WITESOL October 21, 2011 Jeff Zwiers Academic Conversation: Building foundations for critical...
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Transcript of WITESOL October 21, 2011 Jeff Zwiers Academic Conversation: Building foundations for critical...
WITESOLOctober 21, 2011
Jeff Zwiers
Academic Conversation: Building foundations for critical
thinking and content understandings
Overview
I. Three dimensions of academic language
II. Three ingredients for fostering academic language acquisition
III. Rationale for academic conversations
IV. Practice academic conversations
The Dark Ages of Thinking?
US fifteen-year-olds rank twenty-fourth out of twenty-nine developed countries on an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) test of problem-solving skills related to analytic reasoning—the sort of skills demanded in today’s workforce…other studies show that many US high schools students can’t synthesize or assess information, express complex thoughts, or analyze arguments.”
The Dark Ages of Thinking?
“I am not alone in wondering how often our children will experience the hard-fought pleasures of plunging deeply into a thought, a conversation, a state of being. Will focusing become a lost art, quaintly exhibited alongside blacksmithing at the historic village?”
--Jackson, M. (2009). Distracted: The erosion of attention and the coming dark age.
Why develop academic language?
Communicate, Collaborate, Think critically, Solve problems,
Build relationships, Support ideas, Read and Write Academic Texts
Academic LanguageJ.Zwiers
Academic language is the set of words, grammar, and
organization strategies used to describe:
Abstract concepts
Complex ideas
Higher-order thinking processes
Cause-Effect, Empathize, Compare, Classify, Apply,
Evaluate, Persuade, Interpret Recognize patterns,
J.Zwiers
Academic Language
Academic Language Snapshot
Content vocabulary(brick)
Content vocabulary(brick)
Photosynthesis, democracy, imagery, numerator, etc.
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Academic Language Snapshot
Abstract, Complex, & Thinking Terms (tend to be used across disciplines)
Grammar, syntax, organization, prosody
Long SentencesU-turn terms Transitions ClausesPronouns Word order Punctuation Text structure
Elaborate Evidence AnalyzeFoster Interpret Support CompareAspects
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Content vocabulary(bricks)
Photosynthesis, democracy, imagery, numerator, etc.
Content vocabulary(bricks)
Vocabulary(Terms, expressions, and word parts that support conceptual understandings)
Nominalization
Figurative Content Terms
Word analysis
Reciprocal, immigration, metaphor, zygote, tectonic, foreshadow,
stand idly by whileplayed a key role inin the wake ofnarrow pursuitno simple formula
This marginalization of ….This flexibility…These ramifications mean thatTheir unwillingness to yield…
Destabilization…RevolutionizeUnderstatementAnachronism
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Grammar & Syntax (Sentence and text structure)
Passive voice Compound/Complex
Pronouns Verb tenses
Although Penelope shares heroic characteristics with her husband, Odysseus, she is not considered a hero.
If the radius of the first circle is between 6 cm and 11 cm, and the radius of the second circle is 13 cm, find the possible values for the radius of the first circle so that the circles intersect in two points.
He was a major book collector with an enormous library, much of which he sold to the Library of Congress after the British set fire to the Capitol which destroyed most of its works. He was acquainted with nearly every influential person in America, and many throughout Europe.
- If I had walked the extra mile, I would have seen the lake.- The reaction is producing a gas.- By the time it finishes, they will have been long gone.- If you put 0 into this equation, you would get a negative number.
