Answering Questions In Class...

[DrWrong]

So, I just thought I'd post this thread as I didn't find one in a brief search.


How do you guys and gals feel about people who answer questions in class? I'm not talking about the person sitting in the back of the class on their MacBook browsing facebook that gets called on by the professor. I'm talking about the student who always seems to be one of two or three students that answers questions in class repeatedly.


Do you guys think it makes you look like a douche bag? Teacher's Pet?

How do you guys feel when they answer a question wrong?

Here's hoping that I get at least three on topic responses before we go off on a tangent.....

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[Passion4Sci]

I'm usually one of those people, but it depends on the class atmosphere and a few other variables.

The way I see it, me answering the question after a few seconds of complete silence and no hands going up is superior to the professor shrugging his shoulders and just answering it for the class.

It also alleviates the complete boredom I feel when I'm in class. If it's not a laboratory, I try to answer questions to stay focused and keep "with it." Definitely not for attention, because every time I raise my hand, I get pretty anxious, and I never answer a question (or attempt to answer) unless I am more or less positive that I'm correct (i.e., it was in the reading assignment for that portion of lecture).

I like to think my classmates can understand the difference between someone like me and someone like the girl I'll call "Amelia." Amelia is the girl who sits in class, throws her hand up at just about every opportunity, and is often incorrect, but is loud, boisterous and tries to be the first one to volunteer for anything. She may think she knows everything, but most of the time, she's just doing it to be the center of attention.

This is the only kind of person I view as a "douche bag" for answering questions/engaging in conversation. To me, class periods are really ****ing boring, and anything we can do to liven it up is all the better. Sometimes I'll answer a question and someone will raise their hand and answer it better, which is cool by me, and helps keep the class into it and focused.

Just my 2 euro.

 

[metrarx]

....

 

[BustyPharmD]

So, I just thought I'd post this thread as I didn't find one in a brief search.


How do you guys and gals feel about people who answer questions in class? I'm not talking about the person sitting in the back of the class on their MacBook browsing facebook that gets called on by the professor. I'm talking about the student who always seems to be one of two or three students that answers questions in class repeatedly.


Do you guys think it makes you look like a douche bag? Teacher's Pet?

How do you guys feel when they answer a question wrong?

Here's hoping that I get at least three on topic responses before we go off on a tangent.....

For some reason every class so far at my school seems to have this person. This person would always, ask a question for the sake of asking a question. That's what annoys me the most. Not that they don't know the answer. Sometimes I feel that they are just doing it to feel special because they have nothing else or no one else to acknowledge their time or efforts.

You can say that a lot of other people doesn't like this person. Sometimes its a waste of class time.

As far as answering questions, I don't feel like a "douche bag" or anything about it because its either you know or don't know. But its just how you go about doing things. That's just life in general. So people think about others while other people don't give a damn. I'm not worried about that person at all because I usually know what's going on.

When they answer a question wrong, its just that wrong, but i give them credit for at least trying.

Teachers pet, theres always going to be one.

 

[DrWrong]

Nice input from both of you.


As for me, I love answering questions in class. It keeps me focused, just like it does for Passion. When I first started P-1, I took a shot at most questions because everyone else was afraid to answer a question....probably because of the fear of being wrong.

Now I refrain from answering some of the questions that are elementary, in the hopes that someone else will answer it. That way it won't look like I try and answer every single question.


But as Metrar said, I usually try and answer the questions that no one takes a shot at that leads to awkward silence and the professor questioning his teaching.


Like today, our Medicinal professor asked us a question about some type of metabolism. Most people knew the answer, they just didn't want to raise their hand and have all the attention on them...Needless to say, I refrained from answering the questions because I didn't want to be a douche bag.


Also, some people see it as being a show-off....as was recently pointed out in a post from one of my unknown fellow classmates on these forums

 

[DrWrong]

For some reason every class so far at my school seems to have this person. This person would always, ask a question for the sake of asking a question. That's what annoys me the most. Not that they don't know the answer. Sometimes I feel that they are just doing it to feel special because they have nothing else or no one else to acknowledge their time or efforts.

