Assignment #9: Complete the 4 part assignment format as you read, reflect, and respond to Chapter 9: Generating and Testing Hypotheses.
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Although your course packet asks you to post to blog for parts A, B, C, and D…we are asking that you only post part D to the blog (especially since it's summer term and many of us aren't working with students). We’re also trying to make the blog more user-friendly and easier to read. Thanks!
A. Self Assessment of Current Beliefs and Practices: This component asks you to reflect on how and why you currently use the instructional strategies of Generating and Testing Hypotheses in your classroom. The intent of this is to activate your prior knowledge of your strategy use so that you can make comparisons as you read the chapter.
B. Read & Reflect “Research & Theory”: This portion of the assignment asks you to read chapter 9 and reflect briefly on your thinking after reading the “Research and Theory” section of Generating and Testing Hypotheses.
C. Practice: Choose one of the specific “classroom practice” strategies or techniques shared in this chapter to teach to your students (If you are not currently teaching, you may share how you would use this strategy in your classroom) – please post a brief reflection of how this went to the posting labeled Week Nine: Generating and Testing Hypotheses.
D. Final Strategy Reflection: A sequence of questions posted below asks you to reflect on what you’ve learned about both the strategies presented in the chapter and what you’ve learned about yourself as both a teacher and a learner. Please post a brief reflection of how this went to the posting labeled Week Nine: Generating and Testing Hypotheses.
How has the information you read in this chapter on Generating and Testing Hypotheses effected your thinking about teaching and learning? What have you learned about yourself as a teacher and learner? Use the following questions to assist you in writing a brief strategy reflection:
• How might I change how use Generating and Testing Hypotheses in my classroom?
• What is something you now understand better about Generating and Testing Hypotheses?
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16 comments:
Assignment #9: Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Marika Conrad
Since science is one major subject that generating and testing hypotheses is a part of, I need to take a moment to reflect on how I’ve been using this strategy within the realm of science. To be honest, our grade level doesn’t teach as much science as we should. Science is being taught, but more as an integrated subject within the literature block and less as a hands-on subject because of the time spent on math, reading, and writing. We do go through the scientific process (but not enough) with our students where they develop their own hypotheses, test their experiment, and reflect on the data and whether their hypothesis was correct or not and why. One of the newer science standards addresses engineering and design. The example the book gave on p. 107 of having students build a bridge with limited materials would allow students to work through the problem solving process of generating and testing hypotheses and would meet a number of our science standards. The invention task on pg. 108 would also tie in to the standards on engineering and design. We are adopting a new science curriculum for the fall and I am excited to see how it helps students engage in hands-on learning about their world and promotes generating and testing hypotheses.
What really struck me as interesting in this chapter is how generating and testing hypotheses can be utilized in multiple subject areas. I can use the systems analysis task with students when we study the U.S. government structure, economics, the solar system, and the life cycle. I realized the problem solving task is something I do ask my students to do in math a great deal, but not to the extent outlined in the text. We always ask student to share the strategy they used to solve the problem, but I like the idea of having students generate a list of possible strategies and then choosing the best one. I think that would help students be more successful in choosing a strategy that actually leads to a correct solution.
One of the most interesting tasks described in this chapter was the historical investigation task. We study so much American history in 5th grade and I had never thought about generating and testing hypotheses while teaching about explorers, Colonial America, or the American Revolution. The first thought that came to mind that would go right along with this task is having students generate hypotheses about what happened to the colonists who settled Roanoke. There are many theories out there and it would be interesting to see what students posed as possible scenarios and the explanations they developed to support their scenarios. The same is true for how students would explain Paul Revere’s ride or the Boston Massacre. I am excited to try this task with my students this year!
