From founding voices to future visions: languages and literacies in science education

Over the past decades, languages and literacies have become a prominent focus in science education research and practice. While there is broad consensus on the central roles of disciplinary, representational, and cultural languages and their associated literacies in learning and teaching science, th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of science education 2024, p.1-18
Main Authors: Kersting, Magdalena, Danielsson, Kristina, Fleury Mortimer, Eduardo, Olander, Clas, Siry, Christina, Tang, Kok-Sing
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Didactics
didaktik
Language Education
languages and literacies
multilingualism
multimodality
naturvetenskapsämnenas didaktik
Pedagogics and Educational Sciences
Pedagogik och Utbildningsvetenskap
Science education
scientific literacy
språkdidaktik
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Summary:Over the past decades, languages and literacies have become a prominent focus in science education research and practice. While there is broad consensus on the central roles of disciplinary, representational, and cultural languages and their associated literacies in learning and teaching science, the field faces a critical moment. An ever-growing number of new theoretical and methodological perspectives have revealed rich facets of the multilingual and multimodal nature of learning processes in science. These developments prompt us to reflect on the distinct identity and impact of languages and literacies on the contemporary discourse in science education, especially in light of technological innovations (e.g. large-language models) and societal developments (e.g. multilingual contexts). This position paper offers an opportunity to assess the field's past developments and future directions, building on a recent meeting of the Special Interest Group (SIG) on Languages and Literacies in Science Education under the European Science Education Research Association (ESERA). We present viewpoints from four founding members of the SIG, discussing current trends, challenges, and visions for the future. Ultimately, this paper invites our global community to engage in informed dialogues on the role and value of languages and literacies in science education today.
ISSN:0950-0693
1464-5289
1464-5289
DOI:10.1080/09500693.2024.2377424