Questioning and Discussion Techniques

Name that Performance Level Individually: Read each scenario. Think Time: What level of performance seems to be the “best fit”? Talk Partners: Discuss the following: What do you think? Why do you think that? How do you know that? Hand out scenarios to tables. Ask tables to read the scenarios and make an individual selection of the indicator. Name that Performance Level

Pose the scenario. Ask teachers to read individually and make a decision based on the framework for teaching. Once you give participants 3 minutes of wait time, ask them to discuss their thinking with a talk partner. After giving partners time to discuss, ask to arrive at a consensus. Using the TPT Answer Cards, ask each table to select one individual to share their thinking. “1-2-3 Show me Your Thinking”…Ask teachers to share their results. Based on the responses in the room, ask participants to explain what they think, why they think that and how do they know. Ask if there is anyone in the room that would like to agree or respectfully disagree…please support your opinion with evidence. Talk Partners: Discuss the following: What do you think? Why do you think that? How do you know that?

Talk Partners: Discuss the following: What do you think Talk Partners: Discuss the following: What do you think? Why do you think that? How do you know that?

Techniques at Work… Wait time Talk Partners Academic Conversations Powerful Questions to Encourage Thinking Total Participation Technique – Answer Cards Group Think Share some resources with teachers: Techniques at Work…

What did my learners “get out of” my class today? Making change happen is MORE than adding routines to one’s normal practice… It involves a change of focus FROM what the teacher is putting into the process TO what the learner is getting out of it. Give teachers about three minutes to reflect. As you think about your day…what types of learning experiences did you craft for students? Did you give them time to develop as thinkers? The harsh reality is that we are often driven by Assessment and Accountability which makes us feel very rushed to cover large amounts of content in one setting. As we stop to “Re-focus” and begin to look at this idea of questioning…we are proceeding with the notion that our primary focus is what the learner plans to walk away with. What did my learners “get out of” my class today?

Learning for the Next Generation MATH ELA SCIENCE SOCIAL STUDIES Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them Reason abstractly and quantitatively Construct viable arguments Model with mathematics Use appropriate tools strategically Attend to precision Look for and make use of structure Key ideas and details Craft and structure Integration of knowledge and ideas Range of reading Text types / purposes Production / distribution of writing Research to build / present knowledge Range of Writing Asking Questions and defining problems Developing and using models Planning and carrying out investigations Analyzing and interpreting data Constructing explanations Engaging in argument from evidence Obtaining, evaluating and communicating information Developing Questions and Planning Inquiries Applying disciplinary concepts and tools Evaluating sources Communicating conclusions and taking informed action Learning for the Next Generation

Higher Order Thinking…Students are called upon to use knowledge to transform, and in the process, to seek evidence, reflect and generate new knowledge. What is the theme?

Have you been here? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhiCFdWeQfA Video…Sometimes, we feel that Have you been here?

Dylan Wilam – Formative Assessment Research Analysis Clarifying and sharing learning intentions and criteria for success. Engineering effective classroom discussions, questions, and learning tasks. Providing feedback that moves learners forward. Activating students as the owners of their own learning. Activating students as instructional resources for one another. As we move forward with ideas to develop students who are critical thinkers…there are a few things to consider. One very important thing to consider…there has been research by experts in the field that identify these five strategies as the most powerful way for teachers to make significant gains in student achievement. We can look at these five strategies and begin identifying techniques that fit under each one … these techniques will help refine our practice…and keep us away from the type of teacher who plays the game of “guess what is in the teachers head.” For today’s purposes, we are going to take a closer look at the second bullet…one thing to note is that simply giving teachers a list of question starters is not going to change the game. We have to constantly check and re-check our focus…how are my learners developing their understanding? One thing we know as adults…if we don’t understand something, we ask questions. This is often how we process…we ask questions then talk through these issues with colleagues. Dylan Wilam – Formative Assessment Research Analysis

Higgins (2005) meta-analysis of “thinking-skills interventions” effect size of 0.62 – which is equivalent to moving an “average” class of students from the 50th percentile to the 73rd percentile on standardized assessment. Abrami (2008) meta-analysis of “critical thinking skills” (interpretation, analysis, evaluation, inference, explanation and self-regulation) effect size 0.52 elementary students and 0.69 secondary students Effect Size

