Chapter 8:  Communicating with Students

Verbal Communication: Considering both Content and Method of Delivery

Asking Questions

Characteristics of Effective Questioning

Figure 8.1 Asking questions to promote and assess learning

Creating a Climate for Questions

Nonverbal Communication

Communication Tools

Diversity in Communication Styles

Important Terms that Relate to Communication and Questioning

A positive classroom climate conducive to learning may be the most important component of any instructional experience.  Effective teachers plan for and emphasize a sense of community and belongingness.  Such a community requires successful communication with and among students. Communication takes many forms, including verbal and nonverbal modes, both of which are discussed in this chapter. 

Verbal Communication:  Considering Both Content and Method of Delivery

Successful verbal communication requires attention not only to the content of the message itself but also to the way the message is phrased. I-messages are particularly effective when addressing discipline problems.  I-messages are phrased to emphasize how students’ behaviors directly affect the teacher’s feelings and/or ability to teach the class.  For example, “I have trouble hearing other students ask their questions when you are talking, and I need to be able to hear them to be a good teacher” is a nonjudgmental I-message that lets students know some of the problems with talking out of turn. 

Teachers need also to attend to the method of delivery.  For example, teachers must moderate their tone of voice and overall inflection, including the way they stress or emphasize words or phrases.  For example, raising one’s voice in anger is frequently less effective than conveying the same message in a neutral but authoritative tone.  Important communication skills for teachers include

·                 Speaking in an audible, clear, and pleasant tone, with variation for emphasis

·                 Controlling volume and stress appropriately

·                 Enunciating properly when speaking

·                 Using correct grammar in both spoken and written language

·                 Using correct spelling and age-appropriate language in written communications

Asking Questions

A well-developed area of research on effective verbal communication is teacher questioning.  In the classroom, teachers often ask questions to evaluate student learning or to structure and guide discussion, especially in direct instruction (see Chapter 7). Teachers may also askquestions to encourage participation or increase motivation.  For example, teachers can begin a discussion by asking how the topic under study is related to or reflected in one’s own life.  Other reasons to ask questions in class include

·                 Capturing or maintaining attention

·                 Developing interest

·                 Evaluating students’ preparation and determining prior knowledge (e.g., “Does anyone know…”)

·                 Reviewing previous lessons (e.g., “Who remembers…”)

·                 Engaging students in discussion (“Who wants to state his or her opinion on…”)

·                 Guiding thinking (e.g., “Did you consider…”)

·                 Developing critical and creative thinking skills (e.g., “What might happen if…”)

·                 Checking for comprehension or level of understanding (e.g., “Can you explain, in your own words…”)

·                 Summarizing information (e.g., “What’s the take-home message of…”)

·                 Stimulating students to pursue knowledge on their own (e.g., “What questions do you still have about…”)

One question can serve many purposes, and in fact, varying question type within a lesson is one way to keep students’ attention. 

Teachers use many different types of questions, and effective teachers select a question type based on the learning objectives of the lesson. Some questions are lower-level questions that focus on information already learned (see the lower levels of Bloom’s cognitive taxonomy, discussed in Chapter 6 of this tutorial).  Teachers frequently use lower-level questions to evaluate their students’ knowledge of lesson content.  For example, during lessons, many teachers ask direct, convergent questions that require recall of key concepts:  “And what is the genus name for this group of animals?”  This type of question, which has only one correct answer, can also be used as review to introduce new material or remind students of basic material that forms the foundation for a new lesson:  “Yesterday we talked about right triangles.  Who can explain what makes a triangle ‘right’?”  Convergent questions are common in lower grades and introductory classes and often include key words such as recall, when, or define.

Other questions are considered higher-level questions.  These questions may ask students to go beyond information they have learned (e.g., think of new examples, apply concepts to new situations), guide thinking (e.g., develop and test new hypotheses), and develop creative or critical thinking skills (e.g., make inferences or judgments).   

Effective higher-level questions guide students to the following cognitive processes, among others:

• • Reflect (focus inward and use metacognitive skill; e.g., “What is the most important thing you learned in class this week?”)

  • Challenge assumptions (focus inward and use critical analysis; e.g., “Ships that are made of steel are heavy, yet they don’t sink in water.   Why not?”)

  • Transfer knowledge (focus on application to new concepts; e.g., “Would a ship made of glass float or sink?  What about a ship made of Styrofoam but filled with people?”)

  • Find relations among concepts or ideas (e.g., “How are arachnids similar to and different from insects of the order hymenoptera?”)

  • Draw conclusions (e.g., “Did the data support the hypothesis?  What have we learned from this experiment?”)

