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Inquiry
Strategies
for the Journey North Teacher
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Critically
Reviewing Science Research
Legitimate
skepticism and respect for evidence are vital to scientific inquiry.
They are also important "habits of mind" that enable us to critically
evaluate what we read, hear, and are told. Scientists continually reflect
on and evaluate their research plans and progress, accuracy of data,
explanations, and conclusions. They ask the following types of questions:
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Are
there unintended factors that might influence, bias, or skew my
results?
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Was
my reasoning logical and based on the evidence?
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What
might I do differently to gather better (more accurate, detailed,
appropriate) data?
They
also ask peers to review their investigation plans and offer feedback.
Finally, they communicate their research and findings to colleagues
via papers presented at meetings, conferences, and articles in scientific
journals. Colleagues, in turn, ask critical questions about the research,
looking for careful design and data collection, and reviewing evidence
and conclusions.
The following
strategies engage students in using this important scientific "lens."
Questions
That Help Students Critically Review Research
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Was
the research question clear?
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Why
did you choose to investigate this question?
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What
did you already know or observe that helped shape the hypothesis?
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How
did you decide what to observe or test and what type of data to collect?
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What
standards/protocol did you use when gathering data?
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Did
you find any interesting patterns or relationships in the data? What
were they? Any surprises?
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How
else could the results be interpreted or explained?
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Did
you have to revise your question, setup, or hypothesis at any point?
Why?
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What
kinds of conclusions or explanations, if any, can you draw from your
data? How do they relate to your hypothesis?
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Did
the information gathered help answer the question? Why or why not?
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What
other factors might have influenced your results (e.g., the way data
were collected)?
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How
would you revise this if you were to do it again?
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Now
what do you wonder about?
Encouraging
Peer Review
Routinely
create opportunities for students to evaluate and ask questions about
scientific research featured in Journey North, and about peer's suggestions
for investigations or actual research. Pull questions from the list
below. (You can also reword these so students can reflect on their own
investigation designs.)
Consider
staging a classroom scientific meeting in which small groups present
and discuss results of investigations (see Format
of a Scientific Paper) or hold a Scientific Convention in which
students prepare posters or displays to present investigations and findings.
Classmates then tour the displays and write questions and comments about
the research on posted sheets.
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