ccps presentation

Putting Guided Inquiry Into Practice – a Primary School's Perspective

Presented by: Jenny Scheffers (Teacher Librarian) & Peter Lehner (Assistant Principal) Caddies Creek Public School

Email: [email protected] [email protected]

Revision of Guided Inquiry

Definition:

Guided Inquiry is defined as, “carefully planned, closely supervised targeted intervention of an instructional team of school librarians and teachers to guide students through curriculum based inquiry units that build deep knowledge and deep understanding of a curriculum topic, and gradually lead towards independent learning.

Ross Todd (SCAN 2006)

© Guided Inquiry is copyrighted by Dr. Carol Kuhlthau and Dr. Ross Todd

Features: students are seen as active agents in constructing their own

knowledge and meaning

includes motivation and emotion as vital components in sustained knowledge construction

grounded in a constructivist approach to learning - an open-ended investigation.

based on the Information Search Process (I.S.P.) developed by Carol Kuhlthau

Components of Guided Inquiry:

Carol Kuhlthau’s The Information Search Process (I.S.P.) - 7 steps

Feelings, Thoughts & Actions associated with I.S.P. (Kuhlthau)

SLIM Toolkit Surveys (or modified Skinny Toolkit Surveys)


The Information Search Process

Stages of Information

Search Process

Initiation

Task introducedBrainstorm

existing knowledge

Selection

Start to build

background knowledge

Narrow your area of

interest

Exploration

Further build background knowledgeYou seek a

broad understanding of the chosen

topic.

Formulation

You develop your line of enquiry and

area of debate

Collection

You collect & analyze indepth

information about focus

area

Presentation

You synthesise your information and plan or draft

relevant essay etc.

Submit or present final

work

Assessment

Teacher/ peer/ self.

Feelings(Affective)

Uncertainty Optimism ConfusionFrustration

DoubtTHE DIP!

Clarity Sense of direction /Confidence

Satisfaction orDisappointment

Self reflection

Thoughts(Cognitive)

Vague Vague Confused Focused Increased interest

Increased interest Increased self-awareness

Actions(Physical)

Seeking relevant

Exploring

information Seeking pertinent

Documenting

information

* Refer to posters & River Analogy posters


Skinny (modified) Toolkit surveys What do you know & understand / more do you know &

understand about the topic? (sentence answers)

What difficulties are you having with your research?

2011 GI Unit – Antarctica explained this “step up” approach to G.I. with teachers & students (generally used G.I. Web Quest programs)

1st “open ended” G.I. unit for these students & teachers – students select own area of interest, formulate own focus & contributing research questions

4 X Year 6 classes, 1-2 C.P.T. lessons / week (total 1.5 -2hrs per week) over 10 weeks

several planning meetings prior to commencement of unit

explained “G. I. River Analogy” (Lee Fitzgerald Loreto, Kirribill)

Student Organisation worked with a partner of their choice

each student issued with a research booklet, kept in plastic sleeve together with partner’s booklet

booklet contained: sequenced scaffolds/ proformas, 3 Skinny toolkit surveys, journal sheets

Information Search Process (I.S.P.) activities

Initiation: research task, G. I. Framework & River Analogy explained to the class brainstormed and discussed existing knowledge re Antarctica students organised into pairs & issued with research booklets & plastic sleeves

Selection: building background knowledge general internet search of Antarctica using prescribed internet sites class viewed several video clips about various aspects of Antarctica using a range of book marked websites and non-fiction books, pairs of students

recorded keywords about what they found interesting, facts they didn’t know and what they wanted to know more about

students listed Antarctica topics that interested them (at least 3) listed intriguing facts, positives and negatives of each of these topics. students ranked these topics and narrowed their research to their

“favourite” Antarctica topic, which they continued researching and developed questions about

Exploration: using nonfiction books and websites, pairs of students recorded additional and more detailed notes about their chosen topic (deeper research)

Formulation: whole class discussion about open ended and closed questions class teacher and teacher librarian used concept map to model construction of an open-ended focus (BIG) question and 4-6 supporting contributing (smaller) questions, about an Antarctica topic (eg. whaling issue) pairs of students brainstormed own opened-ended, higher order thinking question about their chosen Antarctica topic and 4-6 supporting contributing questions student & teacher conference re suitability / wording of questions students wrote their focus question and their contributing questions on Question Jigsaw Worksheet. Later, as students completed their research of each question, corresponding puzzle pieces were coloured in.

