3 minutes of Questions Provides a Goldmine of Information

Being the rebel that I am I looked at our Cohort 21 homework and thought “I can see the value in this, but it’s not quite lining up with my struggle right now.” I was being asked to identity 3  the three most urgent needs of my students. I couldn’t seem to really narrow it down. Mostly because I wasn’t sure that I did really know my students as learners. In fact, I DIDN’T know them as learners at all.

A few I’ve taught before I had an idea of their strengths and growth areas but the rest of my class was new to me. So instead of using the script provided I decided to go rogue!! I started the class by telling them I’d be talking with each of them for a few minutes about their learning, and that I was collecting the data for a course I was taking. I pulled each student aside and asked them this:

“Think of the class that you feel you are learning the most in. What is happening in that class that helps you learn? What is the teacher doing that you feel works best for how you learn?”

I also made sure to tell them that I wouldn’t be insulted if they didn’t mention my class … wink wink.

The answers I got were as varied as my students, but I felt so empowered and excited after speaking with each of them. I had been worried that my class was too content heavy and not hands-on enough. What I learned was that they wanted an easier way of collecting that content and the opportunity to discuss it. Mind blown.

I was over thinking the problem and in doing so was missing  the real needs of my students. Turns out it’s a super easy fix that I can immediately start to implement.

If you’re curious to know what they said here are my big takeaways from my grade 12 students:

  • Provide copies of the slideshow at the start of class so we can highlight and annotate during the lesson. It’s easier to listen and I’m not worried that I missed something.
  • Work in time to talk about what we just learned, so we can discuss it as a smaller group
  • I like it when a teacher gets students to explain what was just on the board, it helps to make sure everyone understands it
  • It’s good when there’s a mix of reading, slideshows, and videos. I learn better when I have chance to use the material in more than one way.

5 thoughts on “3 minutes of Questions Provides a Goldmine of Information

  1. Thanks for the cool idea, Lisa!

    “I like it when a teacher gets students to explain what was just on the board, it helps to make sure everyone understands it.”

    It’s so simple, and yet, I don’t think I’ve ever tried this in nearly 12 years of teaching high school students. I will be trying it in chemistry this coming week. Have you tried it yet? I hope to hear about it when you do try it!

    Thanks again!

    1. Hi Leslie! I have tried it and its super helpful. I usually will ask the whole class to quickly write something down in their own words or to discuss it with a partner, then will ask someone (or Voluntell) a student to share with the whole class. If the student isn’t quite right I’ll ask for input from the rest of the class until we get the right answer. This was a good reminder to slow down and let students think about what they just learned instead of jumping into the next thing.

      Let me know how it goes!

  2. @lbelranger,

    Such amazing questions to ask senior students. And, of course, they told you exactly what you needed to hear. This was my favourite part of your blog:

    “I was over thinking the problem and in doing so was missing the real needs of my students. Turns out it’s a super easy fix that I can immediately start to implement.”

    I often wonder how many of our perceived failures as teachers go unnoticed by students. And do we ever ask them what they want out of a class?

    You’ve taken a brave and bold first step here, empathizing with your user. Not only can you adjust your practice to better facilitate the needs of your students, but now that you’ve found common ground, you can develop higher expectations from both themselves as students and you as a teacher. Co-learning. Co-creating. Co-construction. This is the 21st century conversation called education.

    1. Thanks Eric! I’ve been telling all my co-workers about the experience and how asking students to talk about what works in other classes for them made it so easy for them to be able to talk about their learning. I feel like I now have such a better understanding of how I can support each student, and am much more confident about moving forward with my lessons.

  3. Hi @lbelanger,

    I’m so glad you took the opportunity to interview your students! It’s amazing what you can discover through empathizing with your user. It sounds like you found out some really valuable information that will help you to rethink teaching and learning in your classroom. Looking forward to connecting tomorrow and hearing more about this experience.

    Cheers, Nicole

Comments are disabled.