Network for New Science/Math Teachers

January 15, 2009Lexington, KY

University of KentuckyPartnership Institute for Math & Science Education Reform

Welcome!Help yourself to some

refreshments and networking

Group Norms

• Start and end on time• Put cell phones on silent• Be respectful of all

comments• Everyone participates• Exercise the rule of “two

feet”• Come prepared for the

meeting

December Review

VocabularyInstruction

Concept MapTalk-A-Mile-A-Minute

ShoutingWon’t GrowDendritesCh. 5-8

FormativeAssessment

Solid GroundingBlack Box Article

Roadmap for Today

Break Outs

Shouting Won’t Grow Dendrites

DisciplineConcerns

Formative Assessment:Questioning

Shouting Won’t Grow Dendrites

Chapters 8-12

• Form groups based on your assigned number.

• Your number corresponds to the chapter you are responsible for.

• Work with your group to answer the questions on the guide.

• Create a chart summarizing your findings to present whole group.

Discipline Concerns

Let’s Get Them Charted!

• Form groups of 2-3 making sure to have math and science represented.

• Decide what your 5 top discipline problems are as a group.

• Chart these along with the strategies you have tried thus far.

• Put a STAR by the one that takes up the majority of your time.

Carousel Walk

• Go on a carousel walk in order to read each poster.

• Take paper with you to note some strategies that you haven’t tried but would like to.

• Make note of which problems seem the most problematic.

Questioning

Research-Based Strategies

• 4 Research-based strategies that significantly improve student learning:• Sharing criteria (clear learning targets with

success criteria)Questioning• Feedback• Peer and self-assessment

• “More effort has to be spent in framing questions that are worth asking; that is, questions which explore issues that are critical to the development of students’ understanding.”– Assessment for Learning: Putting It Into Practice

• Pg. 42

Effective Questioning

• “You understand it only if you can teach it, use it, prove it, explain it, or read between the lines.”– Wiggins and McTighe– Understanding by Design

• “Current classroom practices generally encourage superficial and rote learning, concentrating on recall of isolated details, usually items of ‘knowledge’ which pupils soon forget.”– Black and Wiliam– Inside the Black Box

Effective Questioning

• Questioning should be used to:– Cause thinking– Provide data that

informs teaching

• Questioning should NOT be used to:– Direct the attention of

the class– Keep students on task

• Dylan Wiliam, NSTA Preconference on Assessment, 2005

Effective QuestioningCh. 4 Formative Assessment in

Action

• Wait time

• No hands up

• Talking partners

• Debates

• Snowballing

Effective Questioning

• Provide 5 seconds of wait time.– Best with some structure (e.g., white boards or talking

partners)

• ‘No hands up’ increases wait time and child focus, but used with recall questions is counterproductive.

• Having talking partners/groups before responding to questions enables all children to participate, think, and articulate…

Effective Questioning

• Encouraging children to generate their own questions furthers their independence as learners.

• Effective questioning involves effective modeling.

• Effective questions should further and deepen learning, rather than simply help establish prior knowledge.

• Teachers need to create a supportive climate so that ‘put downs’ are avoided and children can articulate their ideas without fear of failure.

Thinking Hats

• An effective way to get students to answer questions from a variety of perspectives.

• All students have the same question, but are given different ways to think about it thus making the thinking more manageable and directed.

• Very useful when the question is complex.• A visual aid of the functions of the hats is usually

displayed in the classroom» Shirley Clarke, Formative Assessment In Action, pg 65

Six Thinking Hats

• White Hat – facts, figures, information• Black Hat – caution, truth, judgment• Red Hat – emotions, feelings, hunches• Yellow Hat – advantages, benefits, good• Green Hat – create, explore, new ideas• Blue Hat – reflections, lacks decisions

Formative Assessment in Action, p. 66

Now Get to Thinking….

• Draw a hat from the baggie.• Find the others in the room with the same hat.• Consider the following question from the

perspective specified by your hat color: Why is gold considered to be a precious metal and iron is not?

• When instructed, return to your original table. Have each person share their “hat” perspective pertaining to this question.

Reframing Questions• Form Math/Science pairs • Using pp. 68-74 as your guide, write 5 reframed questions for

the question below

• What is the hardest thing about being a new teacher?

• Write each on a sentence strip and post on the appropriate chart:– Red: range of answers– Blue: agree/disagree– Green: opposites– Purple: reframed, give answer first– Orange: opposing standpoint

MC Design Considerations

• Factors to consider for the KEY and the DISTRACTORS

– Provide one, and only one, correct answer– Include plausible options that demonstrate a

student’s level of understanding– Colleague review

School Bus Item

A teacher is planning a field trip and will need school bused to transport students. A school bus holds up to 36 students. If 1,128 students will be transported, how many buses are needed? Explain your answer.

A. 31B. 31.33C. 32D. 36

Sample NAEP question taken from the Nations’ Report Card at www.nces.ed.gov

Based on student answers, what could you determine abouta student from each

choice?

School Bus Item

A teacher is planning a field trip and will need school buses to transport students. A school bus hold up to 36 students. If 1,128 students will be transported, how many buses are needed? Explain your answer.

A. 31B. 31.33C. 32D. 32.33Sample NAEP question taken from the Nation’s Report Card at www.nces.ed.gov

How did changing D make this

assessment moreformative in nature?

What to do with the results?

Based on the students’ answers, you attach a problem for them to work on.A. Rounding ProblemB. Rounding for Real-World PurposesC. Correct—Extension ProblemD. A division problem

An item like this can give a teacher differentiated information for the class so the teacher can figure out who needs extra help.

Science Example

Deer herds in KY are currently plagued by a fatal hemorrhagic disease. Which population will be most affected by the loss of deer?

A. AcornsB. GrassC. SunD. CoyotesJustify your response.

• What do the distractors need to discriminate about student understanding to be used formatively?

• What might be better distractors for formative purposes?

What to do with the results?

Deer herds in KY are currently plagued by a fatal hemorrhagic disease. Which population will be most affected by the loss of deer?

A. Acorns

B. Wolves

C. Humans

Justify your response.

A. Examine various energy pyramids and determine population changes

B. Correct answer – extension activity (e.g., analyze more than 2 populations compared graphically)

C. Examine population growth of humans vs deer over time and determine what the relationship is between the two.

Now, It’s Your Turn

• Form content alike pairs—grade alike if possible.

• Develop a multiple choice question for your class that will give you formative information about the students.

• For each selection, determine best next steps.

• “If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.”

– Abraham Maslow

Reflection:

• The benefits/impact of using these strategies…

• The barriers…why we don’t see these strategies used more in our classrooms.

Group Debrief

• Working with your table group, complete the synectic summary matrix for questioning.

• How is effective questioning like each of the musical instruments?

D

• “The important thing is to not stop questioning.”

– Albert Einstein

Roadmap Review

Break Outs

Shouting Won’t Grow Dendrites

DisciplineConcerns

Formative Assessment:Questioning

For Next TimeFor Next Time

• Our next meeting will be February 19th