Download Comparison Slides

Research says…
• Begin with the end in mind
• 6 Facets of understanding
– Explanation, interpretation, application,
perspective, empathy, self-knowledge
• Hidden skills of academic literacy
• Classroom Instruction that Works
• Plain thinking vs. fancy thinking
Research says…
• “The results of this study will document that
the most important factor affecting student
learning is the teacher…Effective teachers
appear to be effective with students of all
achievement levels.” Wright, et. al., 1997
• High yield strategies make a predictable
difference in student learning and
performance. Marzano, et. al., 2001
Research says…
• Regardless of the background or socioeconomic levels,
children can have sophisticated reasoning skills. Ready, Set,
Science, NRC, 2008
• “Some have argued, in a misinterpretation of Piaget, that
young people must go through a multiyear developmental
stage where, for example, they can grasp only the directly
observable, concrete phenomena before they can engage in
abstract, hypothetical deductive reasoning.” Powerful
Learning, Darling-Hammond, et. al., 2008
• Children as young as kindergarten can reason about a
problem based on what they already know along with new
knowledge. Ready, Set, Science, NRC, 2008
Research says…
• “…research will never be able to identify
instructional strategies that work with every
student in every class. The best research can do is
tell us which strategies have a good chance…of
working well with students.” The Art and Science of
Teaching, Marzano, 2007, pg.5
• “Frequent use of strategies leads to consistent and
significant gains in student achievement.” The
Strategic Teacher, Silver,et. al., 2007
But what about our standards?
• Examine the verb frequency list in science from
the PoS and CCA for the grade level for which
you are responsible.
• Identify the top 3-5 verbs.
• Highlight the high yield strategies and the hidden
skills of academic literacy which correlate to those
verbs.
• What might be some conclusions from this quick
comparison?
Identifying Similarities and Differences
•Developing students ability to compare can lead to an
average percentile gain of 45 points.
•Our brains are wired to make comparisons.
•Comparisons help us to identify aspects of content
that might be invisible (abstract), confusable (easily
mixed up with other concepts), and neglectable (easy
to overlook).
Comparing
c
Classifying
Analogy
Metaphor
::
?
Identifying Similarities and Differences
Generalizations from research on Identifying
Similarities and Differences
1. Presenting students with explicit guidance
in identifying similarities and differences
enhances students’ understanding of and
ability to use knowledge.
2. Having students independently identify
similarities and differences enhances
students’ understanding of and ability to
use knowledge.
Fun and Enjoyment are similar because they both
________________.
________________.
________________.
Fun and Enjoyment are different because
Fun is ___, but Enjoyment is ___________.
Fun is____, but Enjoyment is ___________.
Fun is ____, but Enjoyment is ___________.
Comparison Frame
• Complete the comparison frame using a pair
of related but confusing terms in science.
• How might this strategy help students
clarify their thinking?
A and B are similar because they both
________________
________________
________________
A and B are different because
A is __________, but B is ___________.
A is __________, but B is ___________.
A is __________, but B is ___________.
Comparing
1. Identify what you are comparing and decide
on a format to organize your information and
guide your thinking.
2. Examine the items and decide what
characteristics would lead to an interesting
comparison.
3. For each characteristic, explain how the items
are similar and different.
4. Re-examine your information, and state what
you learned or thought about by doing this
comparison.
Item 1
Item 2
Item 3
Characteristic
1
Similarities and
Differences
Characteristic
2
Similarities and
Differences
Characteristic
3
Similarities and
Differences
Characteristic
4
Similarities and
Differences
Characteristic 1:Similarities and Differences.
For characteristic 1, Item 1 and Item 2 and are mainly
similar. They both……
Characteristic 2:Similarities and Differences.
Characteristic 3:Similarities and Differences.
Characteristic 4:Similarities and Differences.
Comparison Matrix
• Complete the comparison matrix for the topic you
selected.
• Identify one or two ways in which students could
apply what they have learned from the
comparison.
– For example, create a metaphor, identify a pattern (then
apply to a new situation), form a conclusion, make
generalizations about the topic, recognize exceptions
• How might this strategy help students clarify their
thinking?
Applying Comparative Thinking
There are two main reasons that people use
comparison :
1. To Explain--You might compare kinds of habitats,
for instance, to help someone understand how
human impact might affect an ecosystem.
2. To Evaluate--You might compare kinds of energy
sources to show why one kind of energy source
might be better economically and environmentally.
There are three strategies to organize comparison papers:
1. Whole-to-Whole, or Block
2. Similarities-to-Differences
3. Point-by-Point
Topic sentence
1
Sim & Diff
2
Sim & Diff
3
Sim & Diff
Detail/Expand
Detail/Expand
Detail/Expand
Conclusion
Thesis
1
Sim & Diff
2
Sim & Diff
3
Sim & Diff
Develop/Support
Develop/Support
Develop/Support
Conclusion
• We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence, therefore, is not an act
but a habit. --Aristotle