Katz – developing an inquiring disposition

There is some evidence, and it was published about 20 years ago I think, is that teachers tend to teach the way they remember being taught in first grade.  And they weren’t taught that way, and I think also that very few teachers have actually seen a good model of that kind of teaching, now you do see that in Reggio, where the teacher will probe, “Well if it’s like that, then what will happen next? These are such simple things and kids will make up silly answers, but they’ll make up a few good ones and they can test them.   

So they have to have access to good models, and I think that’s an important mission for us, is to identify these teachers who will engage children in doing what I call, asking the question, questions like what makes you think so?   If a child makes a statement, why not say, “What makes you think so?” not “Where the hell did you get a dumb idea like that from?” no, but what you’re trying to do is encourage the disposition to go on with an idea, what makes you think so, could be this could be that, how could we find out? Or, how could you find out?