Data Analysis for Action Research - Draft

Data Analysis for Action Research

            The question with which I started this project was: “How can I improve students’ writing and composition using the peer review process?” Although I only had approximately 6 weeks to insert a couple of extra essays, I accomplished said feat. However, I have not had time to insert the last essay at the time of this writing (it’s due next week), and that would make the data more pertinent – that way, I’ll have two essays written without using the formal peer review process, and two essays using my newly revised (yet still evolving) methodology. As of this writing, however, the data is definitely encouraging, but also far from conclusive.

            I assigned two AP-style essays to be written by my Pre-AP English class over the period of two weeks, with about thirty minutes of class time to write (and to be finished at home and handed in the next day). These essays are graded according to the AP scale of essay quality, which is on a scale of nine. These essays are literary analysis essays, employing the technique called “synthesis,” which means that a writer draws from multiple sources (usually two to three) to answer a prompt in a decisive, opinionated manner, citing specific evidence from all sources as evidence to support his or her opinion. My students have done 4 other essays in this manner throughout the trimesters I have had them, so they are familiar with the format and techniques involved to achieve a successful score on an AP-style essay. After those essays had been handed in and graded, I assigned a third essay in which the rough draft was written in the same manner as the first two; however, I then employed the peer review method I have started to refine with my research in mind, and the results, as previously mentioned, are definitely not conclusive, but are mildly encouraging.

            The students’ average score on the first two essays was 4.3 out of 9; after using the peer review process, their scores jumped to an average of 5.2. This is encouraging, initially, because it helps me think that there was indeed a benefit to having them review each other’s essays (which is in direct contrast with a couple of the sources I found!), and as an average, 5.2 for freshman is pretty solid. I’m grading them on a scale that has junior-and senior-level writers in mind, and I try to grade the freshman at that level of writing finesse and technique. However, as previously mentioned, I need more essays using this style of peer review. What I would also like to do is assign two or three essays, using this same style, but giving the students the blanket statement that “you will be peer editing each other’s essays,” then noting what the class’ focus, in general, falls upon. I am interested in finding out if just the term “editing” as opposed to “review” (and everything that accompanies it, including my specific questions to be addressed) makes a large difference. If done with two classes simultaneously, one being the placebo group (editing) and the other the control (review), I think that I would be able to really draw a distinction between the two different methods. However, I would need a lot of class time to be able to do this, and, alas, the year is ending next week, which affords me only time for the one last essay.

            I will keep refining my approach and questions for students to focus upon when employing peer review, but I want it to be when the Pre-AP students are writing essays that they get full credit for doing (usually the first four AP-style prompts are given full credit, as synthesis is a new, specific style of writing that is challenging to do well – I find that this takes away a bit of the students’ fear, and encourages them to be opinionated, rather than being sort of homogenized in an effort to please the instructor and his or her views regarding the literature students are analyzing). I plan to implement it into my mainstream classes as well, but need to perhaps refine my questions’ wording so that I’m specific enough to convey what I want them to focus on, yet broad enough to not be constricting with regard to students’ feedback. I also plan to do a large majority of the upcoming peer review sessions online, using turntin.com’s peer review software, and am interested in whether using it enhances or detracts from the overall effect of peer review.

            As far as an “ah ha” moment experienced during the research, I’d say that shifting the terminology from “peer editing” to “peer review” was actually a huge deal, as it reinforced to me that I need to be incredibly specific in the way I frame the process and expectations derived from peer review, and if done correctly, can really benefit the students (and my essay grading time!).

