Science Discourse in College

As we grow up we strive to attain higher social status and financial freedom. In today’s world not attending college, in most instances, would be detrimental to your success. Within our education we acquire the necessary skills and experience we need to enter a professional field, such as science. Also, we may receive the credentials to allow us to be noticed by employers or to precede positions within a company, therefore allowing us to acquire higher social status in a shorter period of time. College, in it’s own, requires certain skills and abilities that are not realized and/or able to be acquired unless you are in the environment. In order to be successful in a field like science you must attend college to attain the necessary skills.

Language was put into quotes because James Paul Gee elaborated on this “language” in his work named “Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: Introduction.” Within his work he names the language and skills within a specific setting a Discourse. A Discourse is defined as an “identity kit which comes complete with the appropriate costume and instructions on how to act, talk, and often write” (Gee 7). Once these aspects of science in college have been acquired you may be considered in the Discourse, therefore you will have successfully gained what is meant to be gained in college, and aspiring to attain a science degree. Christina Haas did a study that relates to Gee’s findings; she studied a college student studying biology to see how she developed from year to year, and what the aspect of those developments are. The study, called “Learning to Read Biology: One Student’s Rhetorical Development in College” refers to a Discourse. She says the elements of a Discourse may be understood using “a rhetorical frame which includes authors, readers, motives, relationships, and contexts” (Haas 49). This framework was used to analyze Eliza, a student Haas studied to find how college students enter the Discourse of their degree. Both of the scholarly articles may be used to analyze how one may be successful within their field in college by acquiring the “language.”

To enter this Discourse we must be fully immersed in it, along with the understanding of the “saying, doing, and valuing” (Gee 13). Different aspects of this may be gained in no specific order or any specific time but once fully acquired collectively the saying, doing and valuing combination will be the Discourse. James Gee calls the immersion an “apprenticeship into social practices through scaffolded and supported interaction with people who have already mastered the Discourse” (7). This interaction with those within a Discourse, such as upperclassmen or teachers, will allow you to understand the ways in which you should interpret information, and why you should interpret it. That is because texts may be read differently depending on the context and what must be understood from the texts. Haas would call this “rhetorical reading, that is recognizing the rhetorical frame that surrounds a text” (49). She also offers examples such as “the reader tried to account for the author’s motives” (49) and “this reader identified characteristics of the authors” (49). This shows that as a student progresses through college and begins to acquire the Discourse they will understand the motives behind texts, and understand the connection between authors, when applicable. For example, Eliza began to recognize why scientists did a certain study, and she also realized the connection between different scientists. Aspects of this sort of reading may be noted of a student to see how much of the Discourse within college they understand and are a part of. Gee’s idea of apprenticeship would play into Haas’ rhetorical reading as this would be one of the aspects acquired within the apprenticeship. Throughout your college career you would begin to understand readings not as mere facts, but you would recognize what you have to read for what you’re doing, and you would understand the reading in a deeper sense. This is especially applicable to research papers within the science field as they have sections such as the methods that aren’t exactly important, unless you would like to recreate the test. You would understand the significance of each section and you would only read the ones that are applicable to the reason you are reading the paper, such as writing a paper.

Another aspect of being successful within the Discourse of college, and science in college specifically, is using previous knowledge and transferring it to college. This may include some transferring of ways of being gained in high school, or any other setting that would aid you in acquiring this specific Discourse. Gee describes this previous knowledge as “metaknowledge,” which gives you “liberation and power, because it leads to the ability to manipulate, to analyze, to resist while advancing” (13). Metaknowledge allows you to understand, partially, a Discourse or aspects of it by analyzing it in recognition to your other Discourses. You may relate certain components and understand how they could be similar, therefore transferring that past knowledge and using it within the Discourse of science in college. Haas’ rhetorical frame relates to metaknowledge as it is the “acknowledging or attempting to understanding these elements of a Discourse, constructing a rhetorical frame” (49). This rhetorical frame allows you to understand the “participants, their relationships and motives” (Haas 48). Once the rhetorical frame is understood you will understand why the author did a study, for example, and the intended audience the author was aiming at. This knowledge would be transferred from one reading to another. Therefore, this rhetorical frame would essentially be your metaknowledge in the Discourse of college, regarding reading scientific artifacts. You would be able to understand the texts you read, and you wouldn’t read them as facts, but you would understand why someone felt the need to go and find this out. Also, you would have the ability to interpret and understand the relationship between the authors that create many of the textbooks you read which allows you to create a connection and deeper understanding of the material you are reading.

