English Learners in STEM Subjects Transforming Classrooms, Schools, and Lives (2018) / Chapter Skim
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9 Conclusions, Recommendations, and Research Agenda
9 Conclusions, Recommendations, and Research Agenda
Pages 293-314
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From page 293... ...
CONCLUSIONS The committee organized its conclusions by first articulating issues surrounding ELs in the broader educational landscape, including estimations of academic achievement, access, and barriers to inclusion in STEM learning, and the use of ELs' first language during STEM instruction. In the next set of conclusions, we more explicitly emphasized the interaction between STEM learning and language development; the instructional strategies that have been identified as potentially beneficial for serving ELs in STEM learning; the interaction between families, communities, and schools; and the preparation of and professional development for preservice and 293
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. Like the previous committee, the current committee observed heterogeneity from multiple sources that have impacts on academic achievement including ELs' English proficiency, the home languages they speak, their proficiency in their home language(s)
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At the same time, it goes without saying that such high-quality bilingual instruction is currently not possible in all contexts. The diversity of first languages spoken in the United States, the low density of many languages in most communities, the limited availability of teachers of STEM content who are proficient in those home languages and in English, and the limited availability of STEM instructional materials in many languages reduces the chances of effective first language instruction for all ELs.
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From page 296... ...
However, clear and consistent designations of EL and English-proficiency status are needed to reduce misperceptions of ELs' proficiency in science, tech nology, engineering, and mathematics academic achievement, including misestimation of achievement gaps. Consistent identification, including the ability to report on educational attainment of ELs after they have become proficient in English, would enable a deeper understanding of academic achievement of students who begin school as ELs, as well as what program models and instructional strategies work best, and to determine whether specific approaches work best for particular EL subpopulations under specific conditions.
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From page 297... ...
Thus, not all access to meaning in STEM is directly through language, even when understanding is later communicated through language. Because STEM knowledge is gained through meaningful engagement with STEM content and practices, including observation and experimentation, the language used to describe and communicate in these disciplines can be grounded in students' personal experiences with content that is distinct from the way that content is experienced in history, social studies, and reading/language arts.
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From page 298... ...
The developmental nature of STEM learning and language proficiency have substantial implications for structuring and implementing STEM instruction for English learners from the early grades. Instructional Strategies In reviewing the evidence on instructional strategies (see Chapter 4)
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to represent and communicate their thinking, solutions, or arguments in STEM subjects. STEM curriculum that is developed considering ELs from the inception of the design process shows greater sensitivity to the role of language in STEM instruction and will integrate tools into the material that complement the language to convey meaning to learners in multiple ways.
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CONCLUSION 11: The integration of science, technology, engineer ing, and mathematics (STEM) content and language learning can be achieved in various ways but is facilitated when teachers of STEM content work in concert with English as a second language teachers who recognize the functional use of language in STEM instruction.
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From page 301... ...
Opportunities for professional development and collaboration with teachers of ELs in STEM contexts and ESL teachers who are experts at integrating STEM subjects with ELs during their planning and delivery of STEM instruction may be beneficial. The committee identified four conclusions that are specific for teachers of STEM subjects and teacher educators to work with ELs.
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. Despite the lack of research on the intersection of STEM and ELs in preparing teacher educators, the research on preparing teacher educators to support teachers of ELs more generally suggests that they require • extended professional development from other teacher educators with expertise in supporting preservice teachers who are learning to work with ELs; • collaboration with teachers who are successfully teaching ELs in their classrooms; and • professional development that focuses on student thinking in STEM, disciplinary practices and discourse, and curriculum mate rials that the teachers will actually be using in their teaching.
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Moreover, ELs with higher levels of English proficiency are more likely to benefit from effective accommodations than ELs with lower levels of English proficiency, because the former have better linguistic resources than the latter to benefit from those accommodations. An important consequence of this fact is that there is a limit to the extent to which accommodations can eliminate English proficiency as a factor that affects the validity of interpretations of ELs' performance on STEM tasks.
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, the outcomes from the use of formative assessments in STEM and, relatedly, learning progressions to inform assessment interpretation, is presently under study and has not generated sufficient evidence to definitively conclude that these positive outcomes generalize to STEM subjects with ELs; there are no theoretical reasons or empiri cal evidence to suggest that formative assessment does not also work for STEM disciplines and ELs' learning.
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coursework and content, they are better equipped to make data-driven decisions related to teaching ELs in STEM. CONCLUSION 23: There are a few states that have systemic policies or programs in place that attend to the professional development of teachers of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics who work with English learners (ELs)
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learning opportunities, including classification and reclassifi cation, course-taking, classroom instruction, program models offered, professional development, staffing, and fiscal resources, etc. • Federal agencies should evaluate the ways in which funds are allo cated for research and development that would enhance teaching and learning in STEM for ELs, including efforts that foster pipeline and training programs to increase the number of teachers qualified to teach STEM to ELs.
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• Leaders in states, districts, and schools should continuously evalu ate, monitor, and refine policies to ensure that ELs' STEM learning outcomes are comparable to their never-EL peers. RECOMMENDATION 3: Equip teachers and teacher candidates with the requisite tools and preparation to effectively engage and positively position English learners (ELs)
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From page 308... ...
• English as a second language teacher education programs and providers of in-service professional development should design pro grams that include collaboration with teachers of STEM content to support ELs' grade-appropriate content and language learning in STEM. • Teacher educators and professionals involved in pre- and in-service teacher learning should develop resources for teachers, teacher educators, and school and district leaders that illustrate productive, research-based instructional practices for supporting ELs in STEM learning.
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and the impact of those assess ments on STEM academic achievement for all students. • Developers of large-scale STEM assessments need to develop and use population sampling frameworks that better reflect the het erogeneity of EL populations to ensure the proper inclusion of statistically representative samples of ELs in the process of test development according to sociodemographic variables including language proficiency, first language, geographical distribution, and socioeconomic status.
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This research is needed to describe successful pathways for ELs into STEM careers and postsecondary training, including when and how they can succeed. That is, longitudinal research is needed that identifies early practices that lead to success from elementary to middle school to high school, including influences (e.g., reform curricula, teacher preparation, teacher professional development, frequency of classroom discussions, access to disciplinary practices, etc.)
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Research Area 2: STEM Learning and Language Development • How do different proficiencies in a first language (oral, reading, writing) and previous STEM instruction in a first language affect students' learning of STEM subjects in English?
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Research Area 5: Teacher Education • How can preparation of teachers of STEM who work with ELs support teachers' developing knowledge of STEM talk, language, and discourse? How can this be translated to developing knowl edge of how to draw on ELs' full range of linguistic competencies and resources, using different modalities and language registers?
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From page 313... ...
• What are the implications of allowing students to use any language resources at their disposal in judging student learning, progress, and in predicting student success in STEM courses and/or perfor mance on assessments of STEM content? Research Area 7: Building Systemic Capacity • How does the adoption of policies and the use of data-based deci sion making for ELs lead to improved student outcomes in STEM learning?
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