Questions and Answers
At the end of each session, we will take some time for students to ask questions.
However, from experience as a teacher, I know a lot of those questions can be:
"How old are you?"
"Do you own a dog?"
"I've been to Disneyland."
"Once, when I was little, my mom took me and my brother..."
OK, the first two questions really have nothing to do with the writing or the writing presentation, and the last two aren't really questions at all, now, are they? In fact, the last one can prattle on and on as if the student's story is more important than learning from the author. With proper training ahead of time, students might think more appropriately about how to move the conversation forward instead of asking irrelevant questions. And without proper training, someone else might just ask a question like, "How many books have you written?" when that question was probably already answered in the presentation itself.
Yes, we will have a little time for questions, because I think it's important, but understand this: the Q/A period can only be as rich as the questions that are asked in the first place. If you are teacher, you know this is true!
However, from experience as a teacher, I know a lot of those questions can be:
"How old are you?"
"Do you own a dog?"
"I've been to Disneyland."
"Once, when I was little, my mom took me and my brother..."
OK, the first two questions really have nothing to do with the writing or the writing presentation, and the last two aren't really questions at all, now, are they? In fact, the last one can prattle on and on as if the student's story is more important than learning from the author. With proper training ahead of time, students might think more appropriately about how to move the conversation forward instead of asking irrelevant questions. And without proper training, someone else might just ask a question like, "How many books have you written?" when that question was probably already answered in the presentation itself.
Yes, we will have a little time for questions, because I think it's important, but understand this: the Q/A period can only be as rich as the questions that are asked in the first place. If you are teacher, you know this is true!