Effects of concept-based instruction on an English language learner in a rural school: A descriptive case study

Bilingual Research Journal, Summer 2003 by Twyman, Todd, Ketterlin-Geller, Leanne R, McCoy, Jan D, Tindal, Gerald

CBI aligns curriculum and instruction with assessment in three distinct phases. First, information is organized into critical knowledge forms (facts, concepts, attributes, and principles) that reflect the depth and breadth of a content domain. Second, instruction on declarative and procedural knowledge is delivered using graphical presentations of information enriched with scaffolding activities and interactive discussions. Third, critical-thinking measures are administered that encourage students to transfer knowledge to new situations and problem-solving events. Complexity of thought is elicited in these assessment tasks and measured within a taxonomy of intellectual operations (reiterate, summarize, illustrate, predict, explain, and evaluate) first introduced by Roid and Haladyna (1982) and adapted by Tindal and Nolet (1994).

Facts are easier to teach, but substantially harder for low-achieving students to learn, because they are communicated in dense language and must be memorized (Tindal & Nolet, 1994). Therefore, to assist in putting isolated facts into context, the curriculum is planned around concepts that share a common set of defining attributes (Tindal, Nolet, & Blake, 1992). Particularly important for CLD students, concepts and attributes are overtly named and defined in appropriate vocabulary that ensures categorization to facilitate recall and understanding (Klausmeier, 1990). Attributes serve as critical structural components of concepts to provide rules for generating, selecting, and sequencing examples and non-examples. Explicitly specified concept attributes are critical in providing students with the "rules" of generalizability. Concept attributes enable students to apply knowledge to new circumstances, settings, places, events, and time periods and across domains. Moreover, concept attributes can be juxtaposed to non-examples to highlight the critical distinctions (stream vs. brook, ocean vs. lake, etc.). The ability to discriminate between examples and non-examples helps students learn concepts (Merrill & Tennyson, 1971) because students can organize information into a structure that enables them to recall and generalize the information needed to solve any given problem within the specified domain.

CBI uses graphic organizers as visual and organizational templates to present knowledge forms and communicate relationships among attributes within and across concepts. Used in instructional delivery, graphic organizers provide students with a meaningful conceptual framework from which they can activate prior knowledge and create new schemata (Ausebel, 1968), leading to better and faster comprehension (Dunston, 1992). The presentation of knowledge forms systematically organizes information in a logical and strategic manner so students can gain better access to key principles and supporting arguments.

Methods

The rural school district we examined is located in the Pacific Northwest; the town has a population of 8,500. The nearest major population center is 20 miles from the school, and the community is still timber dependent, which contributes to a 10% higher unemployment rate than in the rest of the state. Per capita and median household income is also lower than in the state as a whole, with 14.4% of the population living in poverty (U.S. Census Bureau, 1999). The geographical setting and economic situation translate to the student population, of whom 51% are eligible for free and reduced lunch and breakfast programs, and 73% are eligible for district transportation to and from school (Oregon Department of Education, 2002a).