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Engaging students in asking and answering questions

As an instructor, classes are much more enjoyable, and I feel there’s much more learning going on, when students are engaged in both answering the questions I ask and asking lots of questions of their own.  In many cases though, students have been conditioned to not ask and answer questions because we – the instructors – don’t create the conditions that encourage the asking and answering of questions.  The strategies shared here can help you to (1) get more students to ask more questions during class and (2) better use questions to engage students during class.

Increase wait time

Wait time refers to the amount of time we give after we ask for questions from students or the amount of time we are willing to wait for students to answer our questions.  In fact, Robert Stahl suggests that this is better referred to as “think time.”  If you think about a student’s experience in class, it’s quite likely that they need more than a second or two to consider your question and formulate an answer or to come up with a question they may have – in fact, waiting 10 to 15 seconds is probably best.  And yes, it may feel like an eternity while you’re waiting, but students will come to expect that thinking time and know that you’ll actually wait for them.  In her essay on Faculty Focus, Jennifer Sullivan describes the benefits of increasing wait time in the classroom which include increases in responses by students who don’t typically respond.

Use language that invites questions

Rather than asking “Any questions?” (or even more briefly “Questions?” or “Ok?” or “Is that clear?”)and then moving right along, try out other versions such as “I’m sure at this point you’ll have some questions, so let’s pause so that we can try to answer them” or “What questions do we have about (the topic of the moment)?” This subtle shift in language signals to students that you both expect them to have questions and are now going to pause to answer them.  When paired with a generous wait time, this almost always results in someone asking a question.

Plan your questions ahead of  time

In order to more effectively use questions in the classroom, it can be helpful to plan your questions ahead of time. Determine both the timing and the questions when planning your class session. This approach is useful because it ensures that you’ll include this pedagogical strategy in class and that the questions will be valuable for students’ learning.  To make the questions even more impactful, design questions that access higher-level thinking in Bloom’s taxonomy.  This guide from the University of Pittsburgh Center for Teaching and Learning includes question stems you can use across the levels of the taxonomy.

Use students’ responses to involve additional students

Asking questions strategically during class allows you to use students’ answers to further the discussion and involve other students.  Based on your original question:

  • If a student answers correctly, you can call on another student to agree, disagree, or build on the original answer.
  • If the student’s answer is partially correct, note which part is correct and ask for correction to the second half of the response from someone else.
  • If the student’s answer is incorrect, you can invite others to build on it: “Let’s think about this.  Let’s examine what you said in relation to what we previously discussed…”

Use questions in ways that involve more students in answering them

You can also use questioning strategies that engage all of the students in answering (rather than only those who raise their hand):

  • When you ask a question, tell everyone to think about the answer for 30 or 60 seconds but not to call out the answer or even raise their hand. At the end of the thinking time, ask “raise your hand if you have an idea you’d like to share” or “raise your hand if you thought that (some possible answer)” and then choose someone to explain.
  • When you ask a question, have students spend a minute or so talking with a classmate about the answer, and let them know that you’ll be calling on a few people to share.  When the minute is up, either ask for volunteers or call on students to share what was discussed in their pair.
  • You can use polling software or clickers so that all students have a chance to contribute an answer (anonymously if you like).  These platforms now allow for not only multiple choice but also short answer responses.  Similarly, if your class is meeting remotely, the chat box is a great way to solicit many answers at once.

While we tend to think of students asking questions in class as simply being about their need to clarify course content, we could also imagine how questions themselves might be part of the learning process.  The Question Formulation Technique from The Right Question Institute is a fun way to help students build their skill in asking questions – and then using those questions as the launching point for further exploration of the subject.

The strategies listed will help you more effectively plan for the questions you ask in class and result in an environment in which students become comfortable asking them. This will lead to better student learning and a more engaging course for you and your students!

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