DINAMIKA ILMU - Vol. 19 No. 1, 2019 - EFL Teacher’s Oral Questioning: Are Her Questions and Strategies Effective?

Oct 15, 2026

Evidence shows teacher questioning supports EFL students’ learning for multiple instructional purposes, yet limited knowledge of question taxonomy can undermine classroom effectiveness. This study examines questioning strategies, the taxonomy of question types, and how an EFL teacher applies them in an advanced prose class to scaffold students’ learning. Data from classroom observations, field notes, and videotaping reveal patterns and ineffectiveness, including overuse of redirecting, frequent low-cognitive questions, and rarely used higher-level questions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

A. Introduction

B. Literature Review

1. Why do Teacher ask question?

DINAMIKA ILMU Vol. 19 No. 1, 2019 P-ISSN: 1411-3031; E-ISSN: 2442-9651 doi: [http://doi.org/10.21093/di.v19i1.1545](http://doi.org/10.21093/di.v19i1.1545) EFL Teacher’s Oral Questioning: Are Her Questions and Strategies Effective? Milawati State Polythecnic of Madura, Sampang, East Java, Indonesia [e-mail: milawati@poltera.ac.id](e-mail: milawati@poltera.ac.id) Nunung Suryati Postgraduate Program, Malang, East Java, Indonesia e-mail: [nsuryati02@gmail.com](nsuryati02@gmail.com) Abstract Evidence is mounting that teacher question can assist EFL students in various purposes in teaching learning process. However, teacher’s lack of knowledge about questioning taxonomy could become a failure in leading students’ learning. This study investigates questioning strategies, the taxonomy of questions-type, and their application by teacher in advanced prose class, to scaffold students’ learning. Classroom observations, field notes and videotape recording, were employed to collect the data. Findings indicate that among four types of questioning strategies, redirecting was the most frequently used to initiate students’ responses and to probe more into students’ understanding. Other findings show that low-cognitive questions were common. Of those, knowledge-based questions were the most frequently used to confirm students’ understanding of the materials they learnt, but, the higher-level questions were rarely used. It was also found that teacher employed questioning strategies ineffectively to manage the class; insufficient time responded to a complex level of questions; the number of questions created confusion. Some changes to create effective classroom questioning and a stronger connection between the level of question and the questioning strategies are discussed. Keywords: questioning, probing, reinforcement, rephrasing, redirecting A. Introduction In classroom setting, e.g, teacher’s questioning strategy is defined as instructional cues or stimuli that enable students to convey the material to be learned and directions for what they should do and how they should do it. Theoretically, it is believed that theyb can assist students to convey students’ review, to check on comprehension, to stimulate critical thinking, to encourage creativity, to emphasize a point, to control classroom activities, to help determines grade, and to encourage discussion (Blosser, 2000; Bond, 2007; Cotton, 2007) . However, questioning c onsumes considerable teaching and learning time. Indeed, past studies report teachers typically spend 40 to 50 per cent of their instructional time asking questions (Ellis, 1997; Blosser, 2000; Creese, 2005; Bond, 2007; Cotton, 2007). Asking a good question can encourage students to give a positive responds toward the questions in appropriately. Conversely, to achieve such respond is not easy. Teacher needs to consider not only on a good question which they have to deliver, but also a strategy in asking question is needed. Further, it has been found that teacher’s lack of knowledge about questioning taxonomies can have adverse effects on student learning. Particularly, if many of the questions asked are of a low-cognitive level (Tan, 2007; Shen and Yodkhumlue, 2010; Wong, R, 2010) . Hence, whenever the teacher has given a various of good questions to the students, it will not guarantee that the interactive classroom will be created, unless the teacher knows how to manage their questions in the right time (Wragg & Brown, 2001) . Such situation above seems to create a paradox: on the one hand, questions have become a fundamental device in teaching learning process, but on the other hand, the ineffective questioning strategies could make the failure in creating the interactive classroom learning. This present study attempts to investigate in greater depth focusing on some questioning strategies underlying the classroom questioning, namely ; rephrasing, redirecting, probing and reinforcement as propose

FAQs

What is the focus of this study on EFL teacher questioning?

The study investigates questioning strategies, the taxonomy of question types, and how the teacher applies them in an advanced prose class to scaffold students’ learning.

Which questioning strategy is used most frequently and for what purpose?

Redirecting is the most frequently used strategy, mainly to initiate students’ responses and probe deeper into their understanding.

What effectiveness problems does the study report about the teacher’s questioning?

The teacher employed questioning strategies ineffectively to manage the class, provided insufficient response time for complex questions, and the number of questions created confusion.

Oct 15, 2026

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