Dabagyan
How effective is Project Based Science for English Learners?
Esther Dabagyan
SED 625
12/06/06
Dr. Rivas
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Dabagyan
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How effective is Project Based Science for English Learners?
There is not a wealth of current studies that link project based science (PBS) to
the improvement of literacy for English learner (EL) students. However, there are studies
that link PBS to achievement in scientific conceptual understanding and in some cases
standardized tests. The National Science Education Standards (National Research
Council, 1996, as sited in Diaz-Rico and Weed, 2002, p.143) stress that students must
become scientifically literate and they recommend an inquiry approach at the means for
achieving this goal. Students who are not native English speakers have the doubly
difficult task of acquiring new science vocabulary in addition to every-day language. This
overwhelming task can cause many students to loose interest in science altogether. If PBS
can provide a meaningful context for new science vocabulary, then perhaps, EL students
can improve in their language skills as well as their scientific thinking. Research
regarding language teaching in content areas emphasizes a student-centered environment
where the subject is built upon existing knowledge, skills, attitudes and beliefs of
students (Diaz-Rico and Weed, 2002, p.143)
Descriptions of PBS typically have a strong correlation to the definition of
inquiry-based science. Some common features include (a) posing questions; (b) planning
investigations; (c) collaboration with peers and the community; (d) communicating
results through written and oral formats; and (e) revising of previous thoughts based on
on-going feedback (Diaz-Rico and Weed, 2002, p.143; Moje, Collazo, Carrillo & Marx,
2000, p. 469). When comparing student science achievement in the United States with
those of other countries, we are often weaker in our scores. A report written by Third
International Mathematics and Science Study attributes this weakness to the over-
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abundance of curricula in the United States. The report compares per capita spending on
science instruction, and while it finds that other nations spend less than the United States,
they are able to achieve better results because they have decided to teach less (O’Neill
and Polman, 2004, p. 236). Our curriculum seems to have far more width than depth.
PBS is one way to focus deeply upon a central idea while linking the understanding of
students across different scientific as well as linguistic domains. PBS can also foster the
skills that have become increasingly necessary to function in the modern day world.
Today, adults must be able to sift through news articles of different scientific discoveries
on a daily basis; PBS can foster “the capacity to hazard an opinion on matters of science
that may pertain to political and moral priorities” (O’Neill and Polman, 2004, p.262).
Students that learn the process of science through PBS feel that they have become a
legitimate participant in discussions about science with their own insights and
contributions (O’Neill and Polman, 2004, p.263). An independent and confidant student
is what we as educators should want to prepare for the world; a student that can not only
understand the world around them, but intelligently dialogue with it.
Instruction in science can easily aid EL students with some thought and planning
on the part of the teacher. EL students enter our classrooms with some significant
disadvantages including limited English language proficiency, little to no scientific
background, and often, little to no schooling background. They are unfamiliar with the
norms of scientific discourse and inquiry. The focus of PBS around a single theme can
greatly help EL students to contextualize new vocabulary; while the metacognitive aspect
of PBS can explicitly teach students how to think like a scientist. In fact, research
regarding language acquisition shows that organizing instruction around a broad theme
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can put science into a comprehensible context in a manner that is relevant to the students’
lives. This contextualizing can give a student more time to study a topic, increase their
motivation and allow them to reflect upon the new English vocabulary they have learned
(Diaz-Rico and Weed, 2002, p. 144). In order for PBS to aid our EL students, all
activities must be tied to a central objective or idea while the central idea must be
relevant to the students’ everyday lives. Explicitly pointing out the relevancy of
individual tasks can greatly help EL students build a strong personal connection to the
material.
