The construction of semantic waves of knowledge-building: High school students´ natural science writing
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7146/hjlcb.v59i1.117037Keywords:
knowledge-building; semantic density; semantic gravity; content area literacy; writing to learnAbstract
This paper investigates popular science articles written by Swedish high school students as part of a project aimed at building their knowledge of the content of their natural science curriculum by integrating it with their Swedish language studies. This work, an effort to promote content-area literacy and knowledge-building, was undertaken during their project time. By analyzing the students´ texts, the purpose of the study was to access their value as knowledge-building tools. The analysis of the texts was carried out utilizing Maton´s (2013) theoretical concepts of waves of semantic density and semantic gravity, which are seen as a prerequisite for cumulative knowledge-building. The investigation extends previous studies on semantic waves since it incorporates into the analyses both linguistic features and visual elements. The students were writing in pairs and a total of six texts were analyzed. The text analyses showed three different types of semantic profiles, with four of the texts including features that served as means of cumulative knowledge-building. In a concluding section, some pedagogical implications of the study are considered.
References
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Mateos, Mar/Martín, Elena/Villalón, Ruth/Luna, María 2008: Reading and writing to learn in secondary education: online processing activity and written products in summarizing and synthesizing tasks. In Read Write 21, 675-697. Doi 10 1007/s11145-007-9086-6
Maton, Karl 2009: Cumulative and segmented learning: exploring the role of curriculum structures in knowledge-building. In British Journal of Sociology of Education, 30(1), 43-57. Doi 10.1080/014256908025114342
Maton, Karl 2011: Theories and things: The semantics of disciplinarity. In Christie, Frances/Maton, Karl (eds.), Disciplinarity: Functional linguistic and sociological perspectives. London/New York: Continuum, 62-84.
Maton, Karl 2013: Making semantic waves: A key to cumulative knowledge-building. In Linguistics and Education, 24(1), 8-22. Doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2012.11.005
Maun, Ian/Myhill, Debra 2008: Text as design, writers as designers. In English Education 39(2), 5-21. Doi.org/10.1111/j.1754-8845-2005.tb00614.x
Morais, Ana M./Neves, Isabel/Davies, Brian/Daniels, Harry (eds.) 2001: Towards a sociology of pedagogy: The contribution of Basil Bernstein to research. New York: Peter Lang.
Newell, George E. 2006: Writing to learn. How alternative theories of school writing account for student performance. In Charles A. MacArthur/Graham, Steve/Fitzgerald, Jill (eds.), Handbook of writing research. New York: The Guilford Press, 235-247.
Nystrand, Martin 1997: Opening dialogue: Understanding the dynamics of language and Learning in the English classroom. New York: Teachers College Press.
Nystrand, Martin/Duffy, John (eds.) 2003: Towards a rhetoric of everyday life. New directions in research on writing, text, and discourse. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press.
O´Halloran, K. L. 2005: Mathematical discourse – Language, symbolism and visual images.London/New York: Continuum
Richardson, Virginia 2003: Constructivist pedagogy. In Teacher´s College Record 105, 1623-1640.
Rogoff, Barbara 1990: Apprenticeship in thinking: Cognitive development in social context. New York: Oxford University Press.
Rowley-Jolivet, Elisabeth 2002: Visual discourse in scientific conference papers: A genrebased study. In English for Specific Purposes 21(1), 19-40.
Schleppegrell, Mary 2004: The language of schooling. A functional linguistic perspective.London/New York: Continuum.
Troia, Gary A./Graham, Steve 2003: Effective writing instruction across the grades: What every educational consult should know. In Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation (14(1), 75-89.
Ulusoy, Mustafa/Dedeoglu, Hakan 2011: Content area reading and writing: Practices and beliefs. In Australian Journal of Teacher Education 36(4), 1-17. Doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2011v36n4.1
Unsworth, Len 2001: Teaching multiliteracies across the curriculum. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Vacca, Richard T./Vacca, Jo Anne L. 2000: Writing across the curriculum. In Indrisano, Roselmina/Squire, James R. (eds.), Perspectives on writing. Research, theory, and practice. Newark, Delaware: International Reading Association, 214-250.
Veel, Robert 1997: Learning how to mean – scientifically speaking: Apprenticeship into scientific discourse in the secondary school. In Christie, Frances/Martin, J.R. (eds.), Genre and institutions. Social processes in the workplace and school. London/New York: Continuum, 161-195.
Vygotsky, Lev S. 1978: Mind in society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press (Original work published 1934).
Wenger, Etienne 1998: Community of practice. Learning, meaning and identity.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Whittaker, Rachel/McCabe, Anne/O´Donnell, Mick (eds.) 2007: Advances in language and education. London/New York: Continuum.
