A
STRATEGY is the plan. It is the WHAT.
A TECHNIQUE
is the HOW the Strategy will be taught.
Question
Types
A. Purposes of Questioning.
B. Questioning approaches
C. Types of Questions
D. The key features of good questioners
E.
Questioning types to be avoided
Good questioning techniques are
essential for developing effective training presentations.
A.
Purposes of Questioning.
1. Finding out what the participant
already knows
This is called establishing "entry behaviour". It is necessary
so that the trainer can avoid repetition, and target the level of presentation
appropriately, clearly an important step at the beginning of a course. This approach
is often part of a Training Needs Analysis.
2. Revising a topic
At
the beginning of a session, questions help reinforce the learners' understanding
of "where we are now". For the trainer, answers to questions indicate the class'
ability to proceed to new topics or a warning to reteach some older material before
proceeding.
3. Stimulating thinking
Sitting and listening for
extended periods leads to inattention. Questions draw a participant's mind back
to the topic.
4. Promoting discussion
Questioning draws on the
experience of the participants. It shows that the presenter is willing to involve
others and is interested in their opinions.
5. Varying delivery
Questions help break the monotony of explanation, and provide a cue to learners
that a new segment of information follows. Questions give participants a break
from listening only to the presenter. They are the key to two way communication.
6. Managing and correcting group behaviour
Questions posed to specific
participants can correct undesirable behaviour e.g. talking while others are speaking,
inattentiveness, sleeping etc.
7. Checking of understanding
A
very important thing to do, after giving a set of instructions to a class, is
to check that they know what is expected of them. The most useful question is,
" Now! What do you have to do?"
B. Questioning approaches
1. Targeting Questions:
Questions may be directed to
groups or individuals. Avoid directing questions in a predictable seating order.
Direct questions to the back, centre, front and corners of the room in a random
fashion. Don't ask the same one or two people all the time.
2. Delivery:
To ensure that all participants consider the question, ASK the question, PAUSE
for several seconds while looking around the group, then NAME the person to respond.
Example: "Why do presenters use questions?" (Pause .......) "Maria?"
3.
Acknowledging answers:
It is essential to show a response to a participant's
answer. If they are ignored, they will assume their answer was wrong. Your silence
will be seen as a punishment and the participant may not try to answer again.
How can you respond? Praise the answer. Say something like, "That's a sound answer."
/ "Well done." / "Just what I was looking for." rather than "Good." "Good." "Good."
Be sincere. Don't use the same response all the time.
Ask the person or
another participant to repeat the answer.
If it is a particularly good answer
the repetition will draw attention to it.
Do not echo answers all the time.
If you habitually do this, the group will not attempt to listen to the person
responding.
Ask another participant to comment on, or explain further, the
answer given.
C. Types of Questions
1. Open questions are those which can be answered by a variety of responses.
Example: " What are the names of some of the important islands in the Pacific
Ocean?"
2. Closed questions are capable of only one correct answer.
These are useful to test recall. Example: " Who is the current president of the
United States of America?"
3. Rhetorical / Dramatic questions are
those for which the presenter doesn't expect an answer. Example : "What then is
the solution to our problem? Obviously there is no easy answer. etc ..... "
D. The key features of good questioners are that they:
( i ) Are brief and concise.
( ii ) Are prepared to rephrase questions
( iii ) Are prepared to draw further responses from participants
( iv ) Use
a variety of techniques
( v ) Redirect questions / responses
( vi ) Provide
feedback and reinforcement without repeating answers
( vii ) Spread questions
around the class.
E. Questioning types to be avoided
1. Yes / No answers.
When teaching a second language, these are
invaluable. In the everyday training room, however, they are useless because the
trainer is then forced to ask, "Why?" or "Why not?"
2. Volunteer questions.
These precede the real question and take the form, "Who can tell me ......"
or "Who would like to tell me ... " or " Can someone help by ..... ?"
3.
Multiple choice provision.
Here the presenter gives the group a range
of answers to chose from, a good technique in a written test but not in spoken
form. Example: "Who discovered the east coast of Australia?............ Well,
was it Tasman, Cook or Dampier?"
4. A string of questions.
The
presenter asks a large number of questions, leading to confusion because participants
don't know which to answer first. Example: "Is Gender Development appropriate
in the context of third world countries or would you agree that population control,
which is given greater emphasis, will naturally bring a correction to the status
of women, or is this just a feature of some aid programs implemented by international
agencies?"
5. The use of unnecessarily complex or advanced language.
Example: " Would the elimination of illumination in the premises contribute to
the cessation of production by the employed personnel ?" It is simpler to say,
" If you turn the lights off, will the staff continue working ?"
http://www2.edfac.usyd.edu.au/BLP/Teaching_Skills/questioning.htm
http://www2.edfac.usyd.edu.au/BLP/Teaching_Skills/questioning.htm#types
Techniques
that Encourage Active Learning
Use the following tactics during
class to ensure that students are actively engaged in thinking about the content.
Students should be called on randomly (using the deck of cards method
for instance) so that everyone participates. When students do not know when they
will be called on they are much more likely to remain alert and engaged in the
learning process.
Students should be routinely called upon to:
Summarize or put into their own words what the teacher or another student
has said.
Elaborate on what they have said.
Relate the issue
or content to their own knowledge and experience.
Give examples to
clarify or support what they have said.
Make connections between related
concepts.
Restate the instructions or assignment in their own words.
State the question at issue.
Describe to what extent their
point of view on the issue is different from or similar to the point of view of
the instructor, other students, the author, etc.
Take a few
minutes to write down any of the above. Write down the most pressing question
on their mind at this point. The instructor then uses the above tactics to help
students reason through the questions. Discuss any of the above with a partner
and then participate in a group discussion facilitated by the instructor
Reciprocal Teaching
This
is an instructiional technique to increase students' understanding of text.
It is a dialogue between the Leader and the students about parts of the text.
Four strategies structure the dialogue:
*Predicting
I think......
*Clarifying
Helps the student focus on any word or concept that is
not understood. Reread, read
around the word,
*Questioning
Facts
a
Evaluative
a
Inferential
a
*Summarizing
Provides the opportunity to identify and integrate the
most important information in
the text. Sentences, paragraphs, the page, the
chapter, or the whole article/book can
be summarized.
* The most important
part of this paragraph / page is...
* The main idea is...
Each
strategy aids the student in construction meaning from the text. It also helps
the student monitor their reading toverify they are understanding what they are
reading.
Non-E Paragraph
Pick a topic that you are studying in your
class and have students
write a paragraph about it without using the letter
'e.' It will challenge them.
Permit use of dictionaries and a thesaurus. Have
them make a list of the word that they wanted to use and the substitute.
Ask
"Why?" Differently
When students are asked "why?"
outside of school, it is often in a situation in which someone believes they have
done something wrong. For example, "Why did you put peanut butter in the VCR?"
After a while, many students react defensively as soon as they hear the questions
"why?" at the beginning of a sentence.
Find other ways to ask "why?" by considering
such prompts as:
What might be the reason(s) behind...?
Will you please
explain your reasoning?
Will you please tell me more about...?
What
might be the reason for...?
Random
Draw
Write students' name on a popsicle stick, small shape, anything will
work.
Put them in a container.
Ask a question FIRST, WAIT, then draw a name
to determine who is to answer.
Return the stick (or whatever)and stir - the
same student may be called upon more
than once. This is also a great way to
determine turns for the balls, computer, etc.