            Whether or not I continue with this research formally or just continually refine my processes through regular classroom instruction, I do believe that I have benefitted from engaging in the research and review of literature. I am also contemplating folding this research into the topic of “teacher feedback with regard to students’ writing” as a larger research project, as it is the most important, time-consuming, and influential part of most English teachers’ influence on their students. It can lead to teacher burnout, students’ hurt feelings, debates over subjectivity, personal stress and frustration, etc., ad nauseum. If I can truly formalize a process that is adaptable -- yet usable -- and can show other teachers in my department (and next year’s spring conference) how its effectiveness also saves their own time and improves student writing, I will have made a major difference in many lives! In a quest to teach students, I will have helped teach adults as well – that, to me, would be living up to my potential as an English instructor. 

Review of Literature - Semester 1 Final

Googledoc link:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1usEh499yiyLqxRk0GtyCFQi1c9KLutQ0EzOcV05hxSY/edit?usp=sharing

The essay itself, non-formatted:

Peer Review’s Relevance Shall Ensure Student-Writers’ Glory!

The picture at the top of this assignment portrays Snoopy, on top of his favorite location for writing and introspective thinking (on top of his red doghouse - red denoting passion! There are not many symbols that will go un-analyzed by an English teacher) with a typewriter poised and ready, thinking to himself that “Good writing is hard work!” (Schulz). Indeed, it is for many people, if done well, one of the more challenging academic skills to acquire and master, with its subjective parameters for quality, breadth of stylistic flourishes (or lack thereof), and gosh darn it -- grammatical quandaries! While writing / English teachers strive to provide meaningful and timely feedback that will matter to students and help them improve, we (writing / English teachers) also know that the more meaningful revision and consideration that is done, the more students will improve their own writing. Thus, the idea of “Peer Review” was brought forth to the world. The concept has been a mainstay for writing instructors for many years, but the feedback that most instructors seem to give regarding its practice is that it is not as useful as it should be; students either do not take it seriously, focus on the wrong things (more often than not, only searching for grammatical errors and typos), or do not give the practice its proper weight (Sonya & Eric, 2008). I have struggled with these very same issues in my classroom; that is why I chose to focus my review of literature on the subject of peer review -- in hopes of not only finding out why peer review has not been very successful in my classroom, but also because I intend to refine my emphasis on community, clarity of terminology and focus, method of questioning / facilitating feedback, and technology integration, so that students improve their writing as much as all of my college English professors said that they could through the peer review process.

How can I improve Students’ Writing and Composition using the Peer Review process?

I teach at Waconia High School, a relatively wealthy lake town just outside of the more “suburban” suburbs. It is a lake town (host to the 2012 Governor’s Fishing Opener), and lacks a large dose of diversity with regard to both race and socioeconomic status. As of the 2012-2013 school year, ISD 110 had approximately 3% of families benefitting from free and reduced lunch. Other than an unofficial case of what I’ve begrudgingly coined as “suburban existential angstiness,” Waconia is a good district in which to make a living teaching English. I teach in a classroom which only I have occupied in the upstairs addition (what we dwellers dub “The Loft,” circa 2007) to the high school originally built in 1995, and it has two windows that look over wetlands in which I have seen deer, woodchucks, squirrels, and, unfortunately, bird poop that has been stuck to my window ever since the first month of occupation, six years ago (I hid it from view with MPR window clings!).  We are steadily implementing more technology into our classrooms and practices in the form of ipads, Smartboards, new computers in the labs, Turnitin.com and Schoology subscriptions, etc. I have taught a variety of subjects and grade levels within the confines of the high school: 9th grade English, Composition 12, Speech, Performance Media (film analysis), and, three years ago, I (with the help of the vertical team, of course) started and maintained a Pre-AP 9 English class. Next year, however,  I’ll be switching the primarily-freshman-centric schedule to a primarily-sophomore-centric one, with both the mainstream sophomores and Pre-AP students.

