“where is the challenge?”
It was the question that I got asked in the first few lesson
observations I had where I was advised to include ‘challenge’ questions in pupil
practice so that they could be really pushed. Ideally these would be
higher-order questions from Blooms Taxonomy where pupils are to evaluate or make a decision.
Why my challenge questions did not challenge anyone
I was looking through some of my early resources today and I
shudder when I look at questions like ‘justify if the UK should introduce a minimum
price for alcohol’ thinking that this would really get pupils thinking.
The problem being that it was completely worthless.
With no worked examples of how to tackle this type of
question and insufficient practice of the concept of indirect taxation, pupils
were only able to half-guess answers. Their knowledge wasn’t secure yet and
what they needed at that time was much more practice of knowledge with retrieval
practice to secure this in their long term memory so that their working memory is then freed
up to try and problem-solve.
I believe that the interpretation of Bloom’s Taxonomy is largely
to blame for this (as Doug Lemov has pointed
out) as testing knowledge is seen as a ‘low-order question’ and certainly not
likely to win praise as being an example of challenge in a lesson observation despite
usually being exactly what pupils need.
When I now think of how I want to make sure pupils are challenged
I consider 2 things:
Making sure all pupils are always
thinking hard in a lesson
Rather than challenge being something at the end of a period
of pupil practice, pupils always need to be thinking hard in a lesson. I have previously
blogged about how I ensure pupils are thinking hard and in the main this
comes down to explaining concepts, explaining how they differ to similar concepts
and showing how these concepts are applicable in different contexts.
At no point are pupils artificially evaluating based on
limited prior knowledge but instead are spending all their independent practice
time thinking hard about a concept that they have been explicitly taught to ensure they both remember it and fully understand the limits of the concept.
There is no need for a challenge question because they are
being challenged constantly. Adam Boxer created a ‘challenge
equation’ stating that the level of challenge is dependent on the quantity
and demands of a task (the demands being high in my example) and then reduced
with prior knowledge and external supports.
In my practice booklets I provide summaries of key
information as a scaffold so pupils who are unable to complete the task will
review these notes as well as prior notes (if prior knowledge is insufficient).
The biggest external suppot is of course me by circulating and providing targeted assistance.
Pupils who do not need this support go straight into thinking
hard when answering practice questions and so all pupils are being challenged
throughout their period of practice.
Making good use of pupil’s time when they
have finished
Despite this, some pupils will finish before others, not
because they have not been thinking hard but rather because the prior knowledge
needed is more secure or thy have just grasped a concept quicker. I do not want
to feedback answers yet because other pupils are thinking hard and I do not
wish to interrupt this, so the question is what to do with those pupils who
have finished?
Previously I would
have gone for a pointless ‘make a decision’ question but now that I recognise
the folly of this, we have to consider what is the best thing that pupils can
do with this time and I think it is about strengthening the durability of the
knowledge in their long term memory and this can be achieved in 2 ways.
Either they complete further practice questions, these are
not materially different to the questions they have completed but ensures they
get additional practice to ensure that practice makes permanent. This extended practice
is far more useful for these pupil’s progress than any feeble attempt to
scramble up a Blooms Pyramid poster of questions.
Alternatively, if I feel that pupils have completed enough
independent practice of this for now (or maybe want to provide feedback before
they so misconceptions are not reinforced) then pupils can complete retrieval
questions on prior content, making best use of spaced practice. This strengthening
of their knowledge will be of far greater use to pupils than a convoluted challenge
question.
It’s been a long time since I’ve used a challenge question but
a combination of ensuring pupils are thinking deeply throughout their practice
and spend spare time on extended practice and retrieval has meant my higher
achievers are making more progress than ever before.
I’ve not mentioned the
other key element of challenge of ensuring that the curriculum is rigorous and comprehensive
but that is a blog for another day!