Eliciting Initial Ideas, Building Understandings, and Coming to Consensus: Using Different Teacher Moves for Distinct Discussion Types

Abstract

Whole-group discussions are a key aspect of the NGSS because these activities are where students collectively make sense of natural phenomena. However, curriculum can present all discussions as possessing the same instructional purpose and roles. This can send the wrong message to teachers as to how to engage their students and help develop their science ideas. We present a framework for the three types of discussions—initial ideas, building understandings, and consensus—that occur regularly in NGSS-aligned science classrooms. This framework highlights the different but complementary instructional purposes and roles of these discussions. The Discussion Types Framework can help teachers to better understand, plan for, and teach the different discussion types that are integral to an NGSS-aligned science classroom. When teachers understand the discussion type, they are better prepared to use different facilitation moves that will help them to elicit student thinking, position students’ ideas relative to each other, and develop the class’s understanding.

Keywords::

• NGSS
• Physical Science
• Teaching Strategies
• Student Populations
• Research/Scientific Studies
• Professional Development

SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIALS

Consensus discussion transcript.

Roles and moves for building understandings discussion.

Roles and moves for initial ideas discussion.

Roles and moves for consensus discussion.

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08872376.2024.2314677

ONLINE RESOURCES

Equitable Sensemaking OpenSciEd PD. – 3.1 Initial Ideas Discussion—http://tinyurl.com/38ud4jtj

Equitable Sensemaking OpenSciEd PD. – 3.1 Consensus Discussion—http://tinyurl.com/yaaxkupt

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kevin Cherbow

Kevin Cherbow ([email protected]) is a science educator at BSCS Science Learning in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Benjamin R. Lowell is a clinical assistant professor of science education at New York University in New York, New York. Kris Grymonpre is a middle school science teacher at John W. McCormack Middle School in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Katherine L. McNeill is a professor of science education and Renee Affolter is the co-director for the OEI Initiative, both at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.