Author(s): Bateman, Nicoleta
Published: June 2019 in Linguistic Society of America
URL to article
Research Focus Area: Strategies for using questioning and discussion techniques to deepen student understanding
Abstract:
This article argues that linguistics can be effectively incorporated into project-based learning (PBL) as an innovative approach to introducing young students to linguistics. It draws from eighteen months of a collaboration between a linguist and a middle-school humanities teacher, and builds on prior efforts by linguists to incorporate linguistics into the K–12 curriculum. The article reviews relevant literature, introduces PBL and linguistics in PBL as a model, and presents detailed descriptions of how the study of language and the linguist’s ways of knowing were incorporated into two student projects. Evidence of student learning and the impact of linguistics is also presented. The article concludes by suggesting that this approach to incorporating linguistics into K–12 education can address the goals both of linguists—changing attitudes toward and understanding of language—and of educators—improving academic performance and addressing content standards.
Research Question(s):
Is a project-based learning approach appropriate to the task of incorporating linguistics into the K-12 curriculum ?
Methods:
Intervention
Setting:
two-year community engaged scholarship project relying on collaboration between linguists and middle school humanities teachers. two groups of eight-grade students at a charter school in North San Diego County. The school has about 350 total students and a highly diverse student population (at least 40% of the students are from low-income families).
Key Findings:
- Students who participate in linguistically informed curriculum improve their language attitudes and sociolinguistics knowledge
- Existing linguistics curricular in the K-12 setting is not robust enough to meet the needs of students and teachers
- Project Based Learning
- Project-based learning is a student-centered method of teaching through which students acquire content and process skills by conducting authentic work and engaging in extended periods of inquiry around a particular problem or question
- Project-based learning can be used to integrate linguistics into the classroom along a continuum. It can range from a tangential component of a curriculum to an integral one.
- It emphasizes learning in order to do something, rather than learning to remember something.
- The essential design elements of PBL include key knowledge, understanding and skills, a challenging problem or question, sustained inquiry, authenticity, student voice and choice, reflection, critique and revision, and a public product
- Prior research shows that PBL results in deeper learning and understanding, and also gives real-world relevance to the content, thus making it memorable in the long term. Thus, PBL is considered superior to traditional methods of teaching.
- The basic premise of the researchers’ model is that linguistics can be linked to every student project, along a continuum. Whether linguistics is integral to the project or appears as merely a parallel connection, students will learn from linguistics as long as the links between linguistics and the project are clearly made
- While the researchers focused on PBL, the principles are adaptable to working with schools that use different pedagogical approaches as well.
- In both classrooms, students’ learning was indeed enhanced by linguistics, as reflected in student responses on assessment tools and in class discussions.
- The benefit of linguistics incorporation was applicable to both a humanities-based project and a science-math based project.
- Teachers also appreciated the impact that the linguistics work has had on themselves and their students
Implications:
- teachers can incorporate linguistics into PBL regardless of whether the project has a stronger humanities or STEM emphasis.
- Linguists should continue to develop partnerships with teachers and become involved in teaching linguistics to young students and developing appropriate materials that are standards-based. teachers can then use these materials without needing a background in linguistics and without a linguist
- In doing so, it is crucially important for the linguist to be able to listen to the needs of the teachers and students and to find points of linguistic inquiry within existing curricula
- Content for courses for prospective teachers has been and should continue to be modified to further invest in student learning of linguistics and exploration of linguistics use in their future career
Limitations:
nan