Earlier in chapter 1, Falk pointed out that, "John Dewey wrote of the need for education to begin with 'learners' passions and questions' " (2). As adult learners doing our own research, this makes perfect sense; however, in applying this concept to my 9th and 10th graders, I already question how this would work, since so few of my students demonstrate any sort of curiosity at all, let alone the kind of intellectual curiosity I hope to help them create. In essence, this thought lead me to wonder if I could use this as my research question, or, perhaps a sub-question. Some of the thoughts I wrote in conjunction with this idea included ideas about student motivation and drive and how to engage them without making the lessons about them, not wanting to "cater" to their whims. I then began to wonder about how I can help create a culture of homework-doers rather than students who prefer to simply copy off others, knowing I don't collect and read it.
In chapter 3, Falk asks teachers to consider their own biases about their research topic. One of the biases of my own that I will have to face when looking at the use of technology for engagement, should I choose to focus on this, is feeling that technology often seems more game-like than I'm comfortable with.. Perhaps I chose the wrong tools though. It's very easy to see technology being used for playing and exploring, but I don't always see it paired with rigor that promotes in-depth critical thinking, which is my goal.