At the end of this chapter, the example of how to engage students in generating and testing hypotheses, but also be given a choice as to how they would explore that was really interesting. I love giving my students choice whenever I can, as it supports them in feeling empowered and taking more ownership in their learning. As mentioned on the last page of the chapter, the part students have the most trouble with (but it’s almost the most critical) is explaining their thinking. Providing some students with sentence stems is important in helping scaffold students to be successful and on track with their answers. I’ve also had students dictate their thinking to an aide or to me as well, which helps support those students for which writing is a road block.
This chapter was interesting and taught me some new ways to use generating and testing hypotheses within my teaching. I’m looking forward to integrating generating and testing hypotheses into subjects other than science this year!
Chap. 9: Generating and Testing Hypotheses – Paula Stepankowsky
At first, as the authors suggest, this chapter seems to be more applicable to teaching science or math than language arts. But there is value in breaking down certain concepts, particularly when it comes to literary analysis and writing the critical analysis, an essay that we do in 8th grade.
I was glad to read that asking students to explain their hypothetical process in writing helps them deepen their understanding of the process. Helping students learn to write well is probably the most difficult task any language arts teacher has because it combines the elements of reading, thinking, analyzing and then articulating ideas – all in grammatically correct sentences.
Of the suggested strategies in this chapter, the one that I am most likely to use is the one on structured decision making. I can see that this could be used to help my students examine their chosen topics for a critical analysis, on The Lord of the Flies for example, and then use this framework to decide which of the elements are the most important to write about.
The historical investigation strategy could also be used when I teach the expository essay. Students are allowed to choose their own topics, and some students have chosen topics from history for their essays. Teaching them to view their topics from an analytical standpoint can spur them to do more intensive research and help them analyze which points are the most important to support their topic.
The problem solving strategy could help students overcome roadblocks in writing as well. Often, students who struggle with writing an essay are struggling because they haven’t done enough research, put enough thought into the topic, made an effective outline, etc. I try to head off these problems by walking them through the process, but sometimes individual students still struggle with one or more of these obstacles. This framework could help us sort things out.
Assignment #9: Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Marti Severson
After my initial reading of this chapter, I thought my class does enough generating and testing hypotheses when we work on our science fair. As a grade level, we spend 10 weeks teaching and modeling how to use the scientific method. But as I read Marika’s and Paula’s reflections, I realized even in third grade, I could really apply these strategies to other areas too. I don’t know if I would use many formal structured tasks with my students, but I would modify them and make them useable for my students. I see value in the higher-level questioning that is required, and I can apply it in math and reading, as well as science, social studies and art. Math problem-solving is one the most difficult areas for my students to grasp. I can see where these higher-level questions would work well with patterning in math, or making predictions in reading. As people have mentioned before, having kids explain their thinking is very hard for them, but I think it is critical for deeper understanding. So, I will now use this approach in other content areas besides science because I see value in the process. I will take what I liked from this chapter, and modify it for my students.
Ashley Madison
Assignment #9
Generating and Testing Hypothesis
This chapter makes me want to teach science or social studies. I guess, as a writing teacher, one of my roles in generating and testing hypothesis is to help students clearly communicate their inductive and deductive thinking in writing. I am always pushing to have more cross-curricular ties with my interdisciplinary team, but our school has had such a strong department focus lately, that we do not have enough planning time to tie our department and team curriculum together. If we did, or when we do, the writing teachers can help students write their science projects and reports, their social studies papers, even their reading book reports.
The structured tasks outlined in this chapter do provide a nice framework for the kind of thinking students like to do, and I think I can use these to spice up some of my assignments. I think that my fictional narrative and persuasive units could utilize some of these tasks. For example, when the students make up a story, I could add an invention aspect to it. How fun would it be for them to create an invention in a fictional story! I may be misinterpreting the research here, but I am inspired, nonetheless. The students can also use the problem solving task when responding to literature; and they could do this through fiction or non-fiction stories. Lastly, the investigation task is a structure I can apply to research. I agree with Marika, this was an interesting chapter.
Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Robin Rose
I have to say, my immediate response to this was oh dear, higher level thinking skills - not so much with my class. However, after reading the chapter I realize there are things I can do to help my students learn from generating and testing hypotheses. For example I receive a weekly newsletter curriculum specifically for life skills called News2You. Lately it has had an extra experiment section, connected in some way to the topic of the newsletter. If I plan ahead, I can be doing a hypotheses/testing activity once a week. Granted the program already has the hypotheses developed but that works well as a modification for my students. After we practice with the set hypotheses, if things go well, later in the year I might ask them what they would predict and come up with class hypotheses to test. The weather sample really hit home as we already check the weather everyday as part of our Every Day Counts math/morning meeting time. Extending that once a week, exploring it more deeply is very doable. So much easier (to me) to deepen an activity than to introduce a new one into the daily schedule! Also can see applying this at the cause/effect level with social behaviors and role play.
I understand now that practicing generating and testing hypotheses does is not out of reach of my students at all. It is just a matter of simplifying and modifying to make the process more accessible to them. Starting with the weather sample in the beginning of the chapter, as I read the chapter, I was generating lots of new ideas around simple, everyday things we can make a guess about and see what happens. Again, this can tie in with everyday decision making also, a very important part of my life skills curriculum.
Two of the techniques, problem solving and experiment inquiry, are things that I have utilized in teaching chemistry on a regular basis. I find using these techniques tend to be far more engaging for my students. The level of how open their investigations are depends on the concepts we are covering. I try to give them a wide berth in allowing them to discover some of these ideas on their own but I also try to gauge when structured guidance might be more appropriate in certain situations.
I really liked the section in which they were talking about “invention.” I have seen the utilization of this technique to be highly engaging and effective in engineering or physics classes. One of the projects I have seen students become fully enveloped in is the creating a bridge from pasta that weighs under a certain amount but can hold the most weight. The determination I see in some of these students that try to create the strongest bridge is quite refreshing to see as a teacher. This is something I would like and try to apply in my chemistry class. I have had some ideas such as creating the best experiment that demonstrates the “Law of Conservation of Mass” in chemistry. This is something I have been brainstorming but still need to fine tune to make it effective.
As for something I understand better about generating and testing hypotheses, I would say that focusing more on being able to explain their hypotheses and conclusions is something I need to focus on more. I think whether I have students write formal lab reports or short answers from guided questions, I need to hold students more accountable in this area. It is something that I need to place more emphasis on and explain the underlying intent of what I want them to get out of the activity or lab we are doing.
Assignment#9 – Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Name: David Lee
Erinn Carrillo
Assignment #9: Generating and Testing Hypothesis
This is an area that I do not get the opportunity to use with most of my students. Most of my students are learning Basic English and trying to navigate their way through the school day. This area is one that I will need to work with classroom teachers to develop for my Intermediate students in grades three through five. This is a requirement for their science unit, although I don’t know how well they have done in this area.
I really think that the writing of a hypothesis and making a conclusion is the best way for a student to deepen their understanding of a topic. This is often a difficult skill, even for my most advanced English Language learners. Often, they have a difficult time writing fairly basic paragraphs and essays. Writing about a content area such as science is so much more difficult.
One way I think that I may be able to use this more during the course of the upcoming school year is by working with classroom teachers on their GLAD units. If I were to generate some hypotheses during English Language Development, we could write some group paragraphs to get the general idea familiar in their minds. Any other thoughts/ suggestions for this strategy?
The last section of the chapter also suggests providing templates and stems for sentences for students to better articulate their thinking. I am going to work to generate these to match the content in my Intermediate level student’s classrooms.
Theresa Muller
Assignment #9 Generating and Testing Hypothesis
Once again, at first it seems this strategy requires higher-level thinking – cognitively beyond most first graders. But, after reading this chapter, it is apparent there is much I can do as a teacher to help my students learn from generating and testing hypothesis. The section most practical and interesting to me outlines various tasks that help students learn from this strategy. Of these tasks, (Analyzing Systems, Problem Solving, Historical Investigation, Invention, Experimental Inquiry and Decision Making,) some seem to be easily adaptable to primary age learners.
