Where have we been? On 10/1 we looked at: ●Data on an academic language gap ●Tiered Vocabulary ●Role of student talk in building academic language skills

Where are we now? Today’s presentations focus on: ●Activities using word walls & anchor charts ●Teaching Vocabulary ●Academic Conversation

Where are we going? On 12/10 we will return with lesson plans and reflections about how these techniques worked in our own practice.

Managing Academic Conversations October 29, 2015

OBJECTIVES: By the end of this session, you will be able to... Explain the three conditions for effective academic conversation Contrast meaningful talk activities with less-meaningful talk activities Identify methods of accountability for student talk Apply student talk structures to reach intended outcomes

“Many of the skills [for effective academic conversation] take a year to build, as do the relationships that support rich conversations.” Zwiers (2011), p. 29

Why is student talk sometimes ineffective? Off-topic Students can’t work together Some students talk too much Some students don’t talk at all Might generate incorrect results/misunderstandings One pair/group finishes minutes before others Seems more efficient just to directly “tell”

Pre-conditions for Effective Conversations: Behaviors Appropriate eye contact Facing one another Attentive posture Nodding head to show understanding Appropriate gesturing Smiling, showing interest Using “keep talking” tactics (Wow, Interesting, Okay, Go on…) Silence Prosody (changing voice tone, pitch, volume, emphasis) Interrupting appropriately From Zwiers, Academic Conversations (2011)

Pre-conditions for Effective Conversations: Attitudes Humility Thoroughness Respect Positivity Interest From Zwiers, Academic Conversations (2011)

The Three Conditions for Effective Academic Conversation

1.Meaningful Conversation Task 2.Accountability for Students 3.Structure of Talk Opportunity

1.Meaningful Conversation Task

Features of Effective Conversation Tasks Require both partners to talk Require critical and creative thinking Take advantage of controversies and conflict Recognize and reduce ambiguity Encourage thinking based on principles, laws, and approaches of the discipline Build opportunities for transfer of knowledge and skills Provide choice and ownership From Zwiers, Academic Conversations (2011)

Activity: HOW MEANINGFUL IS THIS TASK? Distribute the task strips among the participants at your table Take turns reading the strips out loud and discussing (as a group) where to place the task along the continuum Is it highly meaningful? Not meaningful? Somewhere in between? Where? Do this for all the task strips, then discuss the activities that ended up as the most “highly meaningful” and identify the common characteristics If you have time, discuss what could be added or changed to the less meaningful tasks to make them more meaningful as student talk activities

REFLECT Think about an upcoming lesson or topic. What would be an appropriate task or prompt for that lesson or topic that would foster highly meaningful student talk? Make a note of it!

2. Accountability for Students

Is this going to be on the Test? Students will value what you measure more than what you ignore Students can (and should) self-assess on their contributions to academic conversations Accountability for student talk depends on WHAT YOU WANT TO SEE AND HEAR THE STUDENTS DEMONSTRATE

Video: One Math Teacher’s Approach to Student Talk Video link: highlighting-things-i-heard (you can create a free account to view) highlighting-things-i-heard How does this teacher create a classroom emphasis on student talk? Even without the technology he uses, how could you “Highlight Things [You] Heard?” during academic conversations? How might he measure groups or individuals and their use of student talk?

Activity: WHICH MEASURE WOULD YOU USE? Review the the four accountability tools for academic conversations (self- assessments & rubrics) Select one of the more meaningful tasks that you placed on the continuum earlier OR consider the task or prompt you wrote down for your own class Which of these assessment forms or rubrics would be most useful at holding students accountable for academic talk in that situation? Why? Would you need to change anything to make it more useful? What? Why?

“Students aren’t going to be able to do it well just because we ask them to.” Dr. Grace Wai

3. Structure of Talk Opportunity

Zwiers on the Five Core Skills of Academic Conversation 1.Elaborate and clarify 2.Support ideas with examples 3.Build on and/or challenge a partner’s idea 4.Paraphrase 5.Synthesize conversation points The explicit teaching and practice of these skills PLUS the establishment of meaningful student talk tasks and accountability will help manage academic conversations.

Kagan: “The Structural Approach to Cooperative Learning” Identifies difference between “activity” and “structure” Different structures have different functions or “domains of usefulness” Questions to consider: What kind of cognitive and academic development does it foster? What kind of social development does it foster? Where in the lesson plan does it best fit?

Activity: STRUCTURE SELECTION Review Spencer Kagan’s Fig. 4: “Overview of Selected Structures” Discuss at your table: Which of these structures have you tried in the past? Which have you never tried? Which structures might be most useful for some of the upcoming topics in your class? Why?

The Three Conditions for Effective Academic Conversation 1.Meaningful Conversation Task 2.Accountability for Students 3.Structure of Talk Opportunity