Gülçin Coşgun: Beyond the Questions: Ensuring True Comprehension in the Classroom

Beyond the Questions: Ensuring True Comprehension in the Classroom

In the fast-paced environment of the classroom, comprehension questions are a commonly used tool to assess students’ understanding of reading texts. However, research highlights a critical gap: correct answers do not always equate to true comprehension. Students may arrive at the right response through guesswork, pattern recognition, or partial understanding, leaving significant aspects of the text unexplored. In this webinar, we will challenge the assumption that correct answers guarantee full comprehension and discuss the importance of probing beyond surface-level responses. Through an engaging exploration of strategies, the session will demonstrate how to foster deeper comprehension by encouraging students to justify their answers, connect ideas to broader contexts, and reflect on their thinking processes.

Gülçin Coşgun

Gulcin works as an instructor at Sabancı University. She earned her Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral degrees in English Language Teaching. Her qualifications also include the DELTA diploma and a ICELT certificate, as well as a TESOL Advanced Practitioner Certificate. Gulcin has held pivotal roles in academia, including leadership positions in testing, curriculum development, teacher training, and line management. Currently, she is also serving as the SIG representative of TESOL Türkiye.