How Were You Thinking? Calling Students to Think Deeply
Facing discouragement about my students’ struggle to grasp math concepts, I added a small space on an assignment requiring them to briefly explain the thinking that led to their final response. By asking “Explain how you got your final answer in the space below,” I figured that students’ detailed descriptions would allow me to see where their thinking was going awry. I hoped to use this information to maximize my reteaching the next day.
With great anticipation, I sat down at my desk that afternoon to begin reading the insightful responses, but what I found left me speechless and a little annoyed. Rather than describing their thinking, the typical response to my question was Because I did math. Needless to say, that is not very helpful to a teacher! I wanted to scream, “Of course you did math! But what did you actually do?” In reflecting on that situation, I realized that a misunderstanding of the math concept was not the root problem. It was an inability to slow one’s thinking down so that it may be described, analyzed, and modified as needed.
If you spend enough time around school-age children, sooner or later you will be tempted to use these classic words: What were you thinking? In my mind, I can hear the exasperation in a teacher’s voice as he incredulously tries to interpret a student’s work. In moments like these, I have found it more productive to approach the conversation about thinking from a different angle. Encouraging students to become more mindful of their cognition will support content mastery while also cultivating habits of mind that will support lifelong, independent learning.
The human brain is one of God’s masterpieces. Neuroscience has advanced rapidly in the last few decades, yet there remains much mystery around the way that a rather large hunk of organic matter between our ears provides us with all we need for a lifetime of learning. By observing the thinking habits of people, we note that:
The brain is wired for efficiency. You may have heard the phrase ‘Use it or lose it’ in reference to abilities or knowledge. This reflects the process of synaptic pruning in which unused neural connections weaken while those used more frequently are strengthened. This allows messages to travel more quickly among the different regions of the brain. The efficiency, however, does not stop there. Much of our everyday thinking happens at a fast pace, so our brain must learn how to fill in the gaps by recognizing patterns based on prior experiences. This is ideal for completing tasks that are both predictable and routine. Daniel Kahneman, a well-known researcher in the field of decision-making and judgement, describes this as System 1 Thinking (2011).
Our brain also has the capacity for slower, more deliberate thinking. This kind of cognition naturally requires greater effort and activates a different set of neural pathways, primarily located in the region responsible for planning and reflection. This ‘lower gear’ thinking enables us to more effectively evaluate information, consider and make judgements about multiple options, and make decisions based on evidence. This stands in stark contrast to the pattern-based thinking described above! Kahneman (2011) speaks of this skillset as System 2 Thinking.
Our automatic, pattern-based thinking helps us move efficiently through familiar tasks, yet deeper learning generally happens when we intentionally shift gears into slower, more reflective thought patterns. Developing this skill requires that we grow in our awareness of our thinking and recognizing which speed our varied daily experiences require. Students who have the opportunity to intentionally practice these metacognitive skills will develop powerful habits that will support both academic success in daily class content but also grow into lifelong, independent learners. Becoming aware of our thinking is a learning process that is not necessarily tied to any specific curriculum or school content area. My experience has shown that it takes the awareness of a teacher to help students develop this skill throughout the school day.
Incorporating intentional thinking routines into classrooms is an effective way to accomplish these objectives. To do this, we need to transition in our practice from considering thinking as something that only happens inside students’ heads into a practice that can be visually demonstrated for the teacher to see. Building in opportunities throughout the school day for students to make their thinking visible invites everyone to slow down, evaluate their reasoning, and reflect (Ritchhart et al., 2011). This allows you, the teacher, to be in tune with how students are thinking so that the appropriate feedback can be given. Here are some ways that you can begin doing this in your own teaching:
Use Protocols as Guides. For students just beginning to think about their thinking, it can feel abstract and difficult to achieve. However, providing a simple protocol or template can remove that hurdle, allowing students to constructively engage in both System 1 and System 2 thinking. One of the simplest ways to begin is the See-Think-Wonder protocol: What do you see? (Use observation to focus on evidence) What do you think is going on? (Use evidence as the foundation for interpretation) and What does it make you wonder? (Generate questions that stir curiosity and inquiry). Ritchhart et al. (2011) describe many other helpful protocols in Making Thinking Visible. Resources may be found online and in their book on the topic.
Model! We likely all have heard of read-alouds, in which a teacher reads a book out loud to his class. I suggest that teachers also engage in think-alouds. These are planned moments of the day in which the teacher audibly thinks through a problem for students to see cognition modeled that would otherwise happen only inside someone’s head. This is most effectively paired with solving problems in mathematics, analyzing text in English language arts, and processing observations in science. This activity shows your students that thinking can be an extended process and not just a final answer. You can maximize the effectiveness of this practice by also inviting your students to participate as well!
Consider Thinking as the Final Product. I have seen this done effectively in mathematics by giving students just a few problems (such as one or two) and encouraging students to explicitly describe each step taken in words, sketches, and/or calculations. Yes, achieving the correct answer is important, but encouraging students to slow down and focus on their understanding is just as important. This allows the teacher to provide feedback on the process and not just the answer. A similar approach can be used in different subject areas other than math.
When my students explained their work to the math problems in my opening paragraph, my first assumption was that their answers reflected their misunderstanding, apathy, or laziness. However, I now see these responses as evidence of students needing to cultivate an awareness of their thinking, permitting their thoughts to be examined, discussed, and (when necessary) revised. Perhaps we as teachers should reconsider our propensity for asking students the question ‘What were you thinking?’ and going no further. Modifying our approach to include the question ‘How were you thinking?’ will encourage students to make their thinking visible or audible. Nurturing this practice in our schools will equip students to think deeply while also preparing them to use their God-given minds to faithfully serve others in ways that make a difference in the Kingdom.
References
Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. Doubleday Canada.
Ritchhart, R., Church, M., & Morrison, K. (2011). Making thinking visible: How to promote engagement, understanding, and independence for all learners. Jossey-Bass.
Photo by Fernando Santander on Unsplash
