This discussion emerges from work the students have been doing observing beetles. The discussion is initiated by an open-ended question – “What did you find the most of?” and helped by giving the students an opportunity to turn and talk. The opportunity for any substantive discussion is limited though.

The discussion now turns to a whole class discussion. It is sustained by an open-ended question which invites the students to contribute. The teacher provides some knowledge about bark beetles to scaffold the discussion but maintains a non-evaluative stance that encourages the students to contribute and elaborate their thinking. The fact that one student asks a question – something which is rare in most classrooms – is an indication that students recognize that their thinking is valued. The teacher then capitalizes on this by asking the students to turn and talk and discuss the student question

Although the pedagogic approach remains the same, this section is different in that its focus is a much broader, open-ended question of whether bark beetles are good for the forest. The section finishes by the teacher asking if there is a consensus while admitting that the issue is a bit more than a scientific one and a question of values as well. 

This section has the teacher offering a long exposition of the threat posed by bark beetles to healthy trees and offering some reasons for the change. Notably she draws on the one student contribution about the factors that might limit the spread of bark beetles and builds on that to justify why bark beetles, in the light of climate change, now pose a threat. The question she poses at the end is an ethical question rather than a scientific question and shifts the locus of discussion. The conversation draws on contributions from the students and can be said to make progress as it turns to consider new aspects that should be considered. The final section considers how the bark beetle could be contained or eliminated. The students are making good contributions of possible solutions. 

In one sense, there are a lot of positive features about this discussion. The students are using scientific concepts to explore the competition and interdependency between trees and bark beetles. The discussion moves from theme to theme and is sustained by the non-evaluative stance of the teacher who is constantly eliciting contributions from the students. The question for consideration is, is that sufficient? Could the teacher have done more in that time? And, if so, what should be done differently?