You can say that a lot of other people doesn't like this person. Sometimes its a waste of class time.

Yeah, there is definitely always a person who asks pointless questions in class. I usually don't ask questions unless it is pertinent to my understanding of a concept or some type of discrepancy from what I was previously taught.

 

[Passion4Sci]

Oh, tangent/off topic questions are the worst by far, in my opinion.

I am really excited to start pharmacy school. Hopefully it won't be quite as dull as undergraduate was.

Right?

 

[BanBidil]

Im usually one of the jerks that asks questions

 

[powertoold]

I ask questions, but I think about them thoroughly before asking. First, I consider whether the question would be worthwhile for everyone. Then, I quickly see if the question wasn't answered already or is going to be answered. Finally, I organize my thoughts, so that my question isn't confusing. Sometimes, this process takes too long, so I don't ask the question, but usually, I'm already thinking about these these factors before the question arises in my mind, so it's just a matter of organizing my thoughts.

I rarely answer questions in class, even when I know the answer, so THANK YOU PEOPLE WHO ANSWER QUESTIONS. No one really cares if a few people are always answering. It's not about being a show-off or getting it right. It's about getting the lecture back on track rather than stalling...

 

[Sparda29]

I'm one of those answering questions people though. However, I cannot stand the people who ask questions that were answered in previous lectures or just 5 minutes ago. Grinds my gears a lot.

Seriously, we had to go through the pKa Vs pH to determine where drugs are better dissolved or where they crystallize thing for at least a month. 🙄

Oh yeah, depending on which class we're in, determines how much I pay attention. Therapeutics, I'm scrambling to keep up with the professor. Ethics...I'm the guy in the back playing Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare and answering questions between rounds, lol.

 

[type b pharmD]

yeah.. i usually answer questions to move a lecture forward, but only when nobody else steps up to do it. at my CC last semester, (nothing against CCs, i love em), i was literally the only person in the class who would ever answer questions, even though the class was designed around a question and answer format.. he had a bunch of q's he had to ask to see if we knew everything.. and at some point, a few weeks in, i'd just start blurting out the answers without even raising my hand anymore .. if i stopped doing it.. there would be an uncomfortable silence for about 10 seconds, then the prof would start yelling at people. i actually had people thank me ! but yeah, it's different when it's an annoying suck up trying to ask a question to reiterate something or prove something that everyone already knew.. those people annoy the **** out of me.

Here's hoping that people like you will allow me to finally take a break from moving the class along ! 😍 I'm looking forward to being in classes with people who are actually *less* lazy than myself

 

[Farmercyst]

 

[charfdorn]

yeah.. i usually answer questions to move a lecture forward, but only when nobody else steps up to do it. at my CC last semester, (nothing against CCs, i love em), i was literally the only person in the class who would ever answer questions, even though the class was designed around a question and answer format.. he had a bunch of q's he had to ask to see if we knew everything.. and at some point, a few weeks in, i'd just start blurting out the answers without even raising my hand anymore .. if i stopped doing it.. there would be an uncomfortable silence for about 10 seconds, then the prof would start yelling at people. i actually had people thank me ! but yeah, it's different when it's an annoying suck up trying to ask a question to reiterate something or prove something that everyone already knew.. those people annoy the **** out of me.

Here's hoping that people like you will allow me to finally take a break from moving the class along ! 😍 I'm looking forward to being in classes with people who are actually *less* lazy than myself

I had a microbiology class like this. The prof asked a question (and she really wanted someone to answer; it wasn't a rhetorical device) and everyone would stare at their desks. I don't know who else knew the answer, but I did almost every time. About halfway through the semester I got tired of waiting and started answering. But you have to know whether it's a teaching device to get you thinking or whether the instructor is trying to involve the class in order to reinforce the point. Sometimes you aren't supposed to answer, and you need to know when those times are.

As for the people who ask the questions in class, these had better be:
1) Quick questions
2) Infrequent
3) Closely related to what we're talking about
Otherwise ask after the lecture. And some professors will go off on a rabbit trail even when you ask an on-topic question. If you have one of these, please save your question for office hours.

