Tell Me What You Want…

12.06.09 By Jon-Mychal Bowman

...What You Really, Really Want.”

The Spice Girls were pioneers in professional development. I just never realized it until a few weeks ago. Targeted questioning is not just a good teaching practice.  It’s a good life practice.  Take for example two scenarios from outside of school.
Recently, I became a tea drinker. After tiring from sodas, ales, and tonics, I have opened my eyes to the wide world of tea. I have sensitivity to caffeine, so my tea is narrowed to herbal varieties.  Anyway, let me tell two stories that help with the theme of this post.
At one restaurant, I sat down and when the server came by, I asked,
“Do you have any tea?”
“Let me check,” was her reply. When the server returned to the table, I was answered with a brimming cup of black tea that I left untouched at the table.

At another restaurant, I sat down, and when the server came by I asked,
“Do you have any mint tea?”
(I assumed, that if it were mint tea – then it would be decaffeinated, and therefore good for me).  Unfortunately, after a few sips and a few shakes, I realized that it was, in fact, a black tea/mint tea mix.

After these past examples, I have gotten better at expressing clearly what I want when I order. And following up with questions to make sure that there is no misunderstanding between the server and me. So now, it’s “Can you tell me the herbal teas that you have? They’re caffeine free, right?”

This story may seem completely irrelevant to teaching, but it helped me realize that when I say things that might be vague or built off of an assumption, the result will be undesirable.

So, when talking with students, I am more aware to state exactly what I want. “Make sure you have your full name written in pencil on the left side of your page.”  “Does anyone have a question about today’s lesson on Earth’s atmosphere?” ” Why is this article a better choice? How does this compare to…?” 

The more targeted I am with my questions, the more detailed and precise the answers are that I get back. When lesson planning, it is helpful to consider what outcomes you want from students, and what questions you will ask to gauge students’ understanding and thinking. Using Bloom’s Taxonomy (http://cs1.mcm.edu/~awyatt/csc3315/bloom.htm) along with specific questioning can help shape a lesson to whatever instructional level you desire.  Granted, this practice of precision is due solely to my misadventures ordering tea. I am discovering the more time I spend teaching, the greater the overlap there is between the lessons inside and outside of school.