Walls

What is Teacher Research/Inquiry?

The main objective of teacher research/inquiry is to improve resolve a problem within school walls. Teacher inquiry is a process where teachers actively engage in asking questions, exploring resources, and reflecting on their own teaching practices. It is a student-centered approach that allows teachers to untangle complexities in the in the profession and transform assumptions about teaching.

Steps to Teacher Research/Inquiry:

Step 1:  Identify the Issue

• What is problem the teacher wants to address? 

Step 2: Develop Questions 

• The teacher develops focused questions to address the issue.

• Forms the questions or hypotheses based on experiences and observations. 

Step 3: Implementation

• Take action based on the questions developed.

Step 4: Gather Data

• Collect information through various ways.

• Observation, assessments, journal, interview, etc.  

Step 5:  Implement Changes

• If needed, change or reform the initial questions after gathering data.

Step 6: Evaluate and Reflect

• Reflect on the data and the process.

• What worked or what didn't? 

Step 7:  Share Findings

• Teachers can publish their research on different platforms so that other teachers have access to it. 

Step 8: Plan for Further inquiry 

Bacchioni, S., & Kurstedt, L. (2019). International literacy association. The Reading Teacher, 65(1), 652-658. 

This article discusses how including anchor charts in the classroom during small group work can help students not only learn about the concept but also become familiar with using anchor charts as a whole class. The article discusses how teachers in the classroom model anchor charts and give each group a poster paper to write down ideas on a certain topic. This helps students by getting to learn different ideas that their classmates have in mind. Having anchor charts in the classroom engages students as active participants in learning. This article talks about how incorporating different visuals helps students better understand the material, and in this case, it would be the anchor charts.

Benfield, J. A., Rainbolt, G. N., Bell, P. A., & Donovan, G. H. (2015). Classrooms with nature views: Evidence of differing student perceptions and behaviors. Environment and Behavior, 47(2), 140–157.

This article explores how certain students' perceptions and behaviors might lead to active participation in discussions, while others choose to stay silent or show disinterest. It discusses how different learning styles, such as hands-on, visual, or aural experiences, are preferred by students. It also discusses how behavioral differences show up in areas like attentiveness, peer interaction, and obeying directions. The article mentioned that student responses to feedback and performance on examinations can reveal varying opinions about their skills and the subject matter, which caught my attention. The article discusses how these variations affect instructional practices and classroom management, necessitating an inclusive and adaptable approach to meet the requirements of every student.

Bowerly, T. D. (2002). The virtual classroom: An application in the assessment of attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global: The Sciences and Engineering Collection, (Order No. 3046362), 1-188. 

This source discusses the importance of different classroom environments in regards students with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD.) This study focused on students with ADHD in order to test their reactions to different classroom stimulants (in virtual classrooms) and how it affected their learning. The difference was measured from the students baseline activity and then compared to six total significant body movements after the virtual classroom environments have changed using the SWAN behavior checklist. The results found in this study were that overall students with ADHD are more likely to be distracted in the classroom from increased classroom stimuli, posters on the walls or a busier classroom environment. This meant that the students in the study were more likely to omit information that was being presented to them because of the overwhelming classroom environment. A recommendation from the study would be to minimize the amount of distractions in the classroom by limiting the amount of interactions students have with the materials on the walls because if the material is continuously distracting and being changed then the students will be distracted by the ever changing surroundings throughout the school year. 

Coppens, K. (2018). Strengthening your word wall. Science Scope, 42(4), 28-31.

            Word walls are dynamic, interactive, tools that students can use for class instruction. Teachers can create an interactive word wall where students can work collaboratively. This allows students to understand the relationship between vocabulary and word concepts through the arrangement of graphs, charts, and logical patterns. Word walls give students visuals through objects or photographic images to provide the students with visual definitions. Word walls are beneficial to have in a classroom environment because it embeds vocabulary elements into instructional content enhancing their language experience and fostering consciousness. 

Eichele, S. (2022). Using mentor texts: Enhancing student word choice in writing. Illinois Reading Council Journal, 5(4), 26-37. 

This article describes different interventions used in the classroom, such as anchor charts, ABC graphic organizers, and word walls. Mentor texts are an important tool that allows students to focus and see words up close. This tool helps students view themselves as writers and broaden their writing experience. Students need the opportunity to experience words that connect with them personally to help their interest in writing expand. This article's findings were word choice and how students expand their vocabulary through the interventions mentioned. By the end, students started to use specific words that gave their writing a more detailed and intense feeling. Students gained a wide spread of vocabulary and creativity, giving their readers the ability to picture the writing. 