 

[PharmDstudent]

She's such a cute celebrity! 🙂 She's a book-nerd, too, who plans on studying literature at Brown. 😛

 

[Passion4Sci]

One thing's for certain: SDNers are all extroverts. LOL...

 

[IrishHammer]

I answer a lot simply because I don't feel like waiting five minutes for a response while the rest of the class sits around with their thumbs up their ass. I'm not paying good money to listen to the friggin' crickets.

 

[DrWrong]

I answer a lot simply because I don't feel like waiting five minutes for a response while the rest of the class sits around with their thumbs up their ass. I'm not paying good money to listen to the friggin' crickets.

👍👍👍

However, I cannot stand the people who ask questions that were answered in previous lectures or just 5 minutes ago. Grinds my gears a lot.

I can't agree more!

but yeah, it's different when it's an annoying suck up trying to ask a question to reiterate something or prove something that everyone already knew.. those people annoy the **** out of me.

Yes! I meant to say that earlier, but I didn't want to offend anyone who may be in my class LOL!

 

[delano2000]

i used to be one of them type of people to always answer questions in A&P II, i would be like 20 mins late for the class but still answer questions not for attention but just because I knew the answers...it was stuff i had learned before so it wasn't that hard but i had a classmate come up to me and said she didn't like the fact that I was always "fashionably" late, as she would put it, and be answering questions...lol that was funny to me but we are best friends now.


fav. topic: Digestion (love to eat)

 

[Sparda29]

i used to be one of them type of people to always answer questions in A&P II, i would be like 20 mins late for the class but still answer questions not for attention but just because I knew the answers...it was stuff i had learned before so it wasn't that hard but i had a classmate come up to me and said she didn't like the fact that I was always "fashionably" late, as she would put it, and be answering questions...lol that was funny to me but we are best friends now.


fav. topic: Digestion (love to eat)

Yeah, I have this habit of coming in late too since I have to wait until 9AM to get out of my car, otherwise the *******s will give me a ticket because of the street cleaning.

So I try to answer some questions so I don't look like an ******* to the professor.

 

[diplomat]

I dont mind at all when people ask questions in class, no matter how stupid the questions may appear. I am never disrespectful and *sigh or say something when someone asks a question. Some students are really disrespectful and makes a sound like *ahhhhh, when someone has a question.

The people I cant stand are the people who never ask questions but are the first to jump to the front of the room when class is over and take up all of the professors time. Time after class should be reserved for students who ask questions in class and either need further explanation. Don't be a question stalker and jump to the front of the room after class if you never talk in class, I find that very rude.

 

[Sparda29]

I dont mind at all when people ask questions in class, no matter how stupid the questions may appear. I am never disrespectful and *sigh or say something when someone asks a question. Some students are really disrespectful and makes a sound like *ahhhhh, when someone has a question.

The people I cant stand are the people who never ask questions but are the first to jump to the front of the room when class is over and take up all of the professors time. Time after class should be reserved for students who ask questions in class and either need further explanation. Don't be a question stalker and jump to the front of the room after class if you never talk in class, I find that very rude.

Ehh, usually people go like, "pshhh" like they have a blow-off valve stuck to their throat when someone asks a dumb question. And yes, there is a such thing as a dumb question. People shouldn't ask questions about what the professor said 2 minutes ago. If you weren't fast enough to write down what the professor says, go home and listen to the podcast later and fill in your notes that way. I've missed multiple lectures for therapeutics before, and I managed to get all the notes in by just listening to the podcast.

Hey, what if the person who doesn't ask questions in class, just doesn't wanna ask it in front of all the people. Personally, I don't like asking questions in class because the professor always has to tell me to speak up and I'm not used to projecting my voice. Thus, I usually go to the professors office hours and eat up their time there.

 

[mug3n]

Nothing really wrong with answering questions even if it comes repeatedly from the same person. I'm sure 99% of the class is secretly thanking the person for speaking up imo.

Asking useless questions though I have an issue with. Like Sparda said, some questions are best saved for a 1-on-1 with the professor during office hours or after lecture instead of trying to jam up everyone else's opportunity to learn.

