Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS)

1. Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) Teaching and Assessing Higher Order Thinking Skills for K-12 Teachers DAY THREE: September 27, 2012

2. Follow-up Session 2 (Online) • “Personalized,” Domain-specific HOTS • Comments to, and from others… • Topic(s) for Performance-based HOTS-aligned Projects • Today’s emphasis: Instructional Strategies • Critical Thinking • Problem-Solving • Analytic Reasoning

3. Pre-requisites (Lower Order Thinking Skills) The mastery of content and lower order thinking are particularly important prerequisites to higher order thinking. Any lesser degree of learning of prerequisites will result in puzzlement, delay, inefficient trial and error at best, and in failure, frustration, or termination of effort at worst…” - Gagne, Briggs and Wagner, 1988

4. Pre-requisites (Lower Order Thinking Skills) “This division of basic facts from higher-order thinking runs against common sense. How middle schoolers may apprehend ‘historical thinking’ without delving into the factual details of another time and place far from their own, is a mystery.” - Mark Bauerlein, The Dumbest Generation, 2009

5. Pre-requisites Lower Order Thinking Skills • cognitive strategies • comprehension • concept classification • discriminations • routine rule using • simple analysis • simple application Examples: Underlining main ideas, outlining, paraphrasing, mnemonic devices to recall information Higher Order Thinking Skills • complex analysis • creative thinking • critical thinking • decision making • evaluation • logical thinking • meta-cognitive thinking • problem solving • reflective thinking • scientific experimentation • scientific inquiry • synthesis • systems analysis

6. Pre-requisites “It is important that students acquire sufficient declarative knowledge (e.g., concepts and facts) and procedural knowledge (e.g., strategies and algorithms) within a specific content domain before they can be expected to engage in complex reasoning processes.” -- Marzano, 1992

7. What Higher-Order Thinking is NOT: HOTS are NOT simply an extensive collection of Lower-Order Thinking Skills. Consider an Example (Science): Essential Question: “Why do some substances burn, and other substances do not?”

8. Not Necessarily Higher-Order Thinking

9. Barriers to Higher-Order Thinking

10. Higher-Order Thinking and Reading in the Content Area Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier (Adapted from The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments, by George Johnson, Alfred A. Knopf, 2008) Why do some substances burn, while other substances do not? In the 1700’s, Antoine Lavoisier and most other chemists accepted the notion that some kinds of matter burned because of a mysterious substance called “phlogiston” (flow-ji-ston). The reason things burned was that they were rich in phlogiston, and as they were consumed they released this “fire stuff” into the air. Set a piece of wood aflame and it would stop burning only when its phlogiston was spent, leaving behind a pile of ash. Wood, it logically followed, was made of phlogiston and ash. Likewise, heating a metal under an intense flame, a process called “calcination,” left a whitish brittle substance, or “calx.” Metal was thus composed of phlogiston and calx. The process also worked the other way around. Calx, it was recognized, resembled the crude ores mined from the ground, which were refined or reduced by heating them next to a piece of charcoal. The charcoal emittedphlogiston, which combined with the calx to recover the lustrous metal. With phlogiston, scientists had a consistent explanation for combustion, calcination, and reduction. Chemistry suddenly made sense. There was however a problem: the calx left behind after calcination weighed more than the original metal. How could removing phlogiston leave something heavier?

11. Developmental Progression: Lower Elementary Grades K-2 Upper Elementary Grades 3-5 Middle School Grades 6-8 High School Grades 9-12

12. Common Theme: “Argumentation” (From our Previous Example – an “exit outcome”): Students should be able to evaluate arguments, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of claims in light of the evidence and reasoning used to support them. Students should also be able to construct valid arguments, and support them with evidence.

13. Developmental Progression:“Argumentation” Young students can begin by constructing an argument for their own interpretation of the phenomena they observe and of any data they collect. They need support to go beyond simply making claims—that is, to include reasons or references to evidence and to begin to distinguish evidence from opinion. As they grow in their ability to construct arguments, students can draw on a wider range of reasons or evidence, so that their arguments become more sophisticated. In addition, they should be expected to discern what aspects of the evidence are potentially significant for supporting or refuting a particular argument. Students should begin learning to critique by asking questions about their own findings and those of others. Later, they should be expected to identify possible weaknesses in either the data or an argument and explain why their criticism is justified. As they become more adept at arguing and critiquing, they should be introduced to the language needed to talk about argument, such as claim, reason, data, etc. Framework for K-12 Science Education, National Academy of Sciences

