The goal of incorporating Communication into Saskatchewan's K-12 curricula is to promote students' learning in all school subjects through improving their language abilities within each subject. What is desired are students who can bring order and meaning to facts and experiences and communicate that understanding effectively to others.
Communication as a Common Essential Learning focuses on the language demands of each school subject. The role of the teacher is central to improving students' understandings through the development of communication abilities in all subjects. Thus, Communication is described largely in terms of instructional strategies necessary to help students with this task. It does not require that all teachers become language arts teachers, nor does it replace teachers' responsibilities for teaching the content and processes of other school subjects.
As a C.E.L., Communication recognizes first, that the language requirements of all school subjects must be clarified, and second, that teachers must be supported as they assume responsibility for these requirements. The over-riding purpose of such clarification and support is to assist students in coming to a better understanding of all their school subjects.
Communication is based on three important principles which demonstrate the relationship between language, thinking and learning.
The interrelationship between language, thinking and learning is further clarified through an understanding of how students learn. Knowledge exists in the minds of knowers, and students do not develop or acquire knowledge until they can put information into an ordering which has meaning. Language is the means that students generally use to bring order and meaning to facts and experience, either by speaking or writing, or by inner monologue of thought. It is largely by means of language that the school expects learning to take place.
One of the aims of education is to help the student achieve full potential as a language user (including alternative and/or augmentative forms for those students unable to use verbal communication). To support this aim, awareness of the diversity of students' needs is important. When speaking of language, it needs to be remembered that language includes alternative forms of communication such as signing, manual communication systems, electronic communication devices and Braille. These forms are important not only for students with exceptional needs, but also for people with whom these students may wish to communicate. It is recognized that adaptations may be necessary for students with special needs. It is also important to recognize that communication may take different forms in different cultures. Cultural differences in aspects of communication such as silence, eye contact and ways of expressing emotions need to be respected2. When developing Communication, it is critical to be sensitive to cultural norms.
Language develops in use, in response to the demands put upon it by learning in different subject areas, as well as students' life experiences. The language that evolves in a particular situation is shaped by a number of factors, including:
Language development is enhanced by the opportunity to use language in many different situations in order to deal with a wide variety of tasks.
Through language, students acquire most of their learning. Methods of inquiry, recording, reporting and theorizing are linguistic processes, sensitive to the context in which they take place. It is in the school's power, as the context in which the learning of the Required Areas of Study takes place, to facilitate these processes. It is through language used for clearly perceived learning purposes that students acquire understanding of what a school education offers. Schools need to become places where understanding of the nature of language as well as general learning can proceed in an integrated manner through reading, writing, speaking, and listening.
Communication as a C.E.L. supports teachers in their efforts "to increase and/or vary the language experiences that help students understand and explore the subject matter and processes of the Required Areas of Study" (Gambell, 1987, p. 16). Students need to become literate in the language of each subject area. Teachers of each subject can help with this achievement by:
Generally, teachers will need to place a great deal more emphasis on expressive language,3 both oral and written, as students come to terms with learning in the subject areas. Having greater awareness of the contextual nature of language and learning suggests that teachers should use a variety of instructional contexts - including individual, small group, whole class, pairs, and even across-age groupings - to take advantage of different language and learning possibilities. Teachers should be aware of the different capabilities of students at different ages, as they deal with language in the various modes-listening, speaking, reading and writing. Students' development in language, thinking and learning is enhanced when teachers:
Teachers' roles in fostering Communication abilities often overlap and reinforce their roles in fostering other C.E.L.s - such as Critical and Creative Thinking and Independent Learning. While the examples in this section focus primarily on strengthening capabilities in meeting the language requirements of the various school subjects, many of the suggestions for instructional strategies have wider implications.
