Skill Review Sheet Questioning

Graduate Standards - AITSL

Professional Practice: 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 5.2 Plan and implement effective teaching and
learning
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Question Type
Do you feel your
questions were clearly
structured and readily
understood by the
students?

When I teach I like to ask the students lots of questions to

make sure that they are actively participating in the lesson.
For most questions I ask I generally get around 5 arms raise
to answer the question. The responses by the students are
usually correct or close to correct so I think that my questions
are generally understood by the students. When asking
questions I like to keep the question as short as possible
without leaving out important information.

Did you use a variety of

question types?

I have found that so far the majority of my questions that I

havent planned in my lesson plan are of lower order and are
more convergent types of questions. In my lessons I always
like to challenge my students learning by asking high order
questions that are divergent. When the learning material
allows for evaluative questions to be asked I like to spend a
few minutes getting responses from students.

What balances was there In terms of overall balance between question types probably
between the various
80% would be lower order. I find that the main reason for this
questions types?
is that I need to ensure that the students have understood
the basic concepts before I can extend them to see the
extent of their understanding on the concepts. I found that
low order questions are important to break up the lesson so
that I talk less and I get the students to think more.
Consider both why and
when you made use of
the different question
types?

When introducing topics I find that my preference is to ask

low order questions so that the students can understand the
basic principles. Towards the end of the topics I find that
when concluding I like to ask the students higher order
questions to really check that they have truly grasped the
concepts. I really enjoy seeing what answers I get to
divergent questions and I have found that the class becomes
really involved when such questions are asked.

Distributing and Directing Questions

Did you recognise any
pattern in the distribution
of your questions
amongst the students?
Consider reasons for this
pattern?

When I ask questions there are usually about 12 students

out of the class of about 26 that regularly put up their hands.
There are also about 7 students that put up their hands when
they are interested in the topic. Then there are about 7
students that never raise their hand. One of the main
reasons for this is due to obstacles in the classroom where I
find myself often pinned in one corner of the classroom. The
students in the near vicinity of me are actively participating in
the class but the students across the other side of the room
are often not participating as readily.

How have you directed

questions to the group?

One my first lesson I just picked students who raised their

hand. To include all students in my subsequent lessons I use
a mix of picking students with raised hand as well as
selectively picking out students to answer questions.

Have you used wait

time?

I always allow students to think about their answer before

moving on. My procedure is to wait about 15 seconds and
then offer assistance with the answer. If there is still no
answer and they are starting to look flustered I immediately
open the question up to the room by asking who can help out
that student with an answer. If they didnt answer I will aim to
ask them another question later on in the lesson and usually
make sure they know the answer since I have checked their
work and read their answers.

Did you make eye

contact with the group as
you directed your
questions?

When asking questions I always make eye contact to the

student giving the answer. This way I can see from their body
language whether they are feeling uncomfortable and I know
when to ask another student.

Reactions to Students Responses

How do you deal with
correct responses? Do
you qualify any praise
given?

With correct responses I like make a positive comment for

the student, especially students who dont often readily ask
questions. If it is a really hard question I like to say well done
move to the top of the class. I found that the students really
responded well to this praise and aimed to be the next
student at the top of the class.

How do you deal with

incorrect responses?
How do you deal with
students who stumble
and grope for an answer?

With incorrect responses I will respond with not quite but well
done for trying or you are really close. If they are very close
sometimes I stimulate the right answer especially for
students who dont often answer questions. This way they
can receive the full praise of a correct answer and will
hopefully be more likely to answer further questions.

Do you keep eye contact

with the students until
they have completed an
answer? Do you cut
students off and go onto
the next point before they
have finished
responding?

I like to keep eye contact with the student answering the

question until they have finished. If other students are
misbehaving I will quickly give them a glance and then
maintain eye contact with the student answering the
question. I dont like to cut students off unless they are
purposely going completely off topic to get attention. At this
point I will cut them off and say thank you for that answer
now can you please now focus on the question that I am
asking.

What use do you make of

the students responses
to develop the teaching
point? Have you
redirected any questions
in order to add to an
initial response?

When teaching I like to use the answer of students to bring

them into the topic that I am teaching. On one of my lessons
I was teaching scientific method and talking about
hypothesis and what we write. A student then asked about
homework and what would happen if he doesnt do it. My
answer was to respond in the form of a hypothesis that had
the class laughing since it was relevant to what I was
teaching and emphasized to the student that this is one
experiment that you dont want to try to see what the result is
but pointed out that there will be probably one or two that
would like to do this experiment.

Are you the only

evaluator of the students
answers?

In a classroom the teacher and all of the students are

evaluators of the students answer. One of my classroom
rules that I emphasis is that all answers are treated with
respect and negative comments will not be accepted. A
students' response will often lead on to positive responses
from other students which I always encourage.

Did you communicate

clearly to the students the
requirements of the
lesson?

