​How can you support students to revise their thinking given new evidence?

Session Goals:

  • Teachers will be introduced to key criteria and other things to consider when designing rich argumentation tasks.
  • Teachers will consider how various instructional activities (e.g. Evidence Gradient Tool, Anticipation Guide) align with the key criteria for rich argumentation tasks.
  • Teachers will be introduced to the Anticipation Guide as an instructional tool that supports students in tracking their thinking, and revising claims given new evidence.
  • Teachers will consider the ways that different instructional activities can support the four areas of argumentation in which students need extra support. 
  • ​Teachers will design a new lesson or revise an existing lesson to integrate a rich argumentation task into their science instruction.*
  • Teachers will identify areas of argumentation that are challenging for their students.* 
​
​*Note: These final two goals are only applicable if the module is implemented as multiple sessions

Agenda:

*Extension Discussion - Try it with your students!
  1. Video & Discussion: Using an anticipation guide
  2. Activity: Anticipation guide Part 1
  3. Activity: Examining new evidence
  4. Activity: Anticipation guide Part 2
  5. Connection back to design criteria
*Extension - Preparation for work session

Materials:

*Extension Discussion - Try it with your students!

Share your experience:
  • Share the argumentation task you developed to focus on evaluating the quality of evidence, as well as any student artifacts you may have. 

Discussion Questions:
  • What went well with the argumentation task? Why do you think it went well?
  • What was challenging with the argumentation task? Why do you think it was challenging?

1. Video & Discussion: Using an anticipation guide

Click here for a reminder about the criteria for designing rich argumentation tasks

Watch the video below, which provides an introduction to the anticipation guide.
Discussion Questions:
  • In what ways does the anticipation guide mirror the work of scientists?
  • How might an anticipation guide support deeper learning for students?

2. Activity: Anticipation guide Part 1

The task:
  • Read each of the claims in the anticipation guide and check whether or not you agree with them in the “Before” column.
  • When you are done, share your current thinking with a partner. Remember, it is okay to be unsure at this point because you will be able to revise your thinking once you examine new evidence. 

3. Activity: Examining new evidence

The task:
  • Work in pairs or small groups to examine the Fossil Evidence Cards, keeping in mind the claims from the anticipation guide.
  • When you are done, discuss how your understanding of fossils has changed, or deepened after examining the cards. 

4. Activity: Anticipation guide Part 2

The task:
  • Re-read each claim, check whether or not you agree with it in the “After” column, and revise the claim (if needed) given the fossil evidence just examined.
  • Make sure to add evidence in support of each claim, regardless of whether or not you revised the claim. 
Discussion Questions:
  • Were there any claims that you found difficult to revise? Why?
  • How can you envision your students engaging in this activity? What would work well? What challenges would they have?

5. Connection back to design criteria

Click here for a reminder about the criteria for designing rich argumentation tasks

​Think-pair-share:
  • In the activity you just completed, which design criteria do you think the argumentation task aligned with well?
  • Which design criteria do you think the argumentation task did not align with?
  • How could you redesign the argumentation task to better align?

* Extension - Preparation for work session

The task:
  • Bring a lesson with an argumentation task from existing curriculum that you would like to revise. This could be the lesson you examined for the Extension Activity of Session #1.
  • Before the next meeting, look through the planning tool and mark which argumentation element you would highlight for each activity
  • Keep these activities in mind since you could incorporate one into the lesson you choose to revise.