I envision generating hypotheses as a whole class to test, providing lots of modeling and practice whole group. There are many opportunities throughout the daily curriculum to do this – while problem solving during math, and engaging in inquiry activities in science, social studies, and health.
Providing students with templates and sentence stems especially caught my interest. These are tools I like to use regularly to facilitate learning with my first graders. Designing templates, stems and frames to fit specific curriculum in which students could learn to formulate their own hypotheses and then record results, seems logical and very doable.
Having students make predictions and explain them is a task I’ve used frequently over the years, but mostly during language arts to help students understand story lines and characters better. Now I see that this same activity could and should be used in other content areas.
I am actually excited to try using this strategy more formally and explicitly this school year.
I love being able to read the comments from all of you after the chapter readings. I know I always say that but it truly helps me since I do not have the classroom experience to relate the text to. I like others think of science when I hear the word “hypotheses.” I love the idea of being able to use this process in all subject areas.
I think what it is so valuable is how this process deepens their understanding of what they are learning. I know as a student anytime I had to explain what I was learning in any content area it was difficult for me because I probably didn’t truly understand what it was that I was learning. I think if teachers can design these assignments like how they are suggesting that it could help students have a deeper understanding and be able to explain in depth what they are learning. What great information and maybe one day I will have the opportunity to use this process in my own classroom.
Sara Malvar
"Assignment 9: Generating and Testing Hypotheses"
Typically when I think about generating and testing hypothesis, I think about science and the scientific inquiry process because this is where this vocabulary is introduced. However, we use this same process in many different disciplines without using the same vocabulary. For instance, in reading we make predictions based on other knowledge from the story. I don’t ask them for a hypothesis of what will happen, I ask them for a prediction. In math problem solving, we suggest using multiple ways to solve a problem…this is similar to the author’s suggestion for looking for multiple alternatives in the Decision Making framework. I am beginning to see the varying ways we can use all or parts of the hypothesis generating and testing process. I had never really considered using this strategy in social studies. This is probably due to the fact we had so little time allotted for content that we were lucky to even have time to cover basics let alone provide for higher level thinking time. I think my goal for this year will be to have my students see parallels between the thinking and decision making processes in math problem solving, reading, scientific inquiry and more using some common language.
I have noticed, once again, that one of the key components to learning and the success of this strategy is the student explanation and justification. This expectation of explaining thinking is powerful. All the math classes I have recently taken emphasize this exact point. When students have to justify their work, the learning is richer. They need to make decisions that are explainable. This rich discourse allows students to explain the “why” or “why not” in their models, ideas or thinking. Many times this verbal explanation leads to the identification of reasoning or process flaws. Students come to these understandings on their own more easily. This deepens the understanding more than being told why or why not something is correct. This does all come back to community and the relationships students build not only between each other but also with the teacher. Students need an environment where the making of mistakes is not only allowed but useful in teaching each other.
Assignment #9 (8/13/11) Generating and Testing Hypotheses
#9
A common misconception is that generating and testing a hypothesis is something you only do in science. I completely disagree and clearly this chapter shows how you can use this strategy in a variety of classes. I especially liked how it was used in history to examine famous events and analyze the information.
I use this strategy in my math class all the time, most often when we are looking for patterns. An important idea learned in an Algebra 1 class is linear function. Students are expected to be able to look at a table, graph or situation (a story) and write an equation. It’s important to teach them how to identify patters, how to write a rule (a hypothesis) and then how to check their rule. Sometimes that pattern doesn’t fit and they have to try another equation.
The most obvious place I use this is when I teach inductive and deductive reasoning in Geometry. What I like about this section is that making hypotheses and conclusions are important, but what is most important is the explanation. This is the focus because this section is the first building block to geometric proofs where you have to create a logic sequence to prove a statements is true. If you cannot explain your reasoning, then how do you know its true?
