58
This would, I think, depend a lot on how the "answering" student goes about it. Just interrupting a request to the professor is disruptive, but some people do this sort of thing by reflex. But yes, a quiet word is in order. Ask them to meet with you. But decide first on what you would like them to do to correct the action.
If the answers they give are ...
29
1) How should a professor react to the most advanced questions from her students of a basic course, if (s)he knows the answer?
I would distinguish between reasonable and obnoxious questions.
If the question is reasonable, then I would give a concise answer and encourage "offline" follow up. The question in your example seems reasonable -- it's essentially ...
17
Have you ever taught? When you explain something to a class, have you ever seen understanding happen in students' faces, or confusion? When the former happens, have you stopped your speaking and prompted the student to continue your thought and make it their own? Or in the latter case, have you stopped and asked what was unclear, had a discussion about it, ...
15
There are two main components to be handled:
The question
The answer
For (1), you can either choose to say
Please ask your question after I finish this part
or take the question right away.
For (2), I usually prefer to ask the classroom
Is there anyone who wants to answer this question?
If someone volunteers, and in your case someone always does, ...
15
@cag51 makes good points, but I want to focus on this aspect of your question:
The professor may not know every aspect and every trend in the subject he is teaching. If (s)he says that I don't know, then, the respect for the professor may go down. Else if (s)he says that it is beyond the scope of the course then the research aspirancy of the students may ...
13
I would suggest two principles: build and reward engagement, and speak to the whole class.
Reward engagement: Someone asked you a question about something related to the course material you're presenting? Awesome! That student is engaged and interested! That's great to see. I recommend you choose an answer that rewards rather than penalizes that -- so a ...
9
You were correct in not engaging in religious argument in an academic setting. But a valid answer, that is probably acceptable to most people, whatever their faith, is, "I don't know. Your question is outside the realm of science."
If further asked, "What do you believe?", you can say that it is a private matter.
Unfortunately too many religious ...
8
There's not enough information in the OP to know if this is the case, I'm adding my answer in case it may help others.
I was forced to take a class for a subject in which I was already proficient (introduction to programming). As the course progressed, I noticed my teacher would answer other students' questions with answers that were correct, but long-...
8
In many classes, there are a few students who participate way more than others. I would recommend doing two things in this case.
Have times when it is appropriate for students to answer each
other's questions. It wasn't clear from your question whether your
class has that, but if it doesn't, consider adding it. Everyone
benefits -- some students get their ...
7
I used to be that student. @Buffy's answer covers most of it, but one scenario she has not mentioned is much simpler, and was the reason I did this: impatience.
When the question was trivial and the answer obvious, I wanted to move the course along so I would blurt it out in hopes to nip it in the bud.
Of course I now know how misguided that behavior is, ...
6
If this is the US or in a place with similar traditions, then nearly all academics teach. Some more than others and some only at advanced levels, but generally, we teach.
If you are good enough to be hired primarily as a researcher at an R1 university in the US then the hiring decision won't hinge much on your background as a teacher, but for most other ...
6
1) How should a professor react to the most advanced questions from
her students of a basic course, if (s)he knows the answer?
It depends on how long it would take to explain the answer. If it is a matter of a minute or so, the professor can just answer. If it is going to be a lengthy digression, wasting the time of most of the class, these days I suggest ...
5
My experience with this sort of issue has been in teaching astronomy classes for gen ed students in which we deal with the Big Bang. In this context (which differs somewhat from yours), I think it's a good idea not to completely shut down questions about religion.
A student who is a business major may have very little understanding of how science works and ...
5
If you were the professor for the course, I'd give a different answer, but consider the following.
I'll assume that you have the same group for each meeting, rather than a random selection of students that changes randomly over time. This lets you set expectations and a general flow.
One problem you may be encountering is that the students haven't yet ...
4
I have had this problem, and I was vaguely warned beforehand.
Nevertheless it came as a surprise that the pupil was one I knew before. She still hadn't got a job. No wonder why.
