Examples of Concept Questions
There are several different types of concept questions. They may be CCQs or Taboo questions. They may be used during any stage of the lesson. They are especially useful after a presentation of a particular item. You may ask these questions before guiding students in their guided practice or final review. Let’s look at a few examples of these questions. Read on to find out which one best fits your lesson. A concept question can help you build a deeper understanding of a concept.
CCQs
CCQs, or concept check questions, are an effective way to assess a student’s understanding of a new language. They are a better option than yes/no questions because they highlight the central meaning of a concept. These questions can be used with any learning target and will help you assess the level of student understanding. The best CCQs are those that test conceptual understanding, not a student’s understanding of the lesson’s content.
Concept questions can be particularly useful for culturally loaded items. For example, the word “subway” has different meanings in British and American English, so a concept question based on this will help students identify these differences. Concept questions are also an excellent way to raise awareness of the association and draw attention to collocations and fixed expressions in the language. They also can be used to spark class discussions and help improve students’ listening skills.
When using CCQs to test student understanding, teachers should focus on creating conceptual questions that are easy to understand and do not require a lot of time. These questions should be simple to answer, such as “bedroom,” but not so simple that the students are overwhelmed. They should also be descriptive and explanatory, not confusing. The answers should be as easy to understand as possible, so students can easily choose the right translation.
In addition to CCQs, teachers should also consider using concept check activities to test concepts. While concept checking can be embarrassing for teachers, it is a necessary component of teaching a language. Using concept check activities will increase student understanding and avoid embarrassing mistakes. And you can use these activities in online classes without embarrassing your teachers. For more information, consider the book Concept Questions and Time Lines by Graham Workman.
Taboo questions
If you think of a conversation in which the first sentence is the greeting, then you are probably aware of ‘taboo questions’. Answering questions such as ‘How are you?’ with a literal ‘Fine’ or ‘Good’ is taboo, and the expected response is a “Fine” or “Good”. However, if you’re talking to a close friend or family member, the “How are you?” question isn’t quite as taboo and is much more like a warm welcome.
In this type of question, the clue giver selects the top target word on the Taboo deck and tries to guess the word from the students by providing clues about it. The students take turns giving clues, and if another student guesses the word, the clue giver moves to the next word. There are many variations on the Taboo questions, depending on the culture of the class and the dynamics of the group.
Some examples of ‘taboo’ questions include “Fenian”, “female” or similar expressions. ‘Fenian’ is an uncivil word used to refer to Roman Catholics in Northern Ireland. However, the Catholic community has reclaimed it. Protestants and British people are not allowed to use it in social situations, despite the fact that political tensions continue to exist between the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. Taboo questions are examples of concept questions that ask about cultural norms.
Some of the most common concept questions in English classrooms are taboo-related. Those with a high tolerance for taboos may ask students to explain why they are uncomfortable with a certain topic. They may even suggest a way to get around it. By making their answer as simple as possible, students are more likely to answer the question correctly, and they’ll be more likely to learn about it if they think they’re being shown what’s acceptable in the classroom.
Definitions
Unlike the wh-questions and the equivalent of multiple-choice tests, concept questions are not designed to have the student produce the target language. Instead, they are meant to elicit the structure and function of a concept. They assume that students have not previously encountered the target language and thus will not possess the necessary form or function to answer the question. Similarly, a concept question can be useful for students with no prior exposure to the language in question.
To avoid making the task of creating CQCs tiresome or cumbersome, the questions should focus on a single concept. The underlying principle of the question is to ask the student to choose a translation that satisfies the concept in question. This method encourages the student to engage deeply with the concept rather than merely reciting formulas. A concept question that requires a student to use formula may not be conceptually challenging for a novice.
Conceptual questions are more sophisticated than simple recall. They require students to evaluate problems and make connections between concepts. Moreover, they can also require students to use mathematical tools to solve problems. In addition, many concept questions are non-quantitative and can contain multiple acceptable answers. In addition, students must be aware that a concept question is not intended to embarrass a teacher. Thus, it is crucial to have a clear understanding of the concept before attempting a conceptual question.
In contrast, definitions of concept questions can also involve statements. Regardless of the example sentence, concept questions always work. No matter which sentence the question is posed against, it will still raise awareness of the meaning and function of a particular item. In fact, concept questions can be extremely beneficial for students. You can ask concept questions during any stage of a lesson, but they are particularly effective after the item has been presented. This makes them especially useful for final review and guided practice.
Theorems
A good way to assess students’ understanding of new vocabulary or grammar is to ask students to answer a few concepts–general questions that test their knowledge of the target language. Eliciting questions are best suited for a small group of students, and are usually more effective than a simple ‘do you understand?’ question. Here are some examples of concept questions and the thought process behind them. Use them as diagnostic tests or peer discussions.
Strategies for creating them
As an English teacher, you probably don’t like to create concept questions every time you teach a new item. The truth is that often, the function and meaning of an item are clear from the context. However, there are times when your students perform badly because of a misunderstanding of the concept. If this happens, it’s likely that you didn’t ask a good concept question. One book that can help you create great concept questions is the Concept Questions and Time Lines by Graham Workman. ISBN: 9780955946103
While concept tests are generally low-stakes and ungraded, they can prove very beneficial when used in large classes. However, creating a concept test is time-consuming and requires thorough planning. It requires clear learning objectives, and concept-checking questions should probe students’ comprehension of and application of the concept. You should also use the concept-checking questions as part of your assessment and as a way to gauge student understanding.
Concept questions are particularly useful when teaching vocabulary or grammar items that are not found in the students’ mother tongues. By asking students to describe their experiences with the new language, you can make them aware of fixed expressions, associations, and connotations. In addition, this type of question can lead to fun guessing games or writing activities in the language class. However, they are not the only strategies to use when eliciting concepts from your students.
Besides being efficient and effective, concept-checking questions are a great way to check if your students really understand a new language concept. One common mistake is to ask, “Do you understand?” when they’re actually not. In such cases, you may have to stop the activity and restart it. In such a case, they may answer yes even if they don’t understand the concept and are unwilling to provide a truthful answer.