JoinThe Week of the Young Child is April 8-12, 2019
By Peggy Ashbrook
Posted on 2019-03-23
The Week of the Young Child is sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), beginning in 1971, to recognize the foundational early childhood years from birth through age 8. During this week, plan to make science explorations part of the celebration during this week. Share your plans on the NAEYC Facebook page. Use these resources from the National Science Teachers Association to help you celebrate!
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Day of the Week from NAEYC |
Science Exploration |
NSTA Resources |
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Music Monday, April 8 Through music, children develop math, language, and literacy skills—All while having fun and being active! |
The physics of sound. |
Waves Sound Great! First graders explore what makes sound through a 7E learning cycle. Science and Children. August 2018, 56(1): 33-38 The February 2014 issue of Science and Children, 51(6). |
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Tasty Tuesday, April 9 Cooking together connects math with literacy skills, science, and more while encouraging healthy nutrition and fitness habits at home and in the classroom. |
Measuring and mixing (and sometimes tasting) to make a change. |
The Early Years: Exploring the Properties of a Mixture. Science and Children. January 2008, 45(5): 18-20 NSTA Early Years blog: Lemonade Stands and Summer Activity Resources, July 9, 2014. |
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Work Together Wednesday, April 10 When children build together they explore math and science concepts and develop their social and early literacy skills. |
Building a stable structure together. |
A House for Chase the Dog. Chapter 18 in Bringing STEM to the Elementary Classroom. 2016. NSTA Early Years blog: Manipulating Contents & Containers, and representing 3-D objects in block play, July 29, 2016. |
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Artsy Thursday, April 11 Children develop creativity, social skills and fine motor skills with open-ended art projects where they can make choices, use their imaginations, and create with their hands. |
Exploring the properties of matter in art. |
NSTA Early Years blog: Sensory play for science learning, February 15, 2019. School Maker Faires, March 2018 Science and Children, 55(7): 30-37 |
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Family Friday, April 12 Engaging and celebrating families is at the heart of supporting our youngest learners. NAEYC applauds family members’ role as young children’s first and most important teachers. |
Sharing a science exploration with families. |
The Home Zone: Science activities for families to share. Science and Children: Research Roly polies 40(7): 43-44 and Bubble Shapes 40(8): 43-44 |
Learn more about how to support early childhood education from America for Early Ed.
The Week of the Young Child is sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAE
On teaching life cycles of living things
By Peggy Ashbrook
Posted on 2019-03-22
The changes living organisms go through fascinate us (and sometimes freak us out) even if we’ve seen the process before. Early childhood educators especially feel this because every day we come to work we are fascinated by the development and growth in the children we work with.
Frog eggs in a pond.
In the spring, seasonal changes in plants and animals happen at a speed even a preschooler has the patience to observe. Seeds sprout into seedlings within a few days, the flower that was a bud yesterday is now in full bloom, and animals of all kinds are preparing the way for their young by building nests, and finding the appropriate location—pond or leaf—to lay their eggs.
What part of these changes in plants and animals is important for children to learn about? How should we support children’s learning about the changes that we think are important?
Pointing to a possible bird nest.
Noticing, observing over time, documenting and describing, and communicating the observations and what they mean is the work of scientists and are part of the NGSS practices of science and engineering. Children do this work too when they first comment on a bird with a beak full of grass flying into a bush. And follow up by peering into the bush (but only once so as not to disturb the birds), and later, after listening to the constant cheeping coming from the bush, tell you they think baby birds have hatched from a nest in the bush.
Child’s drawing of the observed caterpillar.
Children may measure the growth of bean plants, and search under logs for (non-stinging) ants that appear as the weather warms. They may look in identification books to find out what their discovered caterpillar eats so they can care for it as it matures, pupates, and eventually emerges as an adult butterfly or moth. Describing observations and what they mean develops children’s understanding of both the living organism and the practices of science. They learn that organisms may change in shape as well as size as they grow, an idea they can relate to their own lives and to other organisms.
Frog life cycle poster.
By supporting children’s investigations into these kinds of changes we are helping them understand the nature of science as well as gain information about particular organisms. Some changes in living organisms may not be available for first hand observations. If children do not have access to a natural area, such as a pond where frogs lay their eggs, should we teach them about frogs, the structure of their bodies and their life cycle?
