Essential Questions

Why – What - How

Kristin Hase, Lawrence

Summer, 2014

WhyWhatHow

Why are Essential Questions Important?

Jack Andraka: A promising test for pancreatic cancer ... from a teenager

“It’s not that I’m really smart. If you don’t have the creativity to put knowledge to use then you just have a bunch of knowledge.” - Jack Andraka

WhyInquiry is a key goal of educationUnit will be intellectually engagingClarify and prioritize standardsProvide transparency for studentsEncourage and model metacognitionIntra- and interdisciplinary

connectionsSupport meaningful differentiation

Questioning in US vs. Japan

What is an Essential Question?

ACTIVITY #1 – QUESTION SORT

Sort the questions on your table into two piles: Essential Questions Non-Essential Questions

Essential QuestionsHow has contemporary American music (Jazz, Rock, Hip-

Hop, Electronica) influenced the writings of American authors?

Is the American Anti-Hero Still a Hero?How does the reality of mixed race or ethnicity complicate

the issue of personal identification?What techniques did the author use to get his/her point

across? How were those techniques used to manipulate the reader?

How does the culture reflected in the writing affect your understanding of it? How does your own culture affect your understanding of it?

Non-Essential Questions What sort of person does the main character reveal his/her

father to be? What is the main characters relationship with his/her father?

Alice rarely speaks nonsense and rarely enjoys it when it is spoken to her. How is Alice's perception of the world changed when confronted with the world and characters of nonsense?

If you were the main character, which of the other characters would you chose to be your teacher and why?

Does the book have a happy or sad ending? Explain your answer. What do you think the author would say?

How has the author used figurative language in this text?

What is diabetes?

Non-Essential Questions Students move information from one point to

the other, from the text to their paperOpportunity to plagiarizeSummarize or paraphrase No new ideas required, unoriginal, fact-based

Revise “What is diabetes?” to create an Essential Question

Next Generation Standards related to Diabetes topic:MS-LS1-5. Construct a scientific explanation based

on evidence for how environmental and genetic factors influence the growth of organisms.

HS-LS3-2 Make and defend a claim based on evidence that inheritable genetic variations may result from: (1) new genetic combinations through meiosis, (2) viable errors occurring during replication, and/or (3) mutations caused by environmental factors.

ELA Standards related to Diabetes topic

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.7.8 Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.9-10.8 Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.

What plan could you develop that would

reduce your likelihood of

developing diabetes?

Student’s will…Visualize an answerDevelop a list of strategiesDiscriminate and select the

best strategyDefend and justify their

choicesTake a stand

How to Create an Essential Question from a Standard

• Unpack Standards --ID key verbs and nouns • EXAMPLE: (ELA Anchor Standard: Determine

central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.• What is the central idea running through the text? • How is that idea developed?• What textual details support my argument about

the central idea?

How to Create an Essential Question from Desired

Understandings• Understandings are the specific insights, inferences or

conclusions about the big ideas that you hope your students will attain as a result of inquiry.

• Example: • Desired Understanding = Great literature from

various cultures explores enduring themes and reveals recurrent aspects of the human condition.

• Essential Question = How (much) can stories from other places and times be about us?

Creating a Culture of Inquiry – Key Ideas to Communicate

Discuss the idea on your card.•What does it mean?• How can you create a culture in your classroom to support this idea?

How to Implement Essential Questions

1.Introduce a question designed to cause inquiry.

2.Elicit varied responses and question those responses.

3.Introduce and explore new perspectives

4.Reach tentative closure

Activity #2: Writing Essential Questions Using a Checklist

• Use your checklist and template to create an EQ for a unit in your course.

• EXTRA CHALLENGE: Write an EQ for a unit you could integrate with another content area.

Today’s Objectives: Did we accomplish our goals?

Why: Understand the importance of Essential QuestionsWhat: Define Essential Questions How: Develop Essential Questions that align with Common Core

Exit TicketsOne to take with you: 3 things I’m taking away from

this session 1 thing still circling around in

my brain.One to leave with us:1.What I liked about this session:2.Suggestions for the session:

ResourcesMcTighe, G., & Wiggins, G. (2013) Essential Questions: Opening

Doors to Student Understanding. Alexandria, VA: ASCDBasic info on EQ – lots of sample EQ (Beginner level information)

http://www.ocmboces.org/tfiles/folder1682/OHS_EssentialQuestions.pdf 

EQ overview of McTighe Wiggins info – personal insights (Intermediate level information)http://www.huffenglish.com/understanding-by-design-essential-questions/

Revising EQ video– make it more meaningful to students – 7th grade SS (Expert level information) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StjLRLLAie8

Resources (cont.)Overview video of EQ and discussion of differentiation by McTighe

and Wiggins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcC2MR6xjfcGrant Wiggins 1 page overview of EQhttps

://www.authenticeducation.org/ae_bigideas/article.lasso?artid=53Overview of EQ and checklisthttp

://tech.hcesc.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Essential_Questions_Defined.pdf

Dare to Differentiate --overviewhttps://daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com/file/view/essential.pdf

Grant Wiggins video – example of EQ in the classroomhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMYfoLDnFAc