BA1 – Situated Communication Independent Study Task 25.9.17

‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’, in Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice. 5th ed. London: Routledge, Chapter 5, p117-153.   The aim of the chapter is to convey the many different methods of … Continue reading

‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’, in Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice. 5th ed. London: Routledge, Chapter 5, p117-153.

 

The aim of the chapter is to convey the many different methods of questioning. It also discusses the use of questions, the skill behind them and how they are effective in certain situations.

There are many themes than run throughout this chapter. Acquisition is a prominent theme throughout the chapter as it discusses the skills of questions and how to achieve the answers being sought after. Children is another theme which examines the effect on how they are questioned in certain ways. For example, when they are asked a double question, they do not understand what exactly they are being asked. In addition to this, knowledge is a key theme as it provides us with information we need to be able to ask the most accurate questions in certain situations.

Hargie discusses the topic of Clearinghouse probes. The purpose of this probe was to ensure that all the important information had been revealed. He claimed that sensitivity is an important factor when being interviewed and that gentle nudges should be used to ensure the interviewee is being attentive. Hargie used a source from Sevilla (1999) to show examples of lawyer’s questions.

I agree with the majority of information in this chapter as the examples given by Hargie are relatable.  However, I disagree with the fact that pauses need to be a minimum of three seconds as stated before in the paragraph if children are given a slightly longer time they increase the length of their responses: “increased average ‘wait-time’…length of these responses increased.”

Pedagogic tradition was a term that was unfamiliar. According to the Critical Dictionary of Education. ‘pedagogy’ is the principles of teaching. It has three key aspects which are: methodology, rationale, and reflection.

Conversational lead questions are a concept mentioned by Hargie. People use these every day. It is a conversation that normally expects a definite response. This ensures that the conversation flows, and gives the impression of being kind and welcoming.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Process Questions to Encourage Critical Thinking

Chapter five of “Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice” (Hargie, 2006) looks at the use of questions in a large variety of contexts. The main purposes of the chapter were to explain the many forms a question can take and the purposes these forms serve. It also explains how the questioner in an interaction … Continue reading “Process Questions to Encourage Critical Thinking”

Chapter five of “Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice” (Hargie, 2006) looks at the use of questions in a large variety of contexts. The main purposes of the chapter were to explain the many forms a question can take and the purposes these forms serve. It also explains how the questioner in an interaction generally controls the interaction and how the question is asked affects the answer. Interestingly, it examines the power dynamics that are at play when a question is asked, for instance the difference in response when a question is asked by a doctor as opposed to a peer.

I was particularly interested in the section about using process questions in a classroom setting. Process questions are defined by Hargie (2006, p.132) as questions which “require the respondent to use some higher mental process in order to respond. This may involve giving opinions, justifications, judgements or evaluations, making predictions, analysing information, interpreting situations or forming generalisations.” Recall questions, where a student’s response involves remembering a fact they may have committed to memory, or rote-learned, have their place in the classroom – for instance because the teacher maintains control over how much time it takes to answer the question – however the use of a process question will encourage a student to think and explore a topic in a deeper manner.

The acquiesce effect can come in to play when a student is asked a simple recall question, which refers to a respondent’s tendency to attempt to predict the direction in which a question is heading while the question is still being asked – for instance in the case of The Moses Illusion where subjects asked, “How many of each type of animal did Moses take on the ark?” generally reply “two,” even though it was Noah that built the ark in the story (Erickson and Mattson, 1981).

Taking care to use process questions in the classroom could help avoid this sort of automatic response, therefore encouraging the student or students to think critically about the subject they are studying and not simply remember certain facts and figures.

Settling in at UWS

Can not believe I have been at university for three weeks now, time has flown by so fast and everything still feels very new and confusing. I have created this blog to help me record and reflect on my journey through the BA hons Primary Education course at the University of the West of Scotland, I have never […]

Can not believe I have been at university for three weeks now, time has flown by so fast and everything still feels very new and confusing. I have created this blog to help me record and reflect on my journey through the BA hons Primary Education course at the University of the West of Scotland, I have never blogged before therefore I am a bit hesitant and unsure of what I am supposed to be doing but hopefully as the weeks go by this task become second nature and I can look back on my posts and see how far I have come in my journey.

Having been out of education since 2013 it has been daunting stepping back into an educational environment, I feel so out of touch, its been a long time since I wrote an essay or solved a maths problem! However my literacy lecturer and maths lecturer have helped me put my worries at rest by being very welcoming and approachable. I also realise that I am not the only person in this situation, there are many other mature students who are returning to education hoping to become successful Primary Teachers.

