Blog Post #2
Describe the 1 strategy that you used to help bridge the academic knowledge gap in your content area for one focal student. What strategy did you implement? What worked? What was challenging and could be improved? Optional extension: Share a resource related to the strategy you implemented (e.g., article, video of the strategy in use, etc.)
The one strategy that I used to help bridge the academic knowledge gap in my content area of science for one focal student was Argumentation in Disciplinary Literacy. My ELL struggled on the syntax of her arguments. She was slowly bridging the academic knowledge gap everyday but she struggled to share her opinions concisely and clearly with her classmates. I implemented a recommended CER format for argumentation in the classroom. An argument that has a CER format has a claim, evidence, and reasoning. I recommended it for all students because I did not want my ELL to feel like I was implementing it in the classroom only for her. Thankfully, many students liked this new formatting because it was given and they didn't have to wonder what they needed to add to their statements to create a strong argument. One of the struggles of implementing the new CER format in the classroom was students struggled on the reasoning for their argument. Students would constantly mix up their evidence and reasoning, usually by combining them into one statement.
In the future, I believe I can present the CER format with a specific example. For example:
Claim - Climate change is real and humans play a huge role in this process.
Evidence - (I should cite specific research and data but this is just an example.)
Reasoning - This data shows an increase in carbon emissions, rising sea levels, and melting of ice caps. Climate change has always been occuring on the planet but the rate at which it is occuring at today worries scientists.
I would also provide this image above to students if they struggle to understand my example.
Optional Extension: How to Write Scientific Arguments - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8J63hWQw2hU
The one strategy that I used to help bridge the academic knowledge gap in my content area of science for one focal student was Argumentation in Disciplinary Literacy. My ELL struggled on the syntax of her arguments. She was slowly bridging the academic knowledge gap everyday but she struggled to share her opinions concisely and clearly with her classmates. I implemented a recommended CER format for argumentation in the classroom. An argument that has a CER format has a claim, evidence, and reasoning. I recommended it for all students because I did not want my ELL to feel like I was implementing it in the classroom only for her. Thankfully, many students liked this new formatting because it was given and they didn't have to wonder what they needed to add to their statements to create a strong argument. One of the struggles of implementing the new CER format in the classroom was students struggled on the reasoning for their argument. Students would constantly mix up their evidence and reasoning, usually by combining them into one statement.
In the future, I believe I can present the CER format with a specific example. For example:
Claim - Climate change is real and humans play a huge role in this process.
Evidence - (I should cite specific research and data but this is just an example.)
Reasoning - This data shows an increase in carbon emissions, rising sea levels, and melting of ice caps. Climate change has always been occuring on the planet but the rate at which it is occuring at today worries scientists.
I would also provide this image above to students if they struggle to understand my example.
Optional Extension: How to Write Scientific Arguments - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8J63hWQw2hU
I love this implementation of CER! My students are currently working on a Species Conservation Plan and we just had them submit a rough draft of their plan. One thing I have noticed is that my students tend to make a claim, but then do not back it up with evidence or reasoning. Oftentimes they kind of skirt around the topic without giving us the level of detail we are looking for. Just yesterday we were having a conversation with all of our classes about the importance of CER is scientific writing. I believe I told them something along the lines of "while you are all obviously scientists, this is biology after all, you are not quite experts on this subject yet and so we need you to support the claims you are making with scientific evidence and reasoning." I really like that graphic you chose, I may have to steal it for my classroom. Your examples is very clear and it seems like it would be attainable to a lot of students!
ReplyDeleteDear Bernardo,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your helpful example of implementing the CER strategy to scaffold your student(s)' scientific writing. Your graphic organizer is very clear and I appreciate your example because climate change is something students can relate to. (When we were in Yosemite the last few days, the temperature was in the high 50's- low 60's during the day with no precipitation, very little snow on the tops of the mountains, and dry conditions. It was lovely for hiking, but I worry about how many more trees we will lose if we have another drought year with hot temperatures. Between the fires and the bark beetles, we have lost so many trees in Yosemite! I love trees!)
I appreciate the link you posted about writing scientific arguments--very important information.
Your insights are very interesting and valuable, Bernardo! It is a pleasure working with you.
Sincerely, Julie Elvin