Parallel Session Proceedings »
3.9.11 Developing Expertise by Modeling the Thinking of a Literary Analyst and Differentiating Instruction
The development of expertise requires exposure to higher level thinking opportunities with more knowledgeable others who know how to move students to the next level of content attainment (Vygotsky, 1978). Investment in talent development also promotes innovation and change. An advanced curriculum that promotes thinking like an expert, modeling expert thinking, and guiding students toward a growth-based mindset with opportunities to learn new information are important to the talent development process (Olszewski-Kubilius, Subotnik & Worrell, 2018). Promoting expert thinking through the use of specific expert-based models is one way to support and scaffold student thinking and promote student growth in content acquisition – especially when this model also includes accelerated resources and content standards (Mofield & Stambaugh, 2016).
In this session presenters will share a field tested model for developing students’ literary analysis skills using engaging literature and accelerated content standards that support gifted student learning and complex thinking in the literature classroom. The model promotes differentiation of instruction in heterogeneous classrooms as well as a vehicle for guiding more complex discussions and expert thinking. For example, students may read a poem and use the model to discuss the setting, symbols, and figurative language. This level one instruction can then be modified within the model by applying more complex questioning techniques and modeling habits of experts by engaging in conversations about how the setting impacts the symbols or how the use of figurative language impacts the main idea or theme.
A large part of the session will be spent providing an example and evidence support of the model and then showcasing how the model can be used to differentiate instruction, model expert thinking and support advanced and complex questioning by combining various literary elements to more closely examine a short text and understand the theme and interpretation. Whether students are in primary or secondary grades this model has been shown to be effective in promoting higher level questioning and a better understanding of the text. Time for participants to develop their own complex and differentiated questions that develop expertise will be provided.