Eco-Literacy Intervention:

Exploring Academic Vocabulary through an Urban Garden Project

Catherine Snow (Academic Supervision)Jia Li (Principal Investigator) Nick Edwards, Mary Turner,

and Souhad Zendah (Team members)

Overview

• The Problem: Academic Vocabulary and ELLs

• The Model: A Research-Driven Approach

• The Project: An Urban Gardening Initiative

• The Curriculum: Eco-Literacy• Intended Outcomes

The Problem

'What does the word ‘Face' mean in this sentence: 'He was only trying to save face.' A) The front of the head. B)To look at something. C) The surface of a solid. D) Dignity.

The Problem: Vocabulary and Reading• A reciprocal relationship (Stanovich, 1986)– Vocabulary is required to comprehend text,

BUT vocabulary is built through extensive reading

–Matthew effect: “rich get richer” and “poor get poorer” in terms of vocabulary

– Particularly a problem for ELLs, who are (by definition) “vocabulary poor” (Nation, 2001; Laufer, 1997)

• One potential solution– Explicit teaching of vocabulary in engaging

contexts

The Importance of Academic Vocabulary

• Academic success in middle-school is inextricably linked with academic vocabulary knowledge (Lesaux, Kieffer, Faller & Kelly, 2010).

• Increasing academic vocabulary is even more important for ELLs, whose limited vocabulary knowledge puts them at a higher risk of academic failure (Carlo & Bengochea, 2011).

The Site: Rogers Middle School in Boston

• School statistics*:– 75.6% free lunch, 9.8% reduced-price lunch– 34% of students first language is not English– 21.7% of students have limited English proficiency

*based on Massachusetts Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE)

• Students come from 17 native language backgrounds besides English, including:Spanish, French, Vietnamese, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Portuguese, German, Arabic, Hindi, Swahili, Yoruba, Serbian, Greek, Somali, Creole (Cape Verde and Haitian), Nigerian Igbo, Jamaican Patwa

The Model

The Model: Curriculum Design

• Adapted from Word Generation (Snow, Lawrence & White, 2009)– Academic vocabulary presented in short,

informational passages about controversial issues– Discussion and debate activities encourage

students to take a stand and make personal connections

– Activities connected to math, science, social studies, and English language arts

–Multiple, authentic interactions with target words

Debate Format• Students control turn-taking and topic of debate• Use of target academic words to express views• Video: A Word Generation debate at Rogers

Middle School

• Teachers better understand students of their own gender.

• Students need to be prepared for interacting with people of both genders.

• Depending on the student, a co-ed or single-gender environment might be a better option.

Three Points Made by Students

8th Graders at Rogers on Single Gender Education

The Model: Project-Based Learning

• Project-based learning proven effective in teaching vocabulary to undergraduate ELLs (Li & McComb, 2011)

• Ongoing gardening projects successful for improving middle grade students’ scientific thinking skills (Mabie & Baker, 1996)– Outcomes include enhanced abilities to observe,

communicate, compare, order, relate, and infer–More effective on these measures than lecture-

based instruction and isolated classroom activities (e.g., traditional ‘labs’)

Fulbright Canada-RBC Urban Garden Project

• A garden with fruit trees, perennial herbs and annual vegetable plants– Field learning site for social studies and science

education– Supplement to school lunch menu

• Students, teachers and the principal will contribute ideas for the garden design

• About 30 grade 8 students, 7 teachers, the principal and a team of Harvard graduate students will build the garden

• Garden construction scheduled for May 30th, 2012

Garden Project Description

The Curriculu

m

Selecting Lesson Topics • Directly related to the school’s urban

garden project1. Urban Gardens• Is urban agriculture a wise use of

resources?2. Organic Agriculture• Is organic food better for the environment

and our health?3. Composting• Should governments encourage composting? Would you compost in your backyard?

Profiling the Text• Texts analyzed for word frequency and type– 1K: 1,000 most common English words– 2K: second most frequent 1,000 words– AWL: Words on Coxhead’s (2000) Academic

Word List– “Off-list” words: All other (relatively low

frequency) words that are not 1K, 2K, or AWL• Typical academic text contains 76% 1K +

2K, 10% AWL and 9% other words *• Even 2% of unknown words can interfere

with independent reading comprehension**Observations made by Nation (2001)

Vocabulary Profile• Similar profile to a typical academic text, but

with about half the academic words (5.5%)• Reads like an

expository text students would encounter

• Optimal level of challenge

• Aims at students’ Zone of Proximal Development (Vygotsky, 1978)

Selecting Target Words• Words from the AWL (Coxhead, 2000)

and other difficult, high-utility words selected from color-coded profiled text

Vocabulary in Authentic Context

• Each lesson focused around a real life issue that is relevant to adolescents

• Connection to the “bigger picture”– Community– Environment

Examining Academic Vocabulary

• Chart to assist teachers in the exploration of target words

• Words not taught in isolation• Using target words in multiple ways

produceproductivenessproductively unproductive

productproductionreproduce producerproducible

The garden was very productive last year.

