BK5d
GETTING QUESTIONS FROM YOUR STUDENTS
The Indirect Question
Once a student can formulate simple indirect speech sentences, e.g. "He asked me where I work." "You told him what time to come." this much underused way of getting student questions comes into its own.
It is underused because it seems too easy but in spite of the apparent simplicity it is one of the most effective ways of eliciting high grade questions from advanced students - who sometimes think it's easy too until they try!
The problem is that, for example working on texts of a certain complexity, many teachers hesitate to deliberately ask for specific questions. The student is already expressing intelligent ideas intelligently and they feel it is somehow a little degrading to come over all authoritative and make him ask mundane questions on the subject.
Most teachers will say, having read a passage, "Ask me some questions about the text;" and they will. But the questions volunteered will be those the student can do easily. He will certainly not volunteer the questions he finds most difficult. Few students are out and out masochists.
T Ask me if the space programme would
have been cancelled if the Challenger flight had been successful.
S Would the space programme have been cancelled if the Challenger
flight had been successful.
T No, it wouldn't.
A student rarely comes out with a voluntary question of that length and complexity and the exercise is well worth the effort.
Phrases like "Who" and "How many people" which can be object or subject in a sentence are particularly tricky for a student to get right and can profitably be presented in pairs if opportunity offers.
Ask me who killed Cock Robin.
Ask me who the Sparrow killed.
"Who did kill ..." is often elicited.
Ask me how many people sailed on the Mayflower.
"How many people did ..."
Ask me which secretary came late yesterday.
"Which secretary did ......."
And of course after a few examples like this when he's getting them right, use the other kind:
Ask me how many people the company employs.
gets:
"How many people the company ..."
It can take quite a while for a student to appreciate the problem.