When starting a lesson I like to tell the students what we are going
to do and what I expect them to learn. I dont like springing
surprises on the students but to keep them as active participants
in the lesson. Often with lessons you have a learning objective that
you expected to answer in a certain way but the students have
moved the lesson into another relevant avenue of more interest to
them. I like to encourage this as it is always interesting to see
where the lesson goes but as long as the learning objective has
still been met.

Overall Comments
From my observations to date the key to managing students in the classroom is to
foster an environment which is positive and is safe for all students. I want all
students in my class to be able to feel like they can answer a question without
worrying about what the other students will say. My aim in teaching is to involve the
students as much as possible to make the lesson more interesting and create a
learning environment where they are more likely to succeed.

Skill Review Sheet Management

Graduate Standards AITSL
Professional Practice: 4. Create and maintain supportive and safe learning
environments 4.1 and 4.2

Planning for Effective Management

Was your lesson plan
effective for managing
the class?
e.g. How did the
students react to your
lesson overall and to
your planned activities?
Did anything unexpected
happen?
Did you provide a variety
of activities?
Were you satisfied with
your timing, particularly
for the end of the
lesson?
Did you feel you were
able to change things if
needed?

I felt that my lesson plans went well. Most of the students

were actively participating in my lessons and from walking
around the room most of the students had completed their
work and were answering their work correctly.
There was one student on the first lesson taught that refused
to participate and do any work which caught me by surprise a
bit. My mentor stepped in to handle this situation so I could
continue with teaching my lesson.
With my lessons I generally broke them up into 10 20
minutes time slots before doing the next activity. Some of the
worksheets were repetitive in terms of variety but to manage
this I broke each question up into question times and
theoretical learning blocks to make it seem less repetitive to
the students. I kept the attention of most of the students for
the hour long class so I think I managed the activities to a
reasonable level.
For most of the lessons I taught I was satisfied with the
timing of my lessons. One lesson I ran out of time and
couldnt do any conclusions but in the same lesson I taught
to another Year 7 class I made sure that I planned but lesson
better and it was perfect for timing.
With my lessons I did pay attention to the general
atmosphere of the classroom. If I started seeing the students
talking more or getting restless I knew that it was time to do a
new activity otherwise I would lose their interest completely.
For my lessons I did change how long I spent on certain
areas due to the mood of the students.

Was your organisation of With my lessons I had a list of what I needed for my lesson
materials and resources whether it was computer files or other materials. I always
made sure that I had what I needed in the class. With the
efficient and effective?
computer files I took in a USB with the files I needed so I
didnt have to waste time trying to find the files I needed on
e.g. Did you and the
students have everything the computer.
you needed?

Did you plan how and

when you would
distribute and collect
materials?

Were you aware of

classroom procedures
and school disciplinary
policy? How much did
you know about your
students?

I had numerous instances where students werent prepared

with required equipment. The most common issue was rulers
and actually bringing their right science notebooks.
With my lesson plans I always made a mental note of when I
would hand out materials to the class. If I handed them out
too early they could become distracted.
With the classroom procedures I followed the guidance of
my mentor and didnt attempt to re-invent the wheel. With
the school disciplinary policy I did a short course in school
behavior policy so am aware of what the expectations of the
school are. With teaching Year 7 classes where students had
come from a large range of different schools there was often
not a lot known about some students. I did review the
medical issues that we had in the classes with my mentor to
see what we could do to assist the students learning. In my
second week of placement I was invited to be a teacher on a
3 day Year 7 camp. I felt that this was really useful to get to
know some of the students that I am teaching. I was able to
find out more about hobbies and interests so I know how to
modify my lessons to ensure that they are of interest to
some of my students.

Maintaining a Positive Attitude in the Classroom

How did you demonstrate

to the students that you
valued them, and enjoyed
the teaching/learning
process?
e.g. Tone of voice, facial
expression, sense of
humour, introduction to
students and topic.

I made a point of having fun with the students where if they

made a silly comment I would have a witty answer. To some
students this created a connection between the student and
teacher so I felt that they were more connected to the class.
Where possible I liked to bring sense of humour into the
classroom to break up the monotomy of learning for the
students. Making them smile keeps them awake and
hopefully more attentive to my lessons.

Which aspects of your

teaching style do you feel
helped you maintain
class attention?

When I teach I like to use examples from my previous work

as a geologist. Using real world examples makes the lessons
more realistic for the students since they can see how
science is used in the outside world.

e.g. Variety of activities,

class or group
discussion, pace of
lesson, interest at class

I really like to include the students in my lesson by asking

them lots of questions and occasionally questions even
slightly off topic to make the lesson more interesting. I feel
that by having questions that the students dont expect help

level.

to maintain their interest in my lessons since they dont know

what is coming next.

Did the students know

what was expected of
them?

I always made a point to create a positive atmosphere where

students could feel like they could answer questions in a
safe and risk free environment. I always made a point of
encouraging their answers and discussions. The message
that I kept telling the students was how much fun science is
and that I they want to participate they will see just how
much fun science can be.

