Reflection

This article does a great job of explaining how important it is the way teachers ask questions in class, and the way they respond to their students. A teacher's way of asking questions has a... See More

This article does a great job of explaining how important it is the way teachers ask questions in class, and the way they respond to their students. A teacher's way of asking questions has a substantial amount of effect on a students’ learning. The article elaborates on “the ideas shared in the Perspectives column” It provides us with techniques and approaches to help us get much more instructive and enlightening answers from students. The article also explains how all teachers have a particular interaction pattern within the classroom. Some of the examples they gave us are, “predominantly short- answer questions followed by confirmation of student responses” and “Another pattern consists of more open-ended questions and responses that seek elaboration.” I personally relate to the former way of asking questions. During my clinical work I would mostly ask students short-answer questions and I would get quick responses. I was also quick to give confirmation of student responses. I would also throw in a “good job” or “great answer” when confirming their responses. It made them smile and feel confident enough to raise their hand again. I also feel like it helped some of them be actively engaged with the lesson. Although I think both ways of asking questions are fine, the article taught me that asking extended-answer questions can be very beneficial for the teacher and student both because it promotes thinking. I will keep that in mind the next time I’m teaching in a classroom. The author of the article also suggests that teachers should tape their interactions and code it with a form provided in the article. I think that is a wonderful way to understand our interaction pattern and improve it if needed.

Your 'Interactive Fingerprint'

Teachers have a pattern of how they ask questions and allow responses in their classroom. This is described in this article as an ‘interactive fingerprint’ by this author. The author sugge... See More

Teachers have a pattern of how they ask questions and allow responses in their classroom. This is described in this article as an ‘interactive fingerprint’ by this author. The author suggests taping a teacher’s interaction and coding it with a form provided in this article. By doing this the teacher will understand his or her pattern and hopefully improving on it with suggests also provided in this article. This is a good idea for all teachers.