The Research Confirms the Importance of Student Questioning (metacognitive strategy): Students formulating their own questions proved to be one of the most effective metacognitive strategies Engaging in pre-lesson self-questioning improved students rate of learning by nearly 50% (Hattie, p.193) Visible Learning: A Synthesis of Over 800 meta-Analyses Relating to Achievement by John Hattie. 1st Edition, December 26, 2008. The Research Confirms the Importance of Student Questioning

RMULATION TECHNIQUE (QFT) Question Formulation Technique The Right Question Institute www.rightquestion.org Students' Questions as a Catalyst for:  Deeper Learning, Joy in Teaching and a Healthier Democracy Based on the Keynote presentation for Ky Council of Social Studies Conference September 2014 Erlanger, KY By Dan Rothstein The Right Question Institute: Cambridge, MA

The Big Idea Students are more successful when they learn to ask their own questions

Components of the Question Formulation TechniqueTM A Question Focus Rules for Producing Questions Producing Questions Categorizing Questions-Open/Closed Prioritizing Questions Next Steps Reflection The question focus should be designed to accomplish one or more of the following: generate interest, stimulate new thinking, introduce a topic, set a learning agenda, deepen comprehension or formative assessment

Experiencing the Question Formulation TechniqueTM

asking questions in my classroom Some students are not asking questions in my classroom The purpose for this question focus … we will use it to formulate questions for deeper professional learning around the topic. Question Focus

Rules for Producing Questions Ask as many questions as you can. Do not stop to answer, judge, or discuss. Write down every question exactly as it was stated. Change any statements into questions. Rules for Producing Questions

asking questions in my classroom. Some students are not asking questions in my classroom. Ask Questions Follow the Rules Number the Questions Producing Questions

Categorizing Questions: Closed/Open Definitions: Closed-ended questions can be answered with a “yes” or “no” or with a one-word answer. Open-ended questions require more explanation. Directions: Identify your questions as closed-ended or open-ended by marking them with a “C” or an “O”. Categorizing Questions: Closed/Open

Change Closed to Open and Open to Closed -Ended Questions

Prioritizing Questions Review your list of questions Choose the three questions you consider most important. While prioritizing, think about your Q-Focus: Some students are not asking questions in my classroom Prioritizing Questions

Prioritizing Questions Why did you choose those three questions as the most important? Where are your priority questions in the sequence of your entire list of questions? Prioritizing Questions

Post Questions to Parking Lot On the post-it note provided record: Your PLC’s top three questions that you want to explore further. Your rationale. Post Questions to Parking Lot

Reflection What did you learn? How did you learn it? What do you understand differently now about asking questions? How will you use what you learned?

Lower Cognitive Questions Lower cognitive questions are those which ask the student merely to recall verbatim or in his/her own words material previously read or taught by the teacher. Lower cognitive questions are also referred to in the literature as fact, closed, direct, recall, and knowledge questions. Lower Cognitive Questions

Higher Cognitive Questions Higher cognitive questions are defined as those which ask the student to mentally manipulate bits of information previously learned to create an answer or to support an answer with logically reasoned evidence. Higher cognitive questions are also called open-ended, interpretive, evaluative, inquiry, inferential, and synthesis questions. Higher Cognitive Questions

Say Something Protocol *Something I agree with *Something that puzzles me *Something I am reminded of when I read… *A new idea *Something I disagree with *Something I want the author to explain more *Something I want to talk with others about more As partners, find one main point in the reading that you want to highlight to the group. . Pair up for partner discussion. 2. Read silently to the designated “stopping point”. 3. When each partner has finished reading up to the “stopping point”, stop and “Say Something” to one another. Use the following suggestions about what partners might say: Say Something Protocol

http://mrtacksportfolio. weebly http://mrtacksportfolio.weebly.com/question-formulating-technique-qft-for-student-research.html http://rightquestion.org/teaching-strategy-elementary-math http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/oct14/vol72/num02/The-Right-Questions.aspxb Resources

Connecting Question Formulation Technique to the Framework for Teaching Domain 3b – Questioning & Discussion Techniques