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Thinking Skills Language
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Science Math
History/SS English/ELD/WL
- Hypothesize- Interpret- Infer causes & effects- Compare- Describe relationships
- Interpret- Persuade- Infer causes &
effects- Compare- Apply
- Infer causes & effects- Interpret- See multiple perspectives- Compare- Persuade- Apply
- Solve problems- Interpret- Apply- Compare- Hypothesize- Recognize
patterns
Language stems for thinking skills and complex ideasIdentify causes & effects
I think ….was caused by…, The main cause was probably…,I hypothesize that…caused…, The most likely cause was…, The … led to ….which led to…,The effects of… were…
That wasn’t caused by…because…, Just because it happened after …, doesn’t mean it was caused by…; The…meant that…
Solve Problems
We need to define the problem, The main problem is…The conflict is mainly between…
There are different ways to solve it, The best solution is…because…I think that the answer is…because…
Interpret This part meant that…For us today, it could mean that… The author used that analogy because…, It’s a figurative way to describe how…, We predicted that…, yet the data indicate that… This means the problem is asking for the solution in units of…
Compare They are similar because...,The two differ because one…, while the other…, If we look closely at…, we will see that …. is different from…
This is much like when…Notice how the two compare. On the other hand, …
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Practice: Identifying Academic Language Demands
J.Zwiers
By the 1880's, steam power had dramatically shortened the journey to America. Immigrants poured in from around the world. They came from the Middle East, the Mediterranean, Southern and Eastern Europe, and down from Canada. The door was wide open for Europeans. In the 1880’s alone, 9% of the total population of Norway emigrated to America. After 1892 nearly all immigrants came in through the newly opened Ellis Island. Families often immigrated together during this era, although young men frequently came first to find work. Some of these then sent for their wives, children, and siblings; others returned to their families in Europe with their saved wages. (http://www.ellisisland.org/immexp/wseix_5_3.asp)
3. Interaction (negotiating meaning)
1. Input
2. Output
Three Ingredients for Building Language
PresentationsAnswer questions Sentence framesPair-shares Drama/Improv
ReadingListeningVisualsGestures
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Ingredient 1 - Making academic language comprehensible
Ingredient 2 - Scaffolding OutputPro-Con Improv
Topics: Camping, Shopping, Traveling, Cell Phones, TV, Computers, Video Games, School, Cars, Conferences, Testing,
Transitions: However, On the other hand, Then again, but
Frames: One advantage is … For example, … In addition…A negative aspect of ___ is …In spite of the positives of _____,
Variations: Whole class Pro-Con; Compare-contrast, For-Against; 2 opposing character-author-historian perspectives; cause-effect(Director paraphrases after; both write before and/or after; )
Writing sample based on talkAccordering in the evidence that Ana Aderson is Anastasia in my opinion I think that she is Anastasia. I think that she is Anastasia because in the evidence most people say that she is Anastasia. For example she is the same hite, same hair and same eyes. Second reason because it has the same scart that Anastasia have too. The third reason that the doctor son reconocer her for her way. The same face and how she stand. Fourth reason the princess cenia believe that she is Anastasia. And finally the solder man Lman of the pactesl he show her a picture were she was when she was just girl. However other people believe that she is not Anastasia. For example the teacher, uncle, and the dected that say that she is Francisca. But in my opinion she is.
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Writing sample based on talk
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Accordering in the evidence that Ana Aderson is Anastasia in my opinion I think that she is Anastasia. I think that she is Anastasia because in the evidence most people say that she is Anastasia. For example she is the same hite, same hair and same eyes. Second reason because it has the same scart that Anastasia have too. The third reason that the doctor son reconocer her for her way. The same face and how she stand. Fourth reason the princess cenia believe that she is Anastasia. And finally the solder man Lman of the pactesl he show her a picture were she was when she was just girl. However other people believe that she is not Anastasia. For example the teacher, uncle, and the dected that say that she is Francisca. But in my opinion she is.
Ingredient 3 - Negotiating Meaning Fernando Sara
I don’t think he (John Brown) was a hero. Because he killed five people.
But you can say that and not kill people. So, maybe there’s different types of heroes. Maybe he got people thinking about…/
OK, so, we can say that he was, like, part hero.
But he also got anti-slave stuff going. And he talked against slavery, like saying slavery was a crime right before they kill him.
I guess, but maybe no one listened if all he did was talk.
/…Maybe he killed those people but more slaves were saved cuz of what he did. Can we say that?
