English Instructors’ Use of Classroom Questions and Question Types in EFL Classrooms

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify the degree to which English teachers apply classroom questioning skills from the point of view of English teachers in the Saudi context. I used a descriptive approach in this study and video recordings and questionnaires to collect data. The questionnaire consisted of three axes (skills for formulating classroom questions, skills for asking classroom questions, and skills dealing with students’ answers). The sample was 160 English teachers from intermediate government schools. Video cameras recorded English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers’ explanations and all the questions they asked in their classrooms. The study findings showed that most EFL teachers apply the various skills related to classroom questions. First, they use skills for dealing with student’s answers. Second, they use the skill of formulating classroom questions. Finally, they practice asking classroom questions. The findings further revealed that the majority of Saudi English teachers tend to use closed, lower-order, and display questions often in their classrooms. By contrast, the results showed that they seldom used higher-order, open-ended, and referential questions in EFL classrooms.