1. Group Inquiry Into Teaching & Learning
By:
Brad Parenteau
Teresa Miller
Sandy Morley

2. Current Challenges, Frustrations, Hopes & Dreams
Students feeling safe
Teach all children successfully
Deliver engaging lessons for all
Have students develop to their full potential
Attention issues
Learning Disabilities
Intellectual Disabilities
Keeping students engaged
Parents disengaged
Lack of home support(ex.no one at home to help with homework, read green bags)
Food issues
Transiency
Unstable home environment
Lack of division assessment team supports (ex. not enough OTs, SLPs, etc.)
Not enough special class placements (Ex. Alt. Ed.) for learners who continue to be unsuccessful in a regular classroom program

3. What This Will Look Like In Practice…
Students do a better job of verbalizing their answers
Students view learning at school as relevant and useful when they are outside of the classroom
Set goals that students develop and are motivated to achieve them
Students are independent learners
Students act confidently when working on problems and practicing skills
Students will require less reassurance from the teacher
Students will look to their peers for support and guidance when problem solving rather than only relying on the teacher
As a school community, we will celebrate student growth
Students will view and utilize technology as part of their lifelong learning process

4. Ultimate Goal

5. Students’ Wants & Needs
Work at their own independent level
Safe learning environment
Proper nutrition
Feeling of success
A variety of instructional methods taught
Strategies that work well for each student
Interactive lessons
Confidence & reassurance when risk taking
Reassessment when necessary
Guidance
Structure, Routine & Consistency
Relevance of lessons (Why?)
Real world application
Acceptance

6. Approaches & Practices That Intrigue Us
Differentiating learning
Flexible groupings
Students problem solve
Collaboration among students
Less direct teaching
More guided teaching
Relationship building
Incorporating technology

7. What Would Engagement Look Like Based on the Research of Best Practices?
Offer different types of instruction to meet the needs of all learners in the classroom (Cole, & Washburn-Moses, 2010, p. 17)
Ensure “effective grouping practices involve purposeful attention to the curriculum” (Lapp, Fisher, & Frey, 2012, p.8)
Content is at students’ appropriate learning level (Levy, 2008, p. 162)
Students may be divided into groups based on learning styles, ability level, and interests (Levy, 2008, p. 162)
Students’ attention spans vary from 30 seconds to 5 minutes which resembles top executives’ attention spans in the work force (Parsons & Taylor, 2011, p.31)
“Relationships between students and teachers have been associated with students' motivation, achievement, feelings of belonging, and affect in school”(Roeser, Eccles, & Sameroff, 1998) (p.2).
“Students learn to relate to their peers and other learners as they work together in group enterprises. This can be especially helpful for students who have difficulty with social skills. They can benefit from structured interactions with others”. Retrieved from:

8. Video
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9. Group Discussion
How is the teacher attempting to engage students in a group discussion about a sensitive topic?
What could he have done to improve his instructional approach?

10. How Can We Find Out More?
IMPORTANCE OF RELATIONSHIPS: Anderson, A. R., Christenson, S. L., Sinclair, M. F., & Lehr, C. A. (2004). Check & connect: The importance of relationships for promoting engagement with school. Journal of School Psychology, 42(2), Retrieved from STUDENT ENGAGEMENT – STRATEGIES: Boushey, G., Moser, J. (2009). The Café Book: Engaging All Students In Daily Literacy Assessment & Instruction. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers. Cole, J., & Wasburn-Moses, L., (2010). Going beyond “the math wars”. Teaching Exceptional Children, 42.4 (Mar/Apr 2010), Lapp, D., Fisher, D., & Frey, N., (2012). Identifying why groups work well, then giving groups another try. Voices from the Middle, 20.2 (Dec 2012), 7-9. Levy, H.M., (2008). Meeting the needs of all students through differentiated instruction: Helping every child reach and exceed standards. The Clearing House, 81.4, Parsons, J., Taylor, L. (2011). Student Engagement: What do we know and what should we do?. The University Partners, University of Alberta. Retrieved from: _ review_2011.pdf ANTI-OPPRESSIVE TEACHING: Kumashiro, K. (2009). Against common sense: Teaching and learning toward social justice. New York: Routledge Falmer.

11. Kumashiro says:
“Sometimes the person filling the glass is the teacher…, and sometimes it is the student…, but the goal remains the same: to fill that glass” (p. 24).