What Is A Scientific Question?

1. What Is A Scientific Question?

2. How would you define creative thinking? • Creative Arts • Thinking “outside the box” • Looking for the exception rather than the rule • Using a new technique/method for old questions • Using science to educate nonscientists • Either the individual, community, or humanity • Science • Use of past experiences & knowledge to come up with new solutions, insights, hypotheses. • The sky is the limit (let your curiosity go wild)

3. How would you define critical thinking? • Logical thinking • Making conclusions based on empirical data, repeated observations. • Judging information rationally in order to decide what to believe or accept. • Examining any belief or form of knowledge in the light of the evidence for or against. • People are more likely to accept something as true from their neighbors than any other source.

4. Science requires both creative and critical thinking in designing both research questions and experiments. • Often science is thought of as dry, uncreative or boring. • However those who are creative often approach science in an exciting new way.

5. Thought Swap: Objectives • To determine what is already known about a topic. • To encourage language risk-taking in a non-threatening environment. • To increase active listening skills. • Makes topic socially relevant (hearing their peers). • To allow students to hear language on a specific topic. • Used for introducing a topic/brainstorming/review. • It requires that all students participate.

6. What makes a good scientific question? • Answerable • Unanswerable questions are often Why? questions or questions that deal with opinion. • Why is there air • Is basketball is a better sport than soccer? • Can be tested by some experiment or measurement • Contributes to what is already known • Repeatable

7. Brainstorming & Clustering What we already knowWhat we want to find out Objectives • To start the questioning process • To develop organization skills • To use language in meaningful ways • To reinforce “What is a good scientific question?” • To determine what is already known and what students want to know about a topic

8. Fellow gives talk about their research, broad topic, or habitat. • Students are asked to write down what they know. • Students are asked to write down what they would like to know; in question form. • Similar questions are grouped. • Students pick a group and choose & further modify questions.

9. Questioning Strategies • Purpose: • Invite students into activities • Create interest in a new topic • Recall students’ prior knowledge • Help guide logical thinking • Initiate sharing of ideas • Encourage development of multiple hypotheses or alternative explanations

10. Questioning/Discussion Strategies • Create a classroom culture open to dialogue • Pose questions in a non threatening way • Be supportive • Use both preplanned and emerging questions • Use of Broad vs. Focused Questions

11. Respond to students’ answers • Actively listen • Make sure the students feel validated (write down responses) • Ask probing questions to illicit further response or to correct misconceptions • Don’t use questions only as a prelude to a topic • Use sufficient wait time and let students know how they should respond • Accommodate diverse learning styles & allow for creative approaches

12. Oh come on!One of you must have an answer! What is happening when you ask a question and all you get is silence?

13. The student who “talks to much” or “always knows the answer” Vs. The student who “never speaks” or “only speaks when called upon”

14. Explicitly tell the students that you expect everyone to participate • Tell students how they should respond to questions • Hand raising • Call on students in sequential order • Wait until you have sufficient number of responses • Value critical/original thinking even if the response is incorrect

15. Observe effective student/teacher interactions • Discuss ineffective techniques • Thought Swap Suggestions anyone?

16. Classroom Discussions • Studies have found that even when teachers are attempting to call on as many girls as boys, boys are still called upon more frequently. • Broader questions tend to be more difficult to answer. Start with specific questions for reluctant students.

17. Focused questions require an informing or praising response from the teacher • Acknowledging correct/partially correct responses • Praising or congratulating responses • Broad questions require accepting responses • Passive Acceptance-acknowledge participation • Active Acceptance-restating answer • Empathetic Acceptance-explaining reasoning behind answer