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Eisner, E. (2003). Questionable assumptions about schooling. Phi Delta Kappan, 84(9), 648-657.
Hatt, B. (2012). Smartness as a cultural practice in schools. American Educational Research Journal, 49(3), 438-460.

Nieto, S. (2017). Language, Culture, and Teaching: Critical Perspectives (3rd ed.). New York: Routledge.

Oakes, J., Lipton, M., Anderson, L., & Stillman, J. (2018). Teaching to change the world (5th ed.). New York: Routledge.

Sleeter, C. (2016). Chapter 2: Teacher beliefs about knowledge. In Un-standardizing curriculum: Multicultural teaching in the standards-based classroom (pp. 28-42). New York: TC Press.

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Something as simple as a verbal question could mean so much in an educational setting, especially for students. We as teachers may not realize that we are engaging verbal questions in a negative way for students, nor do we have any malicious intention to our students. One of the things we need to do as teachers are to be self-aware about our own practice, what philosophy we have in teaching, and what we want to strive through educating children. We must be self-aware in creating a socially just classroom that supports all learners from various kinds of backgrounds and with various talents and characteristics. Only through having awareness can we start designing learning that is more equitable in supporting all students, starting from asking verbal questions that facilitate students learning instead of using questions to control and judge them. Only then can all students develop and learn positively in the classroom without anyone left behind. 

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Something as simple as a verbal question could mean so much in an educational setting, especially for students. We as teachers may not realize that we are engaging verbal questions in a negative way for students, nor do we have any malicious intention to our students. One of the things we need to do as teachers are to be self-aware about our own practice, what philosophy we have in teaching, and what we want to strive through educating children. We must be self-aware in creating a socially just classroom that supports all learners from various kinds of backgrounds and with various talents and characteristics. Only through having awareness can we start designing learning that is more equitable in supporting all students, starting from asking verbal questions that facilitate students learning instead of using questions to control and judge them. Only then can all students develop and learn positively in the classroom without anyone left behind. 

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Making students as experts in the classroom through verbal questions from teachers and peers in Felicidad Elementary School

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Making students as experts in the classroom through verbal questions from teachers and peers in Felicidad Elementary School

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In the Kindergarten classroom of Felicidad Elementary School, the teacher used the verbal question to ask a female student about her interest. Then, the teacher instructed the other students to ask verbal questions about the female student too to the female student herself, and the students could draw a picture of the female student with stuff that represented her based on her answers, such as her favorite color, favorite food, and things she did at home.

Through these verbal questions from teachers and students, the learning became more contextual as they learned from a member of their learning community. Through the verbal questions, students could learn that their interests and characteristics are valuable resources in the community's learning. Students learn to respect their peers' characteristics, no matter their interests and talents.

When the verbal question is asked to all students in the classroom, they can feel more heard in their learning and be more motivated.

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Building trust and relationships through genuine curiosity in Smart Learning Center

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Building trust and relationships through genuine curiosity in Smart Learning Center

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In Smart Learning Center, teachers also used questions to know how the students answered the learning exercise. However, the difference is I saw how the teacher expressed genuine curiosity about the students' answers and built the learning of the students based on the student's answers.

When the student answered wrongly, the teacher never dismissed the student. The teacher also never expressed confusion or embarrassment at the student's wrong answer. Instead, whenever the student answered the question with the wrong answer, the teacher corrected the student's answer with a pleasant speaking tone.

As the teacher never dismissed their opinion or answers, I saw how the student expressed more curiosity and motivation in her learning. The student would ask questions and was not afraid to try, even if she was not sure of her thoughts yet. The student seemed more secure and belonged in the learning environment, and both teacher and student built great relationships and trust with one another.

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The teachers in Brown and Green School used verbal questions to scaffold the students in engaging with learning materials or when the students faced some problem. One of the examples I remember the most was when a three-year-old student just returned from the restroom and misplaced a part of her pants on her legs. Instead of physically helping the students, the teacher used questions to help the students fix their clothing, such as "Where do you think the pants should be on your body?", "Should you raise your legs higher or lower?" until the student could fix the pants on her own.

This example shows how powerful verbal question is as a tool for scaffolding as a student as young as three could fix her pants on her own - an article of clothing that is quite complex to use. By asking the students questions and not fixing the clothing physically, the teacher extended trust to the child that she could fix her clothing on her own. Children can be more independent and trust themselves more in solving their problems.

