Prefer to begin with open ended questions.
I build questions in my slide presentations. We discuss the answers often leading to more questions.
Hi George - You have identified some interesting aspects of scenarios in your discipline. Thanks for sharing! Susan
Scenario based question are popular and interesting to answer in criminal justice type courses. It leaves the possibility for acknowledging that sometimes there is no right or wrong way of doing things, that sometimes it depends on the circumstances, or that sometimes it is easy to make a mistake that can be avoided if you do not fall into a trap of assumption.
I ask questions as I lecture and do hands on work. That way I can tell if the students are understanding what we have been going over.
I try to ask scenarios that might involve the students on a personal level so that they are more interested in the answer.
Hi Bonni- Thanks for your post to the forum. Students do indeed respond to opportunities to share their own experiences and it tends to create more of a community in our classrooms.
Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Hi Heather- I teach online also and find that it is really time consuming if done right. As you mention, responding to each student's post to get them to think critically is definitely worthwhile. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. - Susan
Hi Heather - Yes, that's important. Students need to learn how to defend their Yes/No answers. Best wishes - Susan
Hi Heather- I didn't know that - hmmm are their Chiropractors that work on giraffes??? (-;
Best wishes- Susan
HI Dee Dee - Thanks for your post to the forum. Pulling your students into the discussions by relating to their own experiences also will increase their retention of the concepts that they are discussing. Best wishes for continued success in your tdeaching career. - Susan
I receive the best responses to questions that are applied to reality. Simply discussing theory, lists, or "boring" facts doesn't keep attention as well. Discussions that get the students thinking about their past experiences and experiences they anticipate having in the future typically are very successful.
I also do this, Bonni. I like to give them fun facts in relation to the course material. Like this:
"Did you know that humans have as many vertebrae as giraffes? And speaking of, how many do we have and how are they divided into sections?"
I agree, Daryl. And when I ask these questions that could have a yes or no answer, I always follow up with a "why or why not?" or "explain your answer" to avoid short responses.
For my online class, I ask each student an individualized question in regards to their posting. These questions are geared towards getting the student to dig deeper into the subject matter, and since it is specifically related to their discussion board content (and a grade requirement for them to answer) they learn more about the topic and it facilitates great conversations.
Sometimes use student questions to review for a test so I require them to come up with questions for review and may actually use some of their questions on the test...many students feel engaged in the writing of the test.....
Ask questions that involve content related to similarities in the students' realities: what they like, interests they have, current events (local and national), etc. When students relate, they are more likely to feel a part of something. I attempt to build a community in the classroom where expression and opinion are accepted and respected. Then students feel comfortable in answering questions.
ASK them direct questions. :) I like to have my students use workplace examples so I can leverage what they know with the learning objectives of the class. I've found that when my students get involved in the class discussion that they bring an emotionality to their learning which increases their retainability of the material.
I try to take the material "out of the classroom" and apply to real-world situations. This way students bring in their own experiences and it seems to stimulate discussion. Full agreement on the "what if" format.
Ask questions that students can relate to while integrating course content; students like real life expression.
