Methods
By using projects to build a purpose for reading, I hoped to create a culture of motivated readers who helped each other think deeply about complex text. Throughout my research I assessed the following areas related to reading: motivation, collaboration, and deep thinking. By collecting data in these areas, I hoped to see which types of projects and classroom supports lead to building a classroom of confident, highly skilled readers.
I gathered data from 112 eighth grade students in two research cycles. In the first cycle, I co-taught 56 students with a veteran teacher. Here I implemented a reading workshop and book group structure, focusing more on motivation to read. In the second cycle I was a long-term substitute for a different group of 56 eighth graders. We read a novel as a class and students designed projects to show their deep thinking about the book. My focus in this class was to explore the purpose for reading, critical thinking and collaboration.
In both cycles I collected data in the form of surveys, journal reflections, observations, and informal conversations. I went more in depth with a smaller group of students by conducting interviews to learn how different types of students experienced reading. I looked for students with both positive and negative feelings toward reading who had unique experiences or whose feelings toward reading changed throughout the research cycle. By looking closely at how these students experienced reading, I found out which structures and project types led to deeper thinking. |
Surveys
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
At the beginning of my time with each team, I conducted an initial reading survey to gauge overall feelings about reading. By using some multiple choice and some open-ended questions, I was able to quantify the class’s feelings, but also find patterns in their answers to uncover why they felt the way they did. Putting the data into graphs provided a clear picture of how students felt and easily allowed me to see changes over time.
Throughout the rest of the research cycle I gave additional surveys of various lengths. Again, some questions were closed and some were open, giving me a variety of ways to see how students were experiencing reading and the structures I put in place. Looking at student’s answers caused me to implement and change structures according to the class’s needs. Student voice shown through the surveys and journal entries mentioned below, were the driving force behind my research.
At the end of my last research cycle, I gave an online survey focused specifically on changes in enjoyment, collaboration and deep thinking. Again, I asked closed-ended questions in order to see a clear picture of the class but then asked “why” in order to understand the story behind student’s answers.
Intrinsic Motivation:
Through surveys I looked for themes that led to increased or decreased motivation to read. I specifically asked questions about classroom structures such as how the book was read, who students read with and feelings about book choice. I wanted to see which factors mattered to students so that I could replicate them in the future. Later in the year my motivation questions switched from focusing on the act of reading to completing a project. I wondered if completing a project did indeed lead to a higher motivation to read. I looked at answers to open ended questions asking if they were intrinsically motivated to complete their projects and why. Some sample questions were:
· What would make reading fun?
· How do you feel about reading during Reading Workshop?
· Did making/doing your book project help you enjoy the book more?
Grit and growth mindset:
I had students self assess their grit levels by taking the 8-item Grit test for children. I planned to use the answers to have class discussions on the power of perseverance but my research took me in a different path so we did not discuss the results as a class. I did look at the results, especially as I noticed some students rushing through work or expressing an attitude of boredom. I wanted to see if there was a correlation to their grit score. I only found this to affect one student who I speak about in depth in my findings.
Students did not officially have the opportunity to learn about and identify with a growth or fixed mindset during the course of my research. I did, however, ask survey questions about changes over time. I asked students if their feelings changed about reading and what structures helped them think deeper about the book’s messages and themes.
Collaboration:
Many questions throughout the year focused on collaboration. I also looked at responses to questions in all areas to specifically pull out answers having to do with peer relationships. In order to find out which collaborative structures led to deeper thinking and more enjoyment, I specifically asked how peer relationships affected enjoyment, helped complete projects, and helped all participants reach deeper levels of thinking during and after reading. Some sample questions:
· Do you think being in a book group helped you understand the book better? How?
· Did other students help make your project better? How?
· While you were working on your book project, did other students help you think deeper about the book? How?
Journal entries
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
Journal entries were my main source of information when I worked with the second class. Almost every day I asked a question about the structure of class or had students reflect on their project designs. By keeping these responses in one stapled book per student, I was able to read a journal cover-to-cover in order to see a whole picture of that student’s experience during the research cycle.
