Ending the Feud Between Science and Language Arts

One of the casualties of high-stakes testing has been science education. Schools have long paid more attention to language arts and math. With those subjects tested more heavily, the scales have tipped even more toward them and away from science. I’ve heard teachers (not in El Cerrito but in our school district) say they teach nothing but math and language arts.

One strategy that's been suggested over the years for making sure science is not neglected is to merge the two subjects. Often it hasn’t been done particularly well. Reading about science isn’t enough by itself, particularly when the writing about science isn’t compelling and doesn’t necessarily target the most important content. And some of the attempts to inject more reading and writing into science have been as disappointing, such as reading fiction that only remotely relates to the science topic.

For the past few years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a program being developed by UC Berkeley called Seeds of Science/Roots of Reading, which aims to teach science and language arts simultaneously.  I was surprised and excited to discover that it does both very well and that merging the two enhances the instruction of each.

The units completed so far are for second through fifth grades. Work has begun on materials for middle school, and the researchers hope to develop kindergarten and first-grade materials as well.  

The chances of these particular materials becoming commonplace in El Cerrito schools any time soon seem unlikely to me, given the state of California’s finances and the fact that the materials weren’t designed specifically to match California’s science standards. It could happen someday, though, due to a movement to adopt similar content standards across the country, rather than each state having its own set.   

In the meantime it is a model worth taking a closer look at, for what we can learn from it right now and incorporate into our practice.

The program’s ability to teach both language arts and science well appears to come from the fact that it is a collaboration between science and literacy experts at Berkeley, led by P. David Pearson, former dean of the Graduate School of Education, and Jacqueline Barber, associate director of the Lawrence Hall of Science. Most other programs that claim to teach both subjects consist primarily of a language arts program with some science content slipped in, or primarily a science program with some reading and writing worked in.

The program includes hands-on activities, structures for student discussion, booklets written specifically for the units with both science and language arts goals in mind, and writing activities. As students read the booklets, they are guided in using reading comprehension strategies, especially ones that are most helpful in understanding nonfiction, such as having a goal or question in mind when reading; using illustrations, diagrams, and titles to understand text; and, being able to tell the difference between important concepts and details. The students are taught specific structures for writing as well, such as comparing and contrasting and supporting a claim with evidence. They are also taught vocabulary important to the science topic covered by the unit and have plenty of opportunities to read, write, speak, and hear those words.

In addition to teaching each subject well, the materials show the connection between the two subjects. Part of the message is that reading, writing, speaking, and listening are skills that scientists use to do their job. The parallels between things scientists do and what those studying literature do are also apparent, such as making inferences and using details effectively. This should be a great boon for learners who consider themselves good at science but not literature, or vice versa.

I’ve been so intrigued by these materials that I’ve spent a lot of time reading the program’s website, and in particular the papers and presentations by Pearson. (For example, Language and Literacy: Tools to Promote Subject Matter Learning.)  One of his ideas that I think makes a lot of sense is his recommendation for organizing the school day.  Typically, schools treat language arts as a separate topic. In our elementary schools, a couple of hours are set aside for that subject while science and social studies get only a fraction of that time (with the minutes varying somewhat by grade level). His premise is that the day should be divided among science, social studies, math, and literature and that the language arts — reading, writing, listening and speaking – be viewed as tools woven into all those content areas, rather than segregated to one time of day.

This is the sort of thinking we can take a look at right now, without waiting for California to adopt science standards in common with the rest of the country, and change its tests and list of approved textbooks to match, not to mention find money to buy new materials.