cbot010

Teaching Inquiry
Teacher Inquiry Plan
...effective pedagogy requires that teachers inquire into the impact of their teaching on
their students. NZ Curriculum, P35

Teacher/Team:

Year Level.

Date:

NZC p.35
Focusing Inquiry (establishes a baseline and a direction). The teacher uses all available information to determine what their
students have already learned and what they need to learn next.

Teaching Inquiry
The teacher uses evidence from research and from their own past practice and that of colleagues to plan teaching and learning
opportunities aimed at achieving the outcomes prioritised in the focusing inquiry.

Learning Inquiry
The teacher investigates the success of the teaching in terms of the prioritised outcomes, using a range of assessment
approaches.
(This occurs...) while learning activities are in progress and also as longer-term sequences or units of work come to an end.
(Teachers...) then analyse and interpret the information to consider what they should do next.

Using the Teaching as Inquiry process to inquire into the impact of teaching on students.
NZ Curriculum p.35.

Teacher/Group/Syndicate:

Room

Date:

Focusing Inquiry (establishes a baseline and a direction). The teacher uses all available information to determine what their
students have already learned and what they need to learn next.

What does the data indicate for this group of target students.
This group of year 10 students has completed an English E-asTTle test to determine strengths and weaknesses in literacy. The three
students I have identified as at risk and in need of some support strategies are Kai, Lote, and Aroha. These students, along with Mele
have an overall level of 3A on the E-asTTle results. I have left Mele off the priority list mainly due to her attitude score which is higher
than the other students on the list. To me this could indicate that she will have a better attitude towards the learning activities and
therefore a better level of engagement. I will focus my efforts on improving the literacy skills of Kai, Lote, and Aroha for this Teaching
Inquiry.

Student 1 Profile
Kai is a keen surfer. He enters national scholastic contests and often does well. He is polite and respectful but struggles to pay
attention and focus in class. Kai would like to be a professional surfer and tends to focus all of his energy towards this endeavor. He
trains during lunchtime, eats well and is involved in afterhours coaching and sports development. Kai says he does not enjoy reading
or writing and is not interested in these areas as he does not see how this will help him with his future or career. Kai is male, Maori
and from the Ngatiwai Iwi.

Student 1

Kai, Male, Maori, Year 10

The students expected level is 5A

Students at this level can

This student is working at Level 3B (Above/At/Below/Well

Below)
At this level they can.

Decode words, including unfamiliar words,

quickly and automatically.
Applies knowledge of the features of a wide
variety of text types and text forms.
Understands how these text types and forms
are used in different subjects and curriculum
areas.
Recognises different grammatical
constructions (e.g. constructions that express
cause and effect).
Uses this knowledge to understand dense and
complex text.
Has a large vocabulary that is connected to
their own knowledge of the world.
Includes academic, subject-specific, and
technical terms.
Locates, evaluates, analyses and summarises
information and ideas within texts and across a
range of texts using strategies (e.g. skimming,
scanning, note-taking, annotating, mapping,
coding information, rephrasing).

Decode texts fluently and

accurately, using a range of reliable
strategies.
Finding and learning the meanings
of unknown vocabulary by using
strategies such as applying their
knowledge of how words work or
seeking explanations in the text or in
illustrations.
Understanding that words and
phrases can have figurative as well
as literal meanings and that some
words have different meanings
depending on the context.
Recognising basic grammatical
constructions and understanding
how these affect meaning.
Identifying the specific language
features and structures of many
common continuous and noncontinuous text types (including
mixed text types)
Interpreting illustrations,
photographs, text boxes, diagrams,
maps, charts, and graphs.

To accelerate this student I need to teach

More regular opportunities to practice reading for comprehension

More effective strategies for interpreting text
An appreciation of the importance of reading and writing in his future life
Find resources and texts that this student may find relevant and enjoyable for him

Student 2 Profile
Loti is a male Pacific Islands student. He is a very talented guitar player. Loti is always polite and very respectful in class. He tries
very hard but is lacking in confidence and does not believe he can achieve to a high level in school. Loti is a bit shy and has trouble
ask for help. If difficulties arise he will often stop working. Loti is unsure of what he would like to do as a career. His main interests are
guitar and gaming.

Student 2

Loti, Male, Pacific Islands, Year 10

The students expected level is 5A

Students at this level can

This student is working at Level 3B (Above/At/Below/Well

Below)
At this level they can.