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Quantity & Quality of Classroom Talk: Findings
• Teachers encouraged elaborations, but only 16% of the paired interactions were beneficial to learning. (Staarman, Krol & vander Meijden, 2005)
• English learners spent only 4% of the school day engaged in school talk; and 2% of the school day discussing focal content of the lesson. (Arreaga-Mayer & Perdomo-Rivera, 1996).
• 85% of class time was devoted to lecture, question and answer, and seatwork. (Nystrand, 1997)
Not enoughThe following practices were not enough to develop enduring academic language, thinking skills, and content understandings. (Why not?)
Exposure (listen-read) Interrogation (IRF) & Regurgitation for points Sentence starters and frames Think-pair-shares
Small group & whole class discussions in which a few students & the teacher dominate the talk
Isolated & disconnected facts & vocabulary Quantity rather than quality Narrow & fragmented assessments (MC, written)
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David: Why did that happen?Liliana: Gravity, I think.David: Yeah, gravity pulled it down. Liliana: So, now what?
Bulking up Classroom Conversations
Lisa: I think there are different ways to solve it.Edgar: So? Just do what the book example did.Lisa: But why do you turn the fraction over? Edgar: Who cares? Just turn it over.Lisa: OK.
3a 9ab
3c - 6 c - 4
3a 9ab
3c - 6 c - 4÷÷ 22
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Elaborate, clarify, and question Support ideas with examples Build on &/or challenge partner ideas Paraphrase ideas Synthesize conversation points
(Goldenberg, 1992; Zwiers, 2009)
Students should stay focused on a topic and
negotiate meaning like emerging subject matter “experts” by using the following skills:
Academic Conversations
J.ZwiersNot natural; Each a double skill; AL in them; Why important?
A: Why do you think the author wrote this story?B: Maybe to teach us that we should be who we’re born to be.A: Can you elaborate?B: Well, in the story Charlie wants to be smart and his operation
makes him smart, but then people don’t like him. It wasn’t natural.
A: Hmm. I guess, but I also think it showed that we all can be smart. And so what if science helps us? Science helps us be better in lots of ways.
B: Can you give an example of that? A: Like drugs. When we are sick, they help cure us. B: That’s different. Drugs and operations get us back to normal.A: Maybe, OK, but maybe we are supposed to get smarter
through science, you know? I guess it depends.
Academic Conversation Excerpt – Language Arts
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Advantages of Academic Conversation
Thinking Skills Advantages - Builds thinking skills- Promotes different perspectives & empathy- Fosters creativity- Fosters skills for negotiating meaning and focusing
Language and Literacy Advantages - Builds academic language- Builds vocabulary - Builds literacy skills and comprehension- Builds oral language and communication skills
Social Advantages - Builds relationships- Builds academic ambience - Makes lessons more culturally relevant- Fosters equity
Content Learning Advantages - Builds content understandings - Cultivates connections - Helps students to co-construct understandings
- Conversation helps teachers and students assess learning
Psychological Advantages
- Develops inner dialog and self-talk- Builds engagement and motivation- Builds confidence & academic identity
- Fosters self-discovery- Builds student voice & empowerment
J.ZwiersJ.Zwiers
• Skills with symbols
x
• Hand motions for prompts
Developing Academic Conversation Skills
Topic
How do these skills support writing and content understandings?
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Assessment: Academic Conversation Rubric (Lang)
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Practice Academic ConversationsChoose your topic/text (handout). Have a conversation with a partner.
Use the symbols on the handout and use the sentence frames.
Language Arts History
(poem) (myths/mural)
Math Science
(interest) (resistance)
Sample Visual Text
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Pop Quiz
1. What are 3 dimensions of AL?
2. What are 3 ingredients for developing AL?
3. What are 5 academic conversation skills?
Conclusion
Contact: [email protected]
Language empowers students to use, change, challenge, and explore ideas—not just regurgitate them or select them from a list. In developing their academic language and communication skills, we can help reduce the “Gap of Potential,” which is the gap between who a student is now and who that student wants, can, and should become in the future to create a better world.