Were you able to redirect

energies of attention
seeking students? Did
the students have
enough to do?

There were a few students in my classes that constantly

sought attention by regularly going completely off topic. I
would quickly thank them for participating but point out that I
would prefer answers to be more on topic. I often made a
point of asking students who were constantly chatting more
questions and walking around their desk more often to try to
keep their focus on the lesson.

Dealing with Minor Misbehaviour

Were you aware of what
was happening in all
parts of the classroom?
Did you know what each
student was doing?

When teaching I was generally aware of what most of the

students were doing but on many occasions missed minor
misbehaviours that my mentor spoke to me about after the
lesson. I will need to continue to work on my observations
skills when teaching so I know what all students in the room
are doing at all times.

Did you take any action

when you observed poor
behaviour? Why / Why
not?

When I observed talking I made a point of walking up to their

desk or asking them more questions to bring them back into
the lesson. My aim was to keep the lesson flowing so I
wanted to avoid escalating minor misbehavior. With the
student that refused to do any work I had a quiet word with
my mentor asking him if he can keep an eye on that student
for me. When he still refused to do any work my mentor then
handled this situation. If my mentor wasnt there Im not sure
what I would have done and will need to explore this further
as I continue teaching as to what techniques I want to use to
manage minor misbehavior.

Did you use non-verbal

cues? e.g. Contact,
pause, gesture,
movement toward
student/s concerned.

Non-verbal cues to manage minor misbehavious worked well

I thought. Just walking near their desk or checking what work
they had done was often enough to get them to focus on the
lesson. When students were misbehaving I would sometimes
stop my lesson and just look at that student. Other times I
would call out their name. These methods worked on some
students.

Schools as text looking at the whole

school
Understand the importance of effective communication with students
and colleagues to develop positive relationships.
Graduate Standards AITSL 6.3 and 7.1
Describe the school in
terms of its
demographics,
appearance and
resources (be general
here and do not name
the school).

The school is one of the largest in Perth with over 1800

current students. It is a public school but has the facilities
equal to or possibly even better than an average private
school.
The school is a school for gifted students so some of the
smartest students in Perth attend this school. Classes from
Year 7 to Year 12 are based on ability grouping. The classes
range from GATE (gifted and talented extension), general
and enrichment (lower ability students).
The available resources in the school appear to be of
reasonable standard. There are computers and ipads that
are available for students to use but students often dont
have access to their own computers. There are specialised
music, drama and AFL (Australian Football League) facilities
and programs that are better resourced than most schools
both public and private.

What were the roles and

responsibilities of the
teaching staff you
observed?

The role of teaching staff is to teach a certain ability grouping

class. Within the science staff most staff just teach science
with some mathematics but generally nothing else unless
they are doing relief classes.
There are no home classes at this school so students
commence their first lesson the moment the bell goes in the
morning.
The primary role of teaching staff is to provide a safe and
positive learning environment for all students.
Within the teaching staff for each area there are designated
leaders such as subject coordinators and Deans that
oversee that particular department.

What did you observe

non-teaching staff doing
to support teaching and
learning in the school?

Within the school there are dedicated educations assistants

that from what I have observed are assigned to generally the
lower ability classes. The assistants are not assigned to
particular students like what often happens at other schools I
have observed.

Students
You will have observed
the diverse nature of your
classes. How was this
diversity supported?

Within each class there is often not a large range of diversity

since students have already been assigned to particular
ability groupings. Students are expected to perform to the
standard expected of that class otherwise they are reallocated to a more suitable class.
Within this school there is a grey area that I have observed
where students with disabilities are almost automatically
assigned to lower ability classes and when this occurs it can
be very hard to work their way out of this system. Within the
lower order classes the lessons and assessments are made
much easier for students since the expectations to perform in
these classes are much lower. The result that I see from this
is that it could be very hard to prove that you dont belong in
a certain class when no one is expecting anyone to do well.

Function of Schools
Did you observe the
connection of your
schools with the broader The AFL program at the school is part of a larger network
community? How did this within the community where significant resources are given
to the school in the aim of getting students drafted into the
happen?
AFL draft.
I was also able to go on the Year 7 camp where students
completed outdoor activities that were run by scout
representatives. The students were given access to detailed
training in how to complete a range of activities that most
students wouldnt have ever tried before.

What do you think the

function of school is?

The function of school is to enable students to learn the

knowledge to complete further education or other activities
after secondary school finishes. For some students the aim
is to go to university whilst for other students they are keener
to learn a trade and obtain certifications in various trades.
Other students fi somewhere in between and need to
develop skills and abilities to complete other jobs or tasks
after finishing school.
School is also about teaching students about respect and
how to interact with peers and more senior people. It can
also be about learning life skills that all students will need in
life including how to read, write and develop the confidence
and ability to speak in front of small or even large groups of
people.