Step 1 (What): Describe something that is significant and has happened during your Inquiry so far
A significant event that has occurred so far in my inquiry has been the results from some of the interviews that I conducted in week 2. My initial suspicion going into the inquiry was that the children in my class would show quite low engagement in maths. This suspicion was based on my observations of previous year 6 classes I have taught as well as interviews I conducted with a random sample of year 5s at the end of last year.
A significant event that has occurred so far in my inquiry has been the results from some of the interviews that I conducted in week 2. My initial suspicion going into the inquiry was that the children in my class would show quite low engagement in maths. This suspicion was based on my observations of previous year 6 classes I have taught as well as interviews I conducted with a random sample of year 5s at the end of last year.
The significant event was that generally speaking, the children I interviewed did not show particularly low engagement in maths. There was quite a large variation in the data produced which I will cover below, but generally speaking, children in the class seem to have more positive attitudes towards maths than in previous years.
Step 2 (So What): Evaluate the most interesting/important/useful aspects of this event
This finding surprised me. However, after referring to research around engagement, and engagement in maths more specifically, a few themes become apparent.
Firstly, this cohort (year 6) is quite a girl-heavy year group (58% female). According to (Kindermann, 2007) boys generally show lower engagement across a range of subjects, and crucially, years 5 and 6 are the tipping point where girls start to show more positive attitudes towards their schooling (Rimm-Kaufman et al (2014)). It is possible that the greater than average numbers of girls with higher levels of engagement have modelled a more positive outlook on maths lessons among this cohort of boys. Analysing the children's discourses particularly around how they construct their social systems would be very interesting, although outside the scope of this inquiry (see Rogers (2004) for a concise introduction to using discourse analysis in education settings).
The second point to make about these results is around sample size. My study aimed to look at Maori boys feeling towards maths and engagement in maths lessons. I only have 2 boys in my class of Maori heritage. One of them is a very keen mathematician, scoring above expected norms on all measures of maths ability. Understandably, he has quite positive feelings towards and engagement in maths. The second boy shows much lower engagement in maths and will represent a target intervention for the rest of my inquiry.
Step 3 (Now What): Analyse the implications from this event to the rest of your Inquiry
This event has taught me a number of things. Firstly, on a general pedagogical level, it taught me that I should not make assumptions on the behaviour or attitudes of children in my class based on a surface reading of the available data. It is important to interact with the children as individuals. not just consider them as a non-descript group. Indeed, Kaser and Halbert, (2017) state that one shouldn't "let their untested assumptions drive the agenda" (p.25). Instead, we should "Find out what learners think and feel about their learning" (p.25).
In future, I would base my action plan off individual observations or interview data with my actual class. The time frame for this inquiry meant that this was impossible, but looking back in hindsight, it may be that a lack of engagement is not the main influence on maths outcomes in my class. From my early testing, it seems that a number of children have serious gaps in their number knowledge, which may be affecting how confidently they apply their mathematical skills.
References
Kaser, L., & Halbert, J. (2017). The spiral playbook: Leading with an inquiring mindset in school systems and schools.
Kindermann, T. A. (2007). Effects of naturally existing peer groups on changes in academic engagement in a cohort of sixth graders. Child Development, 78(4), 1186-1203.
Rimm-Kaufman, S. E., Baroody, A. E., Larsen, R. A., Curby, T. W., & Abry, T. (2015). To what extent do teacher–student interaction quality and student gender contribute to fifth graders’ engagement in mathematics learning?. Journal of Educational Psychology, 107(1), 170.
Rogers, R. (2004). An introduction to critical discourse analysis in education. In: An introduction to critical discourse analysis in education (pp. 31-48). Routledge.
This finding surprised me. However, after referring to research around engagement, and engagement in maths more specifically, a few themes become apparent.
Firstly, this cohort (year 6) is quite a girl-heavy year group (58% female). According to (Kindermann, 2007) boys generally show lower engagement across a range of subjects, and crucially, years 5 and 6 are the tipping point where girls start to show more positive attitudes towards their schooling (Rimm-Kaufman et al (2014)). It is possible that the greater than average numbers of girls with higher levels of engagement have modelled a more positive outlook on maths lessons among this cohort of boys. Analysing the children's discourses particularly around how they construct their social systems would be very interesting, although outside the scope of this inquiry (see Rogers (2004) for a concise introduction to using discourse analysis in education settings).
The second point to make about these results is around sample size. My study aimed to look at Maori boys feeling towards maths and engagement in maths lessons. I only have 2 boys in my class of Maori heritage. One of them is a very keen mathematician, scoring above expected norms on all measures of maths ability. Understandably, he has quite positive feelings towards and engagement in maths. The second boy shows much lower engagement in maths and will represent a target intervention for the rest of my inquiry.
Step 3 (Now What): Analyse the implications from this event to the rest of your Inquiry
This event has taught me a number of things. Firstly, on a general pedagogical level, it taught me that I should not make assumptions on the behaviour or attitudes of children in my class based on a surface reading of the available data. It is important to interact with the children as individuals. not just consider them as a non-descript group. Indeed, Kaser and Halbert, (2017) state that one shouldn't "let their untested assumptions drive the agenda" (p.25). Instead, we should "Find out what learners think and feel about their learning" (p.25).
In future, I would base my action plan off individual observations or interview data with my actual class. The time frame for this inquiry meant that this was impossible, but looking back in hindsight, it may be that a lack of engagement is not the main influence on maths outcomes in my class. From my early testing, it seems that a number of children have serious gaps in their number knowledge, which may be affecting how confidently they apply their mathematical skills.
References
Kaser, L., & Halbert, J. (2017). The spiral playbook: Leading with an inquiring mindset in school systems and schools.
Kindermann, T. A. (2007). Effects of naturally existing peer groups on changes in academic engagement in a cohort of sixth graders. Child Development, 78(4), 1186-1203.
Rimm-Kaufman, S. E., Baroody, A. E., Larsen, R. A., Curby, T. W., & Abry, T. (2015). To what extent do teacher–student interaction quality and student gender contribute to fifth graders’ engagement in mathematics learning?. Journal of Educational Psychology, 107(1), 170.
Rogers, R. (2004). An introduction to critical discourse analysis in education. In: An introduction to critical discourse analysis in education (pp. 31-48). Routledge.
Really interesting to read how your assumptions were influenced by pervious data and classes and why this year things have been different. I have also found my assumptions based off previous classes inaccurate and therefore has meant my inquiry is not as accurate as it could have been. I am going to look into your Kaser and Halbert reading around assumptions as I think this will be useful to me also. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteKia ora Nick, according to Fook and Askeland (cited in Finlay, 2008), critical reflection looks at individual concerns within a wider perspective, “connecting individual identity and social context”. So in regards to your students being more engaged with maths learning this year compared to your year 6 students last year, have you considered investigating why that could be?
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