Language development methods in social studies.

The curriculum for social studies is designed in a way where knowledge is assessed through the students’ expressive language skills. Much of the knowledge is also expected to be gained through reading. The purpose of this study is to examine what types of scaffolding teachers can create for students reading social studies nonfiction texts in grades 4–5. The study is based on observations and interviews with three teachers. The material was subsequently analysed based on characteristics in language development methods, showing that teachers do not emphasise the importance of language for learning when teaching. The results also show that students, to a small extent, are used as supporting resources for one another and that teachers themselves take up much of the talking space in the classroom. During structured oral text instruction teachers request short answers, that are evaluable rather than allowing time for interrogative and reflective discussions. The effect of the teacher centered teaching is that the students are passivate instead of challenged with cognitively demanding tasks where scaffolding can enable a potentially higher learning level