14. Developmental Progression:Argumentation Lower Elementary (Grades K-2): Students should… • Know that people are more likely to believe your ideas if you can give good reasons for them. • Ask “How do you know?” when appropriate, and to attempt reasonable answers when others ask them the same question. Adapted from Benchmarks for Science Literacy, AAAS

15. Developmental Progression:Argumentation Upper Elementary (Grades 3-5): Students should… • Support their statements with facts found in books, articles and other sources. • Seek better reasons for believing something than “Everybody knows that…”, or “Just because…”. • Recognize when comparisons or analogies used in an argument might not be correct or fair. • e.g. an electric wire is like a garden hose, Earth is like a peach Adapted from Benchmarks for Science Literacy, AAAS

16. Developmental Progression:Argumentation Middle School (Grades 6-8): Students should… • Be aware that there may be more than one good way to interpret a given set of facts. • Be skeptical of arguments based on small samples of data, biased data, or vague reasons. • Criticize arguments where fact and opinion are intermingled, or where conclusions don’t logically follow from the evidence. Adapted from Benchmarks for Science Literacy, AAAS

17. Developmental Progression:Argumentation High School (Grades 9-12): Students should… • Criticize arguments based on faulty, incomplete, or misleading use of evidence. • Know that convincing arguments need true supporting statements and valid connections between them. • Identify the hidden assumptions behind an argument to assess its validity. • Suggest alternative ways of interpreting the evidence in an argument. Adapted from Benchmarks for Science Literacy, AAAS

18. High-Impact Instructional Strategies • The 5-E Model of Inquiry applied to “Critical Thinking” • Claim/Evidence/Reasoning applied to “Problem-Solving” • Additional Strategies applied to “Argumentation” and “Analytic Reasoning”

19. High-Impact Instructional Strategies “Inquiry focuses on the engagement of students to generate and pursue the answers to questions through careful observation and reflection. It is a multifaceted activity that involves making observations; posing questions; examining other sources of information to see what is already known in light of experimental evidence: using tools to gather, analyze, and interpret data; proposing answers, explanations, and predictions; and communicating the results. Inquiry requires identification of assumptions, use of critical and logical thinking, and considerations of alternative explanations. It is far more flexible than, for example, the rigid sequence of steps commonly depicted in textbooks as the ‘scientific method.’ It is much more than just doing experiments.” – Llewellyn, Teaching Science Through Inquiry, NSTA Press 2005

20. Engage Evaluate Explore Elaborate Explain The 5E Learning Cycle Learning involves making sense of 1) prior experiences, and 2) new first-hand explorations.

21. The 5E Learning Cycle Engage: A scientist has made the claim, “For all types of animals, an average lifetime is about one billion heartbeats.” Suppose you wanted to test this idea. Which questions need to be answered? What data do you need?

22. The 5E Learning Cycle Engage: “For all animals, a lifetime is about one billion heartbeats.” Exploring the Data:

23. The 5E Learning Cycle

24. The 5E Learning Cycle

25. The 5E Learning Cycle

26. The 5E Learning Cycle

27. Instructional Strategies: Claim  Evidence  Reasoning (CER): Claim: An assertion or conclusion that addresses the original question or problem. Evidence: The facts, data, measurements or calculations from an investigation that support the claim. • Appropriate: The evidence is relevant to the question or problem; and • Sufficient: There should be enough evidence to convince others of the claim. Reasoning: Link the evidence to the claim, explain why the evidence supports the claim.

28. Instructional Strategies: C-E-R and Problem Solving Example: A Disease Outbreak (Huang & Bayona, 2004) Background: An outbreak (epidemic) of gastroenteritis occurred in Greenport, a suburban neighborhood, on the evening of April 28. A total of 89 people went to the emergency departments of the three local hospitals during that evening. No more cases were reported afterward. These patients complained of headache, fever, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. The disease was severe enough in 19 patients to require hospitalization for rehydration. Gastroenteritis outbreaks like this are usually caused by the consumption of a contaminated or poisoned meal. Meal contamination can often be caused by pathogenic viruses or bacteria. However, acute outbreaks are more often produced by toxins from bacteria such as Staphylococcius spp., Clostridium perfringens, Salmonella spp. and Vibriocholerae. Food poisoning can also be caused by chemicals or heavy metals, such as copper, cadmium or zinc, or by shellfish toxins.

29. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: A Disease Outbreak (Huang & Bayona, 2004) Identify the problem to be solved, the goal to be reached, or the conclusion to be drawn: • Identify the source of contamination that caused the outbreak of gastroenteritis (you will present your “claim, evidence and reasoning”); and • Suggest a plan to prevent future outbreaks.

30. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: A Disease Outbreak (Huang & Bayona, 2004) Inquire: What are some initial questions you have? 1. 2. 3. Develop a plan: What are the steps you will take to find answers to your questions? 1. 2. 3.

31. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: A Disease Outbreak

32. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: A Disease Outbreak

33. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: The “Epidemic Curve”

34. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: The epidemic team investigated the places where affected persons, their relatives and neighbors ate that day.

35. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: The epidemic team investigated the places where affected persons, their relatives and neighbors ate that day.

36. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: The epidemic team investigated the places where affected persons, their relatives and neighbors ate that day.

37. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: Once the implicated place was determined, the investigation centered on the food. The following table includes the food items served in that place April 28:

38. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving Example: Once the implicated place was determined, the investigation centered on the food. The following table includes the food items served in that place April 28:

39. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving None of the kitchen personnel were ill. The names of the kitchen personnel and their participation in the food preparation are as follows: • Manuel prepared the beef burritos and the potatoes, • John prepared the salad and the fruit, • Sally served all dishes except the ice cream, and • Jane prepared the cheeseburgers and served the ice cream. • The ice cream was a commercial brand and was bought at a nearby supermarket. Given that the epidemic team worked fast enough and the implicated meal(s) was(were) identified before all food leftovers were discarded, food samples from some meal leftovers were taken to the laboratory. In addition, stool samples were taken from the kitchen personnel who prepared or handled each different food item. The laboratory confirmed that Salmonella toxin was present in some of the food samples and that one of the kitchen personnel had the same Salmonella species. Furthermore, the Salmonella species found in the food and the kitchen worker was the same species found in stool samples of the patients.

40. Instructional Strategies: Problem Solving

41. Instructional Strategies: Claim  Evidence  Reasoning (CER): Claim: An assertion or conclusion that addresses the original question or problem. Evidence: The facts, data, measurements or calculations from an investigation that support the claim. • Appropriate: The evidence is relevant to the question or problem; and • Sufficient: There should be enough evidence to convince others of the claim. Reasoning: Link the evidence to the claim, explain why the evidence supports the claim.

42. Methods and Strategies to Enhance Higher Order Thinking Skills • Clear Instructions and Explanations; • Modeling of thinking skills; • Examples of Applied Thinking; • Feedback on student thinking processes; • Transitions (scaffolding) from initial support (e.g. teaching an algorithm – specified set of steps for problem-solving) to student-centered learning (e.g. heuristics – widely applicable problem –solving strategies). • Combination of Direct Instruction with Guided Practice • Effective Questioning Strategies – pose paradoxes, dilemmas, novel problems From King, Goodson & Rohani, 1998

43. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTl9zYS3_dc “An argument is a collective series of statements to establish a definite proposition”

44. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation Argument: A set of sentences such that … • one of them is said to be true (the conclusion); and • the others are being offered as reasons (premises) for believing the truth of the conclusion. Words as clues: “if, then, since, therefore,…”

45. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation Arguments: Examples – Syllogisms (3-part) Identify the premises and conclusions • All men are mortal. • Socrates is a man. • Therefore, Socrates is mortal. • Saginaw is north of Detroit. • Detroit is north of Toledo. • Therefore, Saginaw is north of Toledo.

46. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation Arguments: Examples – Syllogisms (3-part) Identify the premises and conclusions • All men are mortal. (premise) • Socrates is a man. (premise) • Therefore, Socrates is mortal. (conclusion) • Saginaw is north of Detroit. (p) • Detroit is north of Toledo. (p) • Therefore, Saginaw is north of Toledo. (c)

47. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation Arguments: Examples – Syllogisms (3-part) Identify the premises and conclusions • John is a bachelor. • John is single. • All bachelors are single. • All apples grow on trees. • All fruits grow on trees. • All apples are fruits.

48. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation Arguments: Examples – Syllogisms (3-part) Identify the premises and conclusions • John is a bachelor. (P) • John is single. (C) • All bachelors are single. (P) • All apples grow on trees. (C) • All fruits grow on trees. (P) • All apples are fruits. (P)

49. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation Arguments: Examples (not stated as syllogisms) Identify the premises and conclusions The members of a Smith family are Aaron, Bob and Char. Aaron is left-handed. Bob is left-handed. Char is left-handed. Therefore, all members of the Smith family are left-handed. “I’m expected at the office at 8:00 am each weekday. Since my drive takes half an hour, if I leave home by 7:30 am, I should make it to work on time.”

50. Instructional Strategies:Analytic Reasoning - Argumentation Arguments: • Arguments are neither true nor false; • Premises, or assertions, are either true or false; • Arguments are either strong or weak • A strong argument: • All the premises are true; and • The conclusion follows from the premises. “A good argument preserves truth.”