Concept Checking Questions: How New English Teachers Can Check Understanding

“Do you understand?”

A chorus of “Yes teacher!” echoes around the classroom.

Great! They understand, so they’re ready for the worksheet.

Several minutes later, after monitoring their progress on the worksheet, a realisation dawns on you. 

They don’t understand.

Concept checking questions (CCQs) are short, targeted questions that check learners’ understanding of meaning. Their answers show what they understand, rather than simply whether they say they understand.

Why “Do You Understand?” Isn’t Enough

One of the golden rules of TESOL teaching is to never ask your learners directly if they understand. This is especially true with younger learners, but can apply to all ages and contexts. More often than not they will say they do understand, even if they don’t.

There are numerous reasons why this happens, they may be embarrassed to say no, they may be too polite to say no, they may be over confident and think they understand, or there may be cultural reasons, like loss of face, that leads them to say they understand, when actually they don’t.

By asking short, targeted Concept Checking Questions (CCQs), we can find out where the confusion lies and avoid wasting precious classroom teaching time.

Concept Checking Questions: Examples for English Lessons

Checking Vocabulary: “Put Off”

You’re teaching phrasal verbs using ‘off’ to a class of teenage ESL learners, and have the following example sentence displayed on the whiteboard…

‘They decided to put off the meeting until tomorrow.’

To check that they understand the meaning and correct use of the phrasal verb ‘put off’ you could ask the following CCQs…

• “Are they having the meeting now?” – No

• “Did they cancel the meeting?” – No

• “Will they have the meeting at a later date?” – Yes

If the learners answer the questions correctly, it’s a good indicator that they understand. If they answer all or some of them incorrectly, they may need more explanation or practice.

Checking Grammar: The Present Continuous

CCQs can be used for checking grammar concepts too. For example, imagine a picture showing Andy cooking dinner at this moment, with the sentence:

‘Andy is cooking dinner.’

CCQs:

• “Is Andy cooking dinner right now?” – Yes

• “Did Andy start cooking dinner earlier?” – Yes

• “Has Andy finished cooking dinner yet?” – No

The questions check the meaning of the sentence without asking learners to name the tense.

Checking Vocabulary with Young Learners: “Square”

CCQs aren’t just for use with teenage or adult learners to check more advanced language points, they can be used with very young learners to check more basic concepts or even vocabulary too, like shapes…

‘square’

CCQs:

• “Does it have three sides?” – No

• “Does it have four of five sides?” – Four

• “How many sides does it have?” – Four

And even concept checking tasks such as “Point to something square in the classroom” can help check that lower-level learners understand the concept.

How to Design and Use CCQs Effectively

CCQs, and the ability to use them effectively are an essential part of any TESOL teacher’s toolkit. Designing them may look easy, but mastering them takes time and practice. Here are some useful tips you can use during your Trinity CertTesol, and beyond…

Keep CCQs Simple and Focused Avoid Open Questions.

Open questions like “Why do we say this?” could result in a range of answers, or start a class discussion. CCQs are only intended to be used as a quick check. Closed Yes/No, binary choice, or simple one word answer questions help you to focus your assessment of the learners' understanding.

Avoid Complex Grammatical Language

Asking your learners “Is this sentence present simple or present perfect?” to check if they understand the concept of present perfect is likely to confuse or overwhelm them, and won’t help you check their understanding.

Use words and structures learners already know. Grading your classroom language matters just as much when checking understanding as when giving instructions.

Don’t Overcheck

Identify the key concept(s) that need to be checked and focus on these. It’s a quick check, not a comprehensive test of the learners’ English ability. Two or three questions is usually enough.

In the earlier example for the phrasal verb ‘put off’, the learners need to understand that the meeting isn’t happening now, but hasn’t been cancelled completely, just delayed to a later date. The example CCQs above focus on checking these three concepts.

Check the Class, Not Just Students Who Want To Answer

Only checking stronger or more confident student’s understanding won’t give you an accurate picture of the overall class understanding of the concept.

Nominate students or pick them randomly to get a broader view.

Don’t Ignore Wrong Answers

It’s ok if the learners answer incorrectly. That’s why you asked.

Identify which concept(s) they don’t understand and react accordingly. Consider during lesson planning how you’ll help them if they don’t understand, so you’re ready for any eventuality. They might just need more examples or demos, or maybe they need another practice activity. It’s good to be prepared.

Will I Use CCQs in the Trinity CertTesol Course?

‘Concept Checking Questions’ or ‘CCQs’ are something you’ll become very familiar with during your time on the Trinity CertTesol course. You’ll notice your trainer using them during the guided observations that you’ll take part in, and you’ll be encouraged to start using them yourself in your own observed teaching practice classes.

There will be a lot to think about in your teaching practice classes, so planning your CCQs in advance is a good idea. Think about what questions you want to ask, and when you want to ask them, then include them in your lesson plan at the appropriate stage. Doing this will avoid any awkward silences while you try to think of an appropriate CCQ on the spot, and help your lesson run more smoothly!

What’s Next?

• Should you ever ask your learners “Do you understand?” – No

• Should CCQs be simple and focused? – Yes

• Should you prepare your CCQs in advance? – Yes

If you answered these three CCQs correctly, then you’re ready to start your Trinity CertTesol journey, and begin designing and using your own CCQs for a language point you want to teach. Decide what the answers will tell you and what you’ll do if learners answer incorrectly.

Interested in developing these skills through practical teacher training? Explore TesolTree’s online TEFL certification and our blended TEFL course in Thailand.