Academic Conversations: Classroom talk that fosters critical thinking and content understandings. (www.stenhouse.com)
Building Academic Language: Essential Practices for Content Classrooms. (www.jossey-bass.com)
WITESOLOctober 21, 2011
Jeff Zwiers
Breakout Session:Building each academic conversation
skill across disciplines
Developing Academic Conversation skills
- Equip students with teacher-like skills
- Focus on one skill at a time
- Move from less to more challenging topics
J.Zwiers
ELABORATING & CLARIFYING: Opinion Continuum
Corn for fuel Corn for foodAlexX
LaraX
KarimX
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Use table to solve Use graph to solveSaraX
TheoX
LeaX
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Activities for developing AC skills
SUPPORTING WITH EXAMPLES: Evidence Columns
Thesis, idea, theme, argument:
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Activities for developing AC skillsPARAPHRASE:
Interview Grids & Webs
Name Explain the importance of developing students’ oral language
Argue why or why not we should evaluate schools based on test scores
Challenging an Idea: InfoGap-Negotiation Cards
2. Students read and try to memorize points on the cards.
3. A and B pairs converse (friendly debate) the issue and come to a conclusion. They can look at the cards, if needed.
1. Teacher previews key vocabulary on cards & goes over sentence starters.
B Viruses are alive because they:B Viruses are alive because they:A Viruses are not living because they:A Viruses are not living because they:
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Challenging an idea: Persuasive Seesaw Visual
My responses to opposing points
2D-seesaw
3D-seesaw
My position
Opposing position
Reasons & Evidence
Reasons & Evidence
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Persuasive writing sample with colors
J.Zwiers, 212J.Zwiers
Persuasive Language Posters
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Designing Conversation Prompts & TasksUse an essential question
Use a thinking skill
Use a product or task
Use life experiences
LanguageExample
Discuss the value of school sports programs.How are you biased?
Apply, perspective, real world, connects to, challenge
How does great literature influence history—and vice versa?
One way to explain,impact, factors, led to, as a result of
Compare the two charactersArgue for or against …Evaluate solutions of…
A major difference,outweigh, long run,criteria, perspective
Design an experiment to measure the speed of sound.
Hypothesize that…Control variablesExtrapolate from the data, correlate
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Reflective Inquiry/Action Research
Analyze Evidence
(student work)
Reflect & Plan
Teach & Assess
(Academic literacy inquiry)
(Academic literacy inquiry)
How can I develop my students’ ______________________________, evidenced by ___________________, by using ______________________?
How can I develop my students’ ______________________________, evidenced by ___________________, by using ______________________?
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Inquiry & Evidence (If we were a PLC)
How will we know we are being effective in this area of academic language development?
What would be an inquiry (action research) question for us in this area?
How can I develop my students’ academic language, evidenced by observations of paired conversations and
exit tickets), using strategies of modeling and practice of academic
conversation skills?
Conclusion
Contact: [email protected]
Conversations both teach and sculpt. They teach us how other people see and do life, and they teach other people how we see and do life. They help us build ideas, solve problems, and communicate our thoughts. They shape our identities, beliefs, and feelings. They leave us pondering and processing ideas for hours, days, and even years. These ideas, in turn, contribute to the inner dialogues that we hold in our heads throughout each day (Vygotsky, 1986), which sculpt our thoughts—whether we like it or not. More than we realize, we all are the products of thousands of conversations.
Academic Conversations: Classroom talk that fosters critical thinking and content understandings. (www.stenhouse.com)
Building Academic Language: Essential Practices for Content Classrooms. (www.jossey-bass.com)
AC ResourcesCazden, C. (2001). Classroom discourse: The language of teaching and learning. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Mercer, N. & Littleton, K. (2007). Dialogue and the development of children's thinking: a sociocultural approach. London: Routledge.
Nichols, M. (2006). Comprehension through conversation. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Spiegel, D. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic.
Zwiers, J. (2008). Building Academic Language: Essential Practices for Content Classrooms. (www.josseybass.com)
Zwiers & Crawford. (2011). Academic Conversations: Classroom talk that fosters critical thinking and content understandings. (www.stenhouse.com)