 

[DrWrong]

Ehh, usually people go like, "pshhh" like they have a blow-off valve stuck to their throat when someone asks a dumb question. And yes, there is a such thing as a dumb question. People shouldn't ask questions about what the professor said 2 minutes ago. If you weren't fast enough to write down what the professor says, go home and listen to the podcast later and fill in your notes that way. I've missed multiple lectures for therapeutics before, and I managed to get all the notes in by just listening to the podcast.

Hey, what if the person who doesn't ask questions in class, just doesn't wanna ask it in front of all the people. Personally, I don't like asking questions in class because the professor always has to tell me to speak up and I'm not used to projecting my voice. Thus, I usually go to the professors office hours and eat up their time there.

I hate the scribes that write every single word the professor says down on paper that say, "Can you just repeat what you just said?"


We had a student ask the professor to speak slower or just give us the important stuff. He replied, "You need to learn to take notes better"

When She said, "What do you mean?" I couldn't help but yell out "Only write down the important crap"


Everyone in the class was looking at me all weird...Mind you, this was right after I broke my ankle and got my first cast and refused to take Vicodin because it made me sick so I wasn't in the best of moods xD


Yeah, office hours are a lot better for asking those questions that you want for your own knowledge....like a deep concept that only doctorates usually need to fully understand.

 

[Praziquantel86]

I dont mind at all when people ask questions in class, no matter how stupid the questions may appear. I am never disrespectful and *sigh or say something when someone asks a question. Some students are really disrespectful and makes a sound like *ahhhhh, when someone has a question.

Nope, there are stupid questions. Things that can be easily looked up, such as basic dosing information (i.e., what is the lowest dose of Lipitor available), are stupid questions. Questions that have been covered in great length in previous classes (hence, prerequisites) are stupid questions. Questions asked for the sake of being asked, asked only because the person has nothing else to ask, are stupid questions. Questions that every single person in the class knows the answer to, aside from the one asking, are stupid questions.

I'm one of the more prolific question-askers in my class, so I have no problem with people who ask a whole bunch. I just hate when they have no pertinence to the topic at hand.

 

[Quiksilver]

Nope, there are stupid questions. Things that can be easily looked up, such as basic dosing information (i.e., what is the lowest dose of Lipitor available), are stupid questions. Questions that have been covered in great length in previous classes (hence, prerequisites) are stupid questions. Questions asked for the sake of being asked, asked only because the person has nothing else to ask, are stupid questions. Questions that every single person in the class knows the answer to, aside from the one asking, are stupid questions.

I'm one of the more prolific question-askers in my class, so I have no problem with people who ask a whole bunch. I just hate when they have no pertinence to the topic at hand.

**** i am going to rethink my questions before I ask then

 

[Maxpwer222]

I find that most of the annoying people that ask questions are also the people that freak out over 1 or 2 points on an exam and argue about it like it will make a difference.

 

[Sparda29]

I find that most of the annoying people that ask questions are also the people that freak out over 1 or 2 points on an exam and argue about it like it will make a difference.

Which is why I hate group projects. Some classes, I really couldn't care about so I'm not going to pay attention to detail when it comes to those classes. I had a guy call me up multiple times around 11PM last semester because I used Perpetua as the font instead of Times New Roman.

 

[Passion4Sci]

I don't like group projects because, inevitably, 70% of the group does 100% of the work, while the other 30% just sits back and watches and feigns interest/work.

 

[Maxpwer222]

Which is why I hate group projects. Some classes, I really couldn't care about so I'm not going to pay attention to detail when it comes to those classes. I had a guy call me up multiple times around 11PM last semester because I used Perpetua as the font instead of Times New Roman.

I tend to be friends with those people tho, because they always know when deadlines are and have all the notes. That is nice when I don't go to class.

 

[medicalCPA]

I find that most of the annoying people that ask questions are also the people that freak out over 1 or 2 points on an exam and argue about it like it will make a difference.

I pursue every point I believe I have a legitimate claim to. And conversely, when a professor gives me a point I don't think I deserve (such as when s/he makes a mistake in grading and marks right a question I got wrong), I usually point it out to him/her.

