By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2010-03-23
I’m looking for information regarding student comprehension and/or performance when given basic, succinct instructions versus long, detailed lab instructions. I have heard convincing arguments for both, but I’d like to find out what the research says.
—Brandi, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Following directions is highly valued skill in many classes. I once heard a teacher say to a lab group whose results were different from the others, “You got the wrong answer because you didn’t follow my directions.” He missed a teachable moment to discuss how or why different results were obtained.
Your question implies that knowing how to design procedures for lab investigations also would be a skill worth developing. I’m not familiar with any formal research on the complexity of lab directions, so I’m hoping someone who knows of any will share the references. In the meantime, this sounds like an opportunity for your own action research in the classroom.
Action research is inquiry or research focused on efforts to improve student learning. Typically it is designed and conducted by teachers or teams of teachers who analyze the data from their own classrooms to improve their practice. Action research gives teachers opportunities to reflect on their teaching, explore and test new strategies, assess the effectiveness of the new strategies, and make decisions about which ones to use. Action research models generally have several components, which I’ve annotated with some thoughts:
Identify a focus area or research question. You already have a general idea (the effectiveness of lab directions) to reflect on. What do you want your students to learn from lab activities? What did you observe that prompted your question? A detailed set of directions (often called a “cookbook” lab) would seem to be foolproof: students who follow the directions would be more likely to get the “correct” results. How important is it for all students to get the same results and come to the same conclusions? What happens if they do not? Depending on the amount of directions, how would you expect the students’ thought processes to be different? Once students are familiar with a procedure or instrument, is it necessary to repeat the directions? What is the teacher’s role if the directions are not detailed? Do students think a long, detailed set of directions looks more rigorous and scientific?
Collect data. If you have more than one section, you could use detailed directions in one class and basic ones in another. You may need to try this with several activities. You’ll need to document the impact of providing different amounts of directions: the accuracy or consistency of data students collected during the activity, how students analyzed their results, the content and quality of the discussions between members of the lab group, and the procedures designed by the students. As the students proceed, listen to their conversations. Ask questions about their understanding of the purpose of the activity and how they decided on a procedure. Observe which students become frustrated with the minimal directions or which students display confidence and creativity. You could use photographs or videos to document the process. Examine what they are writing in their lab notebooks.
Analyze and interpret the data. Review the students’ procedures and their results using a rubric based on your vision of what a successful lab “looks like.” Look at the quality of their reports. Debrief them on their understanding of the procedures they designed and of the results. Discuss any frustrations or other feelings about the change in expectations.
Develop an action plan. Depending on your results and the experience level of your students, you may decide that some modeling and scaffolding will be necessary as they take on more responsibility for their work. Decide if it is acceptable for students to design the procedure as they go along or whether you want them to outline a procedure before they start the hands-on work. Consider if there are times when detailed directions would be appropriate (perhaps if you’re introducing a new lab technique or new instrumentation, if there are safety concerns, or if your students are novices at organizing data). If implementing your action plan leads to more questions, the action research cycle continues.
Action research is a systematic way to apply inquiry to your own teaching practices, and in many schools it is used as a professional development option. The results of action research are often published in the NSTA journals. You can examine these articles for ideas. I hope you will share your findings with us!
Resources:
Action Research
Action Research for Teachers
Photo source: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3072/3110638201_0b7e66a19a.jpg
I’m looking for information regarding student comprehension and/or performance when given basic, succinct instructions versus long, detailed lab instructions. I have heard convincing arguments for both, but I’d like to find out what the research says.
—Brandi, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
By Debra Shapiro
Posted on 2010-03-23
By NSTA Web Director
Posted on 2010-03-23
Governor Edward G. Rendell of Pennsylvania addressed the “Science Matters” Town Hall Meeting in Philadelphia on Friday, March 19. In addition to describing the success of Pennsylvania’s STEM education programs and reeling off some facts and figures (e.g., Pennsylvania is the only state, according to Gov. Rendell, that has increased education spending during this recession), he listed the three things other places invariably get wrong when they try to make a Philly cheesesteak sandwich. You can watch his 25-minute talk on YouTube (that’s where the complete playlist is—below is part 1).
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FnHr_hjgNU[/youtube]
Governor Edward G. Rendell of Pennsylvania addressed the “Science Matters” Town Hall Meeting in Philadelphia on Friday, March 19. In addition to describing the success of Pennsylvania’s STEM education programs and reeling off some facts and figures (e.g., Pennsylvania is the only state, according to Gov.
By Peggy Ashbrook
Posted on 2010-03-22
Thanks go to all the children who made it possible for their parents to attend the NSTA national conference by coming along with them! In addition to being a reminder of why we were there, these children often added to our experience by modeling activities in the presentations. This one even got his hands dirty helping Lisa Green (presenting with Candace Lutzow-Felling, Robin Coutts, and Emily M. Ford) classify a soil at the Outside the Classroom Walls: Creating a Backpack Lesson to Expand Student Learning session. The presenters are from the University of Virginia, State Arboretum of Virgina, Blandy Experimental Farm, and urged us to come see the backpack model in action.
Peggy
By Lynn Petrinjak
Posted on 2010-03-22
NY Times columnist Thomas Friedman recently attended the 2010 Intel Science Talent Search Awards in Washington, DC. He listened to student presentations (including one which he freely admits was out of his scope) and talked with science teachers. He wrote:
In today’s wired world, the most important economic competition is no longer between countries or companies. The most important economic competition is actually between you and your own imagination. Because what your kids imagine, they can now act on farther, faster, cheaper than ever before—as individuals. Today, just about everything is becoming a commodity, except imagination, except the ability to spark new ideas.
NY Times columnist Thomas Friedman recently attended the 2010 Intel Science Talent Search Awards in Washington, DC. He listened to student presentations (including one which he freely admits was out of his scope) and talked with science teachers. He wrote:
By Lynn Petrinjak
Posted on 2010-03-22
I didn’t get a chance to post on Saturday all the conversations with educators in Philadelphia, so I’m catching up a bit now.
I didn’t get a chance to post on Saturday all the conversations with educators in Philadelphia, so I’m catching up a bit now.
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2010-03-21
I’m at the 30th Street Station (with free wireless), waiting for the train to go home. Philadelphia is a great place for a conference, and I enjoyed reconnecting with people and making new friends and colleagues. I have a list of new technology resources to try out, ideas for professional development, additional content knowledge, new thoughts to reflect on, and a few cool maps for my office wall.
Next year the conference heads to the West Coast. Mark your calendars for March 10–13, 2011, in San Francisco. California, here we come!
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2010-03-21
Sunday morning is a tough time for a presenter. Early departures, church services, brunch dates, last minute sightseeing/souvenir gathering, or too much Saturday evening make it difficult for some to attend sessions at this time. But those die-hards who made it to the convention center this morning were treated to some excellent presentations.
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Sunday morning is a tough time for a presenter. Early departures, church services, brunch dates, last minute sightseeing/souvenir gathering, or too much Saturday evening make it difficult for some to attend sessions at this time. But those die-hards who made it to the convention center this morning were treated to some excellent presentations.
By Debra Shapiro
Posted on 2010-03-21
By Debra Shapiro
Posted on 2010-03-21