![]() ![]() To learn the difference between neutrality and open-mindedness How to listen to and trace the development of claims and argumentsīuilding confidence in students owning their own voicesīuild connections between ideas and elevate them to a new layer of the conversation If I had to make a master list of what I’m aiming for my class discussion to be able to do, it would look something like this: And we, as educators, need to make sure that all of the pieces are in place so that the conversation can happen organically and without your constant intervention. critical, political, and sometimes even emotional. These discussions are high energy, personal. Students are encouraged to utilize a variety of sources to provide a variety of perspectives on the answer or solution to the question at hand. Most often, discussions in my classroom are anchored to the unit essential question and present a series of sub-questions that are related. Just because the question focuses on one theme doesn’t mean that other themes in the play have to be ignored, but they give the unit a spine, a focal point, and a direction that keeps everyone connected.No matter which of the above is your jam, I think we can all agree that class discussion and the techniques we use to make them happen are all chasing after the goal of helping our students learn to have thoughtful discourse, how to talk about hard topics respectfully, and how to evolve their positions with both concession and deeper, more complex claims.ĭiscussion, whether it be at the beginning, middle, or after a unit of study, is a cornerstone in the pursuit of an inquiry-driven curriculum. You’ll notice that each question contains a slightly different question stem and one central theme. We want to build a unit on the curiosity of following inquiry, not on the assigned (teacher-driven) work that’s just handed to students.Įach of the EQs below are examples of directions that each given play unit could take. In essential question-based teaching, one of our big goals is to de-center the text. Each question should shed light on the direction of a UNIT. The essential questions suggested here in this blog post may seem extremely simple and narrow, but that’s for a good reason. They work to help you make decisions about which path you’re going to follow and force you to make instructional decisions that give purposeful shape to the unit. The best essential questions in Shakespeare actually work to simplify a unit. The easy (but annoying) answer is: there isn’t one. So what ONE essential question puts the thread through this needle? What ONE question links together all of the major themes? It’s a play about ambition (and the cost of that ambition), corruption of power, power dynamics in a relationship, the cost of femininity, the role of fate and free will, and, and, and… Shakespeare is rich in theme, and this is what trips us up with essential question writing for Shakespeare units. I was asking students to decode language, track nine themes at a time, plot diagram for conflict, and I was putting together some kind of interactive group project for students to get on stage and do some acting. As a newer teacher, I struggled desperately to figure out what mattered most.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |