I have never actually thought about what kind of questions are best to ask in a classroom. Now that I am looking back at my experiences as a student, I realize that many teachers do not ask the class questions that are capable of gauging the extent of the class's knowledge. The general questions most teachers ask, only benefit those students who are actually listening, which as The Right Way to Ask Questions in the Classroom pointed out, is very rarely the entire class. From the resources provided for us, there are a couple of things we need to know about asking questions to be an effective teacher.
1. Ask open-ended questions
By asking open-ended questions, students have time to answer questions in a logical way. It also gets everyone in the classroom to start thinking istead of a select few. This was best described in Asking Better Questions in the Classroom.
2. Prepare Questions
Three Ways to Ask Better Questions in the Classroom explained this way the best. I have never thought about actually preparing questions to ask my students, but it made complete sense. If a teacher does not prepare before-hand, how is he or she able to effectively find out if their students understand the material or not?
3. Do Not Interrupt Student's Answers
I think this is extremely important in the classroom. Interrupting students can lead to low confidence. By allowing students to completely finish their answer, the teacher shows them that he or she cares about what the student has to say. And that can be one of the most important things in classroom. This point is best explained in Asking Questions to Improve Learning
As there are many things that can aid a teacher in the classroom, asking the right kind of questions could be the most helpful. Asking the right kind of questions in the classroom can open a student's mind and thought process. This could lead to them being better students and gaining a thirst to learn- which in turn, turns the teacher to be an effective teacher.
Thanks for reading!
Jennah Rose
I think showing students you care about their answers or thoughts is important and builds their confidence in the classroom. So many students are afraid to answer a question aloud because they are afraid of being "wrong".
ReplyDelete"And that can be one of the most important things in classroom." Never start a sentence with "and".
Melissa,
ReplyDeleteThank you for letting me know about starting sentence with "and". It is a tough habit to break but I will make sure I no longer do that. Thanks!