Enhancing Student Learning through Questioning & Feedback Techniques

1. Importance of Questioning and Feedback Technique in developing 3 Cs www.schoolofeducators.com

2. WHAT ARE 3 Cs CRITICAL THINKING CREATIVE THINKING & COMMUNICATION SKILLS www.schoolofeducators.com

3. Teaching time … … Developing students’ 3Cs Difficulties Students’ attitude Students’ ability Teaching practices www.schoolofeducators.com

4. ? ? • Reflection: questioning and feedback techniques can create an atmosphere where students feel secure enough to take risks. Misconception: “Students are not willing to speak in English. It is difficult to develop their communication skills.” www.schoolofeducators.com

5. Creating a classroom culture open to dialogue • Attentive listening • Be patient • Don’t interrupt students while they are responding to questions unless they are being disruptive • Reinforcement • Make positive statements • Use positive nonverbal communication • Encouragement • Encourage responses from volunteering and non-volunteering students www.schoolofeducators.com

6. Creating a classroom culture open to dialogue • Redirecting • Invite other students to give additional information or comments • Allow a student to correct another student’s incorrect statement • Rephrasing • Reword the question to make it clearer • Provide some information to help students come up with the answer • Break the question into more manageable parts www.schoolofeducators.com

7. ? ? • Reflection: questioning and feedback techniques can aid critical thinking processes, and encourage creative and imaginative thought. Misconception: “Students are not able to answer higher level questions. It is difficult to develop students’ critical thinking and creativity.” www.schoolofeducators.com

8. Developing critical thinking and enhancing creativity • Wait time • After framing the question, pause while everybody has a chance to think of an answer • Let students prepare or discuss higher level questions • Scaffolding • Scaffold learning with rich input (thoughts and language) to prepare or activate students • Use recall questions first to be sure the students have the knowledge. Then proceed to comprehension and analysis questions. Follow those up with evaluation/creative questions. www.schoolofeducators.com

9. Developing critical thinking and enhancing creativity • Prompt • Use follow up questions to help students justify / clarify/ analyze a statement or comment • Make use of five senses questions to help students express their thoughts and feelings www.schoolofeducators.com

10. ? ? • Reflection: how students can really learn a language effectively – through contextualised learning and authentic communication Misconception: “Teaching means the direct transfer of knowledge.” • relying on giving direct instructions • asking and responding to questions in lesson is not relevant to language learning www.schoolofeducators.com

11. Use of direct instructions teacher-centred approach less opportunity for students to practise the use of language for communication little chance for students to think actively Use of questions and feedback in lessons student-centred approach providing students with a real reason, interest and context to communicate retrieving and applying knowledge and language for purposeful interactions an example Two different approaches to conducting lessons www.schoolofeducators.com

12. Example: • negotiate meaning with students (as opposed to using direct instruction) to elicit ideas about the nature of a story to be read www.schoolofeducators.com

13. ? ? • Reflection: the strategic use of questions to help develop students’ thinking skills Misconception: “Asking questions is merely to motivate students or rectify answers deviating from the suggested ones.” • no awareness of the use of questions to develop students’ cognitive thinking skills • need for extra time in lessonsto ask questions (but teaching schedule is tight) www.schoolofeducators.com

14. Strategic, purposeful use of questions • design questions on the basis of the learning inputs • make use of various types of questions to facilitate the scaffolding of knowledge towards the teaching objectives targetted • use open questions to give students opportunities to make inferences and draw logical conclusions www.schoolofeducators.com

15. ? ? • Reflection: • an important source of information for assessing learning and teaching • shouldn’t be avoided Misconception: • “Students’ incorrect answers mean teachers’ failure to teach properly or effectively.” • keeping use of questions to minimum • avoiding addressing questions to students with limited language ability www.schoolofeducators.com

16. Informing teaching and learning students’ responses • inform teachers effectively of ss’ learning difficulties and progress • should be handled accordingly: feedback can be in the form of follow-up questions applying probing, refocussing, redirecting and rephrasing • allow teachers the chance to revise or adjust their teaching www.schoolofeducators.com

17. ? ? • Reflection: need to develop students’ reflective skills - exercise judgment about the content and the processes of learning. Misconception: “The teacher is the sole person responsible for evaluation and assessment. Students don’t need to learn how to evaluate or assess themselves.” www.schoolofeducators.com

18. Developing reflective skills • Share learning goals • Discuss assessment criteria and how the criteria can be met in practice • Give students diagnostic and corrective feedback on how to achieve the learning goals and improve themselves www.schoolofeducators.com

19. Developing reflective skills • Promote self or peer assessment • Enable students to recognise progress in their work, skills, knowledge and understanding • Encourage students to take responsibility for their own learning by providing opportunities for them to describe the judgments they make in relation to their progress www.schoolofeducators.com

20. Students’ change • Students participate actively in an interactive, student-centred learning environment. • Students have developed their communication skills, creativity and critical thinking skills. • Students have learnt how to reflect on their learning. www.schoolofeducators.com

21. A mirror Reflections www.schoolofeducators.com

22. Skills demonstrated in asking questions : • Have I asked questions which are at an appropriate level for the materials being covered? • Did the questions I asked serve the intended teaching objectives? • Have I asked questions which required students to think at different intellectual levels? www.schoolofeducators.com

23. Skills demonstrated in phrasing questions and handling students’ responses: • Have I allowedadequate, appropriate wait-time after posing questions in class? • Have I reinforced students’ responses positively and effectively? • Have I given students effective feedback which helps/guides them to reflect on their learning? www.schoolofeducators.com

24. Overall reflection: • What specific problems have I encountered when asking questions or giving feedback during lessons? • What are the strengthsand weaknesses of my techniques for questioning and giving feedback? • How can I improve my questioning and feedback techniques? www.schoolofeducators.com