Hi Jack - welcome to ED 103! Great questions - I have no idea of the answers! (-: How do you generally ask these questiond? Do you ask a specific student or throw them out to the whole class? Do you invite others to expand on an answer you get?
How does a component work?
What is the powerflow thru a transmission in a given gear ratio(ex. 2nd gear, reverse)?
What operates a relay?
What controls the max. pressure in the air brake system?
I have had success by asking a question and then waiting for answers to come. This gives the students time to think. I can then repeat the same question or slightly rephrase the question to bring in more responses. And, finally, i have all students write their answers.
Hi Brad - I like your suggestion about asking students to say how they will use what they have learned in the future. It helps them to see the value of their learning.
Ask questions that allow students to use their own experience in the class topic or how they will use it in the future.
I have had success by asking a question and then waiting for answers to come. This gives the students time to think. I can then repeat the same question or slightly rephrase the question to bring in more responses. And, finally, i have all students write their answers.
I have used the redirect to a student method. Sometimes having students try to answer eachothers questions, other times having them expand upon another students answer. Being in a technical field it is also easy for me to take the same question that was just answered very well and turn it into a "good, but what about in this scenario."
Hi Ernest. I plan to adopt your "WIFM" (What's in it for me?)approach. I believe students will be more tuned into the subject at hand if we give them the opportunity to recognize how the presented information can benefit them personally. Thank you for sharing :)
Hi Ernest - Thanks for your posting! I really like your idea of asking your students how segments of the lesson will benefit them personally. It will help them internalize the lesson and allow them to more easily access it later in their careers. Great idea!
explain the subject matter to the students and then ask question inline with the course amterial. Also follow up question to the student answers.
I employ "teach backs", asking students to summarize for the class, in their own words, a segment of the lecture or discussion. When the student has completed the summary I will re-direct to another student and ask him/her to provide a "WIFM" (What's in it for me?), in which the student recounts something within the lesson that benifits him/her personally.
First I have to mention "wait time". That is the most important part. Someone pointed it out to me, and I have used it ever since and it works. I also like to employ group discussions and challenges such as games and competitions. When I first started teaching, I was surprised to find out that adults like games and group discussions as much as small kids! I also experieced this on my own, when I was taking an SEI course (that is for high-school teachers, when I used to be a high-school instructor) and our teacher had us play games and such on a daily basis. We all learned and it was a lot of fun.
One more method that I use quite often is pass a piece of paper around and ask students to write down their questions. Than I cover those that same day or the next day. That way students do not have to "blush" in front of others and feel comfortable asking their questions and getting their answers.
The publishing process for textbooks for information technology makes the material always out of date. I've found that we can make up for that with follow-up questions like "What would make this type of technology better?" or "Where are we now with products that are better, faster, smaller and more useful?" These questions require large wait times for students to research, so I place them as online discussion forum questions that keep the students working and engaged through the week.
This section on questioning has encouraged me to bring those topics back into the classroom the next week by having them repeat in class what they have found and having them expand on it.
Hi Timothy - welcome to ED 103! As you so well describe "seeing the lightbulb go on" is the greatest thrill for all of us who teach.
I teach in a technical environment and I use the stepping stone approach. In class I question students to engage students and verify comprehension of a subject. In the lab I ask questions to have students analyze their projects. The questions I use build upon each other and it is a great feeling to see the light bulb come on when a concept has been learned by a student.
Hi Joycelyne- Students do love to share their experiences and you are utilizing that well. You also have really good questioning technique - Bravo!
Hi Richard- Welcome to EDE 103! I think your use of scenarios to assess your students is excellent. Not only does it give you knowledge of what they do and do not know, but it also gives them real practice at evaluating /analyzing situations in their careers.
I try to ask questions that relate to either experiences or goals of the students. Sometimes a hypothetical situation such as, "You are the controller of a small company and your accountant..........". This generally gets them thinking in practical situations. It also allows their own ideas to be discussed. I try to keep the questions open-ended whenever possible.
I often try to ask questions that are relevant to the students and that address their experiences. They have much to contribute and connections are often made among students in this way, making for a more comfortable classroom environment. Another technique that I employ is to rephrase a question that doesn't receive a response after an appropriate wait time. I rarely provide an answer to a question I've posed. If I need to rephrase the question a second time, I will. To encourage future student contributions, I thank students for their responses and refer back to those responses when appropriate, to acknowledge their importance and relevance to the topic/discussion.
Hi Dagger-Thank you for sharing this: I believe I will adopt this technique of asking students to write questions to the instructor and using those questions the next day for the review. About the written board questions and small group discussion: I taught a lecture class a couple terms ago (I usually teach studio/lab classes) in which I utilized this technique and I realized that there was often a dominant group member that the other members deferred to. Also, I noticed that some groups were consistently stronger than others. Have you experienced the same? I decided that for the future, I will try to diversify the group dynamic by rotating group members...
