Hi Maryellen, That's a great idea to open up questioning sessions! Susan
Susan Polick
My students will write down questions at the middle or end of class and place them in a container. After break we pick the questions at random and each student takes a moment to think over the answer and then we have a discussion on the topic. This way no student feels his or her question was dumb or repeated.
MaryEllen Parker
Hi Kisha, Thanks for your post to the forum. Yes, it is important to get students comfortable with questioning! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Susan Polick
It helps to use real life experiences to elicit responses. It also helps to allow students time to tell their examples.
when open ended questions are ask it helps in a way of letting the students know that there isn't a right or wrong answer and they feel more at ease with responding to the question. with this they are allowed to put there own opinion into the answer.
Open ended questions work really good,also having the student show where a muscle is on ones self or on partner naming muscle or bone ect,re-enforces what is being taught.
Hi John, Thanks for sharing a good point, John! Sometimes it's just necessary to get studxents talking about anything at all! Best wishes- Susan
Susan Polick
Student participation is encouraged if the student can talk about something that interests them. Sometimes subjects that don’t directly relate to class topics can be discussed simply to encourage involvement. A discussion on the latest cell phones technology can provoke a good response and set a healthy atmosphere for course topic discussions.
Hi Wouter, Thanks for your post to the forum. I really think that questioning techniques is one of the most difficult aspects of teaching to master! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Susan Polick
I have applied questioning sessions to reinforce lecture material. I must admit that, after reading Module 2, I probably have not made the most effective and constructive use of these questioning sessions. Thus far, my questioning sessions were rather repetitive and non-varied. While I sometimes start out with a question to one student in the hopes to redirect and build on the response, it has been difficult for me to manage the "avalanche" of responses that I get from the student who I did NOT direct the question to. I guess I can label that as participation, but it is not the kind I had in mind, and it leaves me with a sense of lack of control in the classroom. I am eager to apply the newly learned techniques!
Hi Lovie, Thanks for your post to the forum. Yes,including participation points can indeed get students to speak up! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Susan Polick
Student participation is a great tool. I encourage students to do this in an effort to boost their grade and get over their fear of speaking up. :)
Hi Danielle, That's an excellent observation! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Susan Polick
I have found that when I start class with yes and no questions and then later in class go back to the questions but ask them in an open-ended way I have greater participation. students seem to then expand on why the answer was yes or no and sometimes insert their real life experience within the answer.
Hi Edward, Thanks for your post to the forum. That is a great way to get increased participation! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Susan Polick
I start by citing examples using personalities that appeared in certain movie scenes depicting medical conditions or situations and proceed from there. That gets us on the same page if they have seen the movie.
I usually ask open ended questions, and state to the student's that there is really no wrong answer.This will decrease the anxiety amongst students and ecnourage participation.
Hi Kevin, That's a great strategy1 They are somewhat reassured by what they find they already know. Susan
Susan Polick
If I know the material or topic we are going to cover is difficult/hard to understand, I like to ask the students vague general questions at the start of the topic. I like to ask them to tell me randomly everything they know about the topic either through personal experience or education. This usualy gets them involved and they take ownership of the topic and it seems to sink in much better.
I may have a list of questions already prepared and ask those questions during the lecture. I would also take students into the lab and explain how that system works to other students. At that point they tend to ask more questions and voice opinions based on their experiences.