Collection: several lessons - used non-fiction books & websites to locate and

record relevant keyword information, pertinent to students’ contributing questions

may have needed to re write / rethink some contributing questions if insufficient information

collated, analysed and synthesised their findings in order to formulate their personal answers / opinions / responses about their focus question

Presentation: structures of various relevant text types (including an Explanation, Discussion and

Exposition) were modelled drafted own response to their focus question, based on research findings designed final presentations - choice of PowerPoint, Smart Notebook or Microsoft

Publisher using IWB, pairs of students presented their final presentations to their class each class voted on the best 3 or 4 presentations, which were showcased on the CCPS

Library blog

Assessment: self assessment rubric & teacher assessment (of student) rubric verbal feedback from peers journal entries 3 X Skinny Toolkit surveys focus class: Blog Ed entries also

Skinny Toolkit surveys completed at Selection, Formulation & Assessment stages used in this case to analyze each students’ progress whilst unit

progressing 5/6L only focus class - data used as Evidence-Based Practice

tool most students took surveys seriously – seemed to enjoy self

reflecting accurate completion of surveys & journals require specific

skills development

© Guided Inquiry is copyrighted by Dr. Carol Kuhlthau and Dr. RossTodd

I know Antarctica is the coldest, driest and windiest place on Earth. It is shared (controlled) by many countries. Antarctica doubles in size during the winter and the population of scientists decreases. Half of the year is light and the other half is dark.

Antarctica is a continent that has no native inhabitants. There are many Antarctic issues such as overfishing, whaling and tourism. The Antarctic Treaty is made to help the Antarctic issues. The Antarctic Peninsula is a big problem as it melts very quickly. If the ice melts then floods will happen in many major cities.

Class 5/6L Student responses Sample size: 30 students

(No. students) % students

need longer time for work (research) work is a bit challenging so time is preciousgetting the work done in the given time

(9) 30%

accessing / navigating some useful websitesunderstanding very scientific websitesfinding research friendly sites

(8) 27%

finding interesting / relevant information It’s pretty hard for me to find information in many different books. Some books think a different solution to a problem.

(8) 27%

co-operating with partner (5) 17%

Topic: Whaling

I now understand how whaling is done and who wants to stop it, such as scientists and Greenpeace. I know a lot more about how whaling affects the food chain. Whaling is now only done by Japan, Iceland and Norway but more so Japan. Apparently there are debates over who should whale or should anyone whale at all.

Topic: Endangered Animals

I understand that Greenpeace and the rest of the environmental organisations are doing everything they can to assist the endangered animals. Sea Shepherd is the one organisation that is driving the Japanese out (of Antarctica). They are doing the most bizarre things. Many volunteers help the endangered animals and they don’t get paid.

Topic: Endangered Animals

I now know that endangered animals in Antarctica are decreasing and lots of conservation groups are trying to prevent it. Long line fishing kills animals as they can get tangled, hurt or drowned, but they are trying to help by making the net heavier.

Survey 2 Question 2:

What difficulties are you having with your research?



finding relevant / useful websites and information

It is very difficult to find specific answers for some questions. (18) 62%

changing or re-wording contributing questions

We had to change a few questions.

We had to eliminate a question.

Had to change the question to get the answer, which is frustrating.

(7) 24%

understanding meaning of some words / terms need more research time

(4) 14%

Scientific research is important towards knowing and conserving Antarctica better. From Geology to Meteorology, scientists can use their finds and statistics better to determine questions like how, when and why things happen. I understand that without scientific involvement, Antarctica would be that cold, horrible place with no value. Scientists, over the years, have helped us understand better through their valuable research done on Antarctica.

I found out that Global Warming is dangerous to Antarctica. It doesn’t just have an effect on Antarctica itself, but also on its animals. I know now why Antarctica is at risk of losing its ice. I understand that if us humans (the ones producing Global Warming) don’t stop our ways and stop Global Warming, Antarctica may vanish and all of its unique animals will either become extinct or face extinction.

Survey 3 Question 2:Survey 3 Question 2: Thinking back on your research, Thinking back on your research, what did you find the what did you find the most difficultmost difficult to do? to do?



locating relevant information on the Internet 22 (76) %

locating relevant information in books

completing my reflection surveys

formulating my own questions

analysing researched information to help find the answer to my focus question

writing my own answer to the focus question using a set text type

16 (55) %

15 (52) %

14 (48) %

13 (45) %

12 (41) %

Survey 3Survey 3 Question 3:Question 3: Thinking back on your research, Thinking back on your research, what did you find the what did you find the easiesteasiest to do? to do?



co-operating with my partner 26 (90) %

presenting my final work to my classmates

writing my journal comments

choosing an Antarctica topic to research notetaking using keywords

designing my presentation recording my references

19 (66) %

17 (59) %

15 (52) %

14 (48) %



co-operation skills

socialising with different people(11) 38%

improved research / notetaking skills Smart Notebook skills

How to use Smart Notebook in a more professional way

(10) 34%

formulating questions (7) 24%



Cooperating with partner- 21

I enjoyed working and understanding with my partner and created a new friendship.

(21) 38%

designing presentation (9) 31%

learning about Antarctica (8) 28%

I felt very independent and personally I thought it was quite easy doing it that way. Designing our questions was really cool because no one else had the same questions.

