Lesson Study Cycle 2 - Student Voice and Autonomy
Students will understand the significance of exercising their agency and stepping forward in group discussions, while also having the awareness to share the space with other students.
How do we help students further develop the confidence to exercise agency and step forward in group discussions, but in a way that simultaneously creates a space for all student voices to be heard? This was the big question that my PDSA research group worked to better understand this cycle. Over the course of this research cycle we have worked to identify ways to increase student voice and participation in class discussions. Our hope is to find a way to help students understand the significance of exercising their agency and stepping forward in group discussions, while also having the awareness to share the space with other students. I examined several sources pertaining to student voice in the classroom; many of which provided great insight, and others that surfaced new questions for me. Three common themes became apparent as I read these sources; student participation and voice in the classroom, autonomy and ownership in learning, and cultural diversity and responsiveness.
[Student Participation and Voice in the Classroom]
Several sources discuss the importance of giving students a voice and encouraging their participation in the classroom to promote equitable learning, autonomy, and engagement. To get a better understand of what things affect students agency in class discussions I looked at Cohen and Lotan’s Designing groupwork: strategies for the heterogeneous classroom. Our lesson had students participating in a balanced socratic seminar discussion. The form of discussion selected was intentional, as this is a protocol students have participated in three times prior to the research lesson. This structure is one students are familiar with, and the host teacher has already utilized previously to collect data on student engagement. Cohen et al. identify various types of status that can lead to “problems of unequal participation and undesirable domination of group by certain students (Cohen & Lotan, 2014, p. 27).” There are two in particular that I believe may play a role in out Research Lesson, and those are Expert Status and Societal Status. By utilizing a protocol students are familiar with we can reduce the negative impact of Expert Status. Additionally, the students have acquired funds of knowledge pertaining to the topic of the Food Justice, and this socratic seminar will be part of the conclusion of their third unit of study on the topic. It provided students the opportunity to verbally communicate their understandings of food justice while reflecting on the connection between food and culture, food origins, food sovereignty and hard histories. Before engaging in the socratic seminar, the host teacher guided the students through a warm-up aimed at remind them that they are each experts on the topic, and assist them in accessing those funds of knowledge ahead of the seminar.
[Autonomy and Ownership in Learning]
Some sources explore how teachers can encourage students to take ownership of their learning and decision-making in the classroom to foster greater autonomy, independence, and motivation. Stefanous et al. explores the concept of supporting autonomy in the classroom, and highlights some ways that teachers can encourage student autonomy and ownership. The authors argue that supporting autonomy leads to increased engagement and motivation, as well as improved academic performance. Per the article, autonomy support can be manifested in the classroom in 3 distinct ways: organizational autonomy support (allowing students some decision making role in terms of classroom management issues), procedural autonomy support (offering the students choice about the use of different media to present), cognitive autonomy support (affording opportunities for students to evaluate work from a self-referent standard) (Stefanou, C., et al., 2004, p. 101). The authors also emphasis the collaboration between teachers and students needed to support autonomy in the classroom. If done well, it can have a positive impact on student learning and development. Overall, this article provided valuable information on how to create an empowering learning environment that champions student autonomy and ownership. Similarly, Cohen and Lotan (2014) focused on strategies for designing effective group work in heterogeneous classrooms that promote student collaboration and ownership of learning. This approach recognizes the value of diversity in the classroom and emphasizes the importance of creating a learning environment that supports all learners. It was this mindset and approach that surfaced the last of the three themes for me.
[Cultural Diversity and Responsiveness]
A couple of sources highlight the importance of recognizing and responding to the status, cultural, and linguistic diversity of students in the classroom to promote authentic engagement, rigor, and academic achievement. Cohen and Lotan identify Societal Status as another type of status that affects students participation and perceived ranking in the classroom (Cohen & Lotan, 2014, p. 32). The content of our Research Lesson tasked students with using their knowledge of food access and food justice to answer the question: What do our food choices say about our priorities as a society? We read Smith and Cuesta’s “Hunger in the fields: Food insecurity and food access among farmworker families in Migrant and Season Head Start.” This article focused on food justice and migrant farm workers who are facing food insecurity, and served to inform our team on the topic. After reading these two articles a larger question arose for me: Does societal status (social class, race, ethnic group, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation) play a role in students feeling empowered to exercise their agency? Especially when the content pertains to one of these positionalities/identities, or how that has affected the history of people who hold those positionalities/identities.
These different statuses affect student’s comfortability exercising agency in the classroom. What can we do to help establish both a space that students feel safe enough to be their most authentic self, and brave enough to share that authenticity with their peers in the learning environment? By looking at student voice and working to identify ways to empowerer students to use their voice, I feel better equipped to create this kind of space in my own classroom and practice.
This PDSA Research Cycle was different from the last, because it gave me the opportunity to observe other teachers practice, rather than being the host teacher. I was better able to examine how others approach student voice in their own classrooms. As a group we all worked to find ways to better our own practice with help and input from other knowledgeable educators. Even pushing each other to try protocols that were new to us, but familiar for others. Through out this cycle of research I grew as a facilitator thanks to the chance I had to observe another teachers style and approach in the classroom.
Reference List
Cohen, E. G., & Lotan, R. A. (2014). Designing groupwork: strategies for the
heterogeneous classroom third edition.
Hammond, Z. & Jackson, Y., (2015). Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain; Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students.
Mack, L. (2012). Does every student have a voice? Critical action research on
equitable classroom participation practices
Mitra, D., (2004). The Significance of Students: Can Increasing “Student Voice” in Schools Lead to Gains in Youth Development?
Stefanou, C., Perenevich, K., DiCinto, M., & Turner, J., (2004). Supporting Autonomy in the Classroom: Ways Teachers Encourage Student Decision Making and Ownership.
Smith, J., & Cuesta, G. (2020). Hunger in the fields: Food insecurity and food access
among farmworker families in Migrant and Seasonal Head Start.