From “academic language” to the “language of ideas”: a disciplinary perspective on using language in K-12 settings

A still-widespread perspective on "academic language" is that the most important dimension of language used for academic purposes is the extent to which its linguistic features contrast with "everyday language" used outside of school. But focusing on the unique linguistic features of written academic texts ignores the important role that other, more "everyday" forms of language plays in doing academic work and overlooks the intellectual work that students—especially those from linguistically marginalized backgrounds—are capable of doing using their existing linguistic resources. In this article, we (a language and literacy specialist collaborating with a history education expert) suggest that an alternative is to shift the focus away from what makes academic texts different from everyday language toward the nature of the "language of ideas" used to engage in disciplinary work, including (a) how the content, ideas, and practices at the heart of a discipline can be expressed in a variety of ways, (b) the participant structures and communicative tasks students are called upon to navigate to do academic work, and (c) the linguistic resources students bring to the table to engage in disciplinary learning opportunities—no matter how far from "academic" that language may initially sound.