With the new block schedule this year, students have a Resource Period: one period wherein they do not have a class. One of my Seniors in AP Psychology has her Resource Period during a time when I teach another section of the same class; as such, some days she comes to one period, other days she shows up at the other class. She has, consequently, been able to observe and compare my teaching between the two class periods — and she’s mentioned something I have noticed as well. One class asks a lot of questions, and the other does not.
I was reminded of this when an email came over a Psychology-teacher list-serv that I’m a member of. Few of the members are high school teachers; most are college professors of one level or another. Below is the email from a Psychology professor back East:
Transcript:
How do you handle numerous questions during class? While I do not mind some questions, and like some discussion, sometimes the questions get out of control and I cannot get through the lecture.
While I am in lecture mode I find it difficult to change my train of thought and think “off the cuff” to answer a question. I need time to process the question. This is normally in my Physiological Psychology class. I don’t like saying “I don’t know” but at the present moment I may not know but will later be able to answer the question. It gets me flustered at times.
There are also times, many in fact, where I know the answer can be found in the chapter and students may know that if they read or would read afterwards. Or even by doing a simple google search.
I just find it more and more frustrating as the years go on. Thank you,
I have to admit that I was caught off-guard by this email from a college professor. A large part of that is my own bias as a high school teacher. My first response was/ is: GOOD! Good for you for addressing material that students are interested in and curious about! Good for you for creating a classroom culture where students feel free to ask a question! Don’t shut that down, whatever you do!
Of course, we’ve all been in classes where students wanted to derail class or slow things down by asking questions. My sense is that’s not what’s going on in this professor’s class, and it’s not my sense that this is what’s happening in my own question-intensive class. It’s just students being curious.
This, I suppose, boils down to a key difference between high school and college. I, as a high school teacher, am not simply marching through curriculum; I’m trying to give them a basic understanding of Psychology (enough, as it happens to pass an AP test), and I’m trying to engender an interest in knowing and learning. Are the motivations of college professors so different from that?
All of this is to remind me: don’t sweat it when one class is a little behind where the other is in terms of curriculum because they’re asking “too many” questions; they’re asking because they’re interested!