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problem solving skills, helping the students to think more broadly. Then, she works with the students to apply this thinking to characters in literature through written assignments. For example she might have them write a play where a character has to solve a problem or write a letter to a character offering advice and critiquing the way a character solved a problem. “While they did this, they were also writing down their thinking process,” said Sprague. Next, she works with the students on inference and hypothesis. After reading
“I make bulleted lists, outlines and storyboards to fill those ideas and it has really strengthened my technique.” that these exercises have led to a better understanding of the material.” Morris’s Honors Pre-Calculus class has been asked to do a “brain-dump” in the form of a diagram for a couple of major concepts this year. The idea is that the students organize the material into some sort of flowchart, tree diagram, or cluster diagram. The students must be able to generalize the problems and write out directions on which path to take depending on outcomes and analysis of the problem involved. “I have called this a “brain-dump” because they are writing everything they know about the process of getting through a problem,” 6
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said Morris. “The finished product should enable someone who has not been through the classroom instruction to be able to get to the bottom line of a problem successfully.” Librarian Lee Sprague has been working with the English department to support research and offer new ways to approach the research writing process. “Students are no longer writing a research paper and calling it done,” said Sprague. “I wanted to change the focus from writing research papers to boosting critical thinking skills.” Instead of assigning a research paper, Sprague works first on developing
and studying an author’s writing style, students make inferences about what the writer’s life might have been like. They then research the author’s actual life and write reflections about how closely their inferences matched what they found. Sprague expands on this and incorporates blogging to make their writing more public. “What we’re doing here isn’t just about English,” said Sprague. “We’re helping the students think about what is going on in their brains,” she said. “Using writing for reflection is tremendously powerful and it’s allowed us to see that the less vocal students are really getting it. Sometimes the inquiry is much
“With t lots of w