What experiences will be most meaningful for them and most memorable? What will teach them the most about the needs of living organisms—the sight of ants hurrying away, carrying eggs, when their nest is disturbed or a reading a book about ants? All children should have access to both first hand observation experiences and informational resources.
The changes living organisms go through fascinate us (and sometimes freak us out) even if we’ve seen the process before. Early childhood educators especially feel this because every day we come to work we are fascinated by the development and growth in the children we work with.
NSTA’s 75th: Celebrating the Past, Educating for the Future
By Kate Falk
Posted on 2019-03-22
Editors Note: Today in this blog series commemorating NSTA’s 75th Anniversary we celebrate the many stakeholders who work hard every day so that ALL students are engaged in science learning and who have helped NSTA to become a dedicated advocate for science education and a leading influencer on science and STEM teaching and learning nationwide.
The importance of science teaching and science learning has always been the driving focus of NSTA.
As we celebrate our 75th anniversary and look to the past with an eye to the future, it is an ideal time to reflect on the vital contributions made by our exhibitors, advertisers and sponsors.
Whether they have been supporting NSTA for decades or recently discovered how incredible and diverse our audience is, our vendor community deserves praise and respect for their consistent support of the Association and its members. Their vital support has enabled NSTA to produce award-winning conferences, programs, and publications which has truly had an impact on millions of teachers and students over the past 75 years.
Can you imagine an NSTA conference without the excitement and energy of the exhibit hall? It sure would be a lot less fun!
Have questions about new ways to teach or convey an idea – who better to learn from than those thought leaders who are helping to create the materials and equipment used in schools worldwide? Our vendor community spends incredible amounts of time researching, testing, and prototyping new products and services. Most have teams of educators guiding these developments and ensuring the highest level of quality is being produced. Their tremendous efforts in developing, creating and supplying ever-evolving tools and resources to keep students engaged, learning, and growing with a changing world is to be lauded.
NSTA’s vendors are passionate supporters and proponents for effective science and STEM education. They regularly contribute products and prizes, sponsor numerous events, and freely share their thoughts and solutions on how to increase student learning.
NSTA is thankful to have the support of such a dynamic group and we look forward to the 67th Annual NSTA National Conference on Science Education in St. Louis, MO just around the corner – and the jam-packed exhibit hall waiting for attendees. Please make sure to take the time to let your favorite vendors know they’re appreciated because without them, we wouldn’t be able to achieve all that we have thus far.
Future NSTA Conferences
- 2019 National Conference, St. Louis, April 11–14
- 2019 STEM Forum & Expo, San Francisco, July 24–26
- 2019 Area Conference, Salt Lake City, October 24–26
- 2019 Area Conference, Cincinnati, November 14–16
- 2019 Area Conference, Seattle, December 12–14
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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Editors Note: Today in this blog series commemorating NSTA’s 75th Anniversary we celebrate the many stakeholders who work hard every day so that ALL students are engaged in science learning and who have helped NSTA to become a dedicated advoca
Ed News: Teachers Need More Pay, Not Merit Pay
By Kate Falk
Posted on 2019-03-22
This week in education news, Title IV-A Coalition opposes President Trump’s plan to pull the plug on $1.2 billion block grant; research-practitioner partnerships across the country work to improve the quality of teachers who enter the teaching workforce; Deans for Impact launches new initiative that will focus on better preparing future teachers to incorporate cognitive science into their practice; hoping to fill empty factory jobs and reach across the aisle, the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association pushes a plan to waive tuition at state universities to students who will stay around and teach STEM; robotics is an ideal STEM learning experience; Alabama Senate passes legislation to repeal common core; and science is the new black.
Coalition Opposes President’s Plan to Pull the Plug on This $1.2 Billion Block Grant
President Donald Trump’s 2020 proposed $64 billion education budget eliminates funding for the Title IV-A block grant, and a coalition of 35 organizations—many prominent in K-12 education—is fighting back. Read the article featured in EdWeek Market Brief.
Taking the Guesswork Out of Teacher Hiring
Imagine a world where school districts’ hiring departments can predict the longevity and effectiveness of a teacher before she steps foot into a classroom. t’s a scenario that’s proved difficult to make reality, but a body of emerging research is making inroads. There are a handful of research-practitioner partnerships across the country working to improve teacher hiring through a strategic approach to job interviews, recommendations, and resume screenings. Read the article featured in Education Week.