I really enjoyed choosing questions and the freedom because we could do something we enjoyed and step out of the box.

I felt fairly confident and responsible to pick the focus question. It was a challenge, but I really liked our topic.

I feel fine about choosing my own topic and designing my own questions because there is no complaining about what you have to do.

I felt horrible about choosing our own topic because it was hard to think of one that was sensible. Also designing contributing questions sucked because we couldn’t think of good ones.

Students’ Journal Entries Students’ Journal Entries

Exploration- Selecting subtopic to research deeper

I feel very excited about our research topic. I can’t wait to research about it because the topic interests me and intrigues me. I am improving on working faster and I am proud of what I have learnt today.

Today was fun and interesting because me and ... learnt a lot about the topic we wanted most. I think we did well together, me and ..., and we gathered lots of info.

It felt challenging to pick only 1 because we liked 2 topics. But I felt happy with our topic that we chose.

Today I felt confused because my partner and I couldn’t decide on a topic.

Comments recorded at end of most lessons – activity & feelings

Many comments reflected Kuhlthau’s affective domain at various stages of I.S.P.

Formulating Questions

Hi fellow classmates and teachers. We are enjoying our lessons of Antarctica. It was a bit challenging to formulate and make our own questions. We're happy with our research so far.

Researching contributing questions

Hi teachers and fellow students, Our focus question is 'What is the future of endangered animals in Antarctica? Today we couldn't find much information so we aren't very satisfied. At least we finished 1 question. We are feeling a bit unhappy at this stage. We will try harder next week .

Continuing Researching contributing questions

Hi everyone, A fascinating piece of information that we discovered today was the long line fishing. It was interesting to find that animals get tangled, injured, pulled and may drown and die just from long-line fishing. Our most useful resource was the internet. Antarctic.gov was an interesting website to use. At this stage we are both feeling pleased and surprised that we got most questions completed except for one.

5. In general, how did students respond to the unit?They were keen to go to CPT. Worked well and enjoyed the task.They maintained interest throughout the unitMost pairs co-operated very well for the duration. Interest level was high. Enjoyed having a choice with their research

6. This was the first Guided Inquiry unit where students were required to:* select own subtopic that interested them* formulate & research their own Focus & Contributing Questions. In the past, Web Quest units have been used. Which approach do you prefer?

Prefer the students to design their own research questions as it is empowering and leads to greater commitment and engagement by the students. However, time is an issue! Especially to build up the background knowledge before the research process can begin.

Having experienced it (students choosing own subtopic & developing own questions) for their first time, I prefer this type of Guided Inquiry mode to give students more autonomy over their learning.

Survey of Stage 3 teachers - 3 responses

Weighing up G.I.Positives: backed by over 20 yrs of research in USA &

Australia building of background knowledge provides

a sounder footing for launching of enquiry addresses the emotional rollercoaster students

find themselves on “Lifts the bar” for teaching & learning - higher

order thinking involved in construction of knowledge & own meaning.

components of Quality Teaching SLIM & Skinny surveys provide valuable tools

for Evidence Based Practice & insights into students’ learning & emotions other schools

more rewarding for students& staff !

Positives of students selecting own subtopic & designing own research questions :

caters for students’ own interests students feel ownership of own enquiry,

purposeful, motivated & engaged promotes independent learning

Negatives: Time consuming!!! planning unit & resourcing unit designing relevant student profomas/ scaffolds building background knowledge – takes several

lessons. Ideally, immersion for 5 sessions would be ideal so that students are able to make sound decisions based on their interests.

MARKING - giving written & verbal feedback to students

Evidence Based Practice - collating surveys & journals

exhausting at times for students & staff!

Negatives of students selecting own subtopic & designing own research questions :

students struggle with designing own open-ended, higher order research questions

students sometimes need to re-design contributing questions

wide range of student proformas maybe needed to cater for wide range of topics & questions

matching appropriate resources to research questions

How can we make G.I. work in an RFF environment ? Reality is that many libraries will have a major RFF component. However,

you can still implement GI! Collaborate with Classroom Teacher (CT) during planning and assign roles.

eg. CT can spend time building the background knowledge and facilitating the question development and modelling text types.

Research can continue during class Lab time Communication via blogEd CT/TL/students Assessment throughout and during presentations Need to be organised with clearly defined roles

Benefits of CPT & GI for Classroom Teacher Shared knowledgeShared responsibilityProfessional expertise

shared among staffIncreased confidence –

not alone! Professional dialogueProfessional development

Team teaching modelIt’s fun!See your students

differently in a new context

Higher expectations that foster deep knowledge and understanding that stems from the students’ interest

Remember, as a Teacher Librarian: “I am only one, but I am one, and what I do makes a difference.”

Kim Gordon (1998)

“One day you'll wonder, Did I make a difference?

TEACH FOR the certainty that you did!” Dr Ross Todd (2011)

Questions & Discussion

Dylan’s & Ethan’s presentation

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