Comprehension Checks• Critical Thinking– Questions that draw on students’ personal

beliefs and prior knowledge– Become more familiar with the information in

the text• For Example:

Debating the Issue• Using academic language

to express personal views • Developing reasoning skills– Using facts to support an argument– Considering the issue from multiple perspectives

Persuasive Writing• Making connections between:– Debate and written arguments– Text and personal beliefs– Vocabulary and how it is used

• Tying it all together

Rhetoric

Text Content

Personal Beliefs

Oral debate

Academic Vocabulary

Usage in Context

Making Connections• Academic

literacy across the Curriculum

• Activities that connect target words to different content areas

Math

Science

Social Studies

EnglishLanguage

Arts

Urban Garden Activity• Students can see the math

involved in basic activities– A preview of their real-life garden

activity• Using addition, multiplication,

volume, budgeting, and estimation• Coming up with creative solutions– Adjusting garden size to fit a budget

Organic Agriculture Activity

Science and Math Activity• Students must:– make a hypothesis based on given information– think about what they don’t know

• Students can think about the validity of their arguments

• Students ask questions about gaps in their knowledge

Composting Activity• Students will learn about ratios while also

building their science skills– Compare compostable items–Make inferences and predictions about

compost– Encourages critical

questions• What are the properties of

green and brown compost?• What would happen if we

had too much brown compost?

Composting Activity• Examples of potential student predictions

– More green compost is needed than brown compost – Most compost piles have two to three times as

much green compost as brown compost– Brown compost takes longer to decompose

Incorporating Multimedia • Multimedia resources such as

Websites and videos recommended for lesson extension• Reinforces content and language

• Visual representation provides another entry point for ELLs

• Example: A how-to video about making compost*

*courtesy of Lowe’s website

Outcomes

Intended Outcomes: Development• Improved critical thinking

skills• Greater tendency engage

in multidisciplinary thinking• Increased motivation for

learning• Heightened confidence to

express views

Intended Outcomes: Content Knowledge

• Deeper understanding of target vocabulary • Better understanding of

expository genres• More nuanced

understanding of relationships between individuals, communities, and the environment

Special ThanksFulbright Canada-RBC Eco-Leadership Program

Students and teachers at Rogers Middle School

Jia.li@utoronto.ca or jiali@uoit.ca

Thank you!

• This curriculum is a work in progress, and we’re interested in hearing your feedback and suggestions!– Can you see any limitations of

this program?– Can you think of any ways we

could improve it?– Anything that you think is

particularly effective?– Any other suggestions or

questions?

Your suggestions

Selected Resources• Vocabulary Profiler: http://conc.lextutor.ca/vp/eng/• Vegetable product life cycle (lesson plans for grade

9-12):http://www.kidscom.com/pdf_files/HS_Sci_Product_Life_Cycle.pdf

• Basic information on organic foods: http://altmed.creighton.edu/OrganicFood/

• Sustainable Table: NGO promoting environmental awareness: http://www.sustainabletable.org/about/

• EPA resource for teens: http://www.epa.gov/osw/education/teens/index.htm

• Compost activities and lessons (for teachers and students) http://www.teachervision.fen.com/tv/printables/EPA_Composting-Unit.pdf

References• Carlo, M., & Bengochea, A. (2011). Best practices in literacy instrction for English language

learners. In L. B. Gambrell, & L. M. Morrow (Eds.), Best practices in literacy instruction (4th ed., pp. 492). New York: Guilford Press.

• Coxhead, A. (2000). A New Academic Word List. TESOL Quarterly, 34 (2), 213-238.• Laufer, B. (1997). The lexical plight in second language reading: Words you don’t know,

words you think you know, and words you can’t guess. In J. Coady & T. Huckin (Eds.), Second language vocabulary acquisition (pp. 20–34). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

• Lesaux, N. K., Kieffer, M. J., Faller, S. E., & Kelley, J. G. (2010). The effectiveness and ease of implementation of an academic vocabulary intervention for linguistically diverse students in urban middle schools. Reading Research Quarterly, 45(2), pp. 196-228.

• Mabie, R., & Baker, M. (1996). A comparison of experiential instructional strategies upon the science process skills of urban elementary students. Journal of Agricultural Education, 37, 1–7.

• Nation, I.S.P. (2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

• Stanovich, K.E. (1986). Matthew effects in reading: Some consequences of individual differences in the acquisition of literacy. Reading Research Quarterly, 21, 360–407.

• Snow, C. E., Lawrence, J. F., & White, C. (2009). Generating knowledge of academic language among urban middle school students. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 2(4), 325-344.