An agenda for research on text material in primary science for second language learners of English in developing countries

Abstract

The review focuses on evidence related to the readability and comprehensibility of text material for learning science in primary schools, which shows that texts are often too difficult for children, particularly in developing countries where pupils are learning through a medium of instruction which is not their first language. Evidence is reviewed in relation to six main features: teacher quality; cultural appropriateness of resources; language of instruction; textual and structural complexity; science content; learning context. The review concludes that the most urgent and appropriate research needs to focus on the age at which children begin to learn science in English as the medium of instruction, and needs to investigate links between science text and language schemes used to teach English prior to immersion. Research should also focus on meta‐textual factors, such as how text is mediated by teachers in the classroom; and on specific pedagogical‐cultural constraints and features of the environment hi which text is used, including the culture of initial teacher training. Finally, the review points to a need for studies of the way commercially published texts are commissioned, generated and adopted by schools.