Protocol Analysis

The ability to be self-analytical is the first step on the road to being independent and
creating change from within.

Below are some notes that may help you with the protocol analysis.

Types of questions
Being able to determine the level and tone of your questions will provide an important
insight into this dominant instructional strategy.
A balance of 60-40 percent, or 50-50 percent between factual questions (e.g. yes-no and
short answer) and higher cognitive questions (e.g., comparison and opinion) may be
appropriate for many discussions and question and answer lessons.

Open-ended questions force students to think in a more expanded and thoughtful way.
Closed questions tend to be associated with the lower level of thinking, such as memory
and recall. Closed questions can be reworded to become open-ended questions.

The questioning levels are not absolute. Determining where a question should be placed
is relative to the learner, context, and content of the class. A recall question for a fifth-
grader may be a higher-level question for a second-grader. In deciding the best placement
for the question, determine what information the question seeks to answer and the mental
processes the student needs to achieve to answer the question.

Strategies to improve:
1. Write questions down before the lesson and have them where they can be seen at all
times during the lesson
2. Have a discussion with your students specifically about open-ended questions
3. Listen to other people asking questions and practice rewording their questions in a
more open manner.

Teacher talk/student talk

The teacher talk/student talk balance is an important element in understanding the level
of classroom interaction. Depending on the learner, content, and context, the degree of
teacher talk should vary from lesson to lesson.

An introductory lesson designed to give an overview of a unit may require more teacher
talk than a lesson that seeks to stimulate student thinking and dialogue. Teacher
dominance, which becomes evident in high levels to teacher talk (85 to 100%), could
inhibit student participation and diminish opportunities for students to take greater
responsibility for their learning.

Strategies to improve:
1. Plan lessons to increase student participation.
2. Use tape to access level of teacher talk/student talk
Wait time
Wait time needs to be learner, context, and content friendly. Carlsen (1991) found rigidly
applying the three- to five-second rule to all levels of questions may not improve the
quality of classroom interaction. Other research generally supports waiting three to five
seconds for the student to respond after the teacher asks a question. This is of particular
importance when the teacher is asking higher-order questions. Veteran teachers have
reported counting silently for up to ten seconds before making another statement or
asking a question.

Strategies to improve:
1. Count to ten before calling on any student
2. Tell students what wait time is, and why you are practicing developing it
3. Have students write down responses to a question before you call on anyone
4. Have students share their reactions to the questions with a partner or in a small group
before participating in a large group.
5. While you are waiting, demonstrate something or write your question on the board.
6. Wait until one-half to three-quarters of the students have their hands raised.
7. Watch students’ faces
8. Tell students not to raise their hands – you can call on anyone.

Accepting a variety of student responses

Accepting a variety of answers means the teacher actively seeks a number of answers and
withholds any overt approval or judgement. When the teacher is able to accept different
answers, larger numbers of students will participate. Consequently, more ideas will be
received.

As more students are involved and motivated to share, the class as a whole will take
greater responsibility for the discussion. Students will listen to each other and spark each
other's thinking, in turn increasing the likelihood of more complex thinking.

Strategies to improve:
1. Keep a tally of student responses
2. Tell students they must participate at least two times during a discussion or activity.
3. Tell students that you are going to call on everyone, regardless of who raises his or
her hand.
4. Before calling on anyone, have students write down responses to the questions.
5. Use cooperative learning techniques and a variety of groupings in your classroom
when doing complex-level thinking activities.
6. Use specific questions to encourage variety.
7. Use cards with student names
8. Reserve judgement when students respond.
The teacher will not give opinion or value judgement
Giving opinions and value judgements will make students dependent on teachers for
reassurance and support that their ideas are good or “right.” It will also cause students to
shut down as they know that the teacher has found the answer that he/she wanted. In
consequence, students shut down.

If students are to think on complex levels, it is very important to break their “dependency
habit.” Teacher reinforcement is a powerful tool; it must be used very carefully when
teaching complex thinking. Only then will students begin to listen to each other and
depend on themselves.

Strategies to improve:
1. Explain to your students why you are going to stop giving opinions
2. Say something nonjudgmental after student talk – OK, uh-huh, or thank you
3. Model nonverbal acceptance of all answers from students – nodding
4. Keep yourself busy so that you don’t have time to say “good” – write responses on
board
5. Tape yourself and count the number of times you give your opinion
6. Acknowledge all students at the end of the discussion for the quality of their thinking
7. Hold your opinions until after the lesson
8. Ask follow-up questions

Interaction between teacher and student

The teacher should encourage students to talk to each other, not strictly to her or him. In
teaching complex thinking, a primary goal is to develop more student interaction.
Although little research exist to substantiate our belief that more student talk will lead to
increased complex thinking, it makes sense that the less the teacher talks, the more
opportunity students will have to interact and therefore empower each other’s mental
processes. Such an outcome is the whole focus of the journey you are on. Once students
look to each other, the teacher is no longer the one with all the answers.

Strategies to improve:
1. When one student says something, ask another student (or several) to respond to the
presented statement.
2. Tell students you would like to hear them say, “ I agree with (student’s name) because
…” or “ I disagree with (student’s name) because …”
3. When having discussion, seat students in a circle so that they can see each other.
4. Reduce teacher talk to a minimum
5. Reinforce students when they respond to each other.
6. Do regular exercises with your students that develop listening, trust, and discussion
skills.
7. Use questions such as, “Will you agree or disagree with Jeff?”
8. Require student to paraphrase one another before contributing
9. Direct student to call upon one another