At the beginning of the second cycle of research, when I was teaching as a long-term substitute, I used the journals more as a communication tool. I wanted to hear all voices equally about how different structures for reading were working. At this point, I would read each student’s entry, looking for specific needs. I wanted to see how students were experiencing the different structures I had in place. I would often tally the answers as well, looking for larger, class wide feelings. For example, student responses caused a switch in reading structure. We went from reading together to a hybrid model where a small group read with me and others read independently. Later in this cycle, student’s journals turned inward and became a way to record project ideas and changes. Students concretely linked their ideas to different levels of critical thinking and listed peer suggestions for changes here. I was glad to have this record of how student’s projects changed over time because it allowed me to see potential reasons why. I looked for examples where my explicit teaching of critical thinking skills and purpose for reading worked, or where it did not.
Journal prompts about motivation:
· How did you feel about the "hybrid model" of reading today?
· Specifically, why do you like or dislike the book Unwind?
Journal prompts about authentic purpose:
Respond to the following quote, “Texts should also serve as both a window and mirror allowing students to look into the lives of people they would not normally experience and as a way to understand themselves and how their views influence their understanding of texts and interactions with the world” (Brooks, Browne, & Hampton, 2008).
Journal prompts about deep thinking:
· Write about a project/activity/etc. that would create a balance between deep thinking about a book and enjoying a
book.
· How are you creating new knowledge with your Unwind project?
Journal prompts about collaboration:
· Where do you stand on the spectrum of discussing what you read and reading and moving on to the next book?
And WHY?
· What went well in your project tuning? What was challenging?
Observations
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
During reading and project work time, I observed students to see how they experienced the structures I had in place. I watched for examples of intrinsic motivation, or engagement in reading or working, and opportunities when collaboration led to higher levels of motivation and deeper thinking. I kept a journal and took pictures and video of what I observed. I specifically looked for successful examples of the qualities mentioned above to find factors leading to them.
Motivation:
When I observed students to determine if they were motivated to read, I looked for specific behaviors that show active engagement versus disengagement. Students who were engrossed in the book, talking about the story, or actively creating a project about the book were considered engaged. Students who were talking about other topics, playing around, or otherwise not focused on reading or their project were considered disengaged. I particularly focused on disengaged students to see which reading structures promoted engagement. Finally, I specifically looked for patterns around project and collaboration choices affected motivation.
Grit and growth mindset:
To explore how “gritty” my students were and how to support them in becoming “grittier”, I looked for moments when students encountered problems in the reading or their project creations. I then noticed which structures, such as collaboration, protocols, or explicit teaching led to more persistence. In order to see how having a growth mindset factored in, I observed how students interacted with each other to understand things at a deeper level or to make their projects better. Purposely seeking out peers for these purposes would show elements of having a growth mindset, which I suspected led to higher levels of critical thinking.
Collaboration:
I looked for differences in how students experienced reading based on their chosen reading structure. Would reading in a small group, whole class group, or independently produce different results in regards to motivation and deeper thinking? I observed how students interacted with the text and each other based on those choices. Specifically, did they discuss and ask questions more or less in each structure. During project work I noted how partnerships and groups affected outcomes. I watched how students deepened their thinking and became engaged in the process of creating a project. Finally, I looked for structures such as peer critique, to see if they led to higher quality outcomes.
Deep thinking:
In order to assess deep thinking I observed student’s projects at various stages in the process and compared them to the new Bloom’s Taxonomy chart. As students initially designed their projects, we carefully dissected this chart to fully understand what each level would really look like in a project. Watching students change and adapt their project ideas due to various structures such as project tunings and informal discussions with others was fascinating. I specifically took note of which structures led to better end products and to deeper thinking about the messages in the book.
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
At the beginning of my time with each team, I conducted an initial reading survey to gauge overall feelings about reading. By using some multiple choice and some open-ended questions, I was able to quantify the class’s feelings, but also find patterns in their answers to uncover why they felt the way they did. Putting the data into graphs provided a clear picture of how students felt and easily allowed me to see changes over time.
