Unit 3: Developing Clear and Explicit Expectations
Case Study
With some new teaching techniques up her sleeve, Ms. Graphen feels confident that her students can utilize them to successfully analyze and interpret data sets on the community's bee population. Yet, she realizes that for this to happen, she needs to set clear expectations. What exactly does a “good” analysis look like? What should she put on the rubric? How will students know they’re on the right track when making claims about bee population changes?
In this unit, you will help Ms. Graphen by developing clear and explicit instructions for students when analyzing and interpreting data.
Mini-Lecture
In any field of education, it is important to establish clear and explicit instructions. Think back to when you were a student and had to complete an assignment but had no idea what the teacher expected of you. It was likely difficult to know where to start and it probably created unnecessary stress and confusion. Data sets can already be intimidating to students, so as teachers, we need to relieve the pressure by explicitly guiding them through the measures for success.
Below, you will get started creating clear and explicit instructions for your students as they dive into data analysis.
Performance Objectives
At the end of this unit, learners will be able to:
- Analyze the standards for analyzing and interpreting data within the appropriate grade band
- Identify appropriate expectations for their students when analyzing and interpreting data
- Create a set of clear and explicit guidelines for analyzing and interpreting data in the science classroom
Activity
Refresh your knowledge of the K-12 Progressions (https://thewonderofscience.com/sep4-analyzing-and-interpreting-data) for SEP4 from Unit
- Focus on the skills pertaining to your grade level.
Revisit one teaching strategy/tool from Unit 2 and really dig into the tool for a deeper understanding of how it can be used in our classroom.
Identify the steps for success/success criteria when using your selected data analysis tool.
Design a rubric OR Google Slides presentation that outlines the success criteria for students to refer to when engaging in data analysis and interpretation.
Share the link to your rubric or slides in the Unit 3 Google Form (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdhGuSycrcc6QK6g4gKGDcHxd TbjkNfz3oBAFZaauOT-Nan6Q/viewform?usp=header ). Be sure to change the share settings of your document to "Anyone with the link" and paste the link the Google Form.
The Google Form includes reflection questions and connects back to Ms. Graphen's problem.