The BCTF Teacher Inquiry Program

is a process that involves a group of teachers coming together to pose questions about their practice and then proceeding to find out the answers to their questions, often through the vehicle of action research.

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Why engage in inquiry?

• Teaching and learning are complex processes that address complex issues.

• It is a useful tool that open up the processes and issues to questions, reflection, and action.

• Collaborating with colleagues helps with analysis and understanding our work.

• Change can be scary. Supported change is exciting.

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Teacher inquiry

is a specific type of self-directed PD“Learning more can come from peers, research or knowledge that is generated together, but the starting point is one’s own practice.” Lieberman, A. (2007) Professional Learning Communities: A reflection. In still, L. Louis, K.L., Eds.Professional Learning communities: Divergence, Depth and Dilemmas

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Teacher inquiry includes the following principles:

• It taps into teachers’ lived experience.• It includes open questions (ie., whatever

questions participants bring).• It involves an inquiry group of colleagues.• It invites and encourages recipricol learning.• It is run by teachers for teachers.

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What does the process look like?

Reflect Investigate

Change Clarify

Question

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From beginning to end.

I wonder about…Is this really what I want to know…Let me investigate by looking at…What does my investigation tell me…How does this change my practice…Let’s celebrate our inquiry by sharing what we found out.SD#23 Video

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HOW TO ORGANIZE, ANALYZE, INTERPRET AND PRESENT DATA

Ways to Collect Data

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Learning Intentions

• To facilitate the process of developing a learning community

• To analyse data• To think and plan what the final project

will look like

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Year Plan• 3 days • ½ day– Analyzing Data• ½ day –Preparing Presentation• May 26 (4-6) – Final Celebration

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GROUP NORMS (AGREEMENT) KELOWNA PQT INQUIRY

• Active participation by all members

• Follow through between sessions

• Open and respectful exchange of ideas

• Coffee/sweets• Time for work• Flexibility• Quiet working time• No chatter or background

noise when presenter has the floor/no side

talk• Full participation from

everyone• Feedback from others

• Active listening• Focused learning environment• Sharing of ideas• Facilitation/engaging activities• Clear outlines and direction• Visual examples• Respect and trust• Release time• Accepter les differences• L’honnetete dans le groupe• Bonne untilisation du temps

donne

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Processing Piece

• Listening Triads: In groups of 3 letter off A,B,C. A) teller, B) asks clarifying and probing questions “I think what

your saying is…so tell me more about…or “Can you say more about”…, C) records on chart paper what A is saying (observer)

• A has five minutes to tell...then the observer leads the two minute debrief of what they recorded on chart paper.

• A tells: What their question was. What they did. What data they collected. What they are noticing. What was your question? What was your plan? What data did you collect? What are you noticing?

• C writes this on chart paper:

• 30 minutes

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What Effect Size do the following influences have on student learning?Low (.00 - .29), Medium (.30 - .59), High (.60 – up)

Influence Rating (Low/Med/High?)Student control over learningTeacher subject matter knowledgeReducing class sizeIndividual instructionSimulations and gamingTeacher expectationsInfluence of peersDirect instructionTeacher-student relationsFeedbackStudent expectations

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What Effect Size do the following influences have on student learning?Low (.00 - .29), Medium (.30 - .59), High (.60 – up)

Influence Rating (Low/Med/High?)Student control over learning Low (.04)Teacher subject matter knowledge Low (.09)Reducing class size Low (.21)Individual instruction Low (.22)Simulations and gaming Medium (.33)Teacher expectations Medium (.43)Influence of peers Medium (.53)Direct instruction Medium (.59)Teacher-student relations High (.72)Feedback High (.75)Student expectations High (1.44)

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Collecting data/ analyzing data

• “Educators, whether leaders or teachers, make hundreds of decisions in a day. Not every decision requires a major research study. However, decisions that have far-reaching consequences or are high stakes deserve to be investigated thoroughly through the lenses of pertinent data, as a way of either validating hunches or rethinking ideas.” Professional Learning Conversations: Challenges in Using Evidence for Improvement

