Blog #4

I think that it is very important for students to ask questions in the classroom, but I have never really thought about how important it is for teachers to ask questions as well. After reading the articles and watching the videos, however, I understand that it is crucial to do so. I definitely learned a lot from the article The Right Way to Ask Questions in the Classroom. This article explains that it is important to ask questions in order to ensure that your students are understanding the material being taught to them. After reading this article, I realize that the commonly used question "Does everybody understand?" is not a good question to ask. Even if the students respond to this question with "yes", there is no way to know if they actually understand or if they are just complying because they do not care or are too embarrassed to say no. This is why it is important to ask specific, open-ended questions about the material to make sure that everyone is actually understanding. The video Asking Better Questions in the Classroom taught me a lot about the importance of using open-ended questions rather than close-ended questions. Close-ended questions are simple, because they usually just require a "yes" or "no" response. Open-ended questions, however, require students to actually think and elaborate more with their response. By hearing a detailed response rather than a simple "yes" or "no", you can really see whether or not they are actually grasping the material being taught to them.

I have really learned a lot from this assignment, and I will definitely use these techniques and keep these things in mind in my future classroom.