The Erosion of Engagement
According to the 2014 Gallup Student Poll, which surveyed nearly 500,000 students in grades 5 through 12 in 1,700 public schools in 37 U.S. states, the level of engagement in school undergoes a steady decline over the course of a typical student’s academic career. According to the poll’s findings, while 76% of elementary school students are engaged, this level drops to 61% in the middle school grades. Another precipitous decrease takes place in high school, where students are only 44% engaged. Undoubtedly, this alarming trend ought to prompt educators and policymakers to consider not only the unintended consequences of educational policy, but in many cases, the very nature of teaching and learning processes. While Gallup suggests that one of the major culprits for this “monumental, collective national failure” is an “overzealous focus on standardized testing,” there certainly are a number of other contributing factors. The good news, however, is that with a shift toward new pedagogical approaches in our classrooms, we can begin to overcome this challenge. Inquiry is a significant way to engender this necessary transformation.
QFT and C3
During a presentation last May, Dan Rothstein, co-director of The Right Question Institute and author of Make Just One Change: Teach Students to Ask Their Own Questions, provided information demonstrating that as students’ reading and writing skills improve as the get older, there is a concurrent drastic reduction in the number of questions they ask. Rothstein and his colleagues teach educators to use the Question Formulation Technique (QFT), which involves a series of steps for students to develop and improve their questions. Coupled with the inquiry arc of the C3, the skills utilized by students throughout the QFT process provide a solid foundation for more intensive and extensive inquiry investigations. QFT begins with a QFocus, a prompt – such as an image, a political cartoon, a quote, a controversial statement, a video clip, or other resource – grounded in the curriculum, connected to prior knowledge, and suggestive of course objectives. As students improve their initial questions about the QFocus, making some more open-ended and asking additional questions, and prioritizing questions, in essence, they are constructing supporting and compelling questions. These questions, shared and honed with the help and insight of their peers and teacher, will undergird any inquiry investigation they undertake. Such questions act as hypotheses and predictions for inquiry, allow for critical analysis of sources and evidence, help to delineate the scope of the investigation, and ultimately, better position them to synthesize their new understandings as they communicate conclusions and take informed action.
A Continuum of Inquiry
Whether one uses QFT or not, the style, depth, and breadth of inquiry activities are ongoing considerations for teachers. A continuum of inquiry types can range from an opening activity, which might take the form of the QFocus, to a senior capstone project presented to a larger audience or resulting in community service. Inquiry can also take the form of primary source analysis, performance tasks, or project-based experiences. In any case, among other concerns, teachers must contemplate the amount of time involved, the degree of difficulty in terms of preparation and logistics, and resource availability. Importantly, the inquiry process allows for a gradual release of responsibility to the students, as they learn to generate and improve their own questions, and pursue topics that are interesting and meaningful to them. Ultimately, the more time, energy, and investment of students and teachers in the inquiry process, the more the level of student engagement in their own learning will be enhanced.
Growing Citizens
Chic Thompson, author of What a Great Idea!, suggests that as we get older, the frequency of our questions, creative experiences, and even laughter, diminishes. Are traditional norms of schooling partly responsible? As teachers, we are content-area and pedagogical experts – traditionally, we are not only the reservoirs, but also the conveyors of knowledge and skills. We often feel that we must present flawless questions to frame our lessons, to provide the perfect learning resources, and to always be able to answer our students’ queries to demonstrate our intelligence and wisdom. Conversely, teaching students to ask their own questions, reflect upon and refine them, and engage in inquiry investigations is not just sound pedagogy, but from a philosophical standpoint, better facilitates democratic processes. Sir Ken Robinson, renowned for his TED Talk about creativity and education, once stated, “the gardener does not make the plant grow. The job of the gardener is to create optimal conditions.” Engaging students with optimal learning environments empowers them to grow as learners and citizens. Indeed, the vision of the Right Question Institute is a “vibrant democracy in which all citizens – even those farthest from power – can think for themselves and can effectively advocate for themselves, their families and their communities.” Unquestionably, this vision is not only beautifully aligned with social studies education, but with public education writ large.