Establishing a “Community of Writers”

To achieve the desired result of creating a community of writers that not only values, but benefits, from the peer review process, I find that the aforementioned word “community” is key; I must establish a collaborative, respectful spirit amongst the students who will be doing the writing and editing (Linda, 1999, p. 8-12). Some classes take to this more easily than others -- my Pre-AP English 9 students already benefit from the inclusive spirit that comes with taking said elective honors class, and also typically enjoy fewer students per class (over the 3 years it has existed, the average is seventeen per class); both of these characteristics aid in the willingness of students to participate in a more communal manner with regard to many things, including classroom discussions (especially, and most enjoyably, of the Socratic variety), taking chances on ideas and stances, and writing feedback. My more mainstream classes, such as Composition 12, or English 9, suffer from the ailments similar to what Jesnek (2011) says are prevalent to most peer review sessions -- the more skilled writers do not benefit as much as the poorer writers, and feel both used and apathetic; the less-skilled writers are not as engaged in their own or others’ success, and lack the skill sufficient to provide meaningful feedback; and most reviewers are too easily-distracted in the wrong sorts of goals for the review -- most frequently in the search for typos (the word itself looks like a mistake!) and grammatical mistakes (ironically, studies reveal that all but the most skilled secondary and postsecondary writers have the grammatical competency to give anything but limited and often-times flawed input in this area) (p. 17-24). These significant challenges are not easily overcome, as the peer-review process hinges on, according to the findings in multiple studies of successfully-published essays stemming from the peer review process, including Yang and Wu (2011, p. 1-15), as well as Chandler-Olcott (2009, p. 71-74),  students’ willingness to improve their writing (which is a sometimes over-sensitive topic when being critiqued) and a level of academic honesty and trust that must be present amongst the writers / reviewers. Thus, if I hope to truly help students with their writing, essays, and overall grades with regard to English (and other curricular areas! Writing across the curriculum: no longer just a dream!), establishing a closely-knit “writing community” is essential if the peer review process has a chance of succeeding.

Clarifying Terms, Definitions, and Expectations

Once a community is established (which, honestly, is an ever-evolving process), the clarity of the goals of the peer review process must be established. One commonly-made mistake made (I initially made it as well), according to L.A. Sonya and J.P. Eric in their essay “Whither Peer Review?” (2008), is to call the whole process “peer editing.” The word “editing,” however, implies looking for those tertiary issues previously-mentioned -- grammatical errors and typos. “Review” is more apt, and helps students think more conceptually about the writing, shifting their focus to the “big ideas” like thesis statements, organizational methods, transitional phrases, and the use of evidence and quotations -- these are the things that English teachers (typically) want their students to think critically about (p. 398-407). While the changing of one word could seem small to some, most writers / English teachers know that one small word can change the meaning of an entire work, and so it is with the Peer Review process.

Another important determining factor in the success of the peer review process, according to Diab Mawlawi’s findings in his study using peer review to aid in the publishing of English-language essays of secondary-language learners of English in China,  is the phrasing, focus, and level of questioning that students are required to apply to each others’ writing (2010, p. 85-95). Shifting the focus from “low-level” concerns (formatting, grammar, etc.) to “high-level” ones (thesis, focus, coherence, support) is important (although mixing in specific grammatical focuses for each assignment is a great way to improve writing - more on that in the following paragraph). To achieve a more “high-level” focus, using the “PQP” method of questioning is effective (Sonya & Eric, 2008, p. 398-407). P (praise) Q (question) P (polish) questioning forces students to comment upon good qualities of others’ writing as well as the areas in which they can improve. Forcing them to ask the “right” questions and emphasizing coherence and flow also benefits the reviewer when he/she is revising his or her own essay later on. Thus, asking the right questions in the right order will greatly affect the final products of both writer and reviewer, and the overall success of the peer review process.

