Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-04-18

StAHuIUS Auu ItASlerSs FOOT question:
ing leaves the mental powers unawak-
ineff1cioncy and lack Of knowledge.
Good questioning ID dependent upon
the teachers having firm command OF
a few essential principles which apply
to all questioning used in teachings
The teachers constant self-criticism
in the Tight Of these will greatly i'm
prove his control of discussion in the
classroom. The questions Of the reel
tation must. OF course. deal with time
matter Of the textbook and be directly
suggested by IT. Yet there are two
dangers to be avoided in this connec-
ton: % Questions should not follow
this language OF the teaxt, and 60 the
teacher should not be dependent on the
textbook to suggest, the question it.
self or to determine the correctness Of
the answer.
The teacher who has not the lesson
we'll prepared. or who 10 mentally lazy.
has 4 constant temptation to ask Ques-
tions in the words Of the book. An
illustration Of what 10 meant 10 found
in the following account Of q recitation
from "MontEomery's American Histo-
try"
Q.-On 4 morning late in November
what did the Pilgrims do?
A.-They sighted Cape Cod.
Q.--Two days later where did the
Mayhower 80 to anchor?
f, AIN Provincetown. Harbor.
Q-On the shore Of Plymouth Har-
Dor what Is there lying?
A.--A granite boulder.
It is seen that each Of these ques-
tiony follows the text ana the answer
but completes the sentence Of which
y,srf How vSanrh hottor hAen
questions:
When did the Pilgrims first sight
land?
What land did they see?
What was its appearance?
Where did they finally anchor!
"Why Is plymouth Rock" so famous
in American history:
The difference between a related Sc
ries of questions and an unrelated is
shown in two lists which follow. Both
deal with the same subject matter. The
questions of the first list are not them
selves faulty. but there Is no continui-
ty among them.
What change takes place in the air
in the lungs?
What change takes place in the blood
in the lungs?
How much Of this cannot be expelled?
How many times do we naturally
breathe a minute?
What is animal heat?
These questions were all answered
fairly we'll by the class, but the an
swers contained only so many bits OF
isolated Information. and the pupils did
not understand the subject after they
thesd:
Why must the body have air to
breathe?
or what use is oxygen in the body?
Where does this oxidation. or burn
ing up of worn-out cells, take place?
But how is the oxygen carried to ev-
cry part OF the body and brought into
contact with the tissues:
Where do the corpuscles get their
oxygen?
Where do they get carbon dioxide7
The class that answered these quex-
tons not only had the information be-
longing to each separate question. but
also understood the lesson as q whole
because each question grew out of the
one which preceded it.
Besides the foregoing fundamental
principles underlying the art of ques-
tioning there are a few secondary. prin-
ciples. Questions should be asked nat
urally and in a conversational tone.
Usually the question should be ad-
dressed to the entire class. No regu
lar order should be followed in calling
on pupils.
1t is highly important that questions
shall be asked so that they demand
thought in answering, and usually so
that the answer must be given in q full
statement. Seldom should a question
be asked in such form that a simple
Yes or No will answer it. This does
not require sufficient thought on the
part of the pupil Answers that may
be given in a word or two may be used
for rapid drill or review work and also
in the inductive questioning used in
developing 4 new subject. but should
be. used sparingly in other places in
the recitation.