In a traditional classroom, the teacher is the center of attention, the owner of knowledge and information. Teachers often ask questions of their students to gauge comprehension, but it’s a passive model that relies on students to absorb information they need to reproduce on tests.
What would happen if the roles were flipped and students asked the questions?
Coming up with the right question involves vigorously thinking through the problem, investigating it from various angles, turning closed questions into open-ended ones and prioritizing which are the most important questions to get at the heart of the matter.
There are three outcomes. One is that students are more engaged. Second, they take more ownership, which for teachers is a huge thing. And the third outcome is they learn more – we see better quality work.
How do we learn?
What are some quick and practical tips for asking effective questions?
“Ask and you shall receive,” says the Bible.
Ask, and every human being has been conditioned to do what they are asked to do, say the psychologists. Even your mother won’t give you anything, unless you ask.
Ask, and according to the law of averages, you’ll getEnough “yes's” to guarantee your success, say the sales managers.
Asking is the quickest, easiest and surest ways to get people to do what you want them to do.
Good questions help the person you are asking. Asking intelligent questions causes people to think profoundly. Leading to the emergence of new ideas, new answers and new possibilities.
When you are answering questions, you may be on the highway, but someone else is doing the driving.
Powerful questions - Smart Questions , Essential Questions, are the foundation for Information Power , Engaged Learning and Information Literacy.
Every intellectual field is born out of a cluster of questions to which answers are either needed or highly desirable Questions define tasks, express problems and delineate issues. Answers signal full stop in thought. Only when an answer generates a further question does thought continue its life The quality of the questions students ask determines the quality of the thinking they are doing.
No questions = no understanding
Superficial questions = superficial understanding
The greatest novels, the greatest plays, the greatest songs and the greatest paintings all explore essential questions in some manner
Two monks, both heavy smokers, were unable to stop smoking during prayers. To solve this dilemma, they each wrote a letter to the Pope and asked for his ruling.
Three weeks later they found, to their surprise, that the Pope had given only one of them permission to smoke. On comparing their letters, they found the explanation. The first monk had asked, “May I smoke during prayers?” and the answer was, “No.” The second monk, however, had framed his question differently: “May I pray while I am smoking?”
Questions should be worded carefully. Otherwise, they can backfire.
Indirect Questions: More formal and more polite - Do you know...; I wonder / was wondering if ....; Can you tell me...; I'm not sure...; I don't know...)
1. Convergent questions: What, where, who, and when questions get a person to clarify the specifics of what he or she is thinking. Converging questions can be important when time is of the essence or you are dealing with someone who is theoretical.
2. Divergent or expansive questions: Why and what if questions ask a person to expand on what he or she is thinking. Divergent questions can be important when you need someone to see the larger context of a position.
3. Integrating questions: If…then what questions demonstrate an attempt to find common ground between opposing positions. This builds trust and encourages compromise, which is important in situations where the stakes are high for both sides.
Children have a genuine reason to complain why they are expected to know answers to all questions while their own questions are discouraged.
What do you think? Instead of Do you think this or that?