Deans for Impact Launches Teacher Prep Learning Science Initiative
Utilizing a $1.5 million Chan Zuckerberg Initiative grant, the nonprofit will choose teacher programs to make the science of how students learn more accessible to educators. Read the article featured in Education DIVE.
Teachers Need More Pay, Not Merit Pay
I used to jump at the chance to share my views on performance pay for teachers. In my first article, published in 2007 when I was a third-year teacher, I wrote, “Performance pay done right could be one of the best things to happen to teachers, to our schools, and to our profession.” Today, I feel far more cautious about even discussing merit pay. The shortcomings of traditional teacher pay structures are still glaring, but the potential for disastrous alternatives is much clearer. Read the article featured in Education Week TEACHER.
STEM Students Would Get Free Tuition Under Illinois Bill
Hoping to fill empty factory jobs and reach across the aisle, the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association pushes a plan to waive tuition at state universities to students who will stay around and teach science, tech, engineering and math. Read the article featured in Chicago Business.
In the past few weeks, thousands of teachers in Oakland, California, went on strike, following similar protests in Denver, Los Angeles, and West Virginia. We are only three months into 2019 — and teachers have already taken to the picket line four times this year. In response, some critics have condemned these protests, chastising teachers for deserting their classrooms and even proposing that they serve jail time or lose their certification. But these critics are missing the point. Rather than take aim at our nation’s teachers, this should be a wake-up call. These strikes are the symptom of a larger disease within our education system, where the support our students and teachers are receiving is as crumbling as the infrastructure of the schools. Read the article featured in The 74.
How Artificial Intelligence Is Changing Science
No human, or team of humans, could possibly keep up with the avalanche of information produced by many of today’s physics and astronomy experiments. The deluge has many scientists turning to artificial intelligence for help. With minimal human input, AI systems such as artificial neural networks — computer-simulated networks of neurons that mimic the function of brains — can plow through mountains of data, highlighting anomalies and detecting patterns that humans could never have spotted. Read the article featured in Quanta Magazine.
Transforming Education: Robotics and Its Value for Next Gen Learning
Public education represents a community’s investment in its future. Considering that over 90 percent of American children, grades P-12, are in our public education system, we should be asking hard questions about what the return on this investment is or should be. The core mission of public education is to prepare students for their future so that they are contributing citizens, both economically and civically. Even better, our students should graduate with a strong competitive advantage so that, no matter their path, they will have optimum opportunities for success. Read the article featured in Education Week.
Alabama Senate passes bill to Repeal Common Core
The Alabama Senate has passed a bill that would require the state Board of Education and state Department of Education to adopt new learning standards to replace the Common Core standards the state has used for about eight years. The bill is sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh, R-Anniston, who unveiled it in a social media video, causing alarm for education officials who did not know it was coming and said it would be disruptive. Read the article featured on AL.com.
Science Is Soaring: Here’s How To Pursue A STEM Career And Why It Matters
Science is the new black. It impacts everyone, solves the world’s problems and ironically, there’s a disconnect: a skills gap equating to a shortage of professionals pursuing careers in science and STEM. This is juxtaposed with a strong demand and continued growth in a field that fuels innovation and offers job security. Read the article featured in Forbes.
Drones Take Their Place in the K-12 Classroom – “Drones Take Their Place in the K-12 Classroom
These small but mighty aircraft advance learning in computer programming and photography, and prep students for careers in this burgeoning field. Read the article featured in EdTech Magazine.
Stay tuned for next week’s top education news stories.
The Communication, Legislative & Public Affairs (CLPA) team strives to keep NSTA members, teachers, science education leaders, and the general public informed about NSTA programs, products, and services and key science education issues and legislation. In the association’s role as the national voice for science education, its CLPA team actively promotes NSTA’s positions on science education issues and communicates key NSTA messages to essential audiences.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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Building STEM Ecosystems: Community Partnerships
By Korei Martin
Posted on 2019-03-22
When I was a classroom teacher, I relished opportunities to connect my high school biology students to real world science and applications of their textbook science. Now, in the informal sector, I find my role reversed, and I get to collaborate with classroom teachers and local districts, supporting their efforts to help STEM come alive. The science classroom, the administration office, local industry, the informal sector – these are all parts of the STEM ecosystem, and, as with any ecosystem, each component plays a key role! That’s why at this year’s STEM Forum, we’re offering a new strand — Building STEM Ecosystems: Community Partnerships. This strand will highlight effective partnerships and collaborations between community, business/industry, museums, zoos, gardens and technology centers, afterschool programs, homeschool groups and education-focused entities with preK–16 schools and universities and home school groups. This strand will support teachers, informal institutions, community representatives and school administrators. We’ll explore how district leaders have effectively leveraged external support for STEM programs within their schools or districts.