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Examples of verbal question that supports students and help student feel belong in the classroom

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Examples of verbal question that supports students and help student feel belong in the classroom

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To help students critically think about the issues outside the classroom

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To help students critically think about the issues outside the classroom

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Students are citizens of the world and live in the real world beyond their classroom. As citizens of the world, they will face or face problems that stem from the inequality of society. With that situation, helping students to face and tackle inequality issues is an essential part of education so that no children are oppressed.

Verbal questions in the classroom can be a powerful prompt for students to start thinking about these issues. Teachers can use verbal questions to bridge students to the political and social issues around their environment (Oakes et al., 2018). With the questions, children can start building critical habits and thinking about the happenings around them.

By using verbal questions, teachers can support students to start thinking that every story has various points of view and is sometimes distorted (Nieto, 2017). Something as simple as verbal questions can be a starting point for students to think critically about society, and they could grow into citizens who question and bring change to the status quo.

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To communicate trust and high expectations to students

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To communicate trust and high expectations to students

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Oakes et al. (2018) discussed that teachers' expectations influence students' performance - that students with teachers who have high expectations for them can learn better.

Verbal questions can be a tool to communicate trust to students, especially when teachers use questions to provide scaffolding. When students are asked questions that help them to answer the questions independently, they can understand that the teacher trusts the students' capabilities to solve their problem in their own way rather than intervening to give them the solution right away. The teacher's role is to provide support through the questions that can lead students to move in specific directions of the solution but ultimately find the solution or answer themselves.

Giving students trust in their learning can help build a trusting relationship between teacher and students, build a community-like atmosphere for learning, and can lead to students being lifelong motivated learners (Oakes et al., 2018). Through the questions, students too can feel like they belong in the class, no matter their skills, "smartness," or characteristics, as the question is made not to judge them but to support them.

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Teachers can use questions to scaffold students to solve their learning problems independently. Oakes et al. (2018) discussed that social interactions could help students to scaffold each other's learning and integrate their knowledge into the collective knowledge in the community. Questioning can be one of the social interaction tools to be utilized.

When teachers use questions to scaffold students, teachers have departed from the assumption that students can only learn from the knowledge teachers transmit (Eisner, 2003). Using their verbal questions as scaffolding, students will know that teachers are not the sole knowledge source, but themselves and other resources are also valuable. Using questions as a form of scaffolding, students' learning experience can be richer, and students can also see their differences as a resource for learning rather than just receiving instruction from teachers.

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Nieto (2017) discussed that in developing education strategies, students' voices and perspectives are often not heard, especially those who do not fit the traditional education expectations and are deemed "problematic."

Rather than using verbal questions to find correct, predetermined answers all the time, teachers can use verbal questions to understand the difference in culture, linguistics, and experiences of the students (Nieto, 2017), from racial, cultural, and religious, to familial differences of the students. By using questions to understand, teachers can develop learning that integrates all the students' differences, ensuring that all students are supported, can succeed in school, and no one gets marginalized. Learning then doesn't support only the students who "behave" and can answer questions correctly.

While we listen to students, we need to remember that listening to students' perspectives, it does not mean that we cater their learning just to their interests (Nieto, 2017). Teachers need to reflect critically on the students' difference and integrate it in a way that supports all students. Using questions can help teachers integrate students' characteristics into the curriculum.

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How can verbal questions be utilized so that all students can be supported and feel they belong in the classroom?

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How can verbal questions be utilized so that all students can be supported and feel they belong in the classroom?

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In conclusion, using verbal questions only to test students' knowledge and to manage behavior can lead to students feeling not smart, not belong in the classroom, and supporting only certain kinds of students that meet the teacher's expectations. 

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In conclusion, using verbal questions only to test students' knowledge and to manage behavior can lead to students feeling not smart, not belong in the classroom, and supporting only certain kinds of students that meet the teacher's expectations. 

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Using questions aimed at students' behavior management expressed a high behaviorist approach to learning (Oakes et al., 2018).

Using questions to manage student behavior, the teacher utilized the question as a form of the negative consequence of punishment for the students. When the students do not "behave well," the teacher questions their behavior; therefore, the students would change their behavior. This kind of behaviorist approach is said to be able to reduce misbehavior in the short term, yet it does not inform students of the way to behave acceptably (Oakes et al., 2018).

