What Can You Conclude? Framework
Discover the "What Can You Conclude?" framework, a powerful technique to foster deeper learning through comparison activities. Learn how to guide students beyond surface-level analysis and encourage them to draw meaningful conclusions.
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What is a What Can You Conclude? Framework?
The “What Can You Conclude?” technique is a valuable tool for instructional designers and educators seeking to foster deeper learning through comparison activities. Its primary purpose is to move students beyond a simple listing of similarities and differences and encourage them to engage in higher-level thinking by drawing meaningful conclusions or generalizations based on their analysis.
The authors highlight a common pitfall in comparison exercises: students often stop after identifying similarities and differences, failing to take the next crucial step of synthesizing their findings. This leaves them with a superficial understanding and misses the opportunity for deeper insights. The “What Can You Conclude?” technique addresses this by posing thought-provoking questions that prompt students to connect the dots and formulate larger takeaways.
Here’s how this technique works in practice:
Pose a conclusion-driven question: Instead of simply asking students to list similarities and differences, the teacher frames a question that compels students to make a judgment or draw a generalization. Examples include: “Based on your comparison of these two historical figures, who do you think had a greater impact on society?” or “What is the most important difference between these two literary movements?”
Encourage explanation and justification: Students are not simply asked to state their conclusions. Instead, they are required to explain their reasoning and provide evidence from their comparative analysis. This ensures that their conclusions are not based on superficial observations but are grounded in the specific information they have gathered.
Extend learning with application: The final step involves challenging students to apply their conclusions to a new situation. This step helps solidify their understanding and demonstrates the transferability of their learning. For example, after comparing two different types of government systems, students could be asked to apply their understanding to analyze a current event or propose solutions to a political issue in their own community.
Example:
Consider a history class comparing the American and French Revolutions. After students have identified key similarities and differences, the teacher might pose the question: “Based on your analysis, what do you believe were the most significant factors that led to the success of the American Revolution compared to the French Revolution?”
Students then need to cite specific evidence from their analysis to support their conclusions. For example, they might argue that the American Revolution’s success was due to factors like strong leadership, a unified vision, and the support of foreign powers, while the French Revolution was hampered by internal divisions, economic inequality, and a lack of clear goals.
Finally, the teacher could extend the learning by asking students to apply their understanding to a different historical event or analyze a contemporary situation with similar characteristics.
Key Takeaways:
The “What Can You Conclude?” technique is an essential element of a well-designed comparison activity. It encourages deeper thinking, promotes critical analysis, and ensures that students extract meaningful insights from their comparisons. By challenging students to go beyond simple observation and synthesize their findings, this technique fosters a more sophisticated understanding of the subject matter and prepares them to apply their learning to new situations.
How to write a What Can You Conclude? Framework Document
Framework for Implementing “What Can You Conclude?”
Objective: To guide students in making meaningful conclusions and generalizations based on their comparative analysis, fostering deeper understanding and transferability of learning.
Steps:
1. Introduction & Concept Exploration:
Introduce the Concept: Explain the “What Can You Conclude?” technique to students. Emphasize that it is about synthesizing information and drawing insights rather than simply listing similarities and differences.
Model the Process: Use a real-world example to demonstrate the technique. For instance, compare two different types of transportation and ask “What can you conclude about the advantages and disadvantages of each?” Provide a detailed explanation of your own conclusion and highlight the evidence used to support it.
2. Comparative Analysis:
Select Comparison Items: Choose items that are relevant to the learning objectives and are appropriate for the students’ cognitive level.
Provide Clear Instructions: Clearly state the purpose of the comparison and provide guidance on the criteria to consider.
Utilize Comparison Tools: Provide students with appropriate tools like Venn diagrams, T-charts, comparison matrices, or “Top Hat” organizers.
Scaffold Complexity: Begin with simpler comparisons and gradually increase complexity as students gain proficiency.
3. Formulating Conclusions:
Pose Conclusion-Driven Questions: Craft questions that challenge students to synthesize their findings and draw meaningful conclusions. Encourage them to go beyond simple observations and think critically about the relationships between the compared items.
Provide Question Stems: Offer question stems to guide students in formulating their conclusions. For example: “Based on your analysis, what is the most important difference between…?”, “What can you conclude about the impact of…?”, or “Which item would you recommend and why?”
4. Justification and Evidence:
Emphasize Evidence: Remind students that conclusions must be supported by evidence. Guide them in identifying relevant information from their comparative analysis.
Provide Prompts: Offer prompts such as “What specific details from your analysis support this claim?” or “Can you find evidence that contradicts this conclusion?”
5. Application and Extension:
Challenge Students to Apply Learning: Provide opportunities for students to apply their conclusions to new situations or problems. This could involve analyzing a case study, solving a problem, writing a persuasive argument, or creating a presentation.
Connect to Real-World Contexts: Encourage students to make connections between their conclusions and real-world events, issues, or situations.
Foster Discussion: Facilitate discussions where students share their conclusions and justify their reasoning. Encourage them to challenge and debate each other’s perspectives.
Best Practices:
Regular Use: Incorporate the “What Can You Conclude?” technique into various comparison activities throughout the year.
Feedback & Reflection: Provide feedback on students’ conclusions and encourage them to reflect on their learning process.
Differentiation: Tailor the complexity of the comparison items and questions to individual students’ needs.
Creative Applications: Use the technique with different content areas and adapt it to suit various learning styles and modalities.
Assessment:
Formative Assessment: Observe students’ participation in discussions, analyze their written conclusions, and provide feedback on the quality of their evidence and reasoning.
Summative Assessment: Include questions requiring students to draw conclusions and apply their understanding to new situations in quizzes, tests, projects, or presentations.
Conclusion:
By consistently implementing the “What Can You Conclude?” technique, educators can cultivate deeper learning, critical thinking, and transferability of knowledge in their students. This framework provides a comprehensive guide for effectively integrating this valuable strategy into classroom practice, helping to elevate comparison activities from simple exercises to meaningful learning experiences.