Hanley, M., Khairat, M., Taylor, K., Wilson, R., Cole-Fletcher, R., & Riby, D. M. (2017). Classroom displays—attraction or distraction? evidence of impact on attention and learning from children with and without autism. Developmental Psychology, 53(7), 1265-1275. 

The data used in this study observes students eye-tracking in primary grades to determine where their attention is being focused during a lesson. This research was conducted by changing the visuals that were displayed in the classroom while teaching the same lessons to see just how much classroom displays were hindering the students’ focus. This experiment also took into account neurodevelopmental conditions like students on the Autism spectrum, who can be more susceptible to nonsocial stimuli. Although the research showed that students' attention did vary from the changing displays it was dependent on the amount of visuals on the walls and it did show a significance in students with ASD who gave equal amount of attention to the changing displays as well as the teachers face. In order to overcome these challenges it is recommended that teachers create lessons that will be more engaging for students so that their eyes are not wandering to look for distractions outside of the lesson.  

McDowell, N., & Budd, J. (2018). The perspectives of teachers and paraeducators on the relationship between classroom clutter and learning experiences for students with cerebral visual impairment. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness. 112(3), 248-260. 

The article aims to show how decluttering walls from distracting visuals and items enhances the learning experience of students with cerebral visual impairment (CVI). The classrooms in the study changed the visually overstimulating walls to walls with blank areas and black wallpaper. It was found that students with CVI had an overall positive response to classrooms that were decluttered. The paper mentioned that students were significantly more focused and paid more attention in class. The article argues the importance of creating a learning setting that is inclusive, bearing in mind how overburdening students with disabilities such as CVI with visuals and auditory affects learning.      

 Narkon, D. E., Wells, J. C., & Segal, L. S. (2011). E-word wall. Teaching Exceptional Children, 43(4), 38-45. 

This article goes over word walls and how to best meet a student with autism needs in the classroom. The article goes on to explain how word walls help students with vocabulary words and terms. Students with ASD respond better to visuals and written words. This is why they explain the importance of word walls in the classroom as well as creating word walls and making them digital into presentation slides for the students with autism to be able to refer to. By making the word walls digital, students with autism have a more personalized experience that allows them to better engage and manage their sensory experience while still gaining the same visuals and knowledge as their peers.  

Remington, A., Hanley, M., O’Brien, S., Riby, D. M., & Swettenham, J. (2019). Implications of capacity in the classroom: Simplifying tasks for autistic children may not be the answer. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 85(6), 197-204. 

This study shows how background visuals impact autistic and non-autistic students. The data asked students questions that related to the story, story background, and wall items. Autistic students were found to have a higher level of knowledge of the wall items than the story compared to non-autistic students. Autistic students are shown to be highly distracted by the wall items and have more knowledge of them than the story information. This study also tested the wall items relating to the story, and it showed that students were able to retain information from both the wall item story and the verbal story. Students then gain that extra knowledge of the story from the story-related wall items. Having nothing on the wall is also seen as a distraction, but of the mind. Students instead get distracted by their thoughts. They have also found that when the work is more intense, students do not get distracted and stay focused, and when having easy, minimal work, students tend to wander and look at wall items. 

Wingate, K. O., Rutledge, V. C., & Johnston, L. (2014). ​​Choosing the right word walls for your classroom. YC Young Children, 69(1), 52-57. ​​

This source discusses how educators can create the varying types of word walls and how to apply them on classroom walls to assist young learners with literacy instruction.The purpose of word walls according to the source models the correct spelling of the word, builds vocabulary, and facilitates word analyses. Some of the types of word walls described are traveling word wall, ceiling word wall, word stairs word wall, work-study wall, around the door wall, and more. The type of word wall used by the teacher should be specific to what the students need support on. In other words, word walls should be purposeful. A strategy includes children being invited to choose the word they want on the word wall to help them. The article suggests the appropriate grade for each word wall for teachers to consider.      

What do you want to change based on data collection?

Based on the data we collected, we found that the best approach collectively would be to limit the amount of distractions on the walls to bulletin boards that would be useful to students throughout their work day. This would include anchor charts that gives students guidance such as charts with math formulas, the writing process, learning objective, or even a schedule. 

How will you implement that change?

To help implement this change we found it best to have students create these anchor charts or guidance charts together as a class. This will allow students to know exactly what is up on the walls and where to look to find the information they need. This will also limit the amount of distractions that a poster with no useful information could cause. 

