Probing Questions

Teacher: Vicki Oleson

Interview

Overview

Principles of Learning

Information Processing

Content Standards

Tenets of Democracy

Questions

Interview: Previewing Questions

1.      How does motivation affect student learning?  How might this principle affect methods of teaching?

2.      Browse NASA’s website for kids.  How could you use this resource as a teacher?  Give specific examples.

3.      Read the INTIME Project Overview and discuss the major goals of the project.  How can INTIME be useful for any educator?  Explain.

Interview: Post-viewing Questions

1.      In the video, Oleson describes what a WebQuest is.  What is it?  Invent your own WebQuest that could be used to help students learn an important scientific principle.  Describe what you invented.

2.      Oleson’s students each take on one of five roles, as described in the video.  How do these roles affect student learning?

3.      What is Oleson’s “strategy,” as she describes it in the video?  How do you think this impacts student learning?

Overview: Previewing Questions

1.      Do an Internet search for information about the solar system. Describe what you found.  Could you use any of these Web resources as a teacher in a 6^th grade classroom?

2.      Invent a project for a 6^th grade classroom to facilitate learning about the solar system.  How would you adapt this project for younger and older learners?

3.      What do you think are the ten most important things needed for human survival (ie, air, water, etc.)?  Do you think upper elementary students would have a different opinion?  How would their ideas differ?

Overview: Post-viewing Questions

1.      After watching the video and reading over the lesson plan, describe what you think a WebQuest research project is.  Do you think this is a useful activity for the classroom?  Why or why not?

2.      Assume the role of a teacher who is carrying out this project in a pull-out classroom, so there is less time to do the project than is described here.  What could you leave out or change from Oleson’s project to adapt to your limited time, while not compromising the essential aspects of the project?

3.      The students in Oleson’s classroom spent virtually all their time working together to gather information and reach a consensus.  How might this facilitate student learning and academic growth?

4.      Think about what you know about the solar system.  Is your information similar to the information the students in Oleson’s class learn?  Explain.  Other than information about space and the solar system, what else does this project allow the students to learn?

Principles of  Learning: Previewing Questions

1.      Read over the section on Patterns and Connections as a principle of learning in the model.  How do you think establishing patterns and connections impacts student learning?  How can teachers emphasize the importance of establishing patterns and connections?

2.      In this project, Oleson promotes learning about the solar system by relating it to possible real-life circumstances.  Which Principle(s) of Learning does this involve?  Explain.

3.      In your own words, what is a compelling situation?  How does it impact student learning?  What are some methods teachers can use to provide students with a compelling situation?

Principles of  Learning: Post-viewing Questions

1.      How do Oleson’s students establish and construct Patterns and Connections to facilitate their learning process?  Give specific examples of how Oleson prompted her students to establish patterns and connections.

2.      Study the checklist of observable behaviors for Reflection.  How do the students in Oleson’s class engage in each of these behaviors?  How might this process improve student learning?

3.      Oleson states in her lesson plan that the project itself provides a Compelling Situation for the students.  Describe the compelling situation.  What aspect of the project do you think is most influential in providing a compelling situation?

Information Processing: Previewing Questions

1.      Searching for information on the Internet can be done as a whole class, in groups, or individually.  Which do you think is most effective in gathering information?  Why?

2.      Read the checklist of observable behaviors for the Presearch stage of Information Processing.  Give some specific examples of how teachers can guide 6^th grade students to perform some of these behaviors.  Include activities as well as what a teacher might say to students.

3.      In your own words, what is interpretation of information?  Now read the definition of the Interpretation stage of Information Processing.  How did your ideas differ from the model’s explanation?  Have you changed your opinion?  What are the implications for you as a teacher?

Information Processing: Post-viewing Questions

1.      What techniques does Oleson use to guide her students through the Presearch stage of Information Processing?  What other methods could she have used?

2.      How does the lesson illustrate the Search stage of Information Processing?

3.      How is technology used to guide the students through the Interpretation stage of Information Processing?  What specific observable behaviors of interpretation can be facilitated with technology?  How?

4.      In the class, how does technology facilitate the Communication stage of Information Processing?  What other technological resources could have been employed here to help with communication?

Content  Standards: Previewing Questions

1.      How will/do content standards affect you as a teacher?  Provide a broad statement, as well as specific examples.  For a reference, read the summary of Content Standards as found in the Technology as Facilitator of Quality Education Model.

2.      Construct your own science lesson for grade 6 that incorporates Benchmarks for Science Literacy Standards 5d and 9E.

3.      Read the Benchmark for Science Literacy Standard 4A for grades 6-8.  If you were asked to revise these, what would you add, delete, and/or change?  Why?

