Called to Teach. Группа авторов
Introductory Statistics,” 5.
43. Kirk, Instructors Manual, 12.
44. Keeley, Ismail, and Buskist, “Excellent Teachers’ Perspectives,” 175–79.
45. Harlow, “Teaching Quantitative Psychology,” 105–17.
4
Responding to Bad Questions
and Poor Answers
Andrew E. Arterbury
Recently, while preparing for a minor surgical procedure, my doctor provided me with an information sheet. Toward the end of the information sheet, the doctor included a commonplace quote. He reminded his patients: “There is no such thing as a ‘bad’ or ‘dumb’ question.” Of course, this same doctor then asked me to read three additional documents before asking him any questions. He even suggested that I write down my questions so I could ask them all at once. Finally, the doctor stressed that the nurse (rather than he) would call just once to address my questions. In essence, the doctor first claimed there are no “bad” questions, but then he took active measures to avoid bad questions and to dissuade me from bothering him or his staff with too many questions.
At times, university classrooms exhibit a similar environment. Frequently, we as professors assure our students there are no bad questions, and we often suggest that all comments are welcome. Truthfully though, we often say those things to be polite and to encourage good comments while finding subtle—or sometimes, not so subtle—ways to discourage or eliminate the bad questions and poor answers we wish to avoid. Consequently, I am suggesting that we take a more straightforward approach to this topic. I am suggesting that we acknowledge the presence of bad questions and poor answers within our classrooms. Ignoring these problems only leaves us flat-footed when the situations arise. Even worse, mishandling these situations or mistreating the offending students is beneath the calling we seek to carry out. Alternatively, professors who construct healthy strategies for responding to bad questions and poor answers before they arise are better positioned to improve the pedagogical environment in their classrooms. I am suggesting that if we respond proactively and constructively to the problems that bad questions and poor answers present in our classrooms, we may be able to create a win-win situation for us and our students.
Identifying Bad Questions and Poor Answers
In order to define better what I mean by bad questions and poor answers, I will describe three examples that arose from two students in my classes last year:
Student #1 repeatedly asked bad questions throughout the semester. His bad questions derived from two main sources. First, he never read the course syllabus. As a result, in the last month of the semester when I—for about the sixth time—reminded my students of their final writing assignment, which the syllabus clearly described, Student #1 raised his hand and asked me why he had never heard of this assignment before now. Obviously, Student #1 was the only person who could answer his own question.
Second, this same student, Student #1, sat at the back of the room and often chatted with his friend while his classmates or I were speaking. As a result, on three separate occasions Student #1 asked a question that had just been explicitly addressed within the previous thirty seconds of class discussion. I consider these types of questions to be “bad questions.”
Student #2 was a contentious and hard-working student who earned a solid grade in my class. Sometimes, however—even near the end of the course—she offered poor answers to questions I raised during our classroom discussions. Akin to ancient Gnostics who sought insight that was hidden from the masses and only available to a select few who possessed the spark of divine knowledge within them, this student at times seemed disappointed by the clearly written, obvious point of a biblical book or passage. As a result, she routinely rearranged the text we were reading or essentially constructed a new text in her head that she found more interesting. She strove for a unique interpretation that no one else had ever voiced before.
At times, Student #2 would notice an exceedingly common word in two or three biblical books and suggest that they are connected thematically. In essence, she attempted to uncover a complex web of linked biblical passages that reveal a divinely encoded message for contemporary readers. For example, she suggested that the conjunction “but” in Genesis 8, Acts 2, and Romans 5 are all mysteriously connected. Without a doubt, later biblical writers frequently quoted from earlier biblical texts, but noting the appearance of a short, ubiquitous word like “but” in multiple texts without providing additional supporting evidence does not amount to a quotation of a previous source according to either ancient or modern standards. The word “but” occurs 5,012 times in the NRSV translation of the Bible. Student #2 wanted to connect only three of those 5,012 words without any justification for her decision. From my angle of vision, Student #2 provided a very poor answer. She relied upon instincts and logic in my classroom that she brought with her to Baylor’s campus and that did not align with any of the course’s learning objectives. In other words, she fell back on instincts and logic that she learned in a non-academic environment and imported those into my classroom.
In my opinion, Student #1 asked “bad questions,” and Student #2 offered “poor answers.” Of course, having argued that things such as bad questions and poor answers exist, we still need to consider how a professor—and especially a professor who senses a call to this profession—might respond to these bad questions and poor answers.
Examining Myself First
Perhaps the first thing I should do as a professor who senses a call to teach is to ask: “What can I do differently?” “How can I improve?” If my present approach fosters bad questions and poor answers, I need to ask whether I can alter my approach and eliminate some of those bad questions and poor answers—not in a way that intimidates or discourages students, but in a way that places the burden on me to prevent the problem altogether.
After reflecting on Student #1’s questions, I have now decided to give a quiz over the syllabus at the beginning of each semester for all of my classes. It does no good to lament that Canvas labels a list of assignments and due dates as the “Syllabus.” It also does no good for me to self-righteously conclude that a twenty-five-year old seminarian ought to be more conscientious about his education. I am the one who can eliminate that bad question from arising again. If I will simply hold my students accountable for reading the syllabus, I can arrive at an easy solution that benefits my entire class.
Second, after asking myself what Professor Emeritus and Master Teacher in Baylor University’s Department of English, D. Thomas Hanks, would have done in response to Student #1’s chatter at the back of the room during class, I concluded that once again I was in a position to prevent the bad questions from arising in the first place. On more than one occasion over the years, I watched as Tom graciously addressed similar classroom incivilities.46 Tom did not merely address poor classroom behavior because it offended him; rather he addressed the incivilities for the sake of all his students. On some occasions, Tom stopped talking and smiled while waiting for the disruptive student to recognize his errant ways and correct them. On another occasion, I witnessed Tom visiting with a disruptive student after class with a gracious smile and a clear explanation of why a different course of action would be advantageous to all. In essence, Tom always acted when faced with classroom incivilities. He never let problems fester until they created more problems. When I, however, chose to ignore Student #1’s back row chatter, it led to additional problems—including bad questions that disrupted the flow of our discussions. Before going any farther, I must first refine my pedagogical approach and eliminate the distractions I can.
Disposition toward Students
Next, if we are called to teach—that is, if we see our job as part of our God-initiated and God-directed vocation—then we must realize that our disposition and responses towards students who raise bad questions and offer poor answers will matter almost as much as the