Throughout the rest of the research cycle I gave additional surveys of various lengths. Again, some questions were closed and some were open, giving me a variety of ways to see how students were experiencing reading and the structures I put in place. Looking at student’s answers caused me to implement and change structures according to the class’s needs. Student voice shown through the surveys and journal entries mentioned below, were the driving force behind my research.
At the end of my last research cycle, I gave an online survey focused specifically on changes in enjoyment, collaboration and deep thinking. Again, I asked closed-ended questions in order to see a clear picture of the class but then asked “why” in order to understand the story behind student’s answers.
Intrinsic Motivation:
Through surveys I looked for themes that led to increased or decreased motivation to read. I specifically asked questions about classroom structures such as how the book was read, who students read with and feelings about book choice. I wanted to see which factors mattered to students so that I could replicate them in the future. Later in the year my motivation questions switched from focusing on the act of reading to completing a project. I wondered if completing a project did indeed lead to a higher motivation to read. I looked at answers to open ended questions asking if they were intrinsically motivated to complete their projects and why. Some sample questions were:
· What would make reading fun?
· How do you feel about reading during Reading Workshop?
· Did making/doing your book project help you enjoy the book more?
Grit and growth mindset:
I had students self assess their grit levels by taking the 8-item Grit test for children. I planned to use the answers to have class discussions on the power of perseverance but my research took me in a different path so we did not discuss the results as a class. I did look at the results, especially as I noticed some students rushing through work or expressing an attitude of boredom. I wanted to see if there was a correlation to their grit score. I only found this to affect one student who I speak about in depth in my findings.
Students did not officially have the opportunity to learn about and identify with a growth or fixed mindset during the course of my research. I did, however, ask survey questions about changes over time. I asked students if their feelings changed about reading and what structures helped them think deeper about the book’s messages and themes.
Collaboration:
Many questions throughout the year focused on collaboration. I also looked at responses to questions in all areas to specifically pull out answers having to do with peer relationships. In order to find out which collaborative structures led to deeper thinking and more enjoyment, I specifically asked how peer relationships affected enjoyment, helped complete projects, and helped all participants reach deeper levels of thinking during and after reading. Some sample questions:
· Do you think being in a book group helped you understand the book better? How?
· Did other students help make your project better? How?
· While you were working on your book project, did other students help you think deeper about the book? How?
Journal entries
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
Journal entries were my main source of information when I worked with the second class. Almost every day I asked a question about the structure of class or had students reflect on their project designs. By keeping these responses in one stapled book per student, I was able to read a journal cover-to-cover in order to see a whole picture of that student’s experience during the research cycle.
At the beginning of the second cycle of research, when I was teaching as a long-term substitute, I used the journals more as a communication tool. I wanted to hear all voices equally about how different structures for reading were working. At this point, I would read each student’s entry, looking for specific needs. I wanted to see how students were experiencing the different structures I had in place. I would often tally the answers as well, looking for larger, class wide feelings. For example, student responses caused a switch in reading structure. We went from reading together to a hybrid model where a small group read with me and others read independently. Later in this cycle, student’s journals turned inward and became a way to record project ideas and changes. Students concretely linked their ideas to different levels of critical thinking and listed peer suggestions for changes here. I was glad to have this record of how student’s projects changed over time because it allowed me to see potential reasons why. I looked for examples where my explicit teaching of critical thinking skills and purpose for reading worked, or where it did not.
Journal prompts about motivation:
· How did you feel about the "hybrid model" of reading today?
· Specifically, why do you like or dislike the book Unwind?
Journal prompts about authentic purpose:
Respond to the following quote, “Texts should also serve as both a window and mirror allowing students to look into the lives of people they would not normally experience and as a way to understand themselves and how their views influence their understanding of texts and interactions with the world” (Brooks, Browne, & Hampton, 2008).
Journal prompts about deep thinking:
· Write about a project/activity/etc. that would create a balance between deep thinking about a book and enjoying a
book.
· How are you creating new knowledge with your Unwind project?
Journal prompts about collaboration:
· Where do you stand on the spectrum of discussing what you read and reading and moving on to the next book?
And WHY?
· What went well in your project tuning? What was challenging?