I look forward to your examples of contributing to a healthy STEM ecosystem, and to seeing you at the 2019 STEM Forum July 24—26 in San Francisco!
The 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, is a unique, focused event that brings together (informal and formal) educators and representatives from exhibiting companies who are interested in, and who have tools and resources to share that will ensure successful implementation of STEM education into our schools and communities. It is intended to provide resources for educators and organizations seeking to learn more about STEM education, associated outreach programs, partnerships, schools, and curricula.
Future NSTA Conferences
2019 National Conference
St. Louis, April 11–14
2019 STEM Forum & Expo
San Francisco, July 24–26
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
Follow NSTA
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When I was a classroom teacher, I relished opportunities to connect my high school biology students to real world science and applications of their textbook science. Now, in the informal sector, I find my role reversed, and I get to collaborate with classroom teachers and local districts, supporting their efforts to help STEM come alive. The science classroom, the administration office, local industry, the informal sector – these are all parts of the STEM ecosystem, and, as with any ecosystem, each component plays a key role!
High School Teachers, The STEM Forum & Expo is for You
By Korei Martin
Posted on 2019-03-22
Teachers at the high school level expose students to learning that is applicable for college and career readiness. At the STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, attendees will experience this STEM pipeline firsthand. STEM educators at the high school level can participate in hands-on workshops with activities to replicate in their own districts, and gain innovative ideas from peers and exhibitors. Workshops are relevant, high interest, and easy to replicate. Panel discussions about the STEM pipeline will help focus your passion for STEM education to these pathways. Attendees will learn how to add more STEM classes and activities across the curriculum from presenters who demonstrate applications of science, computer science and robotics, industrial technology, engineering, and math.
An important theme of the high school strand is solving community problems, both in lessons and panels. Each attendee will leave with a new inspiration for involving their communities in STEM education, and knowledge of workforce needs across the nation.
There is something to meet everyone’s needs in the high school strand offerings. High school STEM leaders will gain knowledge to support the specialized responsibility they have in their districts to make decisions on curriculum, assessment, professional development, and community outreach. Participants and attendees alike will share their research findings with others in their field, learn what others are doing in STEM leading to new ideas for your learning community, meet like-minded people and find new opportunities to collaborate, and have fun! Attendees are encouraged to make connections with presenters, peers, and exhibitors for future collaboration and advice, and to come up with new ideas to present at next year’s Forum!
The 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, is a unique, focused event that brings together (informal and formal) educators and representatives from exhibiting companies who are interested in, and who have tools and resources to share that will ensure successful implementation of STEM education into our schools and communities. It is intended to provide resources for educators and organizations seeking to learn more about STEM education, associated outreach programs, partnerships, schools, and curricula.
Future NSTA Conferences
2019 STEM Forum & Expo
San Francisco, July 24–26
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
Follow NSTA
|
|
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Teachers at the high school level expose students to learning that is applicable for college and career readiness. At the STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, attendees will experience this STEM pipeline firsthand. STEM educators at the high school level can participate in hands-on workshops with activities to replicate in their own districts, and gain innovative ideas from peers and exhibitors. Workshops are relevant, high interest, and easy to replicate. Panel discussions about the STEM pipeline will help focus your passion for STEM education to these pathways.
8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo: We Need You!
By Korei Martin
Posted on 2019-03-22
On behalf of the entire steering committee for the 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, we invite you to join us from July 24 – 26, 2019, in beautiful San Francisco for the premier, international STEM education professional development event. The 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, is a uniquely focused event that brings together STEM partner organizations to create a venue for learning and collaboration among pre-K through post-secondary educators, workforce professionals, business and industry leaders, informal educators, policymakers, public and private organizations, and other active participants in STEM education.
As evidence mounts and the need grows for a better prepared and stronger workforce in the STEM fields, so too does the need for quality STEM education that inspires students to pursue coursework in STEM and to take an active role in STEM careers. The STEM pipeline cannot occur until formal educators and our educational partners come together to create relevant, high quality STEM lessons and programs for our students. The STEM Forum & Expo is the place where we can gather and partner with other educators and educational entities to truly create STEM ecosystems that benefits all students at all levels. New teachers of STEM, and even veteran educators, need opportunities to help them effectively integrate the STEM disciplines, learn and use various instructional approaches, network with like-minded educators, and see innovation in action. If you are a novice STEM teacher or have been STEM-ming for years, the STEM Forum & Expo is the event you want to attend!
