Component 3B

3B - Using Questioning & Discussion Techniques

Good teachers use divergent as well as convergent questions, framed in such a way that they invite students to formulate hypotheses, make connections, or challenge previously held views. Students' responses to questions are valued; effective teachers are especially adept at responding to and building on student responses and making use of their ideas. High-quality questions encourage students to make connections among concepts or events they previously believed to be unrelated and to arrive at new understandings of complex material. Not all questions must be at a high cognitive level in order for a teacher's performance to be rated at a high level; that is, when exploring a topic, a teacher might begin with series of questions of low cognitive challenge to provide a review or to ensure that everyone in the class is "on board." Furthermore, if questions are at a high level, but only a few students participate in the discussion, small-group work, the quality of the students' questions and discussion in their small groups may be considered part of this component. In order for students to formulate high-level questions, they must have learned how to do so. Therefore, high-level questions from students, either in the full class or in small-group discussions, provide evidence that these skills have been taught.

Elements of Component 3B:

Quality of questions/prompts
Discussion techniques
Student participation

Evidence of Component 3B

Larson - May 31 Literacy Lesson Plan

Planning Quality Questions

In the online reading class I taught I always had a space in my lesson plan to write in high-quality questions. Even though I was working with young students, I sought to have meaningful discussions with them about what we were learning. The Danielson Framework says that teachers should ask questions that "invite students to formulate hypotheses, make connections, or challenge previously held views." The second page of this lesson plan shows a few questions that I asked in one of my lessons met the Danielson criteria.

Higher-Order Questions in
Literacy Practicum

Asking higher-order questions in the classroom is an area I wanted to improve in during Literacy Practicum. I initially found it difficult to create high-order questions for kindergarten students. After receiving feedback from my professor and practicing creating these kinds of questions, I was able to make progress in this component

The image on the right is a section of my summative Danielson Evaluation in Literacy Practicum and a representation of the growth I made in that practicum.

Component 3C

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