Blog Post #4

ASKING QUESTIONS: 

Just As Important As Finding The Answers

Photo Source: Clipartbest.com

     Our blog assignment this week is to answer a question, fittingly enough, about answering and asking questions. Asking questions is certainly a very large aspect in the learning process. The more questions you ask, the more you can learn. What good is a brilliant child, if he doesn't realize he's brilliant, because he never gets to answer or ask any questions?

     I really enjoyed one of the first sources  The Right Way to Ask Questions in the Classroom. I liked it because the author, Ben Johnson, makes several valid points and also made me reflect on myself as a child. He mentions that children are often eager to answer a question whether they are correct or not. But, once they get used to the pattern of not answering correctly or not being called on, they get into the habit of not answering at all. In fact, "after fourth grade, students know how they are perceived and play their roles accordingly." This is so sad because many students do not realize their potential because they are so used to not doing anything, and relaxing back to doodling or whatever else is occupying their mind.

      I believe that to be an effective teacher, we must use questions every day as much as possible. Children need to understand that just because their question may not be worded correctly at first, it is still better than being silent! Children's minds are a beautiful, wonderful thing waiting to be molded and sculpted but only with the right lessons and questions!

     A good idea for making questions a good tool in the classroom is playing a game where all the students can do is ask questions stemming off of each one.

      I think one of the best sources we are given on the blog post Three Ways to Ask Better Questions in the Classroom. It is absolutely great. I think that way she explains that asking open ended questions rather than leading ones is very important. To be an effective teacher you want to guide them to answering their own questions, not to answer it for them. I also like the questions and ways she uses the children's questions to keep striving for a more in depth answer that requires more critical thinking.

     I think the bottom line about "what we need to know about asking questions to be better teachers" is that we need to be asking more critical questions. We need to be asking as many thought provoking questions as possible throughout the day, and not waiting until the last five minutes of class. We need to be using open ended questions, and not leading ones. Questions that will provoke critical thinking skills and engage every student to want to participate, not just the ones that always do.