209 Summary 1. Integrating science and literacy instruction Reading proficiency is very important for content learning in subjects such as geography, history and science, which provide a functional and motivating context in which students can enhance their reading skills. After all, reading within content learning focuses on knowledge construction and thus always offers a goal that goes beyond just working on reading comprehension. It also ensures that attention is paid to background knowledge, an important element in text comprehension (Elbro & Buch-Iversen, 2013; Smith et al., 2021; Peng et al., 2023). Being engaged in knowledge building while reading a text also increases interest and intrinsic motivation for reading, thereby promoting deeper text processing (Jetton & Alexander, 2001; Purcell-Gates et al., 2007; Wang & Guthrie, 2004). Not surprisingly, researchers, teachers and other educational experts have been interested in the benefits of an integrated approach to language skills in content learning for decades. The research literature offers many examples of reading interventions that link reading to academic subjects. Several meta-analyses and review studies have shown that curricula integrating content learning with reading and writing skills have a predominantly positive effect on language skills (vocabulary, comprehension, and writing skills) and subject knowledge (Bradbury, 2014; Graham et al., 2020; Hwang et al., 2022; Kim et al., 2021b). Such curricula often show a combination of reading and writing instruction with science education (Cervetti et al., 2012; Guthrie et al., 1999; Romance & Vitale, 2001). The fact that precisely this link with science lessons proves fruitful, seems primarily due to the research-oriented nature of science education. In science education, students conduct research on a very small scale, for instance doing hands-on research activities, comparing outcomes, drawing conclusions, reading background information and writing logs or reports (Cervetti et al., 2005, 2009; Glynn & Muth, 1994; Osborne, 2002). Processes of comprehension in inquiry activities share many similarities with the strategies needed to achieve text comprehension. For example, metacognitive skills are needed, students must be able to select relevant information, apply problem-solving thinking skills, and make connections between pieces of information (Bradbury, 2014; Cerveti et al., 2005; Spires et al., 2018). Attention to language is important, as science education has its own academic language: vocabulary and specific patterns of language use that are not present in students' everyday language and thus require specific attention to enable learning (Huerta & Garza, 2019; Goldman et al., 2016; Smit et al., 2013). In Dutch primary education we see a growing interest in integrating reading and writing instruction with learning in the content areas as well. Current integrated approaches mainly emphasize working on vocabulary and background knowledge. However, little attention is devoted to text structure, even though a large body of research has shown that deep text comprehension involves making connections between different parts of the text. That is why precisely this combination of text structure education and science education was the focus of the research reported in this dissertation. 210
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