Drawing upon the previous paragraph, without this previous knowledge you may not understand the deeper meaning of texts, and you would simply accept everything for what it is. Although, Gee says “within a Discourse you are always teaching more than writing and reading” (11). You are also teaching how to interpret the texts, and the importance of what the author is saying. These texts that are read within a science discipline such as biology, if seen as mere fact or a “repository of factual information,” (Haas 46) is called by Haas’ as an “autonomous text.” (45) But, as she states it’s a “myth” (45) because a text is not “discrete, highly explicit, even “timeless” entities functioning without contextual support” (Haas 45). When you are a freshman in college you may simply memorize the facts, or content of the book, and do well on a quiz or test but this has no real life application. Once you are able to understand a text is not autonomous and there is much more meaning behind it you will be able to better understand every text you read, rather than just memorizing the information. This ability to understand there is a deeper meaning in readings is paramount to success in college, and acquiring the Discourse of your disciplinary field.

The autonomous text may be seen in Eliza’s first year. As a freshman she essentially saw everything, in Haas’ words, as “the book says” (59). Contributing to this point, Eliza wrote in her notebook that her goal when reading was “to learn it,” “understand it,” or even “to memorize it.” (Haas 59). Her sophomore year she “remained essentially the same,” (Haas 61) but you do see her ability to find useful information become better, as she wrote down “some relevant facts” (62) for her research paper. A large change occurs her junior year when she gets an internship. This “enculturation” (7) as Gee would say, would essentially allow her to become a part of the Discourse. She begins to view authors as scientists and she began differentiating between types of reading. She states there is “just textbook reading and reading journal articles” (64). She also learns how to read selectively, such as understanding what she needs to know from the passage and fully understand, and what she may skim. This shows she is beginning to use her metaknowledge of what she will need in a research paper or even in her field of Biology. Also, she is not seeing texts as autonomous, and she begins to illustrate the rhetorical reading framework that Haas describes. Then, as she becomes a senior she begins exhibit the characteristics of being in the college Discourse of biology. Eliza “exhibited a greater awareness of the intertextual nature of Discourse; texts were not isolated, but linked” (Haas 66). Ultimately, she was understanding texts and the connection one text had to another. This ability is what the Discourse of a discipline in college encompasses and it essentially, for the most part, is what every college student should strive to attain, so they can be successful.

The IMRaD format that’s used within the science Discourse in college is a good indicator whether or not someone has by and large acquired the Discourse. Upon analyzation, someone within the Discourse would be able to understand the sections that they need to read in the format. This format is predominantly used throughout scientific disciplines therefore it is crucial those interested in succeeding are able to understand it. Although it may not be recognized, a college student successfully in the Discourse of science would understand that scientists base study’s off of other studies. This may be found in the Results and Discussion section of IMRaD where the author “compare[s] to other research” and “they connect these findings to other research” (IMRaD Cheat Sheet). Also, in the Discussion section “they use these flaws as reasons to suggest additional, future research” which is where another scientist’s research begins. Another aspect of IMRaD that would be recognized by a student in the science Discourse is the realization that there are many underlying factors as to why they did the research. Those not in the Discourse would just read the paper, but those that are experienced in the field would realize all of the underlying factors that have contributed to the paper. This would include all of the collective research that has accumulated into your current knowledge.

The acquisition of the science Discourse throughout college will greatly aid your success in your career and also your college career. The ability to recognize the different aspects of the Discourse will give you a deeper understanding and connection within the knowledge in science. Alos, you will be much more productive with your work, therefore creating a better candidate for a job or internship. The productivity is a result of recognizing the reason you are reading a piece of information, and only focusing on the sections that are necessary. Ultimately, there are many factors that lead into one acquiring the science Discourse within college, but once they are acquired the understanding and successfulness of a candidate will greatly increase.

Works Cited

Gee, James P. “Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: Introduction” Journal of Education 171. 1 (1989): 5–17. Print.

Haas, Christina. “Learning to Read Biology: One Student’s Rhetorical Development in College.” Written Communication 11.1 (1994): 43–84. Print.

Meadows, A.j. “The Scientific Paper as an Archaeological Artefact.” Journal of Information Science 11.1 (1985): 27–29. Print.