handling off topic questons
I love to have student participation in my class, in fact I demand it... but the conquence of this is that I do recieve many off topic questions and tend to run with them more often then not .... what will help me to keep on topic?
Hi Rebecca- Thanks for your post to the forum. Your advice on handling off-topic questions was excellent - thanks for sharing! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I love the response about the "parking lot" on the white board but I know personally I've had to address "off topic students" outside of the classroom setting; especially if one particular student keeps getting off topic and begins to dominate the entire class.
I simply ask the student to stay after class (via use of post it note so not to embarress) and open by telling the student I love his thirst for knowledge but that the off topic questions are taking up too much class time. I'd continue by saying in class from now on after I answer one "off topic" quesiton I will respond to any others from you by stating "lets you and I talk about that after class or on break, okay?".
This often eliminates the student from asking questions IF his intent is just to waste class time because often that type of student won't give up "personal time" to talk. Of course, the serious student will be stick around so be prepared to give 15 extra minutes at the end of some class periods.
Hi Lynn- Thanks for your post to the forum. I guess students sometimes are excited to get some free legal advice. You handle it well!Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I used to teach a lot of legal classes and had a similiar issue - everyone had someone close to them going through a divorce, getting arrested or evicted, etc. I learned to try to narrow the discussion by placing limits on the topic to the topic of the chapter. I also had to remind them about privacy and just not generally sharing to many facts. I think the "giving instructions" part we went over here was what I was doing without realizing it.
Hi Tisha- Exactly as I would handle it - Great work! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
One way to handle it, is to note that the class can address the topic later as an idea in and of itself or engage the student in a conversation about the question during break or at the end of class.
It is also helpful to note why the topic may be off topic, because sometimes the student may think that it might actuially be linked to the topic at hand.
I have this all the time in Veterinary Technology courses. Everyone wants to tell a story about their pet, unrealated to topic. I politely say "I have to stop you there, I am sure it is a wonderful story, but we have a lot of material to get though today. Can you share that story with everyone after class?"
Hi Bruce - Thanks for sharing that great "parking Lot" whiteboard idea for off-topic questions. I have seen it done also and had forgotten about it! Best wishes- Susan
One facilitator I attended a course with maintained a whiteboard called a Parking Lot and he placed off-topic questions there to be addressed later. At the end of a session, he asked if anyone would like to address these questions and some people volunteered to help answer them.
Hi David - Thanks for you post to the forum. I think that we usually try to be as accomodating as possible with our students which will sometimes get us off topic. We just need to recognize that we have a limited amount of time to get through the required material and do our best to stay on track. Best wishes- Susan