Studies of the problems which teachers most frequently encounter in students' writing and reading abilities in the content areas4 typically include the following situations and difficulties:
Working from concerns such as these, strategies have been developed which assist students in understanding and applying subject matter from the content areas. The activities which appear to be most useful are those which focus on having students think through and actively construct the meaning of texts, lectures or films for themselves, and which require students to translate this knowledge into another form (such as concept mapping and diagramming). Retention rates from such activities are longer and material is more likely to be related to previous knowledge, past experience and/or other areas of study. Activities which incorporate listening and speaking in pairs, small or large groups with reading and writing activities promote the most growth.5
Such activities can be categorized to reflect students' needs in the content areas (cited previously as frequently encountered problems). These categories include: preparation for reading, listening or viewing; reflection on text read; extraction and organization of text; and translation and sharing of new learning. While two of these categories will be discussed briefly, the list of practical resources related to Communication (see Appendix A) provide support in all of these areas.
Whenever we learn something, we make connections or forge links between what we already know and what we are learning. At the same time, learning something new involves putting aside content judged to be irrelevant. This dual process involves thinking that is not simply receptive (where students passively take something in), but rather thinking that is active and constructive. To engage students in this type of thinking-learning activity is one of the surest ways to promote genuine understanding of content. Understanding can be fostered through preparatory activities, such as questioning of various types, discussion, analysis and categorization tasks, and process writing.
Whether students are in kindergarten or in grade twelve, exploration of a topic within one of the content areas proceeds best when linked to an activity which focuses students' thoughts on the underlying meaning of the topic. Meanings can be personal, reflecting students' own experience related to the topic, or meanings can be more formal, exploring for example, the relationship between the new topic and knowledge of other school subjects.
The strategy of having students establish prior questions is valuable at any age. Teacher questioning and discussion in an introductory or preparatory lesson should be designed to elicit responses from students about what they already know on the topic. The second step in such a , process would require students to reflect on what they don't know and what they would like to know about this same topic. Such exploration can be achieved through a variety of formats. Some appropriate methods, beginning with students in kindergarten, are class brainstorming and preparation of the group's set of questions (recorded on an experience chart). Teachers of older students may ask their classes to reflect on the topic, and then to write individual sets of questions. In all grades, such an initial activity should be followed by an activity at the end of the unit which leads students back to their original questions, in order to see if they have been answered.
A somewhat more formal technique used to prepare students for new learning is that of the structured overview or concept map6. One version of this activity requires that teachers think through and articulate the important concepts in a new unit, chapter or film before introducing students to this same material. Teachers print these concepts on sheets, which are cut into cards by students. Students are instructed to read the words or phrases on the cards, then to sort them into two piles of concepts - first, ones they are familiar with or have a basic understanding of, and second, ones they don't understand. Recording and working specifically with the collection of concepts that students do not know is a useful offshoot of this activity. Students could also be expected to work further with the concepts they do know, arranging them on their desks to reflect their present understanding. They could move cards closer together to demonstrate which concepts belong in the same category, or alternatively, order them from the most general or inclusive concepts (top of their desk), to the sub-topics (middle), to specific examples of sub-topics (bottom).
Figure 2.1 illustrates a concept map developed through Novak & Gowin's (1984) strategies for concept mapping. In this activity students (or teachers) select 6-8 concepts they consider to be centrally involved in the exploration of a particular topic. Once the key concepts are identified students begin either individually, in pairs or in small groups to rank order the concepts from the broadest, most inclusive concept to the more specific, least inclusive concepts. Students then construct a "map" starting with the broadest concept at the top of their sheet and proposing relationships between concepts through parallel as well as hierarchical connections. Prior questions and concept maps are two preparatory devices which help students focus on the ideas contained in new material.
Figure 2.1 A concept map for history prepared by a previously low-achieving student in sixth grade from Novak & Gowin’s (1984) Learning How to Learn. Reprinted with the permission of Cambridge University Press.
Much new information that is presented to students comes in the form of material which they are required to read. Strategies for helping students make sense of what they read in the content areas include those which focus attention on the underlying structure or framework of how the text or section of text is organized. All print materials in schools do not follow an ideal and consistent structure. This lack of consistency makes extracting and organizing material a difficult task for most students.
