Investigation of Preeschool Teachers' Questions' Types

Abstract

This study is a discourse analysis in the context of early childhood education. The main purpose of the study was to detect the preschool teacher’s questioning typologies in the classroom. To put it differently, discourse-cognition relations were plumbed in the context of learning and teaching in the period of early childhood. The participants were a preschool teacher and 15 students. As part of this study, the teacher’s questioning typologies during in-class discourses were determined. The subjects of the in-class discourses which were video recorded were specified beforehand. The data were analysed theory-based and data-tendency coding catalogues. The data which obtained by recorder were analysed analytically thorough specific coding catalogues (in seconds or minutes). Then the teacher’s questioning typologies were proportioned so as to make inter-implementation comparisons. The teacher applied to seven higher categories of questioning: “communicating”, “monitoring”, “evaluating”, “challenging”, “seeking for evidence”, observations-comparison- prompting to prediction”, “prompting to concluding/ inferencing”. It is determined that communicative questioning (%46,6) typology was used more than the other ones (“challenging” (%6,1, evaluating (%7,9) that required high cognitive demand. From this point of view, the teacher’s questioning in class was mostly lower-level (comprehension, remembering). It is aimed that the obtained evidence of teacher’s questioning will contribute significantly to the vocational education actions.

Keywords

• Discourse analysis
• teacher questioning
• teacher training
• preschool teaching

Investigation of Preeschool Teachers' Questions' Types

Öz

This study is a discourse analysis in the context of early childhood education. The main purpose of the study was to detect the preschool teacher’s questioning typologies in the classroom. To put it differently, discourse-cognition relations were plumbed in the context of learning and teaching in the period of early childhood. The participants were a preschool teacher and 15 students. As part of this study, the teacher’s questioning typologies during in-class discourses were determined. The subjects of the in-class discourses which were video recorded were specified beforehand. The data were analysed theory-based and data-tendency coding catalogues. The data which obtained by recorder were analysed analytically thorough specific coding catalogues (in seconds or minutes). Then the teacher’s questioning typologies were proportioned so as to make inter-implementation comparisons. The teacher applied to seven higher categories of questioning: “communicating”, “monitoring”, “evaluating”, “challenging”, “seeking for evidence”, observations-comparison- prompting to prediction”, “prompting to concluding/ inferencing”. It is determined that communicative questioning (%46,6) typology was used more than the other ones (“challenging” (%6,1, evaluating (%7,9) that required high cognitive demand. From this point of view, the teacher’s questioning in class was mostly lower-level (comprehension, remembering). It is aimed that the obtained evidence of teacher’s questioning will contribute significantly to the vocational education actions.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Discourse analysis
• teacher questioning
• teacher training
• preschool teaching

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