If you are anything like me, you can become very focused on making sure that, within allocated class time, you get through the central concepts in a timely fashion. Because of this pressure, you might hurry through classroom questions, waiting only for a quick response that confirms the answer so you can get on with the lesson. And, since you already know the answer, you are ready to jump in just as soon as you feel the students have had time enough. Trouble is, it usually isn’t time enough. What can seem like an eternity of waiting can sometimes be only 10-15 seconds. This is barely enough time for an online student to hear and understand the question and perhaps raise an online hand! (If you think I am overstating this, re-watch some of your recent recordings! I did… I am very impatient!) Giving think time when asking questions is important. Students need the opportunity to process questions thoroughly and formulate thoughtful responses. If we fail to give enough think time, we will end up with very little interaction–only the very quick, auditory processors will be volunteering answers. The rest of the class may disengage or simply let others do the thinking for them. A class of seventy will quickly devolve into a back and forth from one teacher with 5 or 6 keener beaner students. Ultimately, we want to encourage deeper engagement with the material and critical thinking. We would also like it if all students had an equal opportunity to participate and contribute meaningfully to the discussion! So how do we go about doing this? Well, one way is by setting time limits and conditions. When you present your question, let the students know that they are not to answer immediately, but that you are giving them a certain amount of time to think about their response. Depending on the question, this could range from a minute to four or five minutes. During that set time, students might jot down their thoughts, make an illustration, or formulate an argument. The hardest part in giving think time is keeping yourself from interrupting! That’s why you need a timer! When the time elapses, you might engage the students in a think/pair/share activity (in-person) so that every student gets a chance to share their thoughts with someone before you pull back to a general classroom discussion (More on TPS in another musing!). Or, if you are working in an online environment like Class Collaborate (BBCU) or Kaltura, you might ask the students to type their thoughts into the chat feed and then “flood the chat” when the time limit elapses. Having students press submit at the same time means that everyone can contribute and prevents students from piggy backing on responses from those quick processors. Flood the chat also provides a rich trove to use as you further discuss the topic. Often students provide perspectives and insights that we never thought of. However, you need to be careful with this strategy because the chat is not anonymous. If you are discussing sensitive topics and want to safeguard students, you might choose to get their ideas through an online polling or posting tool (Padlet, Jamboard) that allows for anonymity. Giving think time fosters a supportive and inclusive learning environment by reducing pressure and anxiety associated with rapid-fire questioning. We’d like our students to be confident and willing to participate! We also want them to engage in more than just passive listening, we want them to do some of the work!
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AuthorJeff Kuntz Ph.D. ImagesExcept where indicated, images used in the blog posts are personal photos, images from NorQuest College or images from Pixabay. Pixabay is a vibrant community of creatives, sharing copyright free images, videos and music. https://pixabay.com/ Archives
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