Just as young students come to recognize predictable story patterns, older students should come to recognize organizational structures. Reading the table of contents in a variety of textbooks as the basis for discussion of some common organizational schemes, would be a useful preliminary activity in any of the content areas. Having pupils draw diagrams which summarize a text, chapter or passage is also helpful. Teachers might present several types of diagrams as models, such as graphs or flow charts, but students should be encouraged to develop their own diagrams whenever possible.
In order to help improve their ability to extract and organize information from the printed page, secondary students can be asked to develop graphic outlines. These graphic outlines can later be converted into conventional outline form. Figure 2.2 illustrates one example of a graphic outline, developed from a science textbook. Teachers should keep in mind that these diagrams are used as aids for students" understanding and thus should not be assessed as projects in draftsmanship.
Organizing print material into a visual display is a valuable small group activity which stimulates understanding, because it requires so much re-reading and checking of facts. At the same time, it gives teachers an effective way of assessing students' levels of understanding.7
Many activities promote meaningful learning in the content areas. One final activity discussed here is that of note-making. The making of notes is an intrinsic part of learning, which can help students better organize and understand information *from text, talk or film. It is an activity which is useful for research and essay writing, as well as for studying.
Teachers have a role to play in helping students develop the ability to make notes. In the early years, children need to be encouraged to put ideas and information into their own words. Asking students to share with their classmates a sentence about the report they have just heard or the program they have recently watched, can lead to thinking about the main idea of the presentation. After students' initial offerings are given, teachers can focus discussion further with comments and questions such as: "We have heard a lot of things that people remember about the book I just read. What do you think is the most important part of the book?"
By the time students have some rudimentary abilities in reading and writing, they should be encouraged to summarize new information by writing one or two sentences which describe what they have learned from an activity, book or film. Young students should also be given tasks such as writing down one word which best tells what a book, recording, or film was about.
In the middle years, note-making should be preceded by having students set prior questions (as individuals or in groups) which will guide them in looking for specific information. Two activities which are useful for middle-years' students include:
In both instances, students profit most from the sharing and group discussion which follow such an activity. During discussion, teachers will need to find ways to have students reflect on some of the following observations:
Note-making activities should be accompanied, at least part of the time, by an activity where the notes are used or applied - such as using the notes to give a talk to the class, or as the basis for writing a short research summary or report. Continuing into the secondary school years, students need opportunities to use note-making as a thinking activity - one which links their reading, viewing and talking with their writing.
Some general guidelines for developing students' abilities with regard to note-making and report writing include:
Finally, it should be noted that the preceding discussion of note-making and other strategies for organizing information are consistent with the role of the teacher-librarian in a resource-based learning approach. Co-operation between teacher and teacher-librarian in incorporating Communication strategies into library research projects is important.
To summarize the theory and practice of promoting Communication:
| — | learning in the content areas should promote understanding over memorization; |
| — | teachers need to think through and organize their knowledge in each subject they teach, in a way that helps them understand it and see the language areas where students may have difficulty; |
| — | teachers should be supported in finding ways to engage students in language tasks related to the ideas, the organizing structures and the vocabulary of their subjects. |
1. The work of Trevor Gambell (Communication Across the Curriculum, Saskatchewan Education, 1987) has been used extensively in formulating this chapter.
2. See Cross-Cultural Communication, Session 2, Phase II Inservice, (1981), Community Education Branch, Saskatchewan Education, for further discussion of cultural differences related to language and communication.
3.Expressive language is language that is personal - it reflects a person's own understandings. It is the basis for growth in more formal uses of language.
4. See for example Part 3 of Morris and Stewart-Dore’s Learning to Learn from Text, Addison-Wesley. North Ryde: 1987.
5.See the Practical Resources at the end of this handbook (Appendix A) for a list of books which examine in more detail the arguments presented here.
6. See Novak and Gowin’s (1984) Learning How to Learn, and Morris & Stewart-Dore's (1987) Learning to Learn from Text, for two complete and differing descriptions of this technique.
7. Descriptions of diagramming and outlining techniques can be found in Moms & Stewart-Dore’s (1987)
Learning to Learn from Text.