"I am having problems with getting students to answer my questions."
Alternate reasons for the lack of student response (reasoning level 2)
There are two possible reasons for this. The first comes from the literature which suggests that students often feel very vulnerable when having to answer questions.
Incorporated theory into the discussion in an attempt to gain greater understanding (reasoning, level 3).
Newman and Goldin (1990) suggest that students often don't answer questions because they fear that, if they give the wrong answer, the teacher or their peers will judge them as lacking basic knowledge. Because I am a new teacher to this class, there may be an element of this operating, particularly with students who are not as confident as others. The second possibility is that I may not be employing the most effective questioning strategy. Although I have spent considerable time preparing the questions, it is possible that I may not be providing sufficient support to assist students in answering. This would be particularly important if they are afraid of being judged, as Newman and Goldin suggest. In reflecting on strategies to assist students to answer questions, I have considered a number of options described by Cole and Chan (1994):
- Increasing the wait time. This would be particularly important if the question were a more divergent thinking type of question.
- Rephrasing the question. It is stressed that in doing this the focus should be on clarifying the meaning and helping students to try alternative responses.
- I could supply additional information or additional prompts to assist them.
- I could also ask a series of supplementary questions to help students clarify their thoughts.
We have extracted a general principle and have reached a point of conclusion "An environment where there is mutual respect and trust...". This conclusion extends beyond the immediate problem—students' reluctance to answer questions - yet it is drawn from the reasoning process (reconstructing, level 1).
I realise that the use of any particular strategy will be dependent on the specific set of circumstances. However, more important than the specific strategy is the climate I would like to create in the class. An environment where there is mutual trust and respect is important if students are going to be asked to take risks. Although I realise that this takes time to develop, 1 will endeavour to show my students both verbally and non-verbally that their contributions are valued, and provide every support to help them achieve success at answering the questions I put to them. As I get to know the class better, I will have a greater understanding of their current levels of ability and will be able to formulate questions that will challenge them at their particular level of cognitive ability, thereby increasing their possibility of success in answering questions.