I have a lot of reading to do for next week, it feels like it has all come at once so I anticipate a long week of reading ahead trying to understand what I have just read and making sense of it. At least I have my new highlighters to brighten the pages up a bit and help me remember important information.

Situated Communication Independant Study

Throughout Chapter 5 of Hargie 2011, ‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’, the important concept of questioning is explored. The main idea of the text is to show that although initially questioning may seem like a simple skill, it is actually a very diverse and complex skill. There are many ideas surrounding questions […]

Throughout Chapter 5 of Hargie 2011, ‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’, the important concept of questioning is explored. The main idea of the text is to show that although initially questioning may seem like a simple skill, it is actually a very diverse and complex skill. There are many ideas surrounding questions in the chapter, but the main themes could be described as: what are questions,  how we use questions, types of questions and related aspects of questions.

An important issue raised in the article was by Walker, 1999; Zajac et al, 2003; Krahenbuhl and Blades, 2006; Pipe et al, 2007. They said that, “There is a growing volume of research to show that leading questions have a particularly distorting effect upon the responses of children”. For me this idea is an important one, because as student teachers we must be aware that children are much more easily influenced than adults. Leading questions must be used with caution or completely avoided when interviewing children.

There are many arguments made in the text but the one that stands out to me is by Walterman et al (2001:477), they said that, “Asking questions is a fundamental part of communication and as such will be an important factor in the work of many professionals”. I strongly agree with this argument as without questioning, communication in any situation would breakdown.

Though most of the article seems to discuss many relevant issues one thing that I disagreed with was that interactive questions are not effective with large audiences. Although I understand that only a few people would have the opportunity to answer the question, the remaining people would still be thinking about it and listening to other responses would give them a insight into other interpretations of the question. Rhetorical questions are suggested as an alternative to interactive questions, but in my opinion both types of question serve an important purpose but in different ways.

 

References:

‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’, in Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice. 5th ed. London: Routledge.

 

 

First few weeks at UWS

Before starting this course the subject which I was most concerned about was Maths…I never thought the day would come when I was more confident in a Maths class than an English class. However after punctuation and grammar week last week in literacy for understanding I now feel that way. It is tough going back to basics […]

Before starting this course the subject which I was most concerned about was Maths…I never thought the day would come when I was more confident in a Maths class than an English class. However after punctuation and grammar week last week in literacy for understanding I now feel that way.

It is tough going back to basics and realising the gaps in your own knowledge however on reflection I know more now than I did at the start of the class, I am not the only one who found this class challenging and I can now build upon this in order to one day be both competent and confident in my own abilities when teaching this to children (So they don’t one day go through this same feeling!). Moving on from that class I now question every over-used apostrophe, comma and semicolon and whether I really need them in my sentence!

I am finding all of the classes interesting however I am especially enjoying maths and situated communication as for me so far the both have the most link to practice. I find it extremely interesting learning about how we will one day teach these same concepts to our own class. All the teachers also clearly have a love for the subject they are teaching, especially the workshops in Performance Studio three. Reflecting on what we have been learning in Situated Communication students pick up on your attitude and the fun and love for the subject in that workshop really is infectious. I hope one day to be able to bring the same level of enthusiasm and love for learning to classes of children with ‘enthusiasm and motivation or learning’ (Scottish Government, 2009).

 

Reference List

East Lothian Council (2017) The Purpose of the Curriculum [Online] Available at:http://www.eastlothian.gov.uk/info/878/schools/224/the_purpose_of_the_curriculum

Accessed:  26/009/2017

My Experience as an UWS Student … So Far!

My experience of UWS so far has been pleasant. I have just started my third ‘official’ week here (excluding the induction week) therefore my experience is somewhat limited. Over the past few weeks I have learned a lot about myself, … Continue reading

My experience of UWS so far has been pleasant. I have just started my third ‘official’ week here (excluding the induction week) therefore my experience is somewhat limited. Over the past few weeks I have learned a lot about myself, and what will be expected of me over the next four years.

It is interesting as I thought I knew myself pretty well; however I learned something about myself I didn’t think was possible… I am capable of grasping Maths concepts! I have always had an anxiety when it came to Maths, and therefore when I found out that it was a core module and was assessed by an exam (which also brings great anxiety to me) I started to get a bit worried. When I walked into my second tutorial (Place Value and Number Base) I could feel the anxiety building up again. However, with the help of the lecturer and physical aids such as counting blocks I began to grasp how to calculate base values. Once I grasped the concept I stopped using the physical aids and even began helping other students! I feel I need to have more faith in myself, and that Maths doesn’t need to bring me the anxiety that it does.