BUT WE NEED YOU! We are seeking creative, innovative formal and informal educators to share lessons, resources, and effective STEM programs with our attendees. Educators need to build their skills and competencies in STEM, and they need resources that they can take back to their schools and inspire students to enter the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math. Each of us has a lesson, strategy, or program that we can share that would help to inspire another educator and influence the STEM learning of students across the world. We just need to take a leap and get out of our comfort zone of only presenting to students.
I hope to see you next summer in San Francisco for the STEM Forum & Expo. It will be a fantastic experience for all.
The 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, is a unique, focused event that brings together (informal and formal) educators and representatives from exhibiting companies who are interested in, and who have tools and resources to share that will ensure successful implementation of STEM education into our schools and communities. It is intended to provide resources for educators and organizations seeking to learn more about STEM education, associated outreach programs, partnerships, schools, and curricula.
Future NSTA Conferences
2019 National Conference
St. Louis, April 11–14
2019 STEM Forum & Expo
San Francisco, July 24–26
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
Follow NSTA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
On behalf of the entire steering committee for the 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, we invite you to join us from July 24 – 26, 2019, in beautiful San Francisco for the premier, international STEM education professional development event.
STEM, literacy and the young mind
By Gabe Kraljevic
Posted on 2019-03-22
What is the best way to introduce science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through literacy lessons in kindergarten?
—Y., New Mexico
To young children education is a single entity—they don’t make distinctions between disciplines until adults get involved! I think teachers of young children can easily capitalize on their innate curiosity and willingness to experiment to incorporate science, technology, engineering, mathematics, or any combination of them into almost any other activity.
A wonderful way to integrate the subjects is through solving engineering problems. Many excellent children’s books include all manner of scientific phenomena and topics. Check out NSTA’s Learning Center for dozens of ideas for kindergarten. NSTA’s Picture Perfect series provides amazing resources to use with some popular children’s books.
For example, after reading a story about birds a simple activity like, “Let’s build a bird’s nest” can inspire young students to think hard as they experiment with materials to keep eggs safe. Use the engineering design process to get students to analyze their creations and propose improvements. Reporting on what they have tried, their conclusions about different materials, and a description of the design they ended up with will be a excellent ways to teach communication, physical properties, measurement, gathering data, research, drawing, and more. They can compare their crafted items with real bird nests and propose why they are the same or different. Along this journey they communicate with their team members, learn new vocabulary, and work on fine-motor skills.
Hope this helps!
Image by stokpic on Pixabay
What is the best way to introduce science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through literacy lessons in kindergarten?
—Y., New Mexico
Elementary Science—Best Practices for All Students
By Cindy Workosky
Posted on 2019-03-21
Envision a room filled with noise, excited whispers, and students shouting across tables. Piles of tinfoil, plastic cups, scissors, string, and tape are scattered around the room. Paper, pencils, and notebooks filled with sketches are strewn across groups of desks. The lingering scent of melting chocolate pervades the room, as does an electric feeling of excitement among students.
This room may seem chaotic, but actually, it represents the best learning. If you were to ask students what is happening, they would describe their goal: to create a wrapper that would prevent a chocolate bar from melting. They would outline their plan and materials list, and discuss the revisions they made after collaborating with their tablemates. The students have spent weeks investigating how different substances react to heat and cold and testing different materials, which has given them content knowledge about changes in matter and the skills to design, test, and redesign a wrapper that even Hershey’s would envy.
What student wouldn’t be excited to have this activity be part of their school day? What teacher wouldn’t want to provide this type of lasting learning experience for his or her students?
How could a teacher accomplish this? The answer is both simple and complex. Simply doing science is easy; it’s something that teachers do already. But helping students learn science using the three dimensions as recommended in the Next Generation Science Standards requires more thought and planning. The standards include disciplinary core ideas, crosscutting concepts, and science practices, and students need to be able to access all three. But where to start?
Getting involved with science is the access point for all students, including both English language learners and those who already are proficient in English. To give students access to language, we need to build on experience. In many cases, children are not interacting with the world, so teachers need to provide these experiences. Choosing a phenomenon that is familiar to students is vital in giving them an authentic learning experience.
