CHOICE IN THE

CLASSROOM
ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT BY ALTHEA DAVIS IN KINDERGARTEN
CLASSROOM AT BRET HARTE ELEMENTARY
BASIS FOR RESEARCH

In studying my students last semester, I realized they did not interact with the materials
they were given for math and science in a productive and engaged way.
Everyday, I have to personally sit next to the students when they are working on
individual work. There is always discussion about other things which turns into an
argument leading away from the main objective of the lesson.
Anecdotal note prior to research: When we passed down a stack of paper cookies for
math and the book The Doorbell Rang. We asked them to figure out how many cookies do
they have all together if each child has six. Automatically they all grabbed cookies and
held them. They spent the entire time arguing over who gets them. One student spent the
entire time passing out cookies and writing down random numbers. Every time I told him
how to use it, he would just pass them out. When I pulled one who was doing the same
next to me for one-on-one assistance, he could write down the answers and figure it out.
QUESTION

Originally my question was How can the interaction with lesson

materials encourage focus on objective rather than detract from it?
It became clear, the focus was to broad and unobservable.
I adjusted the question to be:

How does a students choice of materials

affect their engagement with the objective?
STEPS

1. Deciding on which aspect of the routine I would adjust and what would stay
constant.
1. Variable: choice or no choice.
2. The issue typically occurs during math independent work and math/science centers.
2. Choosing equal days to alter.
1. Review days both days-same objective.
3. Administering in contextualized setting.
1. Not mentioning it was for something in particular.
4. Grading Accountability Sheets
1. Grade for completion and accuracy.
2. Percentage to equalize the number of questions.
5. Review and analyze data.
STUDENT WORK
DATA COLLECTION
DATA ANALYSIS
Choice in Classroom Math

Independent Work Centers

CONCLUSION

Students are more engaged with the

objective at hand when assigned the
tools to use, particularly in centers.
ACADEMIC LITERATURE

Successful teacher case study says the secret is telling your class: This is your class... we
can do it any way you want as long as you learn the math. In other words, while the
teacher did lay out some non-negotiables the essential elements necessary to cover
content standards and to ensure that the work got done he largely left the overall
options and details up to his students.
There are other factors in this research!
Research found somewhat different effects of providing choice for Canadian versus Chinese
children and between boys versus girls. Recent research continues to verify that gender, culture,
and other ethnic and racial variables relate to how willing students are to be autonomous learners
in school settings

Mccombs, B. (2017). Developing Responsible and Autonomous Learners: A Key to

Motivating Students.American Psychological Association. doi:10.1037/e501922017-001
FURTHER RESEARCH

Barbra Mccombs (2017) says, a key to motivating students is helping them recognize
and understand that they can take responsibility for their own learning.
The next step would be to make sure they understand the reasoning behind each
manipulative and in each choice. Explain to them that in giving them a choice they
are taking ownership of their learning.
Explain the weight behind their decisions.
Reduce the number of choices.
Making clear non-negotiatables

Mccombs, B. (2017). Developing Responsible and Autonomous Learners: A Key to Motivating Students.American
Psychological Association. doi:10.1037/e501922017-001