Higher-level questions tend to be divergent questions, ones for which many different answers are correct, and often include key words such as classify, analyze, design, criticize, or justify.  However, note that higher-level questions often tap lower-level thinking as well:  For example, students need to understand and remember what they’ve learned previously to be able to apply the content to new situations.

Characteristics of Effective Questioning

Regardless of the type or format of the question, effective teachers have good communication skills that allow them to ask questions in the most constructive way.  Indeed, the characteristics of effective questioning described here go beyond just questioning and also influence other classroom behaviors (e.g., lecturing, managing behaviors, directing activities).  In addition to the suggestions presented in Figure 8.1, keep in mind the following three basic principles.

First, questions should encourage participation.  Sometimes teachers need to call on individual students, but other times they can design activities in which students ask each other questions.  As participation increases, students are better able to develop their own links among concepts and to draw on their previous knowledge and interests. 

Second, teachers need to allow appropriate wait time.  Wait time is defined as the length of time a teacher pauses, after either asking a question or hearing a student’s comment, before saying something.  Many teachers allow only a second or less of wait time before calling on a different student, paraphrasing the question, or providing the answer.  This wait time is too short for most students to formulate and articulate a response.  Research suggests that increasing wait time to 3 seconds or more encourages more students to respond, and their responses tend to be more insightful, well-reasoned, and directed toward the classroom discussion.

Third, as students begin to respond to questions and participate in discussion, teachers have the added responsibility to help students articulate their ideas.  They can ask additional questions, either for content (e.g., “Can you think of a good example of that idea?”) or for clarification (e.g., “Can you explain to the class what you mean when you say the poem is ‘uninspired’?”).  Note that helping students to articulate ideas goes beyond just asking questions and includes verbal and nonverbal prompting:  “Tell me more” or a nod can encourage students to expand on their ideas.  Additionally, teachers (or other students) can restate what a student has said, using reflective listeningskills (e.g., “So, your idea is …” or “It sounds as if you think…; is that correct?”).  A reflective listening approach is based on the perspective that with a bit of scaffolding and attention to feelings, the student can solve the problem or explain the idea himself or herself. Reflective listening is one component of active listening, in which individuals work together to ensure that the message sent was the message received.

Figure 8.1 Asking questions to promote and assess learning.

Used with permission from J. Ormrod. (2009).  Essentials of educational psychology (2nd ed., p. 293). Columbus, Ohio: Merrill. To purchase a copy of this book, click here. 

Creating a Climate for Questions

Of course, questioning techniques are most effective when a teacher has established a noncritical environment in which students feel comfortable asking and answering questions.  Such an environment is created when the teacher and students respect other students’ responses even when beliefs are different from one’s own.  In a noncritical environment, teachers must handle incorrect answers gracefully and without judgment; in particular, teachers should make an effort to understand why the student had a misconception or produced an error (e.g., “I can see why you’d think that … I think you were using the wrong operand.  You divided the numbers … if you multiply instead, what do you get?  And why should you multiply instead of divide?”). 

Development of a noncritical environment, then, requires that teachers know and employ strategies for promoting a safe and open forum for discussion.  Key among these strategies are establishing and maintaining standards of conduct for discussions and promoting active listening skills.   Depending on the topic and the situation, teachers should consider whether students will feel most comfortable posing questions anonymously, privately via email, in small groups with peers, or in open classroom discussion.  A successful community of learners will engage all learners in creating a collaborative environment that supports risk taking and respects alternative outlooks.

Nonverbal Communication

Not all communication is done verbally — nonverbal communication plays a large role in the classroom, and elsewhere.   Examples of nonverbal communication include:

• • Gesture.  Hand movements (e.g., pointing) can be used to capture or direct attention, and nodding can be used to indicate assent or agreement.  Raised eyebrows and winks can also quietly affect student behavior.

• • Eye contact.  Direct eye contact can be used to encourage tentative students to respond to questions orally or to engage in discussion.  Eye contact for several seconds can also provide a cue to misbehaving students without embarrassing them. 

• • Body language and facial expression are especially important in these situations — smiles and frowns can go a long way to encourage or discourage behaviors.  Note that you’ll want to respect students’ personal space while also recognizing when to step into it.

Communication Tools

Communication is not just interactions among people — effective teachers also know how to use various communication tools to enrich the learning environment.  Teachers can move beyond texts and worksheets to take advantage of contemporary trends in technology.  For example, overhead projectors are still favored in many K−12 classrooms, but software for digital presentation (e.g., PowerPoint®) is increasingly available for dynamic and interactive classroom use.  Moreover, students themselves can use this type of technology for presentations, portfolios, and other class projects.  Indeed, with the explosion of the World Wide Web, students can conduct research not only with the printed material in the library but also with the vast wealth of Internet resources.  Remember, however, that most students need instruction and supervision to sort through and identify relevant and trustworthy information. 

