Melissa Plitt's Portfolio Page

About Me

My name is Melissa Plitt, and I have been teaching for about 10 years. I began my teaching career in an alternative junior high/high school, teaching English to at-risk students in grades 7-12. For the past 7 years, I have been working in a small but growing partial-immersion foreign language charter school. For 6 of those years, I taught 5th grade general education. This year, I am teaching 6th grade Language & Literature and Individuals & Societies (which translates to English and Social Studies) in our International Baccalaureate middle school. My certifications include K-12 English and Social Studies, as well as Elementary K-5 and Middle School English in NJ.

I earned my BA in History with a minor in English from Rutgers University, then later attended Kean University to earn my teacher certification. I am currently working toward my Master's in Curriculum Design and Instructional Technology Master's program at the University at Albany.

When I am not doing school-related things, I love to read, run, and play my bass (badly, but it's fun). I very much look forward to the summer, when I can do some of my homework at the beach!

My Topic and Purpose

The topic of this mini-course is using inquiry-based dialogic collaborative discussions in Language Arts (these could easily be adapted to social studies/history, as they lend itself well to exploring multiple perspectives on historical topics, but I don't want to overwhelm learners). (Discussions such as these can be and often are used in other disciplines such as math, science, and social studies, but these will not be covered in this course.) These discussions always begin with an inquiry-based question that has more than one valid answer or interpretation. Argumentation is a key component of this type of instruction; students must first determine their initial ideas and support them with evidence primarily from a text, but personal experience can also be used for support. Then, they exchange and build ideas, question and challenge one another, work together to determine a reasonable answer or answers, and justify why an answer is valid. Not everyone will agree, and the goal is not to have a "winner" as in a typical debate, but to explore and expand on ideas. Another great thing about this type of discussion is that students of all ages, grade levels, and ability levels can learn to do it.

Through these discussions, students can deepen their understanding of specific topics and hone critical thinking and analytical skills in any subject area. Discussions of this type are student-run; the teacher acts as a facilitator, possibly summarizing or clarifying points, encouraging exploration of opposing viewpoints, or calling attention to logical flaws. Students work together to actively "make meaning". Because of this, students are able to take ownership of their learning, individually and as a community, rather than looking to the teacher for the "correct" answer.

Scope of Learning Outcomes and Content

Learning Outcomes:

Understand how and why dialogic collaborative inquiry discussions can help students in a number of ways.
Know how to develop and/or select the types of questions that lend themselves well to this type of discussion
Develop the attitude of being comfortable allowing students to control the discussion, only stepping in as a facilitator
Apply knowledge and understanding to develop an arguable text-based question and related materials

Scope of Content:

Research that explores benefits and challenges; examples (possibly video or a transcript) of what this type of discussion looks like in practice; examples/nonexamples of what would make good questions to explore through discussion; the components of a dialogic inquiry discussion and reasoning behind why each is necessary; strategies for facilitation of inquiry discussions; examples of what this looks like in practice; possible role-play of a discussion and peer feedback.

Needs Assessment

All students, regardless of age or ability level, are capable of deep understanding and critical thinking. One of the primary jobs of educators is to guide students toward acquiring the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that will help them achieve these goals. It can at times be a challenge to know how to accomplish this. As teachers, we might sometimes observe a disconnect between what we think we taught and what the students actually understood. Another challenge is that students often rely on teachers for the “right” answer, looking for teacher approval before moving on. Or, they might believe that there is only one “right” answer. Thus, in addition to understanding and critical thinking skills, students also benefit from learning flexibility in thinking and self-efficacy.

The primary audience for this instruction will be educators who would like to implement the collaborative discussion strategy in their classes. The course could be helpful for pre-service teachers, new teachers, and more experienced teachers who would like to implement this strategy.

After this course, the learner should be able to facilitate dialogic collaborative discussions in their classrooms. They will have an idea about how to do this in multiple disciplines with a range of grade and ability levels. The collaborative discussions outlined in this course rely heavily on teacher flexibility and their willingness to hand control over to the students, which can be uncomfortable for some. I hope that this course encourages the attitude that doing this (at least on occasion!) is beneficial for student growth and understanding in terms of both the topic at hand and other soft skills like communication, problem-solving, teamwork, and critical thinking.