Barton, David/Hamilton, Mary/Ivanic, Roz R. 2000: Situated literacies: Reading and writing in context. London/New York: Routledge.
Bernstein, Basil 1996: Pedagogy, symbolic control and identity. Theory, research,Critique. Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield.
Bezemer, Jeff/Kress, Gunther 2008: Writing in multimodal texts: A social semiotic account of designs. In Written Communication 25(2), 166-195. Doi:10.1177/07410088307313177
Christie, Frances/Derewianka, Beverly 2008: School discourse: Learning to write across the years of schooling. London: Continuum.
Christie, Frances/Macken-Horarik, Mary 2011: Disciplinarity and school subject English. In Christie, Frances/Maton, Karl (eds.), Disciplinarity. Functional linguistics and sociological Perspectives. London/New York: Continuum, 175-196.
Coffin, Caroline 2006: Historical discourse. The language of time, cause, and evaluation. London: Continuum.
Colombi, María Cecilia 2006: Academic language development in Latino students´ writing in Spanish. In Schleppegrell, Mary/Colombi, María Cecilia (eds.), Developing advanced literacy in first and second languages. London/New York: Routledge, 67-86.
Crawford, Teresa/Kelly, Gregory J./Brown, Candice 2000: Ways of knowing beyond facts and laws of science: An ethnographic investigation of student engagement in scientific practices. In Journal of Research in Science Teaching 37, 237-258.
Dyson, Anne H. 1997: Writing superheroes: Contemporary childhood, popular culture, and classroom literacy. New York: Teacher´s College Press.
Emerson, Robert M./Fretz, Rachel I./Shaw, Linda L. 2001: Participant observation and fieldnotes. In Atkinson, Paul/Coffey, Amanda/Delamont, Sara/Lofland, John/Lofland, Lyn (eds.), Handbook of Ethnography. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 356-357.
Fang, Zhihui/Schleppegrell, Mary/Cox, Beverly E. 2006: Understanding the language demands of schooling: Nouns in academic registers. In Journal of Literacy Research 38(3), 247-273.
Gee, James P. 1992: The social mind: Language, ideology and social practice. New York: Bergin & Garvey.
Gallas, Karen 1994: The language of learning. How children talk, write, dance, draw, and sing their understanding of the world. New York: Teachers College Press.
Guo, Libo 2004: Multimodality in a biology textbook. In O´Halloran, Kay (ed.), Multimodal Discourse analysis: Systemic functional perspectives. London/New York: Continuum 196-219.
Halliday, M. A. K. 1993: Towards a language-based theory of learning. Linguistics and Education 5, 93-116.
Halliday, M. A. K. 1998: Things and relations. Regrammaticising experience as technical knowledge. In Martin, J.R./Veel, Robert (eds.), Reading science. Critical and functional perspectives on discourses of science. London/New York: Routledge, 185-235.
Ivanic, Roz 1998: Writing and identity: The discoursal construction of identity in academic writing. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Jones, Janet 2007: Multiliteracies for academic purposes: Multimodality in textbook and computer-based learning materials in science at university. In Whittaker, Rachel /McCabe, Anne/ O´Donnell, Mick (eds.), Advances in language and education. London/New York: Continuum, 103-121.
Kilpert, Leigh/Shay, Suellen 2013: Kindling fires: examining the potential for cumulative learning. In Teaching in Higher Education 18(1), 40-52. Doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2012.678326
Kress, Gunther/van Leeuwen, Theo 1996: Reading images: The grammar of visual design.
London/New York: Routledge.
Kress, Gunther/Jewitt, Carey/Ogborn, Jon/Tsatsarelis, Charalampos 2001: Multimodal teaching and learning. The rhetorics of the science classroom. London/New York: Continuum.
Langer, Judith A. 1992: Speaking of knowing: Conceptions of understanding in academic disciplines. In Herrington, Anne/Moran, Charles (eds.), Writing, teaching, and learning in the disciplines. New York: Modern Language Association of America.
Langer, Judith A./Applebee, Arthur N. 1987: How writing shapes thinking. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.
Lave, Jean/Wenger, Etienne 1991: Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Lemke, Jay L. 1998: Multiplying meaning: Visual and verbal semiotics in scientific texts. In Martin, J.R./Veel, Robert (eds.), Reading science. Critical and functional perspectives on discourses of science. London/New York: Routledge, 87-113.
Lemke, Jay L. 2003: Mathematics in the middle: measure, picture, gesture, sign and word. In Anderson, Myrdene/Sáenz-Ludlow, Adalira/Zellweger, Shea/Cifarelli, Victor V. (eds.), Educational Perspectives on Mathematics as semiosis: From thinking to interpreting to knowing. Ottawa: Legas, 215-234.