Observations
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
During reading and project work time, I observed students to see how they experienced the structures I had in place. I watched for examples of intrinsic motivation, or engagement in reading or working, and opportunities when collaboration led to higher levels of motivation and deeper thinking. I kept a journal and took pictures and video of what I observed. I specifically looked for successful examples of the qualities mentioned above to find factors leading to them.
Motivation:
When I observed students to determine if they were motivated to read, I looked for specific behaviors that show active engagement versus disengagement. Students who were engrossed in the book, talking about the story, or actively creating a project about the book were considered engaged. Students who were talking about other topics, playing around, or otherwise not focused on reading or their project were considered disengaged. I particularly focused on disengaged students to see which reading structures promoted engagement. Finally, I specifically looked for patterns around project and collaboration choices affected motivation.
Grit and growth mindset:
To explore how “gritty” my students were and how to support them in becoming “grittier”, I looked for moments when students encountered problems in the reading or their project creations. I then noticed which structures, such as collaboration, protocols, or explicit teaching led to more persistence. In order to see how having a growth mindset factored in, I observed how students interacted with each other to understand things at a deeper level or to make their projects better. Purposely seeking out peers for these purposes would show elements of having a growth mindset, which I suspected led to higher levels of critical thinking.
Collaboration:
I looked for differences in how students experienced reading based on their chosen reading structure. Would reading in a small group, whole class group, or independently produce different results in regards to motivation and deeper thinking? I observed how students interacted with the text and each other based on those choices. Specifically, did they discuss and ask questions more or less in each structure. During project work I noted how partnerships and groups affected outcomes. I watched how students deepened their thinking and became engaged in the process of creating a project. Finally, I looked for structures such as peer critique, to see if they led to higher quality outcomes.
Deep thinking:
In order to assess deep thinking I observed student’s projects at various stages in the process and compared them to the new Bloom’s Taxonomy chart. As students initially designed their projects, we carefully dissected this chart to fully understand what each level would really look like in a project. Watching students change and adapt their project ideas due to various structures such as project tunings and informal discussions with others was fascinating. I specifically took note of which structures led to better end products and to deeper thinking about the messages in the book.
Written reflections
Data Collection Methods & Analysis: As a culminating activity, all students wrote a detailed reflection based on the following questions: |
I wanted an overall picture from the student’s point of view, especially about purpose. I wanted to know if the project and experience of making it had been purposefully meaningful. I told students they did not have to answer every single question above but by giving students lots of things to think about, their reflections were very insightful. Having students reflect back on how their project had changed allowed them to see how their thinking had gone deeper and seemed to make them feel more pride in their work. Reading responses to the last question helped me to see that students didn’t need to “strike a balance” between enjoyment and deep thinking. They showed me that one leads to the other and vice versa. Students thought deeper because they enjoyed the book; as a result, they enjoyed going deep into the book to find universal themes. Reading these final reflections allowed me to see that we need both to reach high levels of either one.
|
Interviews & Follow-up Conversations
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
I conducted follow up interviews with students throughout both research cycles. In this format I asked more specific questions about why and how they were motivated or not motivated to read and how they used peer relationships and other strategies to understand texts. I took notes and audio and video recordings of the interviews. Although I rarely transcribed the interviews, listening back to these recordings at various times during the research gave me new insights.
Interviewing students allowed me to fill in the gaps and get the story behind their shorter journal entries, survey answers or actions in class. These also proved to deepen student’s own thinking about reading. By talking about the different structures and elements of purposeful reading, students came to new understandings of their own.
Data Collection Methods & Analysis:
I conducted follow up interviews with students throughout both research cycles. In this format I asked more specific questions about why and how they were motivated or not motivated to read and how they used peer relationships and other strategies to understand texts. I took notes and audio and video recordings of the interviews. Although I rarely transcribed the interviews, listening back to these recordings at various times during the research gave me new insights.
Interviewing students allowed me to fill in the gaps and get the story behind their shorter journal entries, survey answers or actions in class. These also proved to deepen student’s own thinking about reading. By talking about the different structures and elements of purposeful reading, students came to new understandings of their own.