Non-instructional needs that can impact the implementation of the learning could include class size or space available, especially if a large class is combined with limited space. It can be challenging to accommodate a large number of students in discussions of this sort, and limited space compounds the issue.

Analysis of the Learner and Context

Learners in this course will include educators of varying levels of experience who teach students in diverse contexts. They could potentially include aspiring or new teachers with very little or no experience with implementing this strategy or more seasoned teachers who would like use it or possibly use it in a different context, such as a different grade level or discipline. They might even include educators outside of the traditional classroom, such as after school club advisors, enrichment program leaders, tutors of groups of students, or others.

Because learners will be using these in diverse contexts, instruction should include examples and methods that could be applied within and across these context. It should address several disciplines and demonstrate how the strategy could be applied, used by, and scaffolded for students of various grade and ability levels.

Additionally, since learners will represent a range of experience levels with this strategy, instruction will need to "start at the beginning", and include examples of what this strategy might look like in action. It will also need to provide learners with criteria for and ways to develop great inquiries through open-ended questions or problems. The course could be structured so that learners who might not need the basics can skip it.

Performance-Based Objectives

Given research on the effects of collaborative inquiry discussions, the learner will summarize benefits to students and challenges in implementation. (Unit 1)
The learner will be able to analyze arguments for completeness and effectiveness. (Unit 2)
Given scaffolds and guidance, the learner will be able to facilitate discussions and support students in building effective arguments of their own.. (Unit 2)
Given research on or readings about collaborative inquiry discussions, the learner will be able to describe the elements involved in inquiry discussions and reflect on why each is an important piece in the process. (Unit 3)
The learner will be able to use the information and tools to prepare for, participate in, and reflect on an inquiry dialogue, taking on various roles. (Unit 3)
The learner will be able to select texts and develop questions for inquiry discussions. (Unit 4)
After being provided with criteria for and examples of effective inquiry questions, the learner will be able to compare examples and non-examples, differentiate between the two, and explain their conclusions. (Unit 4)
The learner will apply the concepts and criteria to develop their own discussion topics and create related activities in their specific discipline. (Unit 4)

Task Analysis

Learners will need:

Given research on the effects of collaborative inquiry discussions, the learner will summarize benefits to students and challenges in implementation:
- Explain what an inquiry discussion is
- Identify and summarize relationship with Common Core & benefits to students
- Identify and summarize potential challenges to implementation
  - Possible topic for discussion/assessment: Short reflection on what or when this could be useful in a classroom as well as what challenges could be expected. Alternatively or additionally, reflection on what attitudes will be necessary to develop in teachers and students for this to be successful.
Given research on or readings about collaborative inquiry discussions, the learner will be able to describe the elements involved in inquiry discussions and reflect on why each is an important piece in the process.
- Identify the elements: setting discussion guidelines; developing a text-based, open-ended, arguable question; the inquiry discussion; group reflection and goal setting
- Identify the three components of an inquiry discussion (pre-discussion activity, the discussion, and post-discussion activity and explain why each is important
- Describe the role of teachers during the discussion
- Describe the role of the students as directors of the discussion, observers/evaluators, possible question-generators (with experience), and goal setters
  - Possible assessment: Google Form asking for identification of components and reasoning behind each. Give feedback for answers.
After being provided with criteria for and examples of effective inquiry questions, the learner will be able to compare examples and non-examples, differentiate between the two, and explain their conclusions.
- Analyze inquiry discussion questions for effectiveness, providing reasoning for each choice.
  - Possible assessment/discussion: Google Form again (boring); Is there some way to do an interactive sort? Or Mentimeter slides?
Given examples of inquiry discussion assessment tools, the learner will be able to identify and explain the four main criteria of effective inquiry discussions and the supporting practices for each one. They will be able their own performance as a facilitator as well as guiding students toward effective self-assessment
- Use the Argumentation Rating Tool (ART) to identify the four main criteria of effective inquiry discussions and effective facilitation strategies for each.
- Explain how the ART could be used during the discussion for both teachers and students (ART for Kids)
- Explain how the ART could be used for goal setting for both teachers and students.
The learner will apply the concepts and criteria to develop their own discussion topics and create related activities in their specific discipline.

