Analysis & Recommendations
Shottery, Stratford upon avon.. By Coll993.slowly back., 2012, (Flickr). Used under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic.
unit description
The unit of work I have selected is a Year 9 English inquiry unit entitled Introducing Shakespeare. The unit is taught at my school and was created to give students an introduction to Shakespearean texts and contexts without requiring them to read a whole play or analyse sonnets. The students are introduced to basic Shakespearean context through direct instruction, reading the textbook and small research tasks, then pair with another student to complete an inquiry summative assessment.
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Unit Plan
Rationale, which describes the importance of teaching Shakespeare, as well as the Christian context, as the school is a private Christian college
Key inquiry questions teachers should consider when teaching the unit
Sub-strands that link to Australian Curriculum
Cross Curriculum Priorities and Achievement Statement that link to Australian Curriculum
Unit weekly breakdown with suggested activities and time frames.
Week 1: Introducing Shakespeare and his Globe Theatre.
Week 2: Shakespearean language, types and samples of his plays and famous monologues.
Week 3: Shakespeare's context and inspiration, writing inquiry questions and begin assignment.
Week 4: Work on assignment.
Week 5: Work on assignment (due at the end of the week).
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Summative Assessment
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Assessment Task Sheet
assessment description
Students are expected to create their own inquiry question based upon a list of appropriate topics and to research and form an answer to their question. They must then create a visual representation of their research and write a script outlining what they will present. Students are assessed on their researched material as well as spoken aspects of their presentation. Resources include Year 9 Pearson English textbook, handouts and worksheets created or sourced by teachers at the school and clips downloaded from YouTube. Students spend the first half of the five-week unit participating in class activities and direct instruction, and the last half working on their assignments (researching, formulating opinions and creating their visual representation and script).
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Created by author
The assessment is designed to allow students some flexibility in their research, while still requiring that they centre their assignment around a teacher-chosen topic. The unit is largely teacher directed in the presentation of initial information, but seems to be student centred for the last part of the unit, allowing students time to conduct their own research. The inquiry part of the unit is only in the assessment and for specific teacher-directed tasks during some lessons.
analysis
The Year 9 English Introducing Shakespeare unit is a unique one, as most English curricula do not specifically ask students to conduct inquiry research. While Australian Curriculum (n.d.-c) specifically requires teachers to facilitate the development of inquiry skills in science and many humanities subjects, English standards are silent in area of inquiry. The unit, however, clearly fulfils the Australian Curriculum strands and sub-strands (n.d.-a), as the unit outline describes that students will develop and understanding of specific strands of language, literature and literacy.
Language
Literature
Literacy
Introducing Shakespeare only fulfils some of the requirements of Australian Curriculum which relate to critical and creative thinking (n.d.-b). Students are asked to pose questions and research, but the assessment does not specify that students determine the bias of the sources or the range of sources from which they conduct an argument. The assignment asks students to seek answers or to draw conclusions, but not solutions to a problem, to evaluate an outcome or to create a course of action.
The unit does not begin as many inquiry units do, with students immediately asking questions and becoming involved in questioning, research and analysis (Bell, Smetana & Binns, 2005). Rather, the beginning lessons are teacher-directed and not specifically inquiry based. Students learn through either reading, direct instruction or specific tasks. For example, in the first week students are asked to read a section of the textbook about the Globe Theatre, then answer the questions from that section about it. There is no evidence of individual inquiry and the students enter only the ‘understanding’ category of Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy (n.d.). They simply explain concepts about Shakespeare and his historical context.
However, as the unit progresses students are assigned classroom tasks that gradually delve into inquiry learning. In the second week, students research teacher posed questions about specific Shakespearean plays. They do the same for famous monologues, which allows them to begin the ‘applying’ and ‘analysing’ categories (Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, n.d.). In the third week, students are asked to discuss the open-ended question, “If you were to write a play, what types of sources would you reference?” If structured to facilitate discussion, teachers can use this question as a starting point for an inquiry circle, though the unit does not specify this (Boas, 2012). If a teacher chose to do this, students may enter into the ‘evaluating’ category (Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, n.d.) Also in Week 3 students are given the assessment, which is a research and inquiry-based assignment. The teacher is not directed by the unit in how to scaffold or direct the inquiry process for the assignment, only on the requirements of the students.
Because the Introducing Shakespeare unit slowly releases students into the assignment, an inquiry-based research presentation, and then becomes silent as it allows for students to ‘work on their assignment,’ the main elements of the unit which involves inquiry learning are not prescribed. The assessment itself presents largely as a structured inquiry—the teacher poses the question, prescribes the procedure for presentation and the timeline for completion (Bell et al., 2005). However, one must look more closely at the task requirements to see what level of inquiry each aspect of the assessment involves.
