‘Let’s think a little bit more about symbiotic relationships,’ Mr Harris says. ‘Who can give me an example that’s not in the chapter we just looked at?’
In response, his seventh-grade biology class sits in total silence. A few seconds tick by, and he gets nervous. Not willing to wait any longer, Mr Harris begins to cajole everyone. ‘Come on. We talked about some examples just a few minutes ago. Anyone remember?’
One hand goes up, and Mr Harris sighs inwardly because the hand belongs to Henry. Of the 30 kids in the classroom, Henry is the one who always answers questions first, and everyone has gotten into the habit of waiting for him to speak. The kids know that Henry will bail them out almost every time. Even if he doesn’t, Mr Harris will probably jump in and answer his own question.
As he listens to Henry answer the question correctly, Mr Harris thinks: 'I wonder how many other kids know this'. He isn’t confident that anyone else does.
In classrooms everywhere, teachers just like Mr Harris struggle to elicit more output from students, particularly in the realm of participation.