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Example research essay topic: Effective Questioning In Direct Instruction - 1,409 words

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Effective Questioning Leads to Improved Student Effective Questioning Leads to Improved The purpose of this research was to provide a better understanding of how effective questioning can be used in the classroom and how it effects the students learning. I have separated my report on the research into four separate areas in an attempt to clearly identify the concepts more clearly. I will begin with the formation of the questions themselves, consider their implications in regards to Blooms Taxonomy and identify different methods in facilitation a positive classroom discussion. Finally, I will consider the impact of effective questioning on improved student learning. The teacher that enters his or her classroom and begins a lesson by posing a question that reveals an excitement in the classroom through numerous raised hands yearning to be chosen for comment is something most teachers would love to emulate. A classroom model of active participation and high levels of cognition is what we, as teachers, strive to achieve.

Teachers are offered many suggestions for practice and implementation, but unless the strategy is clearly understood and properly practiced, perceived failure can lead to the dismantling of a good idea. With that in mind I undertook the process of researching the strategy of questioning in the context of direct instruction and class discussion. I have compiled the information into four separate categories that are important in effectively utilizing the questioning strategy. First, I will discuss the importance of forming a question from the wording and formation processes to the desired effect. Second, I will take a look at how and when questions should be asked including which students to ask and how to encourage all students involvement. Third, I will consider ways to encourage higher levels of cognition and positive classroom atmosphere in class discussion.

Finally, I will return to many of the concepts in order to ascertain their effect on improved student learning. At the root of effective questioning is the design of the question itself and the way in which it is asked. Frequently, persons asking questions are asked to explain or repeat the question because it is difficult in meaning and interpretations. Other times the response to the question leaves the questioner to redesign the question because of its misinterpretation. As educators, we need to carefully review the wording, form, expected response and level of thinking required prior to asking students questions during direct instruction and class discussion. There are several factors that need to be considered, which I intend to discuss in the following section.

Teachers asking questions during direct instruction often overlook the actual wording and form of the question. The assumption that the questioners interpretation of a phrase will be universal throughout a large diverse group of teenagers with a wide array of backgrounds is the beginning of a major problem of understanding by the students in the classroom. Payne (1980) explains, The most critical need for attention to wording is to make sure that the particular issue which the questioner has in mind is the particular issue on which the respondent gives his answers (p. 9). Unless teachers are looking for confusing answers, the question should not be confusing to the respondent. Payne (1980) referred to several studies and surveys that resulted in differing statistics merely due to differences in the wording of the question. Use of the words might, should and could interchangeably by some educators resulted in a wide array of answers because of the different interpretations of the questions.

Use of "could" raises the idea of possibility, while "might" suggest probability and "should" leads to a moral issue of need. There are several examples that support the need to consider wording and form in generating questions. With this in mind, the assumption that following careful review of a question will lead to immediate success is far from the truth. After rewriting or reformulating a question adhering to the careful procedure of checking all possible interpretations, a question may still fail to generate the desired response. Further explanation may still be necessary. It is important to check for understanding immediately following the question to fix any possible misunderstandings that arise.

All of these factors need to be considered carefully to successfully gain the desired response and effect of a question. Bloom (1956) offers another consideration needed in forming a question, Taxonomy of Education Objectives. Sanders (1966) emphasizes that Blooms ideas need to be transferred to a taxonomy of questions (p. 3). His definition of the different levels follows: 1. Memory: The student recalls or recognizes information. 2. Translation: The student changes information into a different symbolic form or language. 3.

Interpretation: The student discovers relationships among facts, generalizations, definitions, values, and skills. 4. Application: The student solves a lifelike problem that requires the identification of the issue and the selection and use of appropriate generalizations and skills. 5. Analysis: The student solves a problem in the light of conscious knowledge of the parts and forms of thinking. 6. Synthesis: The student solves a problem that requires original, creative thinking. 7. Evaluation: The student makes a judgment of good or bad, right or wrong, according to standards he designates. Most teachers encourage students to utilize all levels of Blooms Taxonomy in order to capitalize on the optimum learning experience.

However, occasional use and misunderstanding of the different levels listed above leads to fewer examples of higher levels of thinking. There are some considerations of factors that need to be assessed prior to placing a question in a particular category of the taxonomy of questions. Prior knowledge and preceding instruction play major roles in the classification of a question. For example, if I taught a lesson about the colony of Massachusetts and another lesson on the colony of Georgia the following day finishing with a statement of comparison between the formation of the two colonies, a similar question directed to the students later in that week could be classified as memory recall. The student that recalls my comparison will most likely use memory to answer the question while the student who failed to recall the lesson may in fact be using interpretation or analysis in answering the same question.

It is important to pay careful consideration to prior knowledge and preceding instruction before classifying a question at a particular level of the taxonomy of questions. A common fallacy in the classifications of questions is the use of the follow-up how or why. Often how or why is merely a request for further memorization as opposed to the assumed higher level of cognition. Carin (1978) reported, teachers will often use a follow-up question in an effort to obtain the answer the students were given in their reading or previous lecture. Considering the information in this section, it is apparent that there is a plethora of factors in need of careful scrutiny prior to engaging students with questions as a means for learning.

Information will continue to be misinterpreted along the way, but less misrepresentation will aid in the success of questioning. It is important to understand that merely posing a question to the class hardly classifies as engaging the students at any cognitive level. To engage all the students in the classroom it is obvious that teachers need to form a plan that involves consideration of each student in the classroom. In this section I will inform about the possibility of engaging all the students at every level of cognition through questioning. Will (1987) emphasized the consideration of the volunteering and non-volunteering during whole-class questioning and the importance of engaging both equally.

It is easiest to call upon the volunteer when searching for answers to the question posed to the class, especially when previous answers have been less than adequate and the volunteer has a better understanding of the content. Unfortunately, if the non-volunteer is allowed to stay quiet, the grasping of the addressed concept will be more difficult for them to master because a lack of involvement. On the other hand, not calling on the volunteer may lead to a dampening of interest in the students generally more appreciated for their involvement. Thus, balancing responses is very important for each type of student.

The non-volunteer will benefit through anticipation for being called upon if the teacher successfully balances the questioning. This anticipation will lead to better involvement in regards to listening as well because of the implications for following the discussion in order to be prepared for a possible resp...


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Research essay sample on Effective Questioning In Direct Instruction

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