Cognitive Demands Revealed

1. Cognitive Demands Revealed

2. Cognitive demands • Describe the cognitive expectations associated with a learning task, the thinking that goes along with the doing • Are an integral part of teaching and learning science • Are differentiated from one another by the way knowledge is used rather than by the degree of rigor associated with a particular demand; they are not hierarchical • Are interdependent and in effective science instruction, seldom appear in isolation

3. Cognitive demand categories include • Designing Technological/Engineering Solutions Using Science Concepts • Demonstrating Science Knowledge • Interpreting and Communicating Science Concepts • Recalling Accurate Science

5. Requires students to • Solve science-based engineering or technological problems • Within given scientific constraints • Propose and critique solutions • Analyze and interpret engineering and technological problems • Anticipate effects of engineering or technological design • Consider consequences and alternatives • Integrate and synthesize scientific information

6. Requires students to use scientific inquiry to • Ask questions • Plan and conduct investigations • Gather and organize data • Think critically and logically about relationships between evidence and explanations • Construct and analyze alternative explanations • Communicate scientific arguments

7. Requires students to • Use subject-specific knowledge to interpret and explain events, phenomena, and concepts using grade-appropriate scientific terminology and technical and mathematical knowledge • Communicate with clarity, focus, and organization using investigative scenarios, real-world data, and valid scientific information

8. Requires students to • Provide accurate statements about valid scientific facts, concepts, and relationships • Provide rote responses • Perform routine mathematical tasks

9. Visit ORC's Examining Cognitive Demands e-pub to learn more by listening to podcasts and reviewing examples.