Zhang, Wenping (2019) A Comparative Study of the Beliefs about and Practices of Secondary School Mathematics in England and China concerning Teacher Questioning. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

Teacher questioning as a fundamental element of pedagogy has been long recognised, but has been under-researched inter-culturally especially in the context of England and China. The literature suggests that a teacher asks a significant amount of questions every day in lessons, although it does not say why a teacher asks questions. Teachers could see questioning as a pedagogic tool to facilitate their teaching, or they could ask questions just out of habit. By making a comparison between two countries, this exploratory study aims to examine the cultural differences and similarities underpinning the use of teacher questioning. The participants in the study were 11 mathematics teachers in two lower secondary schools in England and 12 mathematics teachers in two lower secondary schools in China and data collection took place during the year 2015-2016.

A qualitative research approach was adopted to include both classroom observations of teaching and follow-up semi-structured interviews with the teachers. All observations and interviews were audiotaped. The follow-up interviews with the teachers also sought to get some clarifications of and justifications for the teacher questioning behaviours observed in order to verify possible interpretations of classroom practices by reference to the teachers’ perspectives.

The findings suggest significant differences and similarities between the English and Chinese mathematics teachers’ questioning use. Teacher questioning was pervasive in both classrooms, and the questions asked were predominantly managerial and ‘information-seeking’. Teachers in England valued questioning highly, were also more aware of and reflective about their questioning behaviours, and seemed to possess more profound pedagogical competence than their Chinese counterparts. In general, the English mathematics teachers displayed a student-centred/inquiry-based questioning that adjusted questions to accommodate students with diversity of learning abilities. The Chinese teachers, meanwhile, were less positive about questioning, placing a great deal of weight on the importance of having profound mathematical content knowledge, and presented a relatively traditional teacher-centred/content-based approach to questioning. The findings bring some insights into the nature of questioning from social and cultural perspectives. The investigation of the relationship between teacher beliefs and practices has the potential to provide some suggestions for policy makers and educators for future teacher training in improving teachers’ self-awareness and reflectiveness of their repertoire of questioning skills.

Item Type:	Thesis or Dissertation (PhD)
Subjects:	L Education > L Education (General) L Education > LB Theory and practice of education
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Education -- Study and teaching -- Great Britain, Education -- Study and teaching -- China, Culture -- Study and teaching
Official Date:	March 2019
Dates:	Date Event March 2019 Published
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Centre for Education Studies
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Wray, David
Format of File:	pdf
Extent:	358 leaves:illustrations
Language:	eng

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