While the teacher decides the main topic in the inquiry assessment, students are required to create their own specific inquiry question. There are no formal questioning frameworks used in the assessment or unit to guide students to create appropriate questions, and it is assumed that students will use the same question throughout their research. Based upon the sample questions, it can be inferred that a generic question framework like the 7Ws and H (why, where, which, when, who, what, what if and how) would be employed when teachers help students to generate questions (Lupton, 2016). Neither the unit nor the assessment clarify to the students or the teacher the process for creating inquiry questions. The same lack of clarification is true for guidance on evaluation of information. Students are not provided with an evaluation checklist or test for evaluating sources, but are told to use the ‘most relevant and impacting information’ with suggestions of written texts, images, caricatures, symbols, photographs, statistics, and expert quotes.
While no specific model of inquiry is prescribed in the unit plan or the assessment documents, the Points of Inquiry model from the British Columbia Teacher-Librarian’s Association (2011) best fits the unit and assessment. In this plan, the students must connect and wonder, investigate, construct, express and reflect upon their inquiry.
Create and Wonder: students are vaguely asked to connect and wonder; they are given a topic and must decide about which to create an inquiry question and research to answer for a visual presentation
Investigate: students investigate their inquiry question through research, selecting 'relevant' and 'impacting' information
Construct: students construct an answer to their inquiry question based upon their research
Express: students create a teacher prescribed/student specified visual representation and present it to the teacher and class
Reflect: no reflection dictated in the assessment or unit; no further research based upon new questions to complete the cycle
The unit Introducing Shakespeare and corresponding assessment both fulfil only the generic window of the GeSTE windows (Lupton & Bruce, 2010). The tasks within the unit serve the sole purpose of informing the students about Shakespeare’s plays and his personal and historical context. The assessment asks students to research to find the answer to a specific question, then use that information to create a measurable and observable presentation to be evaluated by the teacher. While they are instructed in the assessment task requirements that they will present their findings to the class and that they are to present as a ‘local Shakespeare enthusiast who wishes to introduce young generations of students to this author in a fun, engaging manner in the context of a Shakespeare festival,’ there is no transformative expectations to evaluate perspectives or to take social action (Lupton, 2016). Students are briefly suggested to become a character such as William Shakespeare himself, which may shallowly connect with the expressive window, but this is not required or assessed in any way (Lupton, 2016). Although the categories of the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy students can enter depends on the question, the assessment as a whole only allows students to enter fully into the ‘analysing’ category and in a high achieving student, perhaps the ‘evaluating’ category.
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Created by author (Piktochart, 2016)
recommendations
The level of inquiry should progress from structured to open throughout the teaching activities in a more specific way (Bell et al., 2005). Because the students will be familiar with smaller inquiry tasks which slowly increased in student choice, the assessment can be changed into an open or guided inquiry. Students should decide their topic and inquiry question based upon their understanding of the unit and previous inquiry tasks with the guidance of or approval from of their teacher.
Students should be brought beyond the generic window and into situated, transformative or expressive windows of inquiry (Lupton, 2016). For example:
Situated: students should gather both primary and secondary sources and analyse them for social and historical context; students should investigate how Shakespeare’s work influenced people from a variety of time periods and who have various perspectives (Lupton, 2016; Australian Curriculum, n.d.-b)
Transformative: students should aim for their presentation to become a social action of some kind; students should aim to critique Shakespeare’s literature to form new ideas and perspectives that they can share with others and make a change in others’ understanding of his works outside of class or provide a solution to a problem they have found (Barseghian & Wright, 2011; Lupton, 2016; Australian Curriculum, n.d.-b)
Expressive: students should create a new product based on their inquiry which expresses their new understanding of Shakespeare and/or his works and combines that with their personal identity or social perspectives of the time; they should embark into the create category of Bloom’s Taxonomy and incorporate artistic elements (visual, physical or written) which help to express their personal learning (Lupton, 2016; Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, n.d.)
Students should be guided in the learning activities prior to the assessment in source analysis and in detecting bias (Australian Curriculum, n.d.-b). An appropriate evaluation system might be to use the CARS checklist where students evaluate each source for credibility, accuracy, reasonableness and support (Harris, 2015). In the summative assessment, students could then evaluate their sources based upon this system, moving them into the evaluating category of Bloom’s Taxonomy (Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, n.d.)