While grammatical and format-related issues have been labeled “low level,” that does not imply that they should be wholly disregarded. Much like previously-mentioned issues, if the things students are asked to review are specific and focused, they will be more useful to the writers. The most effective method could be described thusly: either before or during the writing process, teachers use mini-lessons with a specific grammatical focus in mind that will be emphasized in the current essay -- whether it be implementing appositive phrases, preventing comma splices, or maintaining a consistent tense -- the focus depends on the skill level of the grade, a particular class, etc.; students work with the skill and implement it in their writing; during the peer review process, teachers have one dedicated question regarding said skill, encouraging its implementation and (surely!) eventual mastery to both writer and reviewer; voila! Meaningful grammatical feedback used specifically to benefit students’ writing! This specific method is more effective in getting students to retain a focused, specific skill, and will also encourage its use in future assignments.

I have started to implement the following pattern into the teaching of writing in my classroom this trimester (with limited time, however...only 3 AP-style essays were able to be completed in the six weeks of class remaining). Most of the building of community has been established at this point, as the class had been in session for almost two full trimesters at the time of writing this essay. Assessment-wise, the PQP method helped produce more focused and complete writing by the students, boosting their cumulative scores on the essay using the PQP method of Peer Review (as well as a clarification of terms and expectations) from 4.3 to 5.1 on an AP-focused grading scale of 9. A 5.1 is an above-average score for a freshman, so I am happy with the somewhat limited scope of the results of implementing these theories thus far.

Using Technology to Enhance the Writing and Peer Review Process

The final tool I have worked to use more often in the peer review process (at both the request / encouragement of students and my school district, as well as my desire to be “gadgety”) is the specific use of technology to enhance the writing process -- and, perhaps, make the students feel cooler about what they are doing, which I hope subtly bamboozles them into doing a better job and becoming more invested in their own learning. I have used Turnitin.com’s Peer-Review functionality to not only hold students accountable for what they write, but also shift some of that grammar-related feedback out of their focus (it has a computer program that recognizes, albeit inconsistently at times, grammatical errors in writing). I could choose to have students respond to papers anonymously, or conspicuously (I prefer things to be out in the open, however). I have also used Schoology, an academically-focused website similar in format to Facebook, to hold online thesis statement discussions, as well as thematically-focused discussions, which help students’ critical thinking (and writing, as a byproduct - one must be sneaky!) and engagement in their classes’ communities. All of these findings are consistent with that of Chandler-Orcott’s in his studies regarding co-writing, reviewing, editing, and publishing writing using technology and online databases (2009, p. 71-74). While I do not agree with all of his assertions (most English instructors bristle at even the uttering of the word “Wikipedia” when used by the phrase “credible source”), he has found that consistent use of the practice of peer-writing and reviewing (with the final goal of publishing) yields higher-quality results, and the technological base of the writing projects is what leads to a more streamlined, cooperative, and engaging experience.  If focused and used well, technology is no different than the other parts of the peer review process -- it can greatly aid and enhance the final product (as well as cut down on the time it takes teachers to grade and hand back assignments!).

During the past year, I have slowly implemented more of these peer review-centered assignments using the technology at my disposal, but at the time of said implementation, I was still, upon reflection, not as clear, focused, and stringent with what I wanted the students to focus on and receive from the process; in fact, I called the whole practice “peer editing,” which, ironically, upsets me less about the results in retrospect, as the students were in fact focusing on those minor incidents of grammatical malfeasance the title of the activity suggests! So, moving forward, I shall endeavor to first clarify my terms and expectations with regard to PQP, then move on to the fancy technological integration of the process. This will help in the assessment of what the students are gaining from the practice, as well as their final assessments.

A good peer review session is very tough to implement and achieve. In fact, a few of my articles actively discouraged the practice, saying that its results are never what instructors want them to be, and since the practice varies so widely in its goals and implementation across the academic spectrum, it is different-- thus, inconsistent and “dicey” -- every time a student changes instructors (Jesnek, 2011, p. 17-24). This, however, does not discourage me from trying to find that “sweet spot” in my quest (hopefully not of the “foolish” variety) to make it an effective tool for my students. Most research says that the more students write, as well as think critically about writing, the more writing skills they develop; they also become better readers and critical thinkers. This is an honorable goal; this is a goal that is shared by the majority of teachers that I know; this is something that our hyperactive modern society, with its ever-shifting focus on constantly shifting its focus, needs! With so many people striving to be part of a community-- whether it be one on Facebook, “World of Warcraft”, Twitter, or whatever future community-based craze comes to pass-- peer review has the potential to link students to a more focused and academically-relevant group - the writing community.

