The Power of Questioning: Teacher’s Questioning Strategies in the EFL Classrooms

Abstract

The aims of the study were to investigate English teachers’ questioning strategies at one Madrasah in Palembang, South Sumatera. The qualitative research method with a case study approach was employed to look at the ways of the English teachers’ questioning strategies in the processes of teaching and learning and the reasons that made them use certain questioning strategies. The participants in this study were English teachers. We used observation and interviews as our data collection techniques. The observation was used to look at the teacher’s questioning types used in the daily practices of teaching in the EFL classroom while the interview was used to understand the reasons that made them use those types of questioning strategies. Our findings showed three types of teacher’s questioning strategies used by teachers in their teaching and learning processes including convergent, divergent, and procedural questions. Teachers mostly used convergent questions (yes/no and short answers). We also found five reasons why teachers preferred to those types of questioning strategies including recalling students’ understanding, attracting students’ attention, increasing students’ thinking in higher order level, and engaging students in learning activities. Implications and recommendations are also discussed.

Teachers’ Perceptions on Questioning Strategies at Pre-Speaking Stage in EFL Classroom Interaction – A Case of a University of Mekong Delta

“…That is why the questioning strategy is significant. In fact, according to Shaunessy (2005, as cited in Astrid et al, 2019), questioning strategies are necessary for the growth of critical and creative thinking. Teachers use questioning strategies to discover their students' abilities and how well they grasp the content they have been taught.…”

“…In addition, teachers can utilize the questioning method to assess their students' capacity to think critically. Blosser (2000, as cited in Astrid et al, 2019) claims that students must develop higher-order thinking abilities in order to become better problem solvers. To promote students' thinking and perspectives, teachers should ask questions.…”

“…According to some researchers like Astrid et al (2019), every country uses English as a global language for communication. It is well-known as a means of daily global connection with citizens from many countries.…”

A cognitive-functional approach to utterance pairs: A critical review of dialogic construction grammar

“…Questioning strategies are such vital skills that are applied to negotiation occasions, interviews, conferences, especially for educational applications. There is evidence suggesting that rational teachers' question strategies are more successfully apt to recall students' understanding, catch students' attention, deepen students' thinking level, and encourage students to engage in class activities (Astrid et al, 2019). Whether the ESI model can be employed to explain questioning strategies in the pragmatic features of wh-dialogues deserves an in-depth examination.…”

An Analysis of Teacher Questions and Student Responses in the English Teaching-Learning Process

“…Questioning is important aspects of classroom interaction (Nurpahmi, 2017;Sari & Hasibuan, 2019). Questioning refers to strategies of collecting and understanding information about students' development, ability and competency (Astrid et al, 2019). This questioning activity in classroom is important to develop students critical thinking, creative thinking ability, and higher level thinking skills (Shaunessy, 2005;Zulkifli & Hashim, 2019).…”