Curriculum Map

The general outline is:

Unit 1: The What and Why of Inquiry Discussion

Unit 2: Effective Argumentation

Unit 3: Elements of Discussion & Roles of the Teacher and Students

Unit 4: Discussion Planning (The "How" of Inquiry Discussion)

References and Resources

Basic Structure of Argument. (n.d.). [Graphic]. Https://Rampages.Us/Cnjacksonfall15univ112/Basic-Structure-of-Argument/. https://rampages.us/cnjacksonfall15univ112/basic-structure-of-argument/

Chen, B., & Hong, H. Y. (2016). Schools as Knowledge-Building Organizations: Thirty Years of Design Research. Educational Psychologist, 51(2), 266–288. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2016.1175306

Darling-Hammond, L. (2008). Powerful learning: What we know about teaching for understanding (1st ed.). Jossey-Bass.

Edutopia. (2018, November 16). Encouraging Academic Conversations With Talk Moves [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSI4imt0dXg

Everett Public Schools. (n.d.). 21st Century Skills [Infographic]. Https://Www.Everettsd.Org/Page/25540. https://www.everettsd.org/Page/25540

KB Starter’s Resource Kit. (n.d.). Knowledge Building Community Singapore. https://www.kbsingapore.org/kb-starters-resource-kit

King Middle School, Portland, ME & Edutopia. (2009). Talk Moves [PDF Document]. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/sites/default/files/2019-11/Talk_Moves_2_UP.pdf

Larson, M. B., & Lockee, B. B. (2019). Streamlined ID: A practical guide to instructional design (2nd ed.). Routledge.

McGraw Hill PreK-12. (2014, June 23). Better collaborative conversations: On teaching with Dr. Doug Fisher [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7J3Dxxew0TE

Olathe Public Schools, Beers, K., & Probst, R. (n.d.). Notice & note [PDF Document]. https://www.olatheschools.org/cms/lib/KS01907024/Centricity/Domain/3238/Notice%20and%20Note.pdf

ReadWriteThink. (n.d.). What Is the Difference Between Persuasive and Argumentative Writing? [Chart]. ReadWriteThink. https://www.readwritethink.org/sites/default/files/resources/lesson-docs/Difference_Between_Persuasive_Argumentative.pdf

Reznitskaya, A., & Glina, M. (2013). Comparing Student Experiences with Story Discussions in Dialogic Versus Traditional Settings. The Journal of Educational Research, 106(1), 49–63. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.2012.658458

Reznitskaya, A., Wilkinson, I. A. G., & Snow, C. E. (2017). The Most Reasonable Answer: Helping Students Build Better Arguments Together (Annotated ed.). Harvard Education Press.

SAPEREP4C. (n.d.). 27 questions for facilitating philosophical dialogue [PDF Document]. Searchable Library of P4C Resources. https://archive.sapere.org.uk/Default.aspx?tabid=289

Smith, R. (2012, September 3). Ovatniah. Scholastic Scope, 26–31.

Snap Language. (2016, June 23). Analyzing the argument - part 1 of 2 [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pP8dWURrEF0

Staff, T. (2022, January 19). 26 Sentence Stems For Higher-Level Conversation In The Classroom. TeachThought. Retrieved June 5, 2022, from https://www.teachthought.com/critical-thinking/sentence-stems/

The Hunt Institute. (2011, August 19). Speaking and Listening: The Key Role of Evidence [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZXwEaHrdbo

The Learning Accelerator. (2021, June 10). Discussion Sentence Stems. Resources & Guidance from The Learning Accelerator. Retrieved June 5, 2022, from https://practices.learningaccelerator.org/artifacts/discussion-sentence-stems

Whitfield, D. (n.d.). Establishing A Great Books Curriculum - Choosing a Teaching Approach - Teaching Through Shared Inquiry. National Great Books. Retrieved January 5, 2022, from https://www.nationalgreatbooks.com/cirriculum/teachingshared.html#texts

Wilkinson, I. A. G., Reznitskaya, A., Bourdage, K., Oyler, J., Glina, M., Drewry, R., Kim, M. Y., & Nelson, K. (2016). Toward a more dialogic pedagogy: changing teachers’ beliefs and practices through professional development in language arts classrooms. Language and Education, 31(1), 65–82. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2016.1230129

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