References

Chandler-Olcott, K. (2009). A tale of two tasks: Editing in the era of digital literacies. Journal of

Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 53(1), 71-74.

Jesnek, L. M. (2011). Peer editing in the 21st century college classroom: Do beginning

composition students truly reap the benefits? Journal of College Teaching and Learning, 8(5), 17-24.

Linda, L. M. (1999). (Practically) painless peer editing. Instructor, 108(7), 8-12.

Mawlawi Diab, N. (2010). Effects of Peer- versus Self-Editing on Students' Revision of Language

Errors in Revised Drafts. System: An International Journal Of Educational Technology And Applied Linguistics, 38(1), 85-95.

Sonya, L.A., & Eric, J.P. (2008). Whither “peer review”? terminology matters for the writing

classroom. Teaching English in the Two Year College, 35 (4), 398-407.

Yang, Y., & Wu, S. (2011). A Collective Case Study of Online Interaction Patterns in Text

Revisions. Educational Technology & Society, 14(2), 1-15.

The top 10 things about 2012-2013 from "a certain point of view."

The top 10 things about 2012-2013 from "a certain point of view." 

As far as ranking these momentous events, I'm putting out the disclaimer that they are subject to change / re-ranking, as I'm a notorious tweaker of rankings.

#10: Deciding to enroll in "Masters class"
I've been sort of putting it off for a couple of years, with good reason: a trip to Europe, getting married, having a baby (my wife did the work, not me...this isn't the 90's and a Schwarzeneggar flick - Junior ref! BLAMMO). So, this is a big deal for me. I've always wanted to get it in English / Literature / Film, but due to the inaccessibility and time commitments of said programs for teachers, I couldn't do it - and perhaps its in my future. This masters class is more applicable to making my life more efficient in the classroom, though, especially with my project's emphasis, so I think it's a great fit at the moment.

#9: Finally getting an ipad with which to plan my curriculum
I hope that doesn't sound entitled, but we had to fight for those suckers, and I'm going to be using an all-online textbook next year, with Schoology as a base for distributing stuff, so I needed to get cracking on that stuff right away.

#8: Shuffling classes
It just came out this week that some of the classes for next year will be shuffled, and I'll get a chance to re-work and re-invent a class that I've had my eye on. I can't reveal it at this time, as prying eyes may reveal a secret that cannot be revealed at this time, but I taught this level during my student teaching, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

#7: Revising my grading method with regard to essays
It's going to hopefully save me a lot of time and effort, and provide better results for students as well. 'Nuff said.

#6: Competing Pre-AP English blogs' creations
Two students created blogs honoring Pre-AP English 9! This is great because it makes me feel as if they like the class (even though I am blamed for ruining 4.0's too often), and appreciate my teaching's sensibilities and style. They are cool kids, and make my job worth doing! Also, they take neat pictures of adventures, such as our trip to the Guthrie theater.

#5: Having my wife come back to work following maternity leave
She teaches across the hall from me, and without good ol' Ms. Neibs in her classroom across the hall from me, the "loft" (our upstairs portion of the school that no-one but the teachers that teach up there likes to ascend the staircases to reach) seemed a bit more empty than usual. Also, she has Cheez Its over there for when I've scarfed all of mine. Colby rules.

#4: Working with students who care
Nothing is more satisfying to me, teacher-wise, than working with students who are invested with and care about what they're doing in and for the school. I get the chance to work with the student council, coach basketball, and teach classes that students (not all, but quite a few) care about and enjoy, and that environment is an incredibly satisfying and enjoyable way to spend my days.