Another module I feel like I have particularly benefitted from is the workshop in Situated Communication that is held in Performance Studio 3 a.k.a The Dungeon. Here we are pushed out of our comfort zones and expand the friendships we have already made. At first I found the class overwhelming as I am someone who hates having all eyes on them; however over the past few weeks my confidence has grown and I have become more comfortable with being in the lime light. I may take some of the exercises we have done into my future practice as it may help the children I will be teaching to build up their confidence. It is important to do this as the Curriculum for Excellence states that school must enable children to become ‘Confident Individuals’ (Scottish Government, 2009).

 

Reference List

Scottish Government (2009) curriculum for excellence building the curriculum 4 skills for learning, skills for life and skills for work. Edinburgh: The Scottish Government.

Situated Communication Independent Study/Reading Task

Within chapter five of the ‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’ book by Hargie (2011) it explores the importance of questions, as they are incorporated within a lot of interpersonal encounters.  There are many different sections within this chapter, such as ‘Purposes of questions’, ‘Probing questions’ and ‘Types of questions.’ Under the section […]

Within chapter five of the ‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’ book by Hargie (2011) it explores the importance of questions, as they are incorporated within a lot of interpersonal encounters.  There are many different sections within this chapter, such as ‘Purposes of questions’, ‘Probing questions’ and ‘Types of questions.’ Under the section ‘Purposes of questions’ it gives a range of different examples in which questions are used, for example – teachers when teaching their class and sales workers trying to pitch to members of the public.  The ‘Probing questions’ section discusses how questions can be used to prompt people to reply to what others have asked them.  The ‘Types of questions’ section goes into a large amount of detail about recall and process questions, affective questions, leading questions and open and closed questions.  Research mentioned during this section is (Dickson et al, 1997), in which they concluded during counselling that open questions are more effective.  They backed up this evidence with three bullet points which state their opinion such as, open questions produce accurate responses.  However, personally I don’t completely agree with this statement as I feel as though every question type is effective in different ways.  To back up my feelings about this, I think more research should be done to strengthen their argument that open questions are more effective, as I do not think it is fair to just include one source of research from the same kind of environment.

There are also some arguments within this chapter, especially under the ‘Multiple questions’ section, as it starts off by mentioning that multiple questions can be useful in certain circumstances, however it then talks about how they are “wasteful.”  The word wasteful is then indicating that multiple questions are useful at no point in time – this completely contradicting what was said to start with.  I personally found the first paragraph of the chapter beneficial as it made me grasp the concept of just how important questions are, as one teacher portrayed this through a learning experience.  During a lesson she made a rule that nobody was allowed to ask a question, however she quickly realised communication was vague after that, and the children ended up asking questions unintentionally.

 

References:

‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’, in Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice. 5th ed. London: Routledge.

Sustainable Development – The Environment

Over the past 2 sessions in our Sustainable Development lectures and workshops, we have been learning about the environment. In the first week we looked at the natural environment and in the second we looked at urban environments. I have found this theme very interesting as it has allowed me to consider my surroundings in … Continue reading Sustainable Development – The Environment

Over the past 2 sessions in our Sustainable Development lectures and workshops, we have been learning about the environment. In the first week we looked at the natural environment and in the second we looked at urban environments. I have found this theme very interesting as it has allowed me to consider my surroundings in … Continue reading Sustainable Development – The Environment

My Experience at UWS

I applied for the BA (hons) Education in Ayr last year while I was at school and after interview process I became unsuccessful. My second option was to go and do a year at college doing my HNC Childhood Practice. … Continue reading

I applied for the BA (hons) Education in Ayr last year while I was at school and after interview process I became unsuccessful. My second option was to go and do a year at college doing my HNC Childhood Practice. When it came to UCAS application I began to wonder if I should apply for Education again and I decided it was the best option as I have wanted to be a primary teacher as long as I can remember. When I used to stand in my bedroom with a magnetic white board and pretend to teach my students (my teddy bear and dolls).

Getting accepted into UWS the second time applying I felt overwhelmed and excited to start the course, as it has always been my dream. The first four weeks have went in really fast and I have met a few new friends. I felt nervous going into a new environment becoming the first year student again and was very nervous at the point of making new friends and speaking to new people.

There has been mass amounts of information given to me over the past four weeks and I feel like it is a lot to take in. I hope that over the next few weeks everything begins to settle in my mind and everything becomes clearer on what I have to do and how to find different things on Moodle.

I am not very confident in academic writing or used to regularly blogging but I hope that over the next few years it improves and I become confident in both.

I can not wait to see what the next four years has in store for me.

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