Macken-Horarik, Mary 2004: Interaction with the multi-modal texts: reflections on image and verbiage in art. In Visual Communication 3(1), 5-26. Doi.org/10.1177/1470357204039596.
Macnaught, Lucy/Maton, Karl/Martin, J. R./Matruglio, Erika 2013: Jointly constructing semantic waves: implications for teacher training. In Linguistics and Education, 24(1), 50- 63.
Martínez, Isabel/Mateos, Mar/Martín, Elena/Rijlaarsdam, Gert 2015: Learning history by composing synthesis texts: Effects of an instructional programme on learning, reading and writing processes, and text quality. In Journal of Writing Research 7(2), 275-302. Doi.org/10.17239/JOWR-2015.07.02.03
Martin, J./Rose, D. 2008: Genre relations: mapping culture. Sheffield: Equinox.
Mateos, Mar/Martín, Elena/Villalón, Ruth/Luna, María 2008: Reading and writing to learn in secondary education: online processing activity and written products in summarizing and synthesizing tasks. In Read Write 21, 675-697. Doi 10 1007/s11145-007-9086-6
Maton, Karl 2009: Cumulative and segmented learning: exploring the role of curriculum structures in knowledge-building. In British Journal of Sociology of Education, 30(1), 43-57. Doi 10.1080/014256908025114342
Maton, Karl 2011: Theories and things: The semantics of disciplinarity. In Christie, Frances/Maton, Karl (eds.), Disciplinarity: Functional linguistic and sociological perspectives. London/New York: Continuum, 62-84.
Maton, Karl 2013: Making semantic waves: A key to cumulative knowledge-building. In Linguistics and Education, 24(1), 8-22. Doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2012.11.005
Maun, Ian/Myhill, Debra 2008: Text as design, writers as designers. In English Education 39(2), 5-21. Doi.org/10.1111/j.1754-8845-2005.tb00614.x
Morais, Ana M./Neves, Isabel/Davies, Brian/Daniels, Harry (eds.) 2001: Towards a sociology of pedagogy: The contribution of Basil Bernstein to research. New York: Peter Lang.
Newell, George E. 2006: Writing to learn. How alternative theories of school writing account for student performance. In Charles A. MacArthur/Graham, Steve/Fitzgerald, Jill (eds.), Handbook of writing research. New York: The Guilford Press, 235-247.
Nystrand, Martin 1997: Opening dialogue: Understanding the dynamics of language and Learning in the English classroom. New York: Teachers College Press.
Nystrand, Martin/Duffy, John (eds.) 2003: Towards a rhetoric of everyday life. New directions in research on writing, text, and discourse. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press.
O´Halloran, K. L. 2005: Mathematical discourse – Language, symbolism and visual images.London/New York: Continuum
Richardson, Virginia 2003: Constructivist pedagogy. In Teacher´s College Record 105, 1623-1640.
Rogoff, Barbara 1990: Apprenticeship in thinking: Cognitive development in social context. New York: Oxford University Press.
Rowley-Jolivet, Elisabeth 2002: Visual discourse in scientific conference papers: A genrebased study. In English for Specific Purposes 21(1), 19-40.
Schleppegrell, Mary 2004: The language of schooling. A functional linguistic perspective.London/New York: Continuum.
Troia, Gary A./Graham, Steve 2003: Effective writing instruction across the grades: What every educational consult should know. In Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation (14(1), 75-89.
Ulusoy, Mustafa/Dedeoglu, Hakan 2011: Content area reading and writing: Practices and beliefs. In Australian Journal of Teacher Education 36(4), 1-17. Doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2011v36n4.1
Unsworth, Len 2001: Teaching multiliteracies across the curriculum. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Vacca, Richard T./Vacca, Jo Anne L. 2000: Writing across the curriculum. In Indrisano, Roselmina/Squire, James R. (eds.), Perspectives on writing. Research, theory, and practice. Newark, Delaware: International Reading Association, 214-250.
Veel, Robert 1997: Learning how to mean – scientifically speaking: Apprenticeship into scientific discourse in the secondary school. In Christie, Frances/Martin, J.R. (eds.), Genre and institutions. Social processes in the workplace and school. London/New York: Continuum, 161-195.
Vygotsky, Lev S. 1978: Mind in society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press (Original work published 1934).
Wenger, Etienne 1998: Community of practice. Learning, meaning and identity.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Whittaker, Rachel/McCabe, Anne/O´Donnell, Mick (eds.) 2007: Advances in language and education. London/New York: Continuum.
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Published
2019-11-03
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Svensson, B. (2019). The construction of semantic waves of knowledge-building: High school students´ natural science writing. HERMES - Journal of Language and Communication in Business, 59(1), 139–152. https://doi.org/10.7146/hjlcb.v59i1.117037
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