#3:Getting a "holiday" present for the first time in my 7-year career
I'm jealous of my elementary school friends who rake in over $300-$400 of gift cards every year, so I guilted my students into honoring my efforts. I received a pencil and a mug! Booyaa! If there were a "not top 10," however, it would be when said mug got kicked by another student and the handle broke off. The student looked at it, did not apologize, and walked away. What the cuss.

#2: Having students like The Catcher in the Rye
It is my favorite novel to teach, by far, for many reasons, but the real thrill of it is getting students to realize that novels aren't always about intricate plotting or big twists or overt sappiness (which, as 9th graders, can sometimes be the stuff they've been reading on their own). Teaching them to empathize with a character who is also alienating at times, as well as understand "How authors 'mean'" is a major accomplishment for my profession, and no novel helps me do that more than Catcher. As a sidenote, I know that I'm doing something right when I can make students tear up at the concepts or characters in the novel, and I did it using this very novel. Heck, their emotional response to Holden's circumstance got to me as well, and frequently does when re-reading it, under the right circumstances - that's quality stuff to me.

This moment "forced" its way into my top 10.

#1: R2-D2
A student found him at a garage sale; purchased him for $10.00; brought him to school; celebrations commenced! One can't underestimate the importance of a good astromech droid.

Adopting the growth mindset

I've adopted a growth mindset on a couple of different occasions, I suppose, but the most significant one I've engaged in recently is the shift to a different style of grading essays. I am going to try and only focus on the assigned grammatical terms that the class has worked on for a certain essay (that build over time according to what they've learned thus far), and focus the rest of my essay-grading energy on the "big topics" such as thesis statements, tone, flow, coherence of arguments, etc. I'd say that the biggest struggle with that is that the students' mistakes are standing out like giant glowing beacons / distress signals, and like the crew of the Starship Enterprise, I feel the need to rescue them from whatever mess they've walked into at the time! It's really, really hard to resist marking every possible thing I know, as if the sharing of my grammatical knowledge is required for them to be complete people, which I'm pretty sure (but not guaranteeing) isn't the case. This, in theory, once I get the technique down, will lead to less time grading essays and more time rockin' out with my wife Kate and daughter Elise. It's a struggle, though. Given the fact that I've just started to do it this way, as well as mark their rough drafts and force revision (not marking their final products unless requested), I'm encouraged that I will in fact get the times per paper down on average - any English teacher knows that grading essays can be the most time-consuming and unfulfilling parts of their job, especially when one sees a student chuck their freshly-graded papers in the bin. It causes Hulk-like rage-outs. The thing I'd change about this ongoing experience is that I'd try and invent a time machine, or something that'd allow me to alter and abuse the space-time continuum, and then employ it so that I appear to have graded all of my papers, but have actually let only a fraction of time pass in the real world- then, grading essays wouldn't feel like such an up-and-down crapshoot of usefulness vs. uselessness. I haven't done that...YET!!!!!!!!!

Growth mindset

Basically speaking, a growth mindset is a state of mind in which the individual believes that knowledge is not inborn and static - thus, they can, and are willing to, improve their knowledge, skills, and works through many methods (such as criticism, feedback, failing, etc.). That, versus a static mindset, in which the individual believes that knowledge (or skills, or whatever) is inborn and just comes naturally to some. This person, if he/she believes oneself special, could be entrapped and "brittle in the face of adversity" (Dweck). This individual may fall prey to the logical fallacy of the following quote: "When we win, then we're winners; thus, when we lose, we're losers." This is clearly a poor mindset to employ, as it would make "one and done" (with regard to anything, really, since we all improve vastly over a number of areas of skill) a motto of an entire generation. 

