I read the article, Three Ways to Ask Better Questions in the Classroom, by Maryellen Weimer. After reading this article , it made me think about the kind of questions, I want to ask my students. Before reading this article, I did not think about how important good questions are. Maryellen Weimer pointed out that good questions make students think. Good questions encourage students to participate and think about their questions and answers. She recommended three actions; that can help improve teacher questioning.
1. Prepare Questions- Some teachers come to class without prepared questions. Their questions are, whatever comes to their mind, at the time. So, it is important to come to class with prepared questions. It is important that these questions are clear and make your students think.
2. Play with Questions- Playing with the question means leaving the question unanswered, and using strategies that help encourage students, to think about the question. Then, answer the question later.
3. Preserve Good Questions- It is okay to save good questions. Sometimes, students ask good questions. Those questions can be used, in other classes, to help students create more good questions.
I watched the video, Questioning Styles and Strategies, it featured Dr. Harvey Silver and a fifth grade class. The students responded to the comprehension menu questions.
A comprehension menu was prepared that consisted of four questions for each learning style. These learning styles are: Mastery, Interpersonal, Understanding and Self-Expressive.
In the video, there were many techniques demonstrated that will help keep students engaged. Also, these techniques will help students continue to expand their thinking. These techniques are:
1. Technique Provisional Writing and Cueing
2. Think Pair Share
3. Random Calling
4. Surveying
5. Student Calling
6. Value Feedback
7. Extending
8. Wait Time
9. Learning Log
10. Clarifying
11. Physical Representation
As a future teacher, it is important that I develop effective questioning practices. Good questions can help students understand and learn information. I think that it is important for me to ask good questions so, that my students can see the importance of asking good questions. Also, good questions will help to keep my students engaged. My students can see that questions help us to think and questions help us to learn. Good questioning can set students on a great path to asking more great questions.
Good post! You said "After reading this article, it made me think about the kind of questions, I want to ask my students." After reading some of the other resources about questioning I felt the same way. It made me think about the kinds of questions I would like to ask my future students too. You also said "Before reading this article, I did not think about how important good questions are." Neither did I! I never knew effective questions took so much thought and planning. I agree with Maryellen Weimer, good questions do make students think and that is always important for their growth in their education. Your post was easy to read and understand.
ReplyDeleteGood post. I would suggest instead of listing all of the 11 techniques, to take a few and elaborate on them more and how you could personally use them with questions. It would make them more valuable instead of just making the length of post longer.
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