Amy Ryan- Chapter 9: Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Reading this chapter helped me to appreciate some of the good points of teaching a self-contained classroom (5th and 6th grade). I have experience in all of the areas discussed, and can apply these ideas in all of the areas as well. Science is obviously an area where students naturally do this type of work. In their science notebooks, my students write up each experiment they do. They start with a question, list and draw their materials or setup, and they generally follow the rest of the scientific method for each experiment, including a hypothesis, testing of the hypothesis, and assessment of whether or not the hypothesis was correct. In the area of reading, students regularly make predictions, which is a hypothesis. In math, they regularly estimate ahead of time what the answer will be, which is also a hypothesis. We use the “History Alive!” curriculum for social studies. I see how I could include more hypothesis generation in social studies. Luckily, the curriculum also has some of that thinking built into it.
This chapter was interesting but, I felt, underdeveloped. There is a lot of discussion of rubrics, frameworks, and templates, but no examples are given. I have appreciated many of the note-taking frameworks and other similar items provided in other chapters, and would feel more confident in applying these ideas if I had some examples of frameworks to use.
The main things I will take away from this chapter are: expanding the use of hypotheses into more topic areas (esp. social studies), and the expectation that students explain the principles they are working from to generate their hypotheses. The social studies topic for the coming year is American history, from exploration to the Revolutionary War. Lots of areas ripe for hypotheses and what-ifs!
Amber Young, Assignment #9 Generating and Testing Hypotheses
This chapter was challenging for me. We create informal hypotheses in music class about how something’s going to sound, and my older groups use the Problem Solving task when they write music, but I don’t have a system in place for explaining their thinking behind their choices. I better understand that generating and testing uses higher order thinking skills, which explains why I might shy away from this topic in a short music class. Generating and testing a hypothesis sounds like a very involved series of classes, and I would almost have to create an entire new unit to carry it out as the book explains. If we had more time a week, I would love to have students research composers to explain why they wrote with the instruments they did, etc., but too daunting on twice a week (and the library’s always busy!) As a learner, I did enjoy explaining my science projects and math proofs, but my classmates really struggled to find the words under pressure. I liked the idea of letting students record themselves or write out explanations instead.
Assignment #9: Generating and Testing Hypotheses
I have to admit that I found this chapter quite terrifying at first. I’ve always considered scientific inquiry to apply only to science and mostly for grades higher than first grade. However, after reading the chapter two times I realized it’s more about the process than the subject. In fact, we use a lot of the noted strategies in reading, we just use other names to describe what we’re doing such as: predicting, using our schema, inferring, or synthesizing. We also do GLAD science units, where the students use a tremendous amount of the described strategies.
After reading this chapter, I have a greater understanding of several concepts. First, I can now explain the difference between deductive and inductive thinking and understand why inductive thinking is more difficult for students to grasp. Inductive thinking really ties into critical thinking skills. Also, I understand the importance of students “sharing the thinking” behind their hypotheses and how I need to model how this is done time and time again.
One way I may change how I use generating and testing hypotheses in my classroom is actually using more of the terminology, such as “hypothesis”, so the students can start to develop an understanding of what it means to hypothesize and realize that we are already doing it in the first grade. Hopefully this scaffolding will benefit them as they start to use more traditional scientific inquiry in the upper grades. I also plan on “thinking aloud” more often and with greater intention. Hopefully as a result the students will get more used to this concept and be able to articulate how they are generating their hypotheses (or predictions).
Assignment#9
Jennifer Flagel
Thanks everyone for your thoughts and comments for Assignment Nine. As most of you stated, with a little thought and planning, generating and testing hypotheses can be utilized in multiple subjects and content areas for all grade levels.
The examples many of you shared were interesting to read.
As mentioned on the last page of the chapter, students often have difficulty explaining their thinking, which is vital for deeper understanding. Providing sentence stems for students helps scaffold assignments so students can be successful.
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