{"id":4256,"date":"2022-02-16T16:07:24","date_gmt":"2022-02-16T21:07:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/edt431-531\/?p=4256"},"modified":"2022-02-16T16:07:24","modified_gmt":"2022-02-16T21:07:24","slug":"hey-mtv-welcome-to-my-students-thinking-made-visible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/exemplary-science-teaching\/2022\/02\/hey-mtv-welcome-to-my-students-thinking-made-visible\/","title":{"rendered":"Hey MTV, Welcome To My Students’ Thinking Made Visible"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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If the hit show MTV Cribs<\/em> told us anything, it’s that people are nosy. Audiences are so entertained to get a sneak peak at how these celebrities live inside the walls of their home. I think this is a great analogy for us as teachers. Each year, we are gifted a brand new group of lavish, well-decorated, and mysterious minds that we wish we could peek into. Yet how are we to do this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the classroom, we often pass over the thirty seconds of thinking to the one second verbal answer because we don’t know how to access a student’s thought process. Fortunately, authors Ron Ritchhart, Mark Church, and Karin Morrison have made this thinking visible, in their aptly named book, Making Thinking Visible<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I want to take you through three of my favorite strategies that come from this book to use in the science classroom. These strategies, with some adaptations, work well in drawing out a student’s own thoughts on any particular topic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without further ado, Welcome to Strategy #1:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Generate-Sort-Connect-Elaborate: Concept Maps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While the name of this strategy is a mouthful, the strategy itself is actually very simple. Concept maps have been around for a long time, and there is a plethora of research supporting their effectiveness as a tool for students to make meaning out of content. Check out some of this research in the biology<\/a>, chemistry<\/a>, and physics<\/a> education realms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This tool is a great way for students to organize their thinking and connect different concepts or vocab in new ways. The name of this strategy details some of the step for the best use of concept mapping. Let’s go through them with a relevant example!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s give our hypothetical students the topic of Cells:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, students will generate <\/em>a list of vocab words and processes that relate to cells. They might document words like, chromosome, nucleus, mitochondria, cell wall, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next, students will sort <\/em>their words into categories of their choosing. One student might sort her words into whether they describe prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, students will connect <\/em>their words inside of their categories, drawing lines between related words or concepts. Nucleus and chromosomes might have a line between them, as well as ribosomes and proteins. Have students write small descriptions that highlight how the terms are related.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, ask students to elaborate <\/em>on their connections. This could lead to the creation of subcategories or further connections. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This strategy works especially well as a prior knowledge check and also as a study guide before a quiz or other assessment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. The Micro Lab Protocol<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This strategy is a bit of a misnomer, as no laboratory equipment or experience is required, yet it is still a powerful tool to facilitate discussion and make sure each student has a voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s a pretty simple idea: students meet in discussion teams and the first person explains their opinion or perspective. While she is talking, the other students cannot talk. Instead, they actively listen and take notes if needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the first speaker finishes, the team is given 20-30 seconds of silence to process what has been said before the next person talks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After every member has had an uninterrupted chance to speak, then the team finishes with a 5-10 minute free discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The power behind this tool is that each person has equal opportunity to make their thinking known. Also, between every speaker, the silence helps to recenter the team and protects against quick remarks or retorts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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