TEACHING THE LANGUAGE OF EARTH SCIENCE: BEST TEACHING PRACTICES FOR CONTENT ABSORPTION IN THE ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE CLASSROOM

Earth science is a notoriously vocabulary rich, jargon heavy subject to teach. As pedagogues of the earth and space sciences, we must search for the best way to explain the essential topics of our discipline. As an educator in an urban setting, I fight the combined combatants of student ambivalence and a lack of language comprehension, especially within the population of students labeled "English Language Learners." Multiple studies sighted in my research state that science is a language in and of itself. This is not a new concept. The goal of this scholarly study is to determine the best practices, the best classroom methods to unlocking the language of science for my students.

We must employ the dynamics of the language arts classroom to successfully teach earth science to those students who have been labeled “English Language Learners.” Through reviewing previous studies, examining currently implemented techniques, and my own trial and error in the classroom, I’ve come up with several key concepts that must be examined. Firstly, we must show students how the core vocabulary of earth science is not so different from their own language. We must look at the linguistics of science jargon and find ways to help students break down larger, complicated, words and concepts in order to better understand the processes they study. Secondly, we must use “culturally relevant” examples to give our students an “in,” with regards to the content of our lessons. Thirdly, “text-rich” environments will aid in the absorption of the language of earth science, as well as giving students a means to improve their English skills in general. Lastly, we must cultivate a love of earth science, or at the very least provide examples that spark interest in the subject matter our students are studying.

Ultimately, the purpose of this study is to produce better, more culturally aware pedagogues. We all come into the classroom with different ideas about the language of earth science. You have chosen this field because you love earth science in some shape or form, but not every student, maybe not even every third student, you teach will feel as passionate about the subject as you do. It is our job as scientists and as educators to lower the frustration level of our students in order to allow them access to the content.