 

[Sparda29]

I tend to be friends with those people tho, because they always know when deadlines are and have all the notes. That is nice when I don't go to class.

Ehh, what happened was that I took defacto control of the group. I guess some people don't like when others take control.

 

[Maxpwer222]

Ehh, what happened was that I took defacto control of the group. I guess some people don't like when others take control.

If you are able to do as well as the them without studying as much or going to class as much as them, people will either love you or REALLY hate you. I try to keep my laziness on the down-low.

It seems the further some people get into school the larger their ego gets and they think they are THE ****. Those are the annoying people.

 

[Sparda29]

If you are able to do as well as the them without studying as much or going to class as much as them, people will either love you or REALLY hate you. I try to keep my laziness on the down-low.

It seems the further some people get into school the larger their ego gets and they think they are THE ****. Those are the annoying people.

My friends hated my guts after a physics midterm back in undergraduate. We were all in the library studying together (I was actually just playing Call of Duty 4 and pretending to study). So I got caught playing the game, and they were like, watch you fail the midterm tomorrow.

Sooo... the results come back for the Midterm. The class average was a 34. The highest grade was an 82, and the lowest grade was a 4. So we all got together to compare scores afterwards, and boy were they pissed when they found out I got a 79. One of my friends got the 4, I felt bad because she studied the most out of all of us. I think they were more pissed that because I was playing COD4, I didn't help them out as much as I could have.

 

[Passion4Sci]

A four? Don't you get 5 points at least for spelling your name right? Sheesh...

 

[Sparda29]

A four? Don't you get 5 points at least for spelling your name right? Sheesh...

This professor was a total *******. With the 3rd highest average in the class(77), I got a C+. The highest grade he gave was a B-, and he gave 12 Fs. This was a summer class. About 5-6 people of those people were set to begin P1 at LIU:Brooklyn and since they failed, they had their acceptances rescinded. The class average at the end was a 45. IMO, that warrants a 30 point curve on all grades to bring the average to 75.

Oh, and he gave me a 60 on my lab notebook because of ****ty handwriting. I told him at the beginning of the semester that I had ****ty handwriting and that I'd prefer to type up my lab notebook, but no, they have to be handwritten.

Then again, I seriously don't know how people can fail a physics exam when the professor ALLOWS you to bring in your own formula sheets.

 

[crazybob]

This professor was a total *******. With the 3rd highest average in the class(77), I got a C+. The highest grade he gave was a B-, and he gave 12 Fs. This was a summer class. About 5-6 people of those people were set to begin P1 at LIU:Brooklyn and since they failed, they had their acceptances rescinded. The class average at the end was a 45. IMO, that warrants a 30 point curve on all grades to bring the average to 75.

Oh, and he gave me a 60 on my lab notebook because of ****ty handwriting. I told him at the beginning of the semester that I had ****ty handwriting and that I'd prefer to type up my lab notebook, but no, they have to be handwritten.

Then again, I seriously don't know how people can fail a physics exam when the professor ALLOWS you to bring in your own formula sheets.

i once knew this girl who got an 18% on one of her physics tests. the professor was known for giving difficult tests, but people usually got at least 60%. we got to use a formula sheet, but only one of those they give you at ap physics exams. we were expected to show our work and reasoning, and i think some professors expect to see all of the work in getting to the answer.

 

[Sparda29]

i once knew this girl who got an 18% on one of her physics tests. the professor was known for giving difficult tests, but people usually got at least 60%. we got to use a formula sheet, but only one of those they give you at ap physics exams. we were expected to show our work and reasoning, and i think some professors expect to see all of the work in getting to the answer.

Ehh, that's my problem with a lot of science classes. If someone gets something right without showing work and reasoning, give them the points for it.

If someone gets something wrong without any reasoning = 0
If someone gets something wrong but shows all the work, give them partial credit.

 

[Passion4Sci]

Ehh, that's my problem with a lot of science classes. If someone gets something right without showing work and reasoning, give them the points for it.

If someone gets something wrong without any reasoning = 0
If someone gets something wrong but shows all the work, give them partial credit.

This has been experience as well.