1. 1. How often?

We would change the information on our bulletin boards quarterly. Doing this will help student scaffold their previous knowledge to new knowledge they are learning. This would help to keep the information relevant to students and reinforce the information made available. 

1. 2. How long will it take?

We will take 14 days taking data, documenting, and reflecting in a consistent manner to get accurate data on wall distractions. This will allow us to create an effective wall plan for our students. 

1. 3. How will you track progress?

We will track progress by monitoring student production during group work and independent work. 

1. 4. How will you collect measurable data?

We will collect measurable data by staying consistent and organized. We will collect formative assessments and reflective journals. We will also take observational notes when students seem to appear distracted by walls, taking data on what specifically was on the wall. 

1. 5. How will you document and reflect?

We will document the data using spreadsheets and categorizing it into student comprehension, distractions, and wall effectiveness. We will reflect on our data by keeping what was effective for students and removing what was most distracting. We will also need to make some modifications to ensure the walls are educational and support every student's learning. 

In our inquiry on classroom wall materials and their effects on students with disabilities, we uncovered significant insights into how visual stimuli impact learning. We found that excessive or irrelevant displays can overstimulate students, particularly those with autism, ADHD, and other learning disabilities. Key studies revealed that autistic students might focus more on distracting wall materials rather than the teacher’s instruction, and students with ADHD are more prone to distraction from visual clutter. Our team learned that strategic design of classroom environments—emphasizing minimal, relevant, and purposeful displays—can greatly enhance focus and learning outcomes. Based on our findings, we recommend adopting a more intentional approach to classroom displays, ensuring they are directly relevant to the lesson to reduce distractions and support the needs of all students effectively.

Through further investigation, we found that these displays may overstimulate a student's brain with too much information that they struggle to process everything at once. This leads students to either focus on the background displays or the teacher. Researchers in developmental disabilities did a case where they found that autistic children recalled more information than their non-autistic classmates on the classroom displays. Students with autism then begin to focus on the word displays rather than the teacher's lesson. In their article titled “Implications of capacity in the classroom: Simplifying tasks for autistic children may not be the answer” where researchers observed how autistic students reacted to wall displays. In their article, they found “When the background displays were irrelevant to the story, autistic children recalled more background information than their neurotypical peers, yet maintained their ability to recall information from the central story” (Remington et al., 2019). In other words, students with autism were more likely to remember information from the word walls and posters in the class rather than the lesson the teacher was given even if the posters were non-educational or irrelevant to their learning. These researchers recommend that teachers have task-relevant classroom material rather than irrelevant distractions. They can do this by minimizing the amount of classroom displays or making the displays relevant to the class discussions. 

The article “The Virtual Classroom: An Application in the Assessment of Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)” by Todd Bowerly helped our team to understand how classroom environments impact students with ADHD. The study found that students with ADHD are more prone to distractions and perform worse when faced with changing stimuli, noting that “ADHD children exhibit more omission errors, commission errors, and overall body movement than normal control children” (Bowerly, 2002). This highlighted the need to minimize visual clutter and avoid frequent changes in classroom displays. Based on this, our action plan includes using consistent, purposeful anchor charts and wall posters to support learning without overwhelming students, helping them stay focused on new information rather than becoming distracted.

Our group also used insights from the article “Classroom Displays—Attraction or Distraction?” to guide our action plan. The study found that "children performed significantly worse in terms of their learning scores in the decorated condition than the sparse condition," with increased off-task behavior linked to poorer learning (Hanley et al., 2017). This research highlighted that excessive visual stimuli can be particularly distracting for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who are more likely to focus on classroom displays rather than the teacher. Based on these findings, we developed a plan to create classroom environments with minimal, purposeful displays to reduce distractions and improve focus for all students, including those with learning disabilities.

All in all, our inquiry question allowed us to research the importance of design amongst classroom wall materials, particularly for students with disabilities. Although posters, word walls, and interactive displays are valuable sources of information in education, our findings show that they can also overstimulate and distract students with autism and ADHD. Studies show that irrelevant or excessive displays of content can take away a student's focus from the lesson. Students with autism struggle to focus due to wall materials; it takes away their attention from teacher lessons. As for students with ADHD the displays are more of a visual clutter. Moving forward we learned that current and future educators should create a strategic approach when it comes to their classroom walls. They can minimize classroom walls to spacious, relevant, and meaningful posters that add to the students learning experience rather than taking away from it. By doing this there will be less visual noise and we can achieve a more enhanced learning environment that focuses on supporting the needs of every student.