Decode words, including unfamiliar words,

quickly and automatically.
Applies knowledge of the features of a wide
variety of text types and text forms.
Understands how these text types and forms
are used in different subjects and curriculum
areas.
Recognises different grammatical
constructions (e.g. constructions that express
cause and effect).
Uses this knowledge to understand dense and
complex text.
Has a large vocabulary that is connected to
their own knowledge of the world.
Includes academic, subject-specific, and
technical terms.
Locates, evaluates, analyses and summarises
information and ideas within texts and across a
range of texts using strategies (e.g. skimming,
scanning, note-taking, annotating, mapping,
coding information, rephrasing).

Decode texts fluently and

accurately, using a range of reliable
strategies.
Finding and learning the meanings
of unknown vocabulary by using
strategies such as applying their
knowledge of how words work or
seeking explanations in the text or in
illustrations.
Understanding that words and
phrases can have figurative as well
as literal meanings and that some
words have different meanings
depending on the context.
Recognising basic grammatical
constructions and understanding
how these affect meaning.
Identifying the specific language
features and structures of many
common continuous and noncontinuous text types (including
mixed text types)
Interpreting illustrations,
photographs, text boxes, diagrams,
maps, charts, and graphs.

To accelerate this student I need to teach

More regular opportunities to practice reading for comprehension

More effective strategies for interpreting text
Opportunities to work in pairs or groups
Check on his progress regularly during each lesson individually
Find resources and texts that this student may find relevant and enjoyable for him

Student 3 Profile
Aroha is a female Maori student. She enjoys netball and art and would like to work as a graphic designer or in TV. Aroha is a nice
student but does not see the importance of reading and writing in her life and will often ask why are we doing this or say this is
boring. Aroha was diagnosed with Leukemia when she was younger and has been through a rough battle with chemo Therapy. She
is in remission and has a positive outlook.

Student 3

Aroha, Female, Maori

The students expected level is 5A

Students at this level can

This student is working at Level 3B (Above/At/Below/Well Below)

At this level they can.

Decode words, including unfamiliar

words, quickly and automatically.
Applies knowledge of the features
of a wide variety of text types and
text forms.
Understands how these text types
and forms are used in different
subjects and curriculum areas.
Recognises different grammatical
constructions (e.g. constructions
that express cause and effect).
Uses this knowledge to understand
dense and complex text.
Has a large vocabulary that is
connected to their own knowledge
of the world.
Includes academic, subject-specific,
and technical terms.
Locates, evaluates, analyses and
summarises information and ideas
within texts and across a range of
texts using strategies (e.g.
skimming, scanning, note-taking,
annotating, mapping, coding
information, rephrasing).

Decode texts fluently and accurately, using a

range of reliable strategies.
Finding and learning the meanings of
unknown vocabulary by using strategies such
as applying their knowledge of how words
work or seeking explanations in the text or in
illustrations.
Understanding that words and phrases can
have figurative as well as literal meanings and
that some words have different meanings
depending on the context.
Recognising basic grammatical constructions
and understanding how these affect meaning.
Identifying the specific language features and
structures of many common continuous and
non-continuous text types (including mixed
text types)
Interpreting illustrations, photographs, text
boxes, diagrams, maps, charts, and graphs.

To accelerate this student I need to teach

More regular opportunities to practice reading for comprehension

More effective strategies for interpreting text
An appreciation of the importance of reading and writing in her future life
Find resources and texts that this student may find relevant and enjoyable for her
Opportunities to work in pairs or groups
Check on her progress regularly during each lesson

How will you monitor students progress?

To monitor student progress I will design a reading comprehension pre-test using Kahoot where students will
need to choose from multi-choice answers relating to a piece of text I have provided them with. This test will
have both surface and deeper types of questions that incorporate prior knowledge on the subject (a subject
we have looked at in class) the answers will have subtle differences which will test the students
understanding of these to find the best answer.
I will design a similar test using a different piece of text to run in a months time to see if there has been
some progress. I will also run the E-asttle test at the end of term to see if there has been any progress with
their levels. I will collate the information along with my daily observations and end of lesson reflections to
gain a picture of how the students are tracking.

Teaching Inquiry
The teacher uses evidence from research and from their own past practice and that of colleagues to plan teaching and learning
opportunities aimed at achieving the outcomes prioritised in the focusing inquiry.

