Collaboration to Refine and Enhance Science Teaching (CREST) Welcome Teachers! Thursday, January 28, 2016

Introduction MK

Session 1: Goals 1.To develop an understanding of carefully crafted questions in a science investigation. –Both as a practitioner and as a student 2.To explain the characteristics of “productive” questions. 3.To implement strategies for crafting productive questions to support students as they learn science.

Let’s Do an Activity! Chemistry in a Ziplock ® Bag

BREAK

Roles of Questioning Strategies Middle School Indiana Academic Standards calls for: –High Quality instructional materials –Student-centered, activity based, investigations –Student created notebooks –Student developed arguments based on claims Questions by teachers –Primary tool for guiding student learning –Provide focus for student actions –Guide the structure of notebooks –Guide the direction for students to make meaning of evidence to develop claims

Science Inquiry Learning science through inquiry can be described as a four part Learning Cycle*: –engaging, –designing and conducting scientific investigations, –drawing conclusions and –communicating. A critical goal of science learning is the ability to think and reason scientifically. * There are other Learning Cycles (e.g.: 5-E) but we will use this four part process to anchor the conversation

Four Part Learning Cycle

Important Role of Teacher: Asking Questions Teacher questions guide students as they practice science inquiry Teacher questions provide focus for student actions… –what they do –what they think –what they talk about –what they write about

Teacher questions should engage students in productive activity What are the characteristics of these types of questions?

Characteristics of Productive Questions – Stage 1 StagePurposes of QuestionsExamples Stage 1: Engage Elicit students’ ideas and raise new questions about the new topic Widen students’ range of observations Encourage wonderings and speculations Can you think of an example…? What do you think happens…? What do you notice when…?

Characteristics of Productive Questions – Stage 1 Avoid “how” and “why” questions that encourage students to… Provide explanations, Support their misconceptions Parrot textbook explanations. We wish to “activate prior knowledge” in order to formatively assess it but not to allow it to blossom into a misconception!

Inquiry Stage 1 Questions You completed the Chemistry in a Zip bag investigation. At the beginning of this investigation, I asked: “You all have experienced chemical reactions in different situations. Based on your experience, what do you think will happen when you mix these chemicals in the Zip bag?”

Engage Stage 1 Questions How does the wording of this question match the “Engage” stage of the investigation? TURN AND TALK Be prepared to present and explain your answer.

Stage 1 Questions (cont.) Before you start your investigation, what if I asked this question instead: “What will the chemicals do when they are mixed in the bag?”

Stage 1 Questions (cont.) How is the purpose of this question different from the one previously? TURN AND TALK Be prepared to present and explain your answer.

Characteristics of Productive Questions – Stage 2 StagePurposes of QuestionsExamples Stage 2: Design and Conduct Scientific Investigations Check understanding –Investigation question –Investigation plan –Recording data Ask students to –Predict (include reasoning) –Decide how to represent findings –Analyze data –Draw conclusions –Propose explanations –Reflect on ideas What are you going to investigate? What do you predict? What will you measure? What pattern do you see? How might you figure out? What claims do you think…?

Stage 2 Questions With so much occurring, questions may have more than one purpose. Clarify what students are going to figure out Come up with a workable plan Make a prediction and provide rationale for it Think about how to collect and organize data Think about how to represent findings Reflect on ideas

Stage 2 Questions (cont.) Is the following question a good match for Inquiry Stage 2? Explain why or why not. “How does each reactant affect the overall chemical reaction?” TURN AND TALK Be prepared to present and explain your answers.

Characteristics of Productive Questions – Stage 3 StagePurposes of QuestionsExamples Stage 3: Draw Conclusions Ask students to… –Decide which claims - supported by evidence –Use evidence to support reasoning –Offer possible explanations –Summarize findings As you look over observations, what patterns…? What evidence supports your claim? What do you think now and what makes you think this way? What ideas do you have to explain…?

Stage 3 Questions Your students’ investigation of the chemical reaction developed the following conclusion: “My claim is that calcium chloride dissolved in water produces an exothermic reaction. My evidence is that when only calcium chloride is added to water, the solution feels warm when I touch it. Reactions that feel warm are producing heat and are called exothermic.”

Stage 3 Questions (cont.) “My claim is that calcium chloride dissolved in water produces an exothermic reaction. My evidence is that when only calcium chloride is added to water, the solution feels warm when I touch it. Reactions that produce heat are called exothermic.” What question(s) might you ask to help the writer come to this conclusion?

Characteristics of Productive Questions – Stage 4 StagePurposes of QuestionsExamples Stage 4: Communicate Help students identify –What they want to tell about their work –Their audience –Form of presentation What do you want people to know? Who will your audience be? Will you make a poster, write an article or poem? Something else?

Stage 4 Questions Students are sharing their work with a broader audience. Examples may include: Whom do you think should hear about your work? What do you want to say to your audience? How do you want to say it?

LUNCH

Characteristics of Productive Questions They invite discussion of ideas –Multiple answers are possible Not a simple yes or no answer (open) Discussion is based on the common experiences of students from their investigations. (person-centered)

Productive Questions, cont. Questions result in productive activity (show rather than say) Question must match purpose of inquiry stage! Questions are based on clear science concepts and content consistent with student experiences. (equitable)

Compare: Productive/Unproductive? ProductiveUnproductive Support purpose of stage of inquiryTangential or unrelated to purpose of stages Relate to science contentRepetition of facts from resource, book, teacher Based on common experience from investigations Asks students to reason about something not yet experienced Need more explanation than Yes/No or Right/Wrong Yes/No or Right/Wrong Focused on ideasFocused on vocabulary Promote activity, thinking and reasoning Asks students to “parrot back” facts Focuses on students and student workFocuses on teacher explanation

Let’s Analyze: Productive/Unproductive? Setting: The teacher is introducing their new science unit - a study of electrical circuits. She holds up a flashlight and asks: “How do you think this old-fashioned flashlight works?” Use your resources to determine if this is a productive or unproductive question. Be prepared to support your answer.

Let’s Analyze #2: Productive/Unproductive? “What is the best thermal insulator: aluminum foil, newspaper or wool?” Use your resources to determine if this is a productive or unproductive question. Be prepared to support your answer.

Let’s Analyze #3: Productive/Unproductive? Question Sorting Activity

Break

Application In pairs, talk about an investigation or lab that you already do in your class... –How can you use the learning cycle to scaffold in more productive questions?

Redesign: Examples

Directions 1.Go to: 2.Find your group number 3.Redesign one of your investigations to include these questioning strategies and push “productive” questions

Summary Crafting productive questions takes time. Because they are powerful classroom tools, it is time well spent. Improve the quality of questioning by –planning for productive questions, –practicing them in your classroom, –maintaining a notebook of questions and how they worked, and –reflecting critically

Logistics Sub-forms Next meeting: Thursday, Feb. 18 th –Analyzing & Interpreting Data