An Investigation Into Classroom Questioning In High School English Reading Class For The Development Of Thinking Quality

Reading teaching has an important position in high school English teaching,and classroom questioning is one of the essential parts.After the core literacy of English Discipline in “General High School English Curriculum Standards” was proposed in2017(revised in 2020),how to develop it becomes a main topic.So how teachers integrate core literacy into classroom questioning is very important for students’ thinking development.Thinking quality as one of the four core literacy,can improve students’ ability to analyze and solve problems,as well as the ability to make correct judgments on things.As the most commonly used method in teaching,classroom questioning is also the most significant way of teacher-student interaction,which plays an indispensable role in the development of students’ thinking.Therefore,it is of great practical significance to study classroom questioning in English reading teaching for the development of thinking quality with the combination of the two.This study focuses on two questions:(1)What is the current situation of classroom questioning in high school English reading teaching for the development of thinking quality?(The situation will be investigated from the following six aspects: questioning type,quantity,waiting time,ways of questioning,feedback and strategy.)(2)What are the reasons for the current situation? The subjects of this study are teachers and students in Grade two of a senior high school in Yan’ an City.Three research methods are employed,i.e.classroom observation,questionnaire,interview.Classroom observation is conducted to collect and analyze data on the current situation of classroom questioning from the six aspects.The questionnaires include teacher questionnaire and student questionnaire.Teacher questionnaire is carried out to collect and analyze the data of 46 high school teachers in seven dimensions,such as teachers’ cognition of thinking quality,their awareness of cultivating students’ thinking quality,and the situation of classroom questioning.Students’ questionnaire is carried out to collect and analyze the data of 200grade-two students in three dimensions,such as thinking quality awareness and the students’ attitudes towards classroom questioning etc.The aim of conducting the questionnaires is to find out the reasons for the current situation.Finally,through interviews with teachers and students in the aspects of thinking quality and questioning,the reasons for the the current situation are further explored.Through the research,it is found that in English reading class the teachers always raise the questions such as the ones for memorization,comprehension,application,analysis,evaluation and creativity to promote the development of students’ thinking quality.Teachers can give students plenty of time to think after asking questions.Teachers help students develop their thinking by means of feedback,ways of questioning and questioning strategies.The reasons for the current situation of questioning lies in the factors of teachers,students and the process of teaching and learning.On the one hand,teachers attach importance to the quality of thinking,understand the importance of developing students’ thinking quality,and in class they always put forward questions for comprehension and analysis to promote the development of students’ thinking.On the other hand,students have their own cognition of thinking quality and demand for classroom questioning.Their positive attitudes lay a foundation for teachers to ask questions in class.Finally,when asking questions,teachers are influenced by the factors such as training experience,teaching progress,exam-oriented education,text genre,length of English class and others,so it is difficult for them to achieve the expected goal of questioning.For example,due to the lack of training experience,it is difficult in class for teachers to raise questions for developing students’ critical and innovative thinking,and it is also difficult for them to monitor and evaluate whether students understand the implied meaning of the discourse.