In a study conducted by Hug, Krajcik and Marx, a student population that was
60% below grade level on state-mandated achievement tests, could nonetheless make
strong and meaningful connections from their own lives to the curriculum when taught
through PBS (2005, p.465). The students repeatedly related their projects to real life
experiences and the central driving question of the unit. The students discussed the ideas
behind the central question and included scientific terminology and concepts in a
meaningful way. This personal connection has been found to be one of the most
important factors in not only language acquisition but also the building of content
knowledge. PBS has high discourse content, encouraging students to engage in
conversations about what they are learning. While this does place a difficult demand on
EL students, when the project is exciting and relevant, students want to talk. Often times,
these conversations and other means of communication (writing reports, oral
presentations) need additional scaffolding form the teacher for EL students to gain true
depth of knowledge. The study by Moje et al. has found that there isn’t simply a language
barrier but also a cultural one when teaching EL students (2001, p. 472). Due to this
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cultural barrier, a personal connection to PBS is even more important, as is a clear and
explicit method of addressing the differences between scientific discourse and social or
other subject-matter related discourse. Moje et al. found that when this meta-linguistic
method was not used during PBS, the EL students comprehended little of the content and
confused the scientific vocabulary and knowledge with other contents and contexts
(2001, p.489). EL students should be made aware of the contrasts between reading and
writing science related materials as opposed to fictional content, in order to develop
literacy in science.
EL students also require additional help to make meaning from complex texts. A
novel idea regarding pairing up students with real scientists as mentors during their time
conducting independently driven projects can help students in sifting through complex
texts and research (O’Neill and Polman, 2004). As far as their writing, students often ask
for their mentors to read and advise them on their reports. Other studies show that a
science notebook can facilitate significant student achievement in science as well as
reading and writing (Klentschy, 2006, p.55). According to Klentschy, there were three
studies conducted with EL students who utilized a science notebook while being taught a
PBS unit (2006). These studies show that EL students had a significant growth in
achievement in both science and reading and writing when participating in PBS and
using a science notebook to do a variety of tasks. Their science notebooks contained a
assortment of records including lists of vocabulary words, drawings, tables, graphs,
personal observations, reflections, student developed procedures and ideas for future
inquiries (Klentschy, 2006, p.59; Amaral, Garrison and Klentschy, 2002, p.235). With the
aid of science notebooks, Amaral et al. demonstrated that the greater the number of years
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EL students were engaged in a PBS curriculum, the greater their gains in science,
reading, writing and mathematics (2002, p.238). The nature of an inquiry-based
classroom is such that it fosters the use of real materials, the ability to work
independently, in small groups and in whole class activities. This is considered a good
approach for EL students, regardless of classroom type (Amaral et al., 2002, p.236).
After much research and contemplation of PBS, I find that there is a spectrum of
how effective PBS can be that is largely dependant on implementation and project type.
Not all PBS will benefit EL students, in fact, it may do the opposite. If PBS is not
meticulously planned and constructed to address the needs of EL students, it can fail. EL
students have additional needs than those that are fluent in English, and while some of
those needs are naturally better addressed in PBS, modifications and scaffolding must
still be added. For example, I would not require that all my students make a vocabulary
list in their science notebook; however, for EL students; this becomes crucial, as does the
explicit instruction of scientific language and its differences from casual language.
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References
Amaral, O. M., Garrison, L., Klentschy, M., (2002). Helping English Learners Increase
Achievement Through Inquiry-Based Science Instruction. Bilingual Research
Journal, 26(2), 213-239.
Diaz-Rico, L. T., Weed, K. Z. (2002). The Crosscultural, Language, and Academic
Development Handbook. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Hug, B., Krajcik, J. S., Marx, R. W., (2005). Using Innovative Learning Technologies to
Promote Learning and Engagement in an Urban Science Classroom. Urban
Education, 40(4). 446-472.
Klentschy, M. P. (2006). Connecting Science and Literacy Through Students Science
Notebooks. California Journal of Science Education, 6(2), 51-79.
Moje, E. B., Collazo, T., Carrillo, R., Marx, R. W., (2001). “Maestro, What is
‘Quality’?”: Language, Literacy, and Discourse in Project-Based Science. Journal
of Research in Science Teaching, 38(4), 469-498.
O’Neill, D. K., Polman, J. L., (2004). Why educate “Little Scientists?” Examining the
Potential of Practice-Based Scientific Literacy. Journal of Research in Science
Teaching, 41(3), 234-266.