Heidi+Gray

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About Me
Since 2001, Mrs. Heidi Gray has been dedicated to inspiring her students at The Lovett School. Loving history as a student, she earned her B. A. in history at The College of William and Mary. A year in law school convinced Mrs. Gray instead to further pursue the study of history by earning her M.A. under historian Forrest McDonald at The University of Alabama. There she was inspired to combine both scholarship and truly meaningful teaching. Mrs. Gray’s goal is to combine best practices of her discipline with innovative teaching strategies to make history come alive for her students.



Takeaways / Big Ideas
Remember to make time in your life to learn and challenge yourself! This Action Research was a product of an earlier experiment that I began two school years ago when I was in an cohort at The Lovett School on Inquiry Based Learning. During my time in that cohort, I started to consider how I might provide students instruction on "asking good questions" in the classroom. I included some instruction in my freshmen semester classes after that, but this gave me the opportunity to move beyond what I had been doing, as I felt I had hit a "plateau" with my experiment and was not sure how to proceed further. This Action Research project with the E.E. Ford Cohort gave me the professional learning community support and the opportunity I needed to take my own research further, formalize my instruction, and help my students develop more effective questioning strategies!

AR Overview
When my son was a little younger, he peppered me with dozens of questions on a daily basis. Why didn't my students? I am happy to report, my son is 12 and still asks many, many questions! And now my students are more intentionally "asking good questions" as well!

AR Question
Which of two strategies, Depth of Knowledge (DOK) or Visible Thinking, has a better impact on student learning?

AR Process
1/10 Question Set #1 2/7 Question Set #2 2/9 Introduce “baseline” of grading questions 2/14 Introduce DOK to students 2/19 Introduce Making Thinking Visible to students 2/20-1 Question Set #3 2/22 Survey #1 3/25 Question Set #4 3/26 Question Set #5 3/28 Survey #2

AR Data Samples
//Student Handout defining guidelines and describing Pedagogies//

//Assignments for which students were asked to "ask good questions"//

//Survey #1//

//Survey #2//

AR Data Analysis
//Data Samples//

//Analysis of Quantitative Data on Student Questions//

I was somewhat surprised to find that most of my students (70%) preferred the Visible Thinking strategy. I was also very gratified to find that most students found the instruction useful - I thought perhaps they would be somewhat dismissive of it because they were not being "graded" on it. However, they seemed to enjoy the experiment and are looking forward to seeing my presentation!

AR Conclusions
My Action Research gave me the evidence I needed to prove that it is definitely worth my time in the classroom to provide my students instruction that can provide them with guidance on "asking good questions," allowing them to ask more analytical questions that force them to think more deeply and with more connections. Although my research was certainly not revolutionary in nature, I think small steps that provide students with structure and opportunities to think more deeply can provide them with a greater voice, not only in the classroom, but in the world in which we live! I would now like to incorporate this into my junior classes in some format and see if results are similar with older students.

Lit Review & Resources
Hess, Karin K. "Applying Webb's Depth-of-Knowledge (DOK) Levels in Social Studies.'" National Center for Assessment (2005): 1-4. Print.

Parker, Robin Dr. “Webb’s Depth of Knowledge Guide: Career and Technical Education Definitions 2009.” Course handout. Defining Depth of Knowledge (DOK)). Research and Curriculum Unit. Mississippi State University. 20 October 2009. November 7 2012.  Project Zero. Harvard University, 2013. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. . Ritchhart, Ron, and David Perkins. "Making Thinking Visible." Educational Leadership 5th ser. 65.February (2008): 57-61. Print. "The Role of Questions in Teaching, Thinking and Learning." Critical Thinking. The Foundation and Center for Critical Thinking, 2001. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. . Webb, Norman L. "Depth-of-Knowledge Levels for Four Content Areas." 28 Mar. 2002. Digital file.

Reflections
This has been an exciting and exhausting experience! I am so glad that I undertook this professional development opportunity that allowed me the time and resources to explore an issue of my own interest. "Asking Good Questions" has long been of interest to me, and anything that I can do to promote a classroom where asking deep and probing questions is encouraged is my goal! Thank you to the E.E. Ford Cohort and The Westminster Center For Teaching for giving me the opportunity to make my classroom and even more encouraging and supportive environment!