Starting here will spark students’ interest and increase their engagement with the work, as well as foster their independence while doing it. This connection gives students a foundation on which they can build language skills and develop ideas. Beginning this process of inquiry allows students time to use their home language as they converse with their peers, sketch and label their thoughts, and write questions. Not only are these skills critical for every learner, but they are also part of the English Language Proficiency standards (ELPs). Students are using the inquiry skills developed through the science and engineering practices to make sense of and understand the phenomenon, and therefore understand their world more deeply.
Students will develop a deeper understanding of the phenomenon as they ask questions and make observations, but they will have to show their thinking. Modeling is a scientific practice that offers an ideal entry point for building language around student thought. Students of any ability level can use their sketches and language to describe what they believe is happening with the phenomenon. This is the perfect opportunity to scaffold to add language to the students’ work. Students add language to their ideas, rather than struggling to formulate an idea around a foreign language.
This offers students an invaluable learning experience that validates their ideas and empowers them to learn more. It gives students a solid understanding and allows them to believe they can and want to use the language developed. They take pride in their discoveries and pleasure in being able to describe their model to their peers, instead of being fearful and not fully understanding.
Many students who have English as a second language lack the confidence to share their thinking with peers. With the gradual growth of their ideas through experiencing the phenomenon, modeling and revising it, and working with partners and groups, students are much better prepared to discuss their thinking. By the time they have synthesized their learning, they have practiced many different ways to show their thinking and express their ideas, and are much more confident and willing to share their ideas and reasoning with their peers.
Bringing science into the classroom creates a community of diligent workers and communicators. Students work harder because they are interested, engaged, and active. Students share more because they have multiple opportunities to access the academic vocabulary and practice it through investigations and partner and class discussions. The science practices are not just best practices for English Language Learners, they are also best practices for all learners.
Kayla Jury is a second grade teacher and professional development leader in the Beaverton (OR) School District. She has a Master’s of Science Education and is a Certified Science Instructional Specialist. Alongside a team of colleagues in Beaverton School District, Kayla has created a Next Generation Science based curriculum for the primary grades. She strives each day to provide integrated inquiry curriculum that is authentic and matters to all of her students.
Note: This article was featured in the March issue of Next Gen Navigator, a monthly e-newsletter from NSTA delivering information, insights, resources, and professional learning opportunities for science educators by science educators on the Next Generation Science Standards and three-dimensional instruction. Click here to sign up to receive the Navigator every month.
Visit NSTA’s NGSS@NSTA Hub for hundreds of vetted classroom resources, professional learning opportunities, publications, ebooks and more; connect with your teacher colleagues on the NGSS listservs (members can sign up here); and join us for discussions around NGSS at an upcoming conference.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
Future NSTA Conferences
2019 National Conference
STEM Forum & Expo
2019 Fall Conferences
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Envision a room filled with noise, excited whispers, and students shouting across tables. Piles of tinfoil, plastic cups, scissors, string, and tape are scattered around the room. Paper, pencils, and notebooks filled with sketches are strewn across groups of desks. The lingering scent of melting chocolate pervades the room, as does an electric feeling of excitement among students.
Contemporary Instructional Approaches to Promote STEM Learning for English Learners
By Okhee Lee
Posted on 2019-03-21
The release of the report English Learners in STEM Subjects: Transforming Classrooms, Schools, and Lives (shortened to “the report” hereafter) (NASEM 2018) is timely, as three emerging forces shape the changing landscape of K–12 science education. First, demographics of the nation’s student population are rapidly changing, including the fast-growing subpopulation of English Learners (ELs). Second, A Framework for K–12 Science Education (NRC 2012) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS; NGSS Lead States 2013) are both academically rigorous and language intensive. Third, computer science, including computational thinking, is becoming increasingly important for all students.
I will describe two key domains the report highlights: contemporary views on language and STEM subjects with ELs, and contemporary instructional approaches compared to traditional instructional approaches with ELs. Based on these two key domains, the report contains promising instructional strategies (see Chapter 4).