A growth mindset, then, values a number of qualities: 
 - it doesn't assume that one is chained to his / her current capabilities - it leaves room for and desires growth and improvement.
 - it acknowledges that setbacks are KEY to changing our own abilities.
 - it "worries" about trying and effort vs. how it will be judged.
 - it promotes "coping with failure" through such simple statements / perspectives: "It looks like you tried really hard" is more valuable than "Good job - you're smart," as it doesn't imply the success was a result of an inborn characteristic. 

Thus, a growth mindset can theoretically be promoted (or attained!) through this simple process: 
1. Acknowledging that the growth mindset is both scientific and beneficial. 
2. One emphasis the desire to learn to develop one's abilities.
3. Listen for the "fixed" or "static" voice in oneself, and respond in the "growth" voice: "I can't do it...yet." 

I believe that the growth mindset is a valuable perspective to help students and athletes attain, as it is absolutely essential in the teaching of writing, where sensitivity to both peer review (which I'm working on!) and teacher review is needed for virtually all students, but also equally feared. I've seen this quite often in my teaching of said skill. It is also readily applicable to any athlete in high school, as there is almost always someone who is ranked higher, taller, faster, or more highly-lauded than someone else. However, it is great for breeding the "underdog mentality," which I think is the most satisfying position in which to find oneself in the athletic world - it makes victories sweet, satisfying, and defiant! Thus, it helps to validate that losses can and should be used purely as motivation to improve and make one stronger. 

Backward Design

1. What are the features, examples and non-examples of UBD?

Since Backward Design is a method of envisioning and designing to obtain the desired goal of a unit, a feature of this whole thing is knowing what one wants the end-product to look like and feature (usually with regard to quality, relevance to standards, etc.). An example of this would be a broader goal, such as having the ability to "critically write, citing sufficient evidence, a  literary analysis essay that is thoughtful, organized, and in MLA format." Come to think of it, that is maybe more specific of a skill to cite as THE example, but it lends itself to multiple standards, areas of learning, and skills! It's how we're going about revising a lot of our curriculum, currently. A non-example would be saying "we'll cover grammar," or "students will be able to identify direct objects." 

2. How would you define UBD in six words or less?

Critical and creative use of content. 

3. What do you see as benefits and challenges to this system?

Challenges: getting one's department to wholeheartedly engage in the process of backward design in re-making / envisioning the curricula. 

Advantages: It's a good way to make sure one's assignments are purposeful, working toward attaining a specific and meaningful skill, and, generally speaking, making a department coherent and "slawesome." 

4. In what ways has small and large group discourse enhanced your understanding of UBD?

It has benefitted me with regard to the clarification of the different types of questions / units / examples a department / individual can use and employ in the designing of units. 

5. What perplexing questions do you have about UBD?

I haven't any questions at the moment - I'm familiar with the concept, as our department is currently employing it. 

Data analysis

What are the features of data analysis?

Synthesizing the data is probably the best way to describe this: combining context, analysis, and educated inferences to truly understand what is being analyzed, how it can be beneficial, and what the overall purpose of the data is. 

What are examples and non-examples of data analysis?

Example: Making inferences based on the examples put forth from a control group.

Non example: changing the assignment based on poor results; judging that students' success rate is due on whole part to minor changes / anomalies in the data; etc. 

What is your defintion of data analysis in six words or less?

What is the story of data?

What is your plan for analyzing your raw data?

Analyze and interpret the results of multiple Pre-AP essays (conducted in the AP style) when the students have done 2 without any peer review and 2 with peer review as an aid. 

What challenges do you anticipate when analyzing your data?
Just squeezing it in in a meaningful way - 4 essays in 6 weeks is a bit of a stretch to get in and back to them at the end of the school year (due in part to my paternity leave), but I'll make the attempt. 

What have you learned about data analysis from small and large group conversations?

That it doesn't tell the "whole story." It's all about context, detail, and the varying factors that surround the pure numbers in the data - thus, the teacher is of immense importance in creating meaning from said data. 

What are some of the questions that you have about data analysis?

Quantifying observations - pulling patterns through behavior. Legit?