Other new technology is also available and useful in educational settings — word processors alter and simplify the editing process for some students, digital encyclopedias provide new and current resources, instant-messaging clients and online discussion forums encourage increased communication among students within the classroom and more broadly around the world, video games and simulations can encourage critical thinking, and of course many new computer programs (i.e., computer-based instruction, hypermedia) are designed specifically as educational tools and tutorials. 

Additionally, students like and attend to recordings, both audio and visual, that provide concrete illustrations of new concepts (e.g., photographs that show animals or plants, popular rap songs that reflect trends in poetry) or allow them to relate classroom content to popular culture images (e.g., discussing whether an adapted screenplay accurately captures the tone of a classic novel).  CDs, DVDs, and online streaming video are among the resources currently available to teachers for this purpose.

Note that communication tools enhance classroom teaching — they don’t replace it.  Teachers should plan to integrate these types of material successfully into a lesson that may also include lecture or discussion.  Furthermore, teachers may need to scaffold students’ use of new media, attending to important information despite potential distractions (e.g., Internet advertisements, music, or clip art).

Diversity in Communication Styles

For all types of communication and when employing any communication tools, teachers must attend to the diversity of the student population with which they work.  For example, as discussed in Chapter 2 of this tutorial, in some cultures asking questions is seen as rude; students from those backgrounds may thus be reluctant to ask questions even when they don’t understand.  In some cultures, speaking at the same time is discouraged, whereas in others overlapping utterances are seen as co-constructing a dialogue and thus a method of affiliation.  Other research has focused on gender differences in communication style — in the classroom, for example, boys tend to be more active than girls, asking more questions and needing less wait time to respond.  Teachers need to be sensitive to these differences and in some cases be proactive —indirectly, perhaps by calling on girls without their hands up, even if several boys have their hands waving, or in some cases directly, through a dialogue with the class or individual students, as long as it is conducted in a nonevaluative way.

Important Terms that Relate to Communication and Questioning

Most of the following definitions come from the glossary in Ormrod, J. (2009). Essentials of educational psychology (2nd ed., pp. G1−G5). Columbus, Ohio: Merrill.  To purchase a copy of this book, click here. A few definitions are derived or contextualized from Woolfolk, A. (2010). Educational psychology (11th ed.). Columbus, Ohio: Merrill (To purchase a copy of this book, click here.); and Jacobsen, D., Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2009).  Methods for teaching: Promoting student learning in K−12 classrooms (8th ed.).Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. To purchase a copy of this book, click here.

active listening.  A technique in which the listener paraphrases the other person's message and directly mentions the feelings that underlie the message.

classroom climate. Overall psychological atmosphere of the classroom.

community of learners. Class in which teacher and students actively and collaboratively work to create a body of knowledge and help one another learn.

computer-based instruction (CBI). Instruction provided via computer technology.

convergent questions. Questions that have a single correct answer.

cueing. Use of simple signals to indicate that a certain behavior is desired or that a certain behavior should stop.

divergent questions. Questions that have no single correct answer.

higher-level cognitive process. Cognitive process that involves going well beyond information specifically learned (e.g., by analyzing, applying, or evaluating it).

higher-level question. Question that requires students to do something new with something they’ve learned (i.e., to elaborate on it in some way).

hypermedia. Collection of multimedia, computer-based instructional materials (e.g., text, pictures, sound, animations) that students can examine in a sequence of their own choosing.

I-messages. A form of communication in which a person directly states what another person is doing, its effect, and how he or she feels about it (e.g., “When you all call out, I can’t concentrate on each answer, and I’m frustrated”).

IRE cycle. Adult–child interaction marked by adult initiation (e.g., a question), child response, and adult evaluation.

lower-level question. Question that requires students to express what they’ve learned in essentially the same form as they learned it.

prompting. Questions that help students change a wrong provisional answer into the right final answer.

reciprocal teaching. Approach to teaching reading and listening comprehension in which students take turns asking teacher-like questions of classmates.

reflective listening. A form of communication in which the listener paraphrases what the speaker has said, to check for understanding of content and emotional tone.

scaffolding. Support mechanism that helps a learner successfully perform a task within his or her zone of proximal development.

wait time. Length of time a teacher pauses, after either asking a question or hearing a student’s comment, before saying something.