If I got something wrong, I got credit for all the steps I took up until the point when I erred and came up with the wrong answer.

 

[AdamSanders]

I am certainly the person that answers the questions after about 5 seconds of silence. I usually know the answer but I will even answer if i have a good educated guess. I'm not really worried to get the answer wrong, I just like to further the class and finish on time/actually get through all of the material. I never did it to show-off, it's just that teachers always looked disappointed and sad that no one could answer so I wanted to show that at least I was paying attention and learning the material. I think I earned the most respect from my teachers just by paying attention and looking at them during lectures. Most kids just sat and texted which annoyed me, cause they were the ones that constantly asked the teachers questions that were already answered, needed help with simple concepts, complained about tests and "teaching styles", and typically just didn't do well in class.

 

[DrWrong]

I am certainly the person that answers the questions after about 5 seconds of silence. I usually know the answer but I will even answer if i have a good educated guess. I'm not really worried to get the answer wrong, I just like to further the class and finish on time/actually get through all of the material. I never did it to show-off, it's just that teachers always looked disappointed and sad that no one could answer so I wanted to show that at least I was paying attention and learning the material. I think I earned the most respect from my teachers just by paying attention and looking at them during lectures. Most kids just sat and texted which annoyed me, cause they were the ones that constantly asked the teachers questions that were already answered, needed help with simple concepts, complained about tests and "teaching styles", and typically just didn't do well in class.

Haha, couldn't have said it better myself. I don't really care if I get an answer wrong, either. I feel that I get enough right to make up for the ones I get wrong

 

[Sparda29]

Haha, couldn't have said it better myself. I don't really care if I get an answer wrong, either. I feel that I get enough right to make up for the ones I get wrong

I don't mind getting the answer wrong when the professor asks a question and I volunteer an answer, because the professor corrects you, and then you remember it forever.

 

[StaviZFingerZ]

Previous to my current post...everyone that participated in this thread, look in the mirror and and say aloud, "I'm a geek/dork/nerd and dang proud of it." 10 times a day.

 

[DrWrong]

Previous to my current post...everyone that participated in this thread, look in the mirror and and say aloud, "I'm a geek/dork/nerd and dang proud of it." 10 times a day.

I'm definitely proud of it....especially since I don't fit the stereotypical geek/dork/nerd look

 

[samuricool]

I'm definitely proud of it....especially since I don't fit the stereotypical geek/dork/nerd look

Isnt that the geek/dork/nerd motto while holding your right hand over your pocket protector?

 

[DrWrong]

Isnt that the geek/dork/nerd motto while holding your right hand over your pocket protector?

Would you believe me if I told you I don't even know what a Pocket Protector is? lol

 

[DrWrong]

Would you believe me if I told you I don't even know what a Pocket Protector is? lol

I just looked it up with a quick Google search. Never owned one of those, although they do look pretty snazzy....but I keep my pens in my pants pocket. Don't use pencils except for Scantrons so they stay in the 'Ol Fanny-pack [Read: Book Bag]

 

[miko]

I don't answer questions in class, so I appreciate those who do.

And conversely, when a professor gives me a point I don't think I deserve (such as when s/he makes a mistake in grading and marks right a question I got wrong), I usually point it out to him/her.

I did this once and the professor called me stupid. He said that the lesson to be learned is that I keep all the points he gives me, fair or unfair, and request for all the points I felt I've earned but didn't get.

 

[Maxpwer222]

The only reason I answer questions is too kiss ass

 

[DrWrong]

The only reason I answer questions is too kiss ass

It's a Dog Eat Dog world out there. At least you're honest

 

[Hels2007]

Wait, is the question about grade school or pharmacy school?

Professional students should be able to speak up their mind, especially if that is going to be the reason for their sorry butts getting paid 100+K a year after they graduate.

In graduate school, in law school, teaching is by discussion... and where I went to pharmacy school, there was a lot of discussion in class too. So it was quite a shock when I saw the scared pale faces the first time I went to teach at the East Coast school that shall remain nameless. 😀 I maintain it is because they take students straight out of high school, while where I went to school, pretty much everyone had a bachelor's and many had a few years of full-time work experience too...