What do you say to your student(s) when you don't know something?

[nancyisabella]

Hi,

I have a new student who asks a lot of questions, but for some reason with this new student I find myself in the embarrassing situation that sometimes I just don't know the answer. I have other students who also ask, but most of the time it's not a problem.

I really don't know what to say to him anymore, especially as they're questions about grammar. Sometimes I manage to change the subject, but other times I just don't know what to say...I'm sure that he's just sitting there thinking that he has the worst English teacher!

I feel as a native English person that gives English lessons, people seem to think you know all the rules off the top of you head. What should I say? Should say I'll look it up and we'll talk about it in the next lesson or should I bluff my way through it?

Any advice is appreciated!

Thank you!

 

[emsr2d2]

Welcome to the forum. :hi:

Don't bluff your way through it! You'll get caught out. I suggest something like "That's a great question. It's not the topic of today's lesson but how about I put together a lesson on it for next week/next month?"

Remember that you are the person who dictates the topic of the class. It's easy to get dragged off track by questions - good, bad or average.

You're absolutely right that your students think there is nothing you don't know. That's just the way it is. However, you know it's not possible for anyone to know all the rules, or to instantly be able to explain them and come up with examples.

There is very little point explaining a grammar rule unless you have time to go into it properly, with examples and exercises. You can explain to that student that it would be of no benefit to anyone to half-explain something.

 

[salvador.dal1950]

Hi, I'm by no means qualified to post in this section, since I'm not a teacher and English is not my first language, but I've had teachers that tried to bluff their way through a question or change the subject and we students can tell. I wouldn't think less of any teacher because she/he says "I don't know" many times, I really appreciate when they share their lack of knowledge in some area, it makes me feel as if it were normal not to know everything (which it is).

I hope I haven't been too harsh :up:.

 

[nancyisabella]

Hi, I'm by no means qualified to post in this section, since I'm not a teacher and English is not my first language, but I've had teachers that tried to bluff their way through a question or change the subject and we students can tell. I wouldn't think less of any teacher because she/he says "I don't know" many times, I really appreciate when they share their lack of knowledge in some area, it makes me feel as if it were normal not to know everything (which it is).

I hope I haven't been too harsh :up:.

No, not too harsh at all! I appreciate your input. Thank you.

 

[nancyisabella]

Welcome to the forum. :hi:

Don't bluff your way through it! You'll get caught out. I suggest something like "That's a great question. It's not the topic of today's lesson but how about I put together a lesson on it for next week/next month?"

Remember that you are the person who dictates the topic of the class. It's easy to get dragged off track by questions - good, bad or average.

You're absolutely right that your students think there is nothing you don't know. That's just the way it is. However, you know it's not possible for anyone to know all the rules, or to instantly be able to explain them and come up with examples.

There is very little point explaining a grammar rule unless you have time to go into it properly, with examples and exercises. You can explain to that student that it would be of no benefit to anyone to half-explain something.

Thank you for your warm welcome and your reply. I'm definitely going to try out your suggestion. :up:

 

[emsr2d2]

You're welcome. Just make sure you keep a note of all the topics you promise to explain at a later date and actually cover them. That student might well remember what he asked about. You don't want him to come to you at the end of term and say "You never did explain XXX and you promised you would". ;-)

 

[nancyisabella]

You're welcome. Just make sure you keep a note of all the topics you promise to explain at a later date and actually cover them. That student might well remember what he asked about. You don't want him to come to you at the end of term and say "You never did explain XXX and you promised you would". ;-)

OK, thanks again! Have a great week. ;-)

 

[reveluod]

Hey Nancy.

I usually said "I don't know". Then I'd promise, as emsr suggests, to look into it and let the student know in a later class.

None of us know everything and admitting being human often helps students be kinder with you.

peace,
revel.

 

[Alex S]

It's very easy actually. I say "I do not know. I will find it out and tell you next time". I do not think it's wrong or bad. No one is perfect, and none of us know everything (as the previous commentator has mentioned already).

 

[rosevibe]

While I don't teach English as a language I do work as an academic writing support tutor and a subject lecturer in Business and Computing. This is something that happens more frequently than I care to admit but my response is usually along the lines of "I'm not sure off the top of my head, let's have a look together to find the answer" and I then use their question as a method of teaching them how to look and where to find the answers for themselves; promoting lifelong learning is the best response I've found ;-)

 

[Ali.]

hi,
I am new hear, but i get this a lot.

There is a balence as students need to trust their teacher. Saying you dont know is much much better than giving the wrong answer. How you deal with it depends on the age and level of learners and the school culture. Usualy, by the time students ask me somthing i dont know, i have built up a relationship with them so its easy to deal with.

young adults however can be demanding. I am not always good at explaining advanced grammer rules, so i just give a few examples and note down for another teacher to explain. sometimes i open the door and grab a passing teacher to come in and explain. they do it to me all the time too with other things.

know your books inside out - not just what you are teaching but what the class leared with the previous teacher so you can point them towards help.

 

[emsr2d2]

Hi,

I am new [STRIKE]hear[/STRIKE] here (no comma required here) but I get this a lot.

There is a [STRIKE]balence[/STRIKE] balance to be struck as students need to trust their teacher. Saying you don't know is much [strike]much[/strike] better than giving the wrong answer. How you deal with it depends on the age and level of learners and the school culture. Usually, by the time students ask me something I don't know, I have built up a relationship with them so it's easy to deal with.

Young adults, however, can be demanding. I am not always good at explaining advanced [STRIKE]grammer[/STRIKE] grammar rules, so I just give a few examples and note it down for another teacher to explain. Sometimes I open the door and grab a passing teacher to come in and explain it. They do it to me all the time too, with other things.

Know your books inside out - not just what you are teaching but what the class learned with the previous teacher so you can point them towards help.

Ali, your member profile shows that you are a native English speaker and an English teacher. As such, it is vital that you ensure that your posts are correctly written on this forum. Learners will look at your profile and assume that everything is correct. Please ensure you use correct capitalisation and punctuation at all times.

 

[KatyaK]

Hi,

I think its OK to say that you don't know something, we are all human beings after all Always follow up though, check the answer and then get back to the student who made the inquiry.
And don't get upset thinking that your students might think that you are a bad teacher, I am sure it is not the case! Especially seeing that you care and try to figure out the the best way to deal with the questions.
Good luck!