Exploring the Relationships Among Civic Engagement, Academic Vocabulary, and Science Content Knowledge in Early Adolescents

• In Event: 75.029 - Democratic Citizenship Education: Policies, Frameworks, and Multiple Platforms

Abstract

This study explored the relationships among civic engagement (CE), academic vocabulary and science content knowledge among 6th grade students in science classes in an urban school. It is part of a larger research examining the implementation of a multi-disciplinary intervention program, Dialogic Inquiry for Socio-scientific and Conceptual Understanding in School Science (DISCUSS), which aimed to develop higher-order thinking skills, science content, academic vocabulary and social studies knowledge in a Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI)-based curriculum among English Language Learner (ELL) students. The mediation analysis indicated that higher CE was associated with higher academic vocabulary, and that higher academic vocabulary was associated with higher science content knowledge. Findings suggest that greater CE contributes to higher science content knowledge via academic vocabulary.

Authors

• Ma. Glenda Lopez Wui, University of Houston

• Jackie Eunjung Relyea, Harvard University

• Jie Zhang, University of Houston

• Sissy S. Wong, University of Houston

• Jennifer Donze, University of Houston