Children's questions and adults' answers

Radio-recordings were made of the conversation of 30 girls, aged just under four, at school with their teachers and at home with their mothers. Half the girls were middle class and half working class. The frequency and type of question asked by the children and the frequency and type of answer given by the adults were analysed. Particular attention was paid to passages of persistent questioning by the child. There were home-school and social class differences in all these measures. The significance of the findings for education is discussed.