Transcript: Grade 11 and 12 Science Integrated ELD

Grade Eleven and Twelve Science Integrated English Language Development: Ecological Problems

Introductory Slides (0:00–3:25)

Narrator: Welcome to the California Department of Education Integrated and Designated English Language Development Transitional Kindergarten through Grade Twelve Video Series.

Narrator: Science with Integrated English Language Development in Grades 11 and 12. In this lesson, the students are in the middle of a biology unit on ecosystem stability and the response to climate change. This lesson is the culminating task of creating a group poster that will be presented to peers, including the definition of an ecological problem and the solutions designed to solve that problem. The group that is presenting and the group that is listening each have a different topic so that students must actively listen and ask meaningful questions.

Narrator: The California Next Generation Science Standards Driving the Lesson: The Science Performance Expectation is High School, Life Sciences 2, Sub-Item 7: Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy and Dynamics where students design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity. Watch for how these California Standards are addressed throughout the lesson.

Narrator: The Supporting California English Language Development Standards Used in Tandem with the Science Standards. The English Language Development Standards at the Bridging Level are Grades 11 and 12, Part 1, Standard 1: Exchanging Information and Ideas where students contribute to class, group, and partner discussions sustaining conversations on a variety of age and grade appropriate academic topics by following turn-taking rules, asking and answering relevant on topic questions, affirming others, and providing coherent and well-articulated comments and additional information. Grades 11 and 12, Part 1, Standard 5: Listening Actively, where students demonstrate comprehension of oral presentations and discussions on a variety of social and academic topics by asking and answering detailed and complex questions that show thoughtful consideration of the ideas or arguments with light support. And Grades 11 and 12, Part 1, Standard 9: Presenting, where students plan and deliver a variety of oral presentations and reports on grade appropriate topics that express complex and abstract ideas, well supported by evidence and reasoning, and are delivered by using an appropriate level of formality and understanding of register. Watch how students move from early levels of proficiency toward the Bridging levels of these English language development standards throughout the lesson.

Narrator: Watch how the teacher provides a structured opportunity for the students to accurately communicate their science content knowledge by presenting their written ideas using academic language structures and vocabulary in order to explain the scientific concepts they've learned. Also, watch how the teacher leads the students to actively listen to others' ideas, and then paraphrase and discuss those ideas with their peers reinforcing their understanding and use of scientific discourse.

Teacher Introduces the Lesson (3:25–5:02)

Teacher: All right. So, all week, right, last week you guys worked on researching your ecosystem issues, you guys worked on developing solutions for those issues, so today what we're gonna do is you guys are going to be explaining those solutions about the environmental issue to your groups, and we're also going to be active listening.

Teacher: Remember we talked about what makes a successful presenter, so make sure we're making eye contact with the audience, we're facing our audience, we are using academic vocab, and we're trying to explain without using extra words. If you're listening you have a job as well. So, active listeners, what we're gonna be looking for is— I want you guys to show that with your body language that you're listening. So, if your friend was telling you an important story you would show them you're listening by making eye contact, you would face them, you would nod to show that you're understanding.

Teacher: Another thing I'm gonna want you guys to do is ask clarifying questions and paraphrase what the speakers are saying, try to build upon the ideas of the speaker. This is why we have these beige papers for you guys at the lab stations. These are to help you come up with ideas and responses to the presenters. The idea is that you guys are going to try to keep the conversation going for the entire five minutes. Okay?

Teacher: So, first the person presents, right? And then once they're done I don't want you guys just to sit and wait. I would like the listeners to try to build on their ideas, ask questions, get the conversation going about the topic, try to learn more from the speakers.

Small Group Discussion. (5:03–8:05)

Student 1: We are talking about water pollution. I will let Jimena start.

Student 2: Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies because of human actions. The problem that comes from water pollution is that it kills organisms that depend on these water bodies, for example: dead fish, crabs, seagulls, dolphins, and many other animals. Since the 19th century, we started hearing about water pollution. Most water pollution begins on land when large tracts of land are polluted. [unintelligible]

Student 3: The effects of water pollution is humans drinking or consuming aquatic animals and there are effects that are on health.

Student 4: Do you know why recycling wasn't brought up in the past?

Student 5: Because, back in the past there was not a lot of trash like in the streets, so they not have the necessity to do it.

Student 4: Why do you think there wasn't a lot of pollution in the past?

Student 5: Because back in the days there was, like, more natural resources like, plants and everything, [unintelligible] the plastic.

Student 6: Maybe also, like before we didn't really like notice all the effects, but like now since there's more and more piling up, we're like looking at the effects now.

Student 7:  I hear what you’re saying, so if the pollution, water pollution, continues over the years this can go to the point where we can't even swim. What else do you think can happen just besides us not be able to swim?

Student 6: Uh, maybe we'll probably even see some species get like extinct maybe? Some will probably die, um, yeah.

Student 5: And then if the— some, like, some fishes die, some food webs are gonna get affect. Cuz, some depend on those fishes to...

Student 4: So, when one species dies another will die because that's like their food source?

Student 6: It’s gonna keep leading onto that.

Student 5: Food web.

Teacher: Did you guys agree with their solution? Any other ideas? Anything to add on?

Student 6: They had a pretty good solution and we kind of talked how if contraceptives were more accessible you can prevent overpopulation, and, and it would just—

Student 5: Another solution can be like, like she say, like exists in the policy in China where say supposed to have just one child, they can be like in here, too, like, policy to have just one child, and every country in the world.

Student 4: Yeah, that's what we thought, but also, we have to take into consideration people's views and if they're gonna be okay with that, and if they're not, are they gonna retaliate or are there gonna be rebellions?

Whole Class Debrief (8:05–9:18)

Teacher: Okay. So, uh, I want us to spend some time reflecting on the project itself and the presentation. So, we have two questions, you guys are gonna write a paragraph for each question. You guys can write right on the paper, and you guys are gonna turn it in at the end of the period. Okay? Um, the questions are up here and they're also just right on your paper. There's also some sentence starters under each question. You don't have to use them if you want to just kind of write on your own, but if you want those are there for you to kind of set you up. And then can we have Yahirah, can you read your answer to number two for us?

Student 8: The process of researching and developing our solution was a part like, more easier for us, because we just copy and talking about it. But the part most difficult for us, all four of us, to explain to others, be able to explain it because it's a little bit difficult to, to others understand us.

Teacher: Yeah, I think that's, I think that's totally true, you know, it's easy to write it down and be in your own head, but it's— to explain it to other people. Definitely. Okay, great job guys.

Reflection and Discussion (9:18–10:23)

Narrator: Reflection and Discussion. Reflect on the following questions: First, how did you observe the following focal content standards and supporting English language development standards being implemented in this grade eleven and twelve integrated English language development lesson? Life Sciences 2, Sub-Item 7: Ecosystems, Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics. English language development Part 1, Standard 1: Exchanging Information and ideas. Part 1, Standard 5, Listening Actively. And Part 1, Standard 9: Presenting. Second, what features of integrated English language development did you observe in the lesson? Now pause the video and engage in a discussion with colleagues.

Closing Slides (10:24–10:44)

Narrator: The California Department of Education would like to thank the administrators, teachers, and students who participated in the making of this video. This video was made possible by the California Department of Education in collaboration with WestEd and Timbre Films.