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An important skill for high school students is learning how to correctly interpret what a question is asking before beginning their response. Students can have a strong understanding of the content but still lose marks because they misread the question, overlook key information or failed to address their specific task.
In tutoring, it is valuable to spend time breaking questions down before attempting an answer. Encouraging students to identify command words such as explain, analyse, compare, evaluate or justify helps them to understand the type and depth of response required. These words can significantly change how a student should structure their answer.
Students should also be encouraged to highlight or underlying important information within a question. This is particularly useful for longer exam questions where unnecessary information may be included. Identifying exactly what needs to be answered can prevent students from becoming overwhelmed and help them approach the task more efficiently.
Another useful strategy is asking the student to explain the question in their own words before answering it. This allows the tutor to identify misunderstandings early and encourages the student to think carefully rather than immediately beginning their response.
This skill becomes increasingly important as students progress through high school and assessments become more complex. Understanding content alone is not always enough. Students must also demonstrate that knowledge in the specific way required by the question and marking criteria.
As tutors, we can reinforce this by consistently asking students what the question is asking them to do rather than immediately helping them solve it.