Contemporary Views on Language and STEM Subjects With English Learners
Recently, parallel shifts in STEM subjects and second language acquisition have occurred. In STEM subjects, contemporary views emphasize that students make sense of phenomena and problems in the classroom community (knowledge-in-use), while traditional views have focused on individual learners’ mastery of discrete elements of content. In second language acquisition, contemporary views emphasize that language is a set of meaning-making practices learned through participation in social contexts (language-in-use), but traditional views have focused on discrete elements of vocabulary (lexicon) and grammar (syntax) to be internalized by learners. Recognizing these instructional shifts as mutually supportive can promote rigorous STEM learning and rich language use with all students, including ELs. When ELs are engaged in STEM disciplinary practices in which STEM experts and professionals regularly engage (e.g., developing models, arguing from evidence, constructing explanations), ELs learn STEM subjects and language simultaneously.
As ELs learn STEM subjects while engaging in disciplinary practices, they use language to make meaning through social interactions with peers and the teacher in the classroom community. ELs use language and other meaning-making resources purposefully in the service of “doing” and communicating ideas about STEM subjects (Lee et al. 2013). ELs can communicate their ideas using less-than-perfect English.
Contemporary Instructional Approaches Compared to Traditional Instructional Approaches With English Learners
With its charge to reimagine instructional approaches to promote STEM learning and language learning with ELs, the report compares contemporary instructional approaches to traditional instructional approaches. First, it is a misconception that disciplinary vocabulary is disciplinary language. While contemporary approaches recognize that disciplinary vocabulary is one key feature of disciplinary language when the vocabulary is used in context, language in STEM subjects extends way beyond vocabulary. In STEM classrooms, ELs use language to engage in disciplinary practices and communicate disciplinary meaning. Through this engagement, ELs learn language as a product.
Second, a misconception exists that a certain level of English proficiency is a precursor or prerequisite to meaningfully engaging in STEM learning. This misconception has led to pre-teaching and frontloading of vocabulary. Instead, contemporary approaches highlight the functional use of language in social interactions and view language as a product, not a precursor or prerequisite.
Third, in content-based language teaching, which has been common practice until recently, EL teachers are asked to develop “content objectives” and “language objectives.” Typical language objectives focus on grammatical forms (past tense) or only on a particular function out of context (“compare. . . .”). Instead, contemporary approaches highlight using language while engaging in STEM disciplinary practices and learning language as a product.
Finally, sheltered instruction with ELs often provides highly simplified content that seldom satisfies grade-level content expectations. This approach fails to meet the goal of content standards that are expected of all students, including ELs. In addition, simplification of language can have unintended consequences for ELs. For example, as cause-and-effect is a crosscutting concept across STEM subjects, shortening a sentence by eliminating words that establish a causal relationship (e.g., because, therefore) can actually make it more difficult for ELs to understand disciplinary content. Contemporary approaches highlight amplifying language to support and challenge ELs with academically rigorous content.
The report will become more critical as emerging forces continue to shape the changing landscape of K–12 science education in the coming years. Today, there is consensus in science education on what counts as science and how children learn science. Moreover, the science education community’s contemporary view of science teaching and learning offers language-learning opportunities to and holds equitable expectations of all students, including ELs. The other two articles in this issue provide classroom examples that promote both science and language learning with ELs at the elementary and high school levels.
Okhee Lee is a professor in the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development at New York University. She was a member of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) writing team and served as leader for the NGSS Diversity and Equity Team. She was also a member of the Steering Committee for the Understanding Language Initiative at Stanford University. She is currently leading collaborative research to develop instructional materials aligned with the NGSS in order to promote science learning and language learning of elementary students, including English learners.
References
Lee, O., H. Quinn, and G. Valdés. 2013. Science and language for English language learners in relation to Next Generation Science Standards and with implications for Common Core State Standards for English language arts and mathematics. Educational Researcher 42(4): 223–233.
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM). 2018. English learners in STEM subjects: Transforming classrooms, schools, and lives. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
National Research Council (NRC). 2012. A framework for K–12 science education: Practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
NGSS Lead States. 2013. Next Generation Science Standards: For states, by states. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
Note: This article was featured in the March issue of Next Gen Navigator, a monthly e-newsletter from NSTA delivering information, insights, resources, and professional learning opportunities for science educators by science educators on the Next Generation Science Standards and three-dimensional instruction. Click here to sign up to receive the Navigator every month.
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The release of the report English Learners in STEM Subjects: Transforming Classrooms, Schools, and Lives (shortened to “the report” hereafter) (NASEM 2018) is timely, as three emerging forces shape the changing landscape of K–12 science education. First, demographics of the nation’s student population are rapidly changing, including the fast-growing subpopulation of English Learners (ELs).