English Language Arts and Reading.7.12.C

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The student is expected to

refine the major research question, if necessary, guided by the answers to a secondary set of questions;

inquiry research TEKS talk image

Knowledge and Skills Statement

Inquiry and research: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts. The student engages in both short-term and sustained recursive inquiry processes for a variety of purposes.

During one-on-one conferencing, have students share the questions they have developed during the research process as they consider their original research question. Document observations of student progress as they revise their major research question to best guide their research.
 

Further Explanation

Students should recognize that once the research begins, a secondary set of questions will develop, and they should be able to refine the major research question or narrow the focus based on the new questions. For example, students may begin with a general question and, after initial research prompts more specific questions, choose to focus the major research question on a more specific topic.

The major question is the specific question that a student should try to answer through their research. Students may start with one version of the question and refine, or narrow, its focus throughout the research process. For example, students researching the events of a historical novel related to Texas history may begin with a general question such as “What was the Fredonian Rebellion?” After initial research prompts more specific questions, the student may choose to refine the research question to “How was the Texas Revolution influenced by the Fredonian Rebellion?”

Research

Maniotes, L. K. (2019). Getting to great questions for inquiry and research. Teacher Librarian, 46(3), 17–20. Retrieved from https://www.gale.com

Summary:In this article, Maniotes provides a strategy that develops research and information literary. A critical component of the strategy includes guided inquiry which refines the research question. The process include clearly articulated intentions; paraphrasing; focusing on students' interests and motivations for selecting a topic for research; and collaborative discussions. The article includes examples of how to implement the guided inquiry design.