With this kind of behaviorist questioning, students might end up just trying to get away from the judgment or punishment rather than being genuinely engaged and motivated in their learning (Oakes et al., 2018). This kind of questioning also emphasizes the teacher's power over the students rather than the student's own capabilities (Oakes et al., 2018)

This kind of questioning as a behavior management strategy also supports only students who, from teachers' perspective, are behaving "correctly." Students who tend to behave or learn in different styles from the teacher's expectation might get questioned more, for example, the one black male student in the eighth-grade classroom of Building Seven Middle School. Students who behave differently from teachers' expectations can feel ostracized by being continuously questioned.

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Feeling not "smart enough", less belonging to the classrom

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Feeling not "smart enough", less belonging to the classrom

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When teachers use verbal questions mainly to check the correct answers, students can feel like they are constantly being tested in the classroom. Students can feel like they must always be right, primarily when the teacher always responds negatively when students answer wrongly.

Not all students have the same capability to remember knowledge, and not all students have the same level of knowledge. When teachers utilize questions to know the students' memory or knowledge, only students with good memories or broader knowledge are celebrated in the class, receiving rewards from the teacher (Oakes et al., 2018).

For students who do not know the answer or answer wrongly, these questions can make them feel like they are not "smart enough" or even dumb (Hatt, 2012). Feeling dumb can lead to students stopping participating in learning in the classroom (Hatt, 2012). The students can also feel like they don't belong in the classroom or school as school is not a place that nurtures them. The situation could also lead to students having lower self-esteem for always being wrong (Oakes et al., 2018). Students might have talents in many different things and can thrive in school and society. However, with these questions, they can be marginalized and not receive support in school.

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To question students' behavior as a means of behavior management

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To question students' behavior as a means of behavior management

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The teacher asked some verbal questions to students to ask the students why they were the student not behaving or doing activities that were expected. One of the examples was the teacher asking: "What are you going to do if there is no handout? What did you do when I told you to take the handout?". The other example was, "Why are you guys making a big deal out of the seat?".

When the teacher asked those questions, I saw how students quickly fixed their behavior, such as taking the handout, turning silent, or taking the laptop when they had not. They changed their behavior, so the teacher would not ask further questions.

When this kind of questioning happened, however, I saw how the students were merely changing their behavior so that they would not get scolded further. When the teacher asked to open the laptop or take handouts, the students would open or take them but not engage further with the learning material.

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To check the students' knowledge and right answers

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To check the students' knowledge and right answers

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The teacher heavily utilized verbal questions in the eighth-grade classroom of Building Seven Middle School. The male teacher in the science class would ask students questions in the middle of his explanations, such as "What is photosynthesis?"

From my observation, when he asked students a question like the above, the teacher always already had the right answer in his mind. The question was a form of formative test (Sleeter, 2016) for the students. When the student answered with a right answer, the teacher would respond with some verbal reinforcement, such as "Good" or "That's right."

When using questions with this aim, however, I saw some negative consequences for students who answered with wrong answers. Of course, there are times when checking students' knowledge is needed, but it should not be the sole aim of using questions. When the student answered the question wrongly, the teacher responded negatively: sometimes he skipped the answer, sometimes he dismissed the student's response, and sometimes he publicly expressed dissatisfaction with the wrong answer. The dismay varied from saying "What?" or making a confused, embarrassed face at the student or shaking his head when he heard the student's answer.

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In Building Seven Middle School Eight Grade Science Class

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In Building Seven Middle School Eight Grade Science Class

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How Verbal Questions Were Utilized by Teachers: An Observation

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How Verbal Questions Were Utilized by Teachers: An Observation

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Verbal question is a powerful tool in the classroom

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Verbal question is a powerful tool in the classroom

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A verbal question is more than just a tool for teachers to find the correct answer from students. Teachers can use verbal questions more than to know whether the students remember the topic they have been taught, as students learn not just to receive knowledge but to build knowledge on their own.

For teachers, questions can be a tool to know and understand their students, their opinions, feelings, thoughts, and all that is valuable for learning. Questions can be a tool for teachers to scaffold students to learn more independently. Questions can be used to communicate trust to students and to make students with all their characteristics feel like they belong in the classroom and the learning environment. Questions can be a prompt to learn about issues outside the school.

For students, questions can be a tool to inquire more about the learning material to fuel their curiosity. Questions can be a bridge to building relationships with their peer and teachers. Questions can be a tool for students to engage with real-life issues and develop their learning toward a more equitable future.