approaches (Chamot & O’Malley, 1994; Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2017). Recently, academic language has been recognized in standards, for content, including college and career readiness standards (de Oliveira, 2016), language development standards (WIDA, 2012), and both sets of standards (Gottlieb & Ernst-Slavit, 2014a). Additionally, we have witnessed the grounding of academic language curriculum design as enacted in standards-referenced classrooms (Gottlieb & Ernst-Slavit, 2013, 2014b; Zwiers, 2014).
Given the growing body of literature on academic language, we wished to create an easy-to-read guide that consolidates the complexities of language learning into practical ideas from a range of perspectives. With that backdrop in mind, we wrote this book around three main purposes:
1 To highlight the critical role of academic language use in a variety of contexts tied to teaching and learning
2 To present a conceptual tool—DARE—to facilitate students’ and teachers’ academic language use within and across the disciplines or content areas
3 To offer educators language-centered resources to add to their instructional and assessment repertoires
It is our intent to ensure that every teacher has an understanding of the importance of academic language use in their craft, no matter who their students are and what their discipline is. We feel confident that this goal can be accomplished, as we have distilled the literature, combed instructional materials, analyzed standards, and had deep conversations with our colleagues over multiple years. These experiences have been integral to the creation of teacher tools related to academic language use, including Can Do Descriptors, Key Uses Edition, and los descriptores Podemos (see multiple entries of WIDA at the end of this section).
Organization of the Book
The overall organizational scheme for the book is illustrated in the figure “Reenvisioning Teaching and Learning Through Key Uses of Academic Language” at the close of this section. It reflects the centrality of key uses of academic language (in the middle). Its outreach, in the form of a semantic web, shows the varying components of school life that are influenced by academic language use; in each chapter, we elaborate their multiple perspectives.
Additionally, each chapter is arranged around phases of an inquiry cycle: ask, explore, apply, reflect, and take action. There is a central question that is posed in the ask section, examined in explore, and then applied to four different perspectives. In reflect, we summarize the main message of the chapter and then invite you, the reader, to take action. We share with you the central questions and each chapter synopsis so that you have a sense of what to expect.
Chapter 1: What is the nature of key uses of academic language? What is the language associated with each key use? In this introductory chapter, we investigate the construct of academic language and provide a rationale for discuss, argue, recount, and explain (DARE)—key uses of academic language. Subsequently, we identify the language features associated with each key use and offer example language-centered instructional tasks and resources geared to different grade levels. In doing so, we set the tone for easing teachers into the practice of thinking about academic language use when engaging in teaching complex academic concepts, sharing their thoughts with students, and exchanging their ideas with colleagues and school leaders.
Chapter 2: How do we plan for the integration of key uses of academic language in our practice? What are some helpful tools? Having established a firm foundation for the efficacy of key uses of academic language and their utility with stakeholders, from students to educational leaders, we turn our attention to identifying DARE in standards. Subsequently, we suggest ways for inserting key uses of academic language into disciplinary practices and ultimately integrating DARE into curriculum. Additionally, we draw from the community to ensure that students are able to make connections among their languages, cultures, and daily lives to learning in school.
Chapter 3: How might we assess key uses of academic language in our content classrooms? Planning, collecting, analyzing, and reporting data gathered from various forms of assessment is synonymous with schooling. But to what extent have teachers considered the impact of language on student performance? In this chapter, we illustrate how authentic classroom assessment can be shaped by key uses of academic language that serve as the basis for defining what students can do. We pay special attention to student-centered assessment that stems from disciplinary practices. Much of the chapter is devoted to investigating how to identify, measure, and document DARE in the major content areas: language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies.
Chapter 4: What are some viable ways of embedding key uses of academic language into classroom life so that learning is equitable for all students? Implementation of key uses of academic language involves the careful selection of a variety of instructional materials and the scaffolding of instruction so that it is personalized for and accessible to all students. In that way, students can maximize their opportunities to participate in learning experiences and achieve grade-level content. More important, however, is giving students choice and voice throughout the school day. By providing stimulating options that motivate students, teachers encourage student engagement in school and beyond. Additionally, students are led to become metalinguistically and metacognitively aware of their academic language use and its interaction with their thinking processes, with the ultimate goal of becoming agents of and responsible for their own learning.
Chapter 5: How can key uses of academic language be stimuli for cementing relationships among stakeholders so that students can maximize their learning? The stakeholder group most impacted by key uses of academic language is students; therefore, we speak to how students can be active participants in determining their educational destiny by taking responsibility for their own learning and becoming valued contributors to a community of learners. We also recognize families as critical stakeholders who can initiate academic language use at home and strengthen key uses of academic language introduced in school. We show how families can become aware of the importance of academic language development, whether in English or another language. Then, we acknowledge teachers whose leadership and advocacy help students become more attuned to communicating with intent. Finally, we address school leaders who must also be the conveyers of key uses of academic language and ensure that they are integral to school life.
Features of the Book
There is a full complement of features to lead educators to better understand, reflect, and communicate with others the power of language. Take the DARE is a feature that challenges the reader, teacher teams, or professional learning communities, along with school leaders, to reenvision teaching and learning through a language lens. It encourages these stakeholders to take time to extend their thinking on a particular issue or apply ideas related to DARE to their own settings. Questions are suited for stimulating educators to think about taking next steps for incorporating key uses of academic language into their own work.
Figures are illustrative or extensions of information presented in the text. As teachers and teacher educators ourselves, we are aware of the ongoing search for classroom tools. We hope that these are both stimulating and useful, as we converted many of them into resources.
Resources are educator tools designed for students, classrooms, and schools; they are intended to be stimuli for many stakeholders, including teachers, teacher teams, professional learning communities, and school leaders to ponder, plan, and practice. These charts, graphs, and activity sheets are presented in a chapter with exemplars. They are duplicated as blank forms at the close of each chapter for personal use or to share with other educators, students, and families.
