Teaching with Depth…

using Questions

Partially Adapted from Polk County, Florida Professional Development Presentation

Making Sense & Worthwhile Tasks

“What are our kids really being asked to do?”

“How are we keeping up with

Cognitive Demand?”

Why do we ask questions?

A Conversation About Questioning

In a high school science classroom, the following

dialogue was heard:

Teacher: Why do I ask questions?

Student: So you can check up on us.

Teacher: What do you mean, check up on you?

Student: To see if we are learning anything.

Teacher: Are you saying that when I ask you a question, it’s like my giving you a test or quiz?

Student: Yup.

Teacher: What if I said, "I ask questions to learn from you; I want to know how you are thinking about what we are learning"?

Student: I would have to think about that.

Teacher: Why?

Student: Because I never thought about it that way. I thought you were checking up on whether we were listening to you. I didn’t think you were interested in my thinking.Source: Ester Fusco, What Was the Question? Rethinking Questioning, ASCD

Teacher Reflections:

DOK in your classroom

√As the teacher, do you:1. Ask at least 3 to 5 questions per lesson?

2. Ask questions that require students to go through at least 2 thinking steps?

3. Ask the same number of questions of all students?

4. Ask students to explain their answers?

5. Avoid giving answers away or hinting at answers when you ask questions?

6. Ask open ended questions?

7. Ask students to be specific and complete in their answers?

8. Ask students if they agree or disagree with an answer given by you or another student.

9. When students say, “I don’t know,” do you:

a) ask the same question again,

b) rephrase the question and ask it again

c) ask a question that breaks the 1st question down into smaller parts

Some Questioning Strategies

1. Ask questions that require students to go through at least 2 thinking

steps

2. Ask students to explain their answers

3. Avoid giving answers away or hinting at answers when you ask

questions

4. Ask open ended questions

5. Ask students to be specific and complete in their answers

6. Ask students if they agree or disagree with an answer given by you or

another student.

7. When students say “I do not know”:

• rephrase the question and ask it again

• ask a question that breaks the 1st question down into smaller parts

So why do we ask questions?

•Develop interest and motivate students to become actively involved in lessons

•Develop critical thinking skills and questioning/inquiring attitudes

•Review/summarize previous lessons

•Nurture insights by exposing new relationships

• Increase Student-Student discourse and collaboration

•Assess achievement of instructional goals/objective

Depth of KnowledgeFocuses on: •Complexity of content standards •Outcome (product) is the focus of how much the students understand

Does NOT focus on the VERB, but the CONTEXT in which the verb is used, and the DEPTH OF THINKING required.

DOK references the complexity of mental processing that must occur to answer a

question/perform a task:

FOR EXAMPLE:

• Adding is a mental process.• Knowing the rule for adding is the intended

outcome that influences the DOK.• Once someone learns the “rule” of how to

add, 4 + 4 is DOK 1 and is also easy.• Adding 4,678,895 + 9,578,885 is still a

DOK 1 but may be more “difficult.”

DOK is not about difficulty...Difficulty is a reference to how many students answer a question correctly.

“How many of you know the definition of an atom?”*DOK 1 – recall*If all of you know the definition, this question is an easy question.

“How many of you know the definition of hydrophobic?”*DOK 1 – recall*If most of you do not know the definition, this question is a difficult question.

Verbs are not always used appropriately...

Words like explain or analyze have to be considered in context…

•“Explain to me where you live” does not raise the DOK of a simple rote response.

(low order)

Even if the student has to use addresses or landmarks, the student is doing nothing more

than recalling and reciting.

DOK is about what follows the verb...

What comes after the verb is more important than the verb itself.

“Analyze this sentence to decide if the commas have been used correctly” does not meet the criteria for high cognitive processing.”

The student is merely using the rule he/she was taught.

Same Verb—Three Different DOK Levels

DOK 1- Describe three characteristics of metamorphic rocks. (Requires simple recall)

DOK 2- Describe the difference between metamorphic and igneous rocks. (Requires cognitive processing to determine the differences in the two rock types)

DOK 3- Describe a model that you might use to represent the relationships that exist within the rock cycle. (Requires deep understanding of rock cycle and a determination of how best to represent it)

DOK is about complexity

The intended student learning outcome determines the DOK level.

•Level 1: Recall and Reproduction

•Level 2: Skills & Concepts

•Level 3: Strategic Thinking

•Level 4: Extended Thinking

Webb’s Four Levels of Cognitive Complexity

What does this look like in the classroom?

Using your current benchmark:

•Level 1 (recall) __________________

•Level 2 (skill/concept) _____________

•Level 3 (strategic thinking) __________

•Level 4 (extended thinking) _________

…turn and talk…

What level am I?

A scientist synthesizes a new drug. She wants to test its effectiveness in stopping the growth of cancerous

tumors. She decides to conduct a series of experiments on lab mice to test her

hypothesis. What should she do?

Writing Scaffolded Questions

The EQ is the umbrella

Writing Scaffolded Questions

SC.912.L.17.20 Predict the impact of individuals on environmental systems and examine how human lifestyles affect sustainability. High

EQ: How do the needs and wants of humans affect their surroundings? Level 3

What needs do you have as a human being? Level 1

How do you or your parents attain those resources? Level 1

Discuss the affects that these needs and wants may have on the environment. Level 2

Based on the chart . Predict the effects of the loss of a major non-renewable resource such as fossil fuels . Level 4

1.Compose 1 Essential Question (EQ) for your lesson plan.

2. Develop 3 probing/scaffolded questions

“’He who learns but does not

think, is lost. He who thinks, but does not learn is in great danger.”

* Confucious

Design and formulate a series of higher order questions supplementing your current lesson’s theme and learning objective.