Questioning – EDES302 Lecture M4.2

Review / Recalling & Reviewing Knowledge

• PURPOSE: Activate prior knowledge, surface factual information, and ensure shared terminology before deeper inquiry.
• TARGETED CONTENT AREAS
  • Terminology: core vocabulary, jargon, acronyms.
    • e.g., encode / decode, feedback, channel noise.
  • Procedures: step-by-step sequences already taught.
    • Retrieval helps automate routine classroom operations.
  • Content Facts: dates, definitions, lists.
  • Events & Context: situational details anchoring abstract ideas.
• SAMPLE PROMPTS
  • “What are the models of communication?”
  • “When might we use each model?”
• PEDAGOGICAL RATIONALE
  • Implements retrieval practice → strengthens long-term memory.
  • Clarifies misconceptions early.
  • Bridges to higher-order questioning later in the lesson.

Procedural Questioning (Classroom Management)

• PURPOSE: Direct, organise, & maintain workflow.
• CHARACTERISTICS
  • Focused on logistics, deadlines, attendance, materials, compliance.
  • Often closed‐ended; efficiency valued over depth.
• COMMON TEACHER MOVES
  • Clarifying instructions.
  • Checking for attention & agreement ("Thumbs-up if you’re ready").
  • Monitoring task completion/status.
• EXAMPLE QUESTIONS
  • “What is the due date for AT1?”
  • “Who still needs to upload their AT1 files?”
• SIGNIFICANCE
  • Minimises cognitive load spent on organisation, freeing bandwidth for learning.
  • Establishes classroom norms of accountability and clarity.

Generative Questioning (Exploration)

• PURPOSE: Open topic space; provoke curiosity where the teacher may not know the answer.
• DEFINING FEATURES
  • Authentic, speculative, future-oriented.
  • Initiates inquiry cycles & project-based learning.
• EXAMPLE STEMS
  • “How might a particular model of communication impact the effectiveness of the messaging?”
• CONNECTION TO EARLIER CONTENT
  • Builds on previously recalled models (Shannon–Weaver, Interactive, Transactional) and invites application.
• EDUCATIONAL VALUE
  • Cultivates divergent thinking & ownership of inquiry.
  • Aligns with constructivist learning theory (knowledge co-constructed).

Constructive Questioning (Building New Understanding)

• ROLE IN LEARNING SEQUENCE
  1. Extend & interpret earlier ideas.
  2. Connect concepts across units (e.g., audience analysis ↔ genre selection).
  3. Orient attention to big ideas & central concepts.
• TYPICAL QUESTION TYPES
  • “What relationships do you see between purpose and audience?”
  • “In light of today’s case study, how would you revise our definition of context?”
• OUTCOMES
  • Learners integrate fragmented facts into coherent mental models.
  • Promotes transfer: \text{Knowledge}_{\text{context A}} \rightarrow \text{context B}.

Facilitative Questioning (Metacognitive & Dialogic)

• FUNCTION: Encourage students to reason, justify, debate, and self-monitor understanding.
• STRATEGIES
  • Request elaboration, evidence, or justification.
  • Generate peer-to-peer discussion to surface multiple perspectives.
  • Clarify or uncover implicit assumptions.
• EXEMPLAR PROMPTS
  • “What makes you say that?”
  • “Why did ____?”
  • “How might ____?”
• LINK TO Cultures of Thinking Project (Ritchhart, 2009)
  • Values thinking visible, shared, and celebrated.
• ETHICAL / PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS
  • Promotes respectful discourse, critical literacy, and democratic classroom culture.

Integrative Application Prompt (From Transcript)

• “How might our understanding of purpose and audience assist in selecting the appropriate model of communication, channel, and text type?”
  • Invites synthesis across:
  1. Communication theory (models).
  2. Rhetorical situation (purpose–audience–context).
  3. Media studies (channel affordances).
  • Possible analytical pathway:
    \text{Goal clarity} \rightarrow \text{Audience profile} \rightarrow \text{Model suitability} \rightarrow \text{Channel match} \rightarrow \text{Text type}

Practical Classroom Implementation Tips

• Cycle through questioning types in a single lesson:
  1. Review → spark recall.
  2. Procedural → smooth transitions.
  3. Generative → launch inquiry.
  4. Constructive → deepen understanding.
  5. Facilitative → consolidate & internalise.
• Document student responses on shared board to make thinking visible.
• Use wait time (~3–5 s) especially for generative/facilitative questions.
• Encourage students to pose their own generative questions to peers.

Connections to Previous Lectures (EDES302)

• Session on Communication Models: Shannon–Weaver, Schramm, Berlo.
  • Today’s questions revisit and apply these frameworks.
• Prior exploration of Rhetorical Triangle (Ethos, Pathos, Logos):
  • Underpins audience-purpose considerations in current prompt.

Key Takeaways

• Effective questioning is layered; each type serves a different cognitive & managerial function.
• Generative & facilitative questions are high-impact for critical thinking and engagement.
• Align question type with lesson phase and learning objectives.
• Questioning strategies draw heavily on socio-constructivist and metacognitive theories of learning.