And the warnings were about "being too talkative", "taking over class discussions", "irritating the other pupils".
So, here it goes, refering to this pupil of mine:
Your student ...
4
I'm not a big fan of power point, but then, I'm not a big fan of lecture in general. But others are fine with it. It has become common practice for many.
It gives the professor a way to think about the lecture, and the course, as a whole so that they are assure that (a) no essential points are missed and (b) that misstatements don't accidentally confuse ...
3
Many secular universities have theology faculty. You can suggest that your students ask them theological questions. This is the same as if I, a physicist, when asked about human perception of sound, suggested that students ask you.
3
Although I think this question is both too broad and is just asking for opinions, I answered part of it in a related question:
The fast development of the technologies involved has meant that we regularly experience new waves of communication trends whose popularity waxes and wanes. It often moves so rapidly that a medium is defunct before any study of ...
3
I spent many years of my professional life discussing how to present complicated ideas. The first rule that I developed was: "Any comment, however stupid seeming, should be taken seriously". In the OP's context that means try to understand what the student comments are getting at, even if the students who are commenting cannot explain it. Something you said ...
2
This depends by area of study and geography. In the area I did my Ph.D. (pure math), most new job candidates have taught (i.e. been the primary lecturer) for several courses, though the importance of that varies on the type of institution they get their job at. In the applied area I have pivoted to, many applicants have no teaching experience at all; some ...
2
I have been a teacher in university, so I completely understand what you are saying.
And I have also been the average student annoyed by "that kid" who is always showing off and answering everybody else's questions to the teacher. I would have loved if someone made that kid shut up.
So please, do something about it, not only for you sake, but also for the ...
2
I remember a situation where this happened in class. The teacher put down the interrupting student in class for everyone, rather angrily. He told the student something along the lines of "Sure, you might pass the class without problems, but that doesn't mean everyone here will".
I think a more charismatic, friendly approach could work, even if you do it ...
2
There's nothing wrong with students answering each others' questions. It helps them "own" the subject rather than see it as something you dispense. However in this case it seems to be unhelpful to the other students as well as to the teacher.
The disruptive student seems to be frustrated that the pace of the class is too slow for her. She seems to be well ...
1
Recruit them as extraofficial help. Task them with answering questions in the online fora (official or non-official). Talk to them and work out some etiquette on answering questions in class: give others time to think the problem through, let others answer first, in general, be polite to co-students.
1
Let him/her keep answering IF the student consistently gets the answers right. It helps the student learn and spurs class participation. Learning happens best when it is a two-way street.
1
I advise that you consider every comment as having some validity. But they may be just preferences for what they wish you had done, not actually valid objections to how you teach.
But some of them might indicate that you could be more effective in general. I agree with what I think is your sentiment that a lecture isn't an entertainment, though some ...
1
In the US, a class that counts for 3 credit hours normally meets for about 3 clock hours per week. It is often one hour at a time over the course of the week, though it might be otherwise. The typical student in such a course is expected to spend an additional six hours per week on the course, for nine hours total. I'll assume similar expectations for Israel,...
1
If I am delivering a lecture just once, then I might use slides (but never PowerPoint) to show in pictures what I could never say in words.
If, however, I am giving a course that
1. I shall give again, maybe many times
2. includes complicated algebraic derivations that the students need to think about,
then there is a case for some kind of handout that ...
1
My evaluation of PowerPoint is that it seems to be intended to make presentations as boring as possible. Every slide with a title, all the same font, all the same format, bullet point text, etc. and etc. It's more suited to presentations of accounting stats than anything else.
But generally, I like prepped slides of some sort for any kind of presentation. ...
1
If I'm understanding the context correctly, this is a group of students who are first-year undergraduates, probably mostly engineering majors, taking a linear algebra course that comes in their lower-division math sequence after a year of calculus.
Re this specific type of course, this may depend on the text and the professor, but usually they start with a ...
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