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WHY DO WE COLLECT DATA• Accountability to myself and my students• To Learn• Individually is what I am doing making a

difference • Collectively to know if what we are doing is

making a difference

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TYPES OF DATA COLLECTION

QUALIITATIVE DATA

• STRUCTURED INTERVIEW• OPEN INTERVIEWS• CASE STUDIES• SIMLUATIONS• OBSERVATIONS• CONTENT ANAYLSIS• LOGS, JOURNALS WRITINGS• FOCUS GROUPS

QUANTITATIVE DATA

• PERFORMANCE TESTS• WRITTEN TESTS• WRITTEN QUESTIONNAIRES,

SURVEYS• INVENTORY• BEHAVIOURAL ANALYSIS• CONTENT ANALYSIS• Q-SORTS (RANKED VALUES…)

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Relevant Data

• What data sources will give you the most meaningful information to address your question?

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PROCESS FOR ANALYZING DATA• Go through all the data and make notes as you go• Look for themes, patterns, big ideas, key words• Narrow the themes down to 3-5 • Go back through all of your data code and label for themes

to help you organize• Write what you see, what questions you have, what you are

learning, new ideas• Review your information what is emerging, sticking out• Identify the main points by theme, chronological…• Draw the information together include evidence that

supports your themes

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Graffitti DRILLING DOWN INTO DATA:

ANALYSING DATA• We need groups of 4-5 at each table with data• write notes on stickies about the data.... ask

clarifying/probing questions as you are writing...

• The owner of the data steps back and only answers clarifying/probing questions

• Poster paper/post its/felts

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NOW WHAT

• Applying what you learned to your own data

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Why present your key findings?• To clarify your own thinking about your

work• To add to the knowledge base on

teaching • To create opportunities to learn from

each other• To make a difference – to inspire and

influence change• To celebrate• “To feel that I am a successful teacher

and to realize that I have a contribution to make outside the walls of the classroom and school is a positive, empowering experience.”

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•"An unshared teacher inquiry is like a stone lying beside the pond. Unless that Inquiry is tossed into the professional conversation and dialogue that contributes to the knowledge base for teaching, the inquiry has little chance of making change. However, once tossed in, the inquiry disturbs the status quo of educational practices, creating a ripple effect, beginning with the teacher himself or herself and his or her immediate vicinity (the students and his or her classroom) and emanating out to a school, a district, a state, eventually reaching and contributing to the transformation of the perimeter of all practice - the profession of teaching itself."

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•Presentation

• *What to focus on?

• -What was my interest in this topic and why was it important to me?

-How did I go about exploring this issue?

-What were the two or three most important things I discovered?

-Did I read any articles/literature on the topic that helped me think it through? Perhaps adding a quote can be useful to show connection from individual practice to wider thinking.

-How did my conversations with peers help me get insight into the issue of interest to me? How important are those conversations as a part of PD?

•- Did I find something I did not expect to discover - about the issue? About myself?

-Did it impact my students or peers in school in a positive way?

-How did it change my thinking and/or my practice?

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Presentations/Celebrations

• Ways to present your key findings• Display or poster (perhaps with a one-page handout)• DVD• PowerPoint

Presentation• Narrative• Other…creativity is allowed

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• District Celebration & Presentation An interactive process – those doing the research share their storiesMay 26, 2016

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• “One of the reasons we engage in teacher research is that it honors all the great complexity of teaching”

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In Closing… THE WHAT AND WHY

• Exit slip…

• HERE’S WHAT! “What did we just learn”

• SO WHAT? “What does this mean, how would I use this, what are the implications to my practice”

• NOW WHAT? When can you see yourself using it?

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IF TIME ALLOWS DANIEL PINK ON MOTIVATION

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc

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