The Outline of the Thesis (A Sample)
Title:A Content-analysis of EFL Student-Teachers’ Questioning in the Classroom
Abstract: This paper introduces the difference in classroom questioning between EFL student-teachers and in-service teachers in middle schools by comparative analysis of their classroom discourse focusing on the features of student-teachers’ questioning strategies (for linguistic knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation) in three aspects: (1) the purposes of questioning, (2) the waiting time for students’ responses and (3) the feedback to students’ responses. It aims at clarifying what’s lacking in student teachers’ classroom questioning skills & strategies and the reasons why they have the problems. The research may help EFL teachers understand classroom questioning and the way of classroom-teaching investigation by content analysis of classroom discourse is introduced.
Key words: questioning; question types; waiting time; feedback
1. Introduction
1.1. Understanding “interaction”
1.1.1. “Interaction” in socio-culture theory
1.1.2. Classroom interactions
1.2. Classroom discourse
1.2.1. What is classroom discourse?
1.2.2. IRF Content-analysis of classroom discourse
2. Classroom questioning and the function
2.1. Definition of classroom questioning
2.1.1. Conception of classroom questioning and its development
2.1.2. The criteria for effective questioning in the classroom
2.2. Categories of questioning and their functions
2.2.1 Questioning for linguistic knowledge (for students to recall or remember the previously learnt structural knowledge)
2.2.2 Questioning for comprehension (for students to translate, to grasp the meaning of materials)
2.2.3 Questioning for application (for students to generalize, or to use learnt materials in new and concrete situations)
2.2.4 Questioning for analysis (for students to discover the material into its component parts so that it may be more easily understood)
2.2.5 Questioning for synthesis (for students to compose, to put materials together, to form a new one)
2.2.6 Questioning for evaluation (for students to judge the value of the material for a given purpose)
3. Investigation on classroom questioning
3.1 Purpose and object of investigation
3.1.1 The purposes
3.1.2 The object
3.2 Method of investigation
2.2.1 IRF (Initiate-Response-Feedback) analysis on classroom discourse
2.2.2 The transcription of student-teacher’s classroom discourse
2.2.3 The transcription of in-service teacher’s classroom discourse
3.3 Procedures of investigation
3.3.1 Investigation on student-teacher’s classroom questioning
3.3.2 Investigation on in-service teacher’s classroom questioning 3.3.3 The findings of the investigation
Findings on student-teacher’s classroom questioning
Findings on in-service teacher’s classroom questioning
4. The analysis on the findings
4.1 The difference in classroom questioning between EFL student-teachers and the in-service teachers
4.1.1 Differences in the types of questions
4.1.2 Differences in the waiting time for Ss’ responses
4.1.3 Differences in T’s feedback to Ss’ responses
4.2 Main problems of EFL student-teacher’s classroom questioning
4.2.1 Lacking clear objectives
4.2.2 Lacking patience for waiting
4.2.3 Lacking clear points in feedbacks
4.3 Analysis on student-teacher’s classroom questioning
4.3.1 The teachers’ intention & effectiveness of classroom questioning
4.3.2 The main cause for lacking patience & points in classroom questioning
Deficiencies in teaching experience
Deficiencies in understanding students
Deficiencies in understanding the textbook
5. Conclusion
5.1 What’s lacking in EFL student-teachers’ classroom questioning
5.2 The main reason of EFL student-teachers’ problems in their classroom questioning and the possible solutions
References
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