For Kai, these are my areas to focus on: (Common to all are green, common to two are red, individual are
blue)
More regular opportunities to practice reading for comprehension
More effective strategies for interpreting text
An appreciation of the importance of reading and writing in his future life
Find resources and texts that this student may find relevant and enjoyable for him
For Loti, these are my areas to focus on:
More regular opportunities to practice reading for comprehension
More effective strategies for interpreting text
Opportunities to work in pairs or groups
Check on his progress regularly during each lesson individually
Find resources and texts that this student may find relevant and enjoyable for him
For Aroha, these are my areas to focus on:
More regular opportunities to practice reading for comprehension
More effective strategies for interpreting text
An appreciation of the importance of reading and writing in her future life

Find resources and texts that this student may find relevant and enjoyable for her
Opportunities to work in pairs or groups
Check on her progress regularly during each lesson

I will be teaching a statistics unit with these students with focus on these literacy strategies.
Each lesson students will be given exemplars of the literacy rules in statistics questions they will need to
highlight any key words or phrases from the exemplars. This will be done individually then in pairs to find or
clarify any missing ones. In pairs or small groups students will need to practice writing a statistical question
for a chosen topic or context this will start with a mind map including group, population, direction and
variable.
At the start of the unit I will get students to write down three topics or hobbies they enjoy and I will use
some of these to find statistics we can write questions about or do analysis with.
The analysis part also has a lot of specific vocabulary the students need to know well. Students will have
regular practice to read an exemplar of an analysis and highlight any difficult words or specific vocabulary
they are unsure of On the whole it is better if students learn to read on and focus on the overall meaning of the
text before working on vocabulary. Clarification of unfamiliar words should therefore happen after reading the text
as a whole Francesca Pouwer http://esolonline.tki.org.nz/ESOL-Online/Teacher-needs/Pedagogy/ESOL-

teaching-strategies/Oral-language/Teaching-approaches-and-strategies/Vocabulary/Clarifying-unfamiliarwords.
From this and including some of my choice I will make a list of key words and make an activity where they
have to match the words with their meanings which are jumbled up. This will be done in pairs. Students will
then need to these words in their analysis using contexts relevant to them.
Students will use insight or NZgrapher to practice turning statistical information into graphs. From this they
can practice writing good questions, analysis, and conclusions. Guided writing will be used throughout eg
templates with gaps to fill in or anagrams. Guided writing is an effective way of modelling the structure and
language of a range of text types. It also supports students to sequence and structure their ideas to meet the
purpose of the writing task. Differentiated support can easily be provided by giving more or fewer
prompts/starters. As students become familiar with the form, less support can be given.
http://esolonline.tki.org.nz/ESOL-Online/Teacher-needs/Pedagogy/ESOL-teaching-strategies/Writing/Guidedwriting

In Pairs students will write and read each others questions and analysis on a regular basis.
They will critique their own and their partners work, looking for population, groups, variables,
direction, as well as vocabulary and structure.
(Literacy in English gives students access to the understanding, knowledge, and skills they
need to participate fully in the social, cultural, political and economic life of New Zealand and
the wider world. NZ Curriculum p18).
For Aroha, examples will be provided of inspirational Graphic artists and the typography they
use in their designs she will be given the opportunity to see and read interviews with these
artists with the intention of showing the importance of good reading and writing skills in
graphic design and the many applications from proof reading for mistakes to design flow with
text, to writing a cv and portfolio to apply for future jobs.
For Kai, examples of pro surfers having to give interviews and speeches to large audiences,
magazines, tv cameras. Also the need to be able to read and understand books on
performance, diet, mental training, physical training for peak performance and recovery.
(Students learn most effectively when they understand what they are learning. Why they are
learning it, and how they will be able to use their new learning. NZ Curriculum p34).
Loti and Aroha will be individually checked up on each lesson to see progress, check on

understanding and enjoyment level of the tasks and to set goals for future lessons and
activities.
Students will have the opportunity to do a group statistical inquiry into a context of their
choice (groups of three or four). They can choose the context and must use some literacy
strategies such as mind-mapping and highlighting to find key information and to come up
with ideas. They will need to present their findings in a google slides power-point and use
either NZ grapher or inzight to show their data as dot plots and box/whisker graphs. They
can use the writing templates to form their question and analysis. They should also discuss
any areas they believe they are weak in and need to work on for the assessment. Class will
critique the presentations on post-it notes which can be grouped on the board (must include
a positive and an area that can be improved on).
(Students learn most effectively when they develop the ability to stand back from the
information or ideas that they have engaged with and think about these objectively. NZ
Curriculum p34).

Learning Inquiry.
Investigating the success of the teaching in terms of the outcomes, using a range of assessment approaches.

NB.This section is not required for Module 2.

The following are prompts. Do not use them as individual headings for your
response.
Consider the impact of your actions on the achievement of students. Describe what was
effective and consider why some students may not have made progress. This is a reflection on
the impact of your personal practice.