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I found this HEQ book much informative.
In most teacher preparation programs, the role of questioning is assumed; that is, teachers are believed to know intuitively how to question students effectively during instruction. After having moved to the classroom, if good questioning practices are not observed, teachers are often simply encouraged to ask 'more questions,' questions at a 'higher level,' or more 'open-ended' questions. These suggestions are not inaccurate, but they are also not sufficiently prescriptive to provide the average teacher with a reliable and effective model for good questioning of students. And yet questioning in the classroom is one of the few means of transmitting knowledge, skill, and attitude from the teacher to the student, from the society to the learner.
In the United States, it is common to hear teachers and students rationalise underachievement on formal tests as a consequence of students not having 'seen questions like these before.' In fact, students rarely fail written test questions due to unfamiliarity with the type of question posed. More likely, they fail because they have not developed the underlying critical thinking skills to be able to answer those questions successfully. While the content of written examination questions changes as the years go by, the underlying language of most assessment questions remains constant throughout schooling. A second grade student who is asked 'What is the main idea of the story?' often encounters the same question in tenth grade, too. The questions remain familiar while the inquiries they demand remain difficult.
What is needed is a pedagogical framework for teachers in years K-12 that deals with these issues. By providing a structured approach to using questions, the cognitive and critical thinking skills of students can be developed. The Highly Effective Questioning technique endeavours to do just that. It uses intensive, tactical, minute by minute oral questioning of students over the course of a lesson, rather than just as a minor note at the end. The framework of Highly Effective Questioning has two main parts: 'The Seven Principles of High Expectations' and 'The Seven Steps to Critical Thinking.'
Rating:  [5 of 5 Stars!] |
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