a rich context for fostering systems thinking among linguistically diverse elementary students.