The unit should specify that students are purposefully guided in forming inquiry questions. One that would work well for this unit is the Question Formulation Technique (QFT) which describes six steps to creating and working with inquiry questions (Rothstein & Santana, 2011). Since QFT is student driven, it would allow for students to engage in guided or open inquiry learning. Students should also be encouraged to create sub-questions, form new questions as they research and to change their inquiry questions as they work so that their questions and research can become dynamic documents as they inquire. They should also be given support for finding weaknesses in their arguments and in reflection of their inquiry as a whole (Australian Curriculum, n.d.-b).
The unit and assessment should require that students reflect on their inquiry process and what they learned in the assignment. As an important part of the Points of Inquiry, students should reflect upon how their personal views changed as they researched, give feedback to others and apply classmates’ feedback in their own assessments, and assess how their inquiry process allowed them to learn effectively or needed improvement (British Columbia Teacher-Librarian’s Association, 2011; Australian Curriculum, n.d.-b).
Other elements of English inquiry learning could be incorporated into the unit such as literature circles and discussion groups (Teaching Channel, 2012). Peer editing and evaluative feedback would allow students to constructively evaluate and challenge one another’s inquiry questions or research (Schwartz, 2015). Students should engage with the information outside of the classroom and find ways to make their understandings relevant to today (Barseghian & Wright, 2011).
References
Australian Curriculum. (n.d.-a). Content Structure. Retrieved October 30, 2016 from http://v7-5.australiancurriculum.edu.au/english/content-structure
Australian Curriculum. (n.d.-b). Critical and Creative Thinking. Retrieved October 31, 2016 from http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/generalcapabilities/critical-and-creative-thinking/continuum#layout=columns&page=5
Australian Curriculum. (n.d.-c). Curriculum Filter. Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Browse?a=E&a=M&a=S&a=H&a=G&a=ENB&a=CNC&a=da&a=dr&a=ma&a=mu&a=va&a=DI&a=DE&a=HPE&y=9#page=2
Barseghian, T., & Wright, S. (2011, December 21). Life in a 21st-century English class. Retrieved September 11, 2016, from https://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2011/12/21/life-in-a-21st-century-english-class/
Bell, R. L., Smetana, L., & Binns, I. (2005). SIMPLIFYING inquiry INSTRUCTION. The Science Teacher, 72(7), 30-33. Retrieved from http://gateway.library.qut.edu.au/login?url=http://search.proquest.com.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/docview/214615319?accountid=13380
British Columbia Teacher-Librarian’s Association. (2011). Points of Inquiry: A Framework For Information Literacy and The 21st Century Learner. BCTLA Info Lit Task Force. Retrieved from https://inquiryblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/pointsofinquiry.pdf
Boas, E. (2012). Using literature circles yo inquire into the big themes: Exploring the refugee experience. English in Australia (47)3, 25-28. Retrieved from http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=100657866751672;res=IELAPA
Coll993.slowly back. (2012). Shottery, Stratford upon avon. [digital image]. Retrieved from Flickr website: https://www.flickr.com/photos/135591493@N03/tags/shakespeare/
Harris, R. (2015). Evaluating Internet Research Sources. Retrieved from http://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm
Lupton, M. (2016). Inquiry learning. A pedagogical and curriculum framework for information literacy. (preprint) in Sales, Dora & Pinto, Maria (Eds.) Pathways into Information Literacy and Communities of Practice: Teaching Approaches and Case Studies. Chandos Publishing. (In Press) pp. 6-11
Lupton, M. & Bruce, C. (2010). Chapter 1: Windows on Information Literacy Worlds : Generic, Situated and Transformative Perspectives in Lloyd, Annemaree and Talja, Sanna, Practising information literacy : bringing theories of learning, practice and information literacy together, Wagga Wagga: Centre for Information Studies, pp.3-27. [QUT login]
Piktochart. (2016). Pikto Templates. Retrieved from https://magic.piktochart.com/infographics
Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy. (n.d.) Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy (RBT) employs the use of 25 verbs that create collegial understanding of student behavior and learning outcome. Retrieved from http://www.utar.edu.my/fegt/file/Revised_Blooms_Info.pdf
Rothstein, D. & Santana, L. (2011). Teaching Students to Ask Their Own Questions. Harvard Education Letter, 27(5), 1-2. Retrieved from http://hepg.org/hel-home/issues/27_5/helarticle/teaching-students-to-ask-their-own-questions_507#home
Schwartz, K. (2015). How Inquiry Can Enable Students to Become Modern Day de Tocquevilles. Retrieved from http://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2015/02/10/how-inquiry-can-enable-students-to-become-modern-day-de-tocquevilles/
Teaching Channel. (2012, November 9). Teaching Channel Presents – Inquiry-based Teaching [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/tch-presents-inquiry-based-teaching#video-sidebar_tab_video-guide-tab
