Have you expalined this to the learner? Maybe you can get through to him by talking to him on the side? If the student understands that you are not there to get into a intelegence contest with him but to teach him/her something they will understand that it is not appropriate.
I will say something like "That's an interesting question John. How about researching the answer and reporting on it tomorrow?"
Susan
I have one of these now and this student is relentless about it. The student is really sharp, too big for breeches, but just barely skims by on the tests. Student could really excel if spent more time focusing on subject matter and not trying to take the class on a tangent and stump the prof. In the past I have had to ask student to hold unrelated questions for break or after class. When I have done this the student has shut down completely. None of my past students consider me to be boring, but I must bore this student to tears. Any thoughts?
I like that strategy, but I have sometimes had that backfire on me, as the student is able to see thru my ploy. I think it's important to use it in the right setting, so the student can't turn the tables on you!
A very good technique Robert!It not only avoids the "stump the Prof" situation but gets the rest of the class involved.