Content  Standards: Post-viewing Questions

1.      How does this project integrate Science Standard C4 for Grades 5-8?  How could the project have helped the students gain a more complete understanding of populations and ecosystems?

2.      How do the students in Oleson’s classroom demonstrate Information Literacy Standards Numbers 3 and 9?

3.      Oleson’s lesson plan shows that the project addresses Benchmarks for Science Literacy 5D, 4A, 4G, 9E, and 5D, even though it is not explicitly stated in the video.  Which aspects of the project do you think cover each of these benchmarks?  How do they do this?

Tenets of Democracy: Previewing Questions

1.      The definition of Thinking Together and Making Meaning in the model states: “Dialogue plays a key role in making meaning and thinking together.”  What are your reactions to this statement?  Is dialogue important for any other Tenets of Democracy?  If so, which ones?  Why?

2.      Do you think Tolerance in children should be learned at home or at school?  Explain.  How can teachers handle tolerance issues in classrooms where each student displays a different level of tolerance?

3.      Study the checklist of observable behaviors for Critical Thinking and Decision Making.  Do you think these comprise a clear description of critical thinking?  Why or why not?

Tenets of Democracy: Post-viewing Questions

1.      How does Oleson encourage Civil Involvement With Others among her students?  What else could she have done?

2.      How do the students in the video demonstrate Thinking Together and Making Meaning?  Do you feel this is an important concept for students to understand?  Why or why not?

3.      How does Oleson implement Empowerment into her classroom?  How do you think this affects student’s thoughts, feelings, and behavior in the classroom?

4.      How does Oleson emphasize Individual Responsibility among her students?  How else could she have done this?

Technology: Previewing Questions

1.      How might Preservice Teacher Technology Competency Number 8, the use of World Wide Web Information Sources, impact student learning?  Do you think this competency is important for students to learn effectively? Explain.

2.      What are some problems that might arise if an important class project is based solely on using computers, such as the World Wide Web, word processing, and PowerPoint?  How could you as a teacher overcome these problems?

3.      According to the model, technology represents “the powerful tools that learners can use to facilitate their own learning process.”  What powerful tools do you use or have you used in the past to facilitate your learning process? How have they helped you?

Technology: Post-viewing Questions

1.      In the class, how does technology facilitate the Communication stage of Information Processing?  What other technological resources could have been employed here to help with communication?

2.      Browse the website for the Great Solar System Rescue and the Solar System Colonization Project 2000.  What are your reactions to what you found?  Would you use these projects in your classroom?  Why or why not?  Describe some positive and negative aspects of the websites.

3.      Oleson states in her lesson plan that one of the reasons for her choices of technological resources is because of their “motivational power.”  What is motivational power?  How do the technological resources used in the project show motivational power?

Teacher Knowledge : Previewing Questions

1.      How does a teacher’s In-Depth Content Knowledge impact student learning?  Describe both positive and negative impact.

2.      How might teacher and student Reflection relate to and/or impact Teacher’s In-Depth Content Knowledge?

3.      Read the summary of Teacher’s In-Depth Content Knowledge. Besides knowing the facts and concepts of the lesson, how can teachers display their in-depth content knowledge?

Teacher Knowledge : Post-viewing Questions

1.      How does Oleson demonstrate In-Depth Content Knowledge in the classroom?  Why is this important?

2.      How does Oleson address her students’ interpersonal intelligence, as described in the model?  What else could she have done?

3.      Which student intelligences, as described in Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences, does Oleson address that are not explicitly stated in the video?  How does she do this?

Teacher Behavior: Previewing Questions

1.      Read the Five Propositions of Accomplished Teaching, found in the Pedagogy summary of the model.  How does your pedagogy as a teacher compare with these?  Discuss the implications of the Five Propositions of Accomplished Teaching for the actual practice of teaching.

2.      What characteristics must teachers possess to display proper Classroom Management?

3.      The definition of Content Management states that it “occurs when teachers manage space, materials, equipment, the movement of people, and lessons that are a part of a curriculum or program of studies.”  Provide examples of how you have done this or could do this as a teacher.  Then read the section on Content Management in the model.  What did you learn?

Teacher Behavior: Post-viewing Questions

1.      What does Oleson do to display Classroom Management?  Do you think she displays sufficient classroom management?  Why or why not?

2.       What does Oleson do to show Conduct Management in the classroom?  Do you think this was effective?  Why or why not?

3.      Oleson displays Content Management by providing the students with an overview of the next activity.  Explain in detail what she does.  How do you think this might improve student learning?