1. Teach Questions: When and How? CLTA-GNY 2009 ANNUAL CONFERENCE & Seventh New York International Conference on the Teaching of Chinese Jun Kramer Lawrence High School 2525 Princeton Pike, Lawrenceville, NJ 08515 junkramer@yahoo.com

2. Language and communication are at the heart of the human experience. The United States must educate students who are linguistically and culturally equipped to communicate successfully in a pluralistic American society and abroad. - Excerpted from the “Standard for Foreign Language Learning” Statement of Philosophy 2

3. 3 The Modes of Communication The most challenging communication is interpersonal mode of communication. Interpersonal communication in classroom – Questions and answers are conducted between students spontaneously.

4. Teach Questions: When and How Textbook Way Cluster Way 4

5. 5 Textbook Way  The following are taught in different lessons during the whole year:  The question particle “ 吗 ” of Yes/no Questions  Interrogative words of Wh-Questions, e.g. “ 什么 ”, “ 谁 ”, “ 几 ”, etc.  A-not-A question format

6. 6 Textbook Way – 快乐汉语 1 吗 -lesson 1 哪 -lesson 2 什么 -lesson 2 哪儿 -lesson 3

7. 7 Textbook Way – 快乐汉语 1(cont.) 几 -lesson 13 “A-not-A”Format -lesson 16 怎么 -lesson 23

8. 8 Textbook Way – 快乐汉语 1(cont.) The following interrogative words are not in Textbook 1  为什么  多少  怎样／怎么样  什么时候  多大

9. 9 Textbook Way – 跟我学汉语 1 什么 - lesson 4 吗 -lesson 5 谁 -lesson 7 几 -lesson 9 谁的 -lesson 10 多少 -lesson 10 哪里 -lesson 11 多大 -lesson 13

10. 10 Textbook Way – 跟我学汉语 1 “ A-not-A ” Format - lesson 13 什么时候 -lesson 20 哪 -lesson 21 怎么样 -lesson 23 为什么 -lesson 26 哪儿 -lesson 31 怎么 -lesson 34

11. 11 Problems of “Textbook Way” Spontaneous conversation, not mechanical reciting, will not happen until after two months at least. During the second half of the school year, students start confusing interrogative words that they studied.

12. 12 Cluster Way 1. The question particle “ 吗 ”, interrogative words and “A-not-A” format are introduced to students in Week One. 2. Make them part of classroom passwords.

13. 13 Examples of Passwords

14. 14 Benefits of “Cluster Way” 1. Spontaneous conversation, not mechanical reciting, starts immediately. 2. Comparing the “textbook way”, students have more accuracy when applying interrogative words.

15. 15 Examples of Classroom Commands ..., 对不对 ? ..., 懂不懂 ? ..., 好不好 ?  可不可以（去厕所）？  有没有（问题）？  难不难？

16. 16 Examples of Classroom Commands (cont)  在哪儿／哪里 ?  去哪儿／哪里 ?  什么时候（下课） ?  这是谁的作业 ?  为什么？  哪一个？

17. 17 Common mistakes of applying interrogative words 1. 今天星期多少？ ( 几 ) 2. 你的电话号码是几？ ( 多少 ) 3. 明天天气是什么？ ( 怎么样 ) 4. 这是谁？ ( 谁的 ) 5. 哪儿一条是你的围巾？ ( 哪 )

18. 18 Comparison - Speaking % Teacher-student oral inquiry (classroom commands) Student-student interpersonal communication Students staying with the target language overall Week246824682468 Textbook Way 20183044781115202731 Cluster Way 808493 100 915396540415067

19. 19 Comparison – Accuracy Occurrenc e (22 students, week 20) 今天星期 多少？ 电话号码 是几？ 天气是 什么？ 这是谁哪儿一.. Textbook Way 54583 Cluster Way 01031

20. 20 Accuracy Assessments 1.Correct mistakes in a sentence. 2. Picture-prompt skits – Two students, who were randomly picked by the teacher, conducted spontaneous conversation according to the picture shown to them. (No preparation!)

21. 21 Accuracy Assessments Example 1

22. 22 Accuracy Assessments Example 2

23. 23 Accuracy Assessments Example 3

24. 24 My Sincere Appreciation If you want to practice the “cluster way” at your classroom, I will be really appreciative if you can let me know the results of your assessments. My email: junkramer@yahoo.com