The Next Generation Science Standards, Common Core State Standards, and English language learners: A framework for pre-service secondary science teacher education

Abstract

This paper presents a rationale and framework for preparing pre-service secondary science teachers to more effectively teach the rapidly growing population of English Language Learners, specifically through four interrelated practices: (1) scientific sense-making, (2) scientific discourse, (3) English language and literacy development, and (4) contextualized science activity. The framework responds to the upcoming release of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and adoption of Common Core State Standards (CCSS), which both recognize the critical role of academic language and literacy in learning academic subjects. The authors articulate the need for explicit models of secondary science and language integration in teacher education programs and provide exemplars of how this integration would translate to various program components.