The Art of Questioning - Formatting Checked

8/3/2019 The Art of Questioning - Formatting Checked

1/52

The Art of Questioning

Creating Reflective, Thought-Full

Learners

By: Lori Bryden

Curriculum Consultant

Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario

August 2004

(Research Project, Masters of Education, Acadia University)


2/52

The Art of QuestioningCreating Reflective, Thought-Full Learners

Questions, not answers are atthe heart of education (DennisDuncan, teacher).

I have no answers, onlyquestions (Socrates c. 300BC).

An unanswered question is afine travelling companion. Itsharpens your eye for the road(Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.).


3/52

How Do You Use Questioning?

As An Instructional Tool?

As an Assessment Tool?


4/52

Why Teach Questioning?

Questioning is the cornerstone of

creativity.


5/52

Why Teach Questioning?

Research states that effective questioning strategies have a positive impact onoverall student achievement.

Knowing how to think to extend the mind beyond the obvious and developcreative solutions to problems should be the outcome of a good education.

Our thinking skills affect how well we can receive and process new information.

To question well is to teach well (Wilen, 1991)


6/52

North American children fall short in this critical skill. Studies show that teachers

ask students limiting questions. From a study at the University of Nebraska, it is

noted that based on questions teachers ask, 60% require only recall of facts, 20%require students to think and 20% are procedural in nature. Researcher John

Goodlad (1983) of the University ofWashington reports that only 1% of

classroom questions invite students to give their own opinions.


7/52

One can rephrase the Chinese proverb: Ask a man a question and he

inquires for a day. Teach a man how to question and he inquires for alifetime.

Teachers say that they teach by

asking questions but they cantdescribe the types of questions thatthey ask.

Teachers frequently say that all

questions have merit but thats notthe case with teacher questions. Thecontent of the question and themanner in which teachers ask themdetermines whether or not they areeffective.


8/52

What is a Good Question?

For a question to be effective, it mustbe clear, concise; relevant to both the

subject material and the student and

most importantly it should inspire

creative thinking.


9/52

Good Questions:

Good questions recognize the wide possibilities of thoughtand are built around varying forms of thinking.

Good questions are directed toward learning and

evaluative thinking rather than determining what has beenlearned in a narrow sense.


10/52

A Good Question

A Good Question:

Contributes to learning

Sparks further questions and interest in seeking answers

Involves critical and creative thinking

Goes beyond recall of basic information Provides challenge but is not too threatening

Is appropriate to the learning situation and the student

Builds on prior knowledge and makes connections

Involves students in reflection and/or planning


11/52

Asking Good QuestionsIf only I could ask the right question (Albert Einstein)

Ever since Socrates asked questions to provoke his students into thinking andanalyzing their thoughts about 2200 years ago, educators have recognized thevalue of good questioning strategies. Researchers estimate that up to 90 percentof questions asked in elementary and secondary school ask students to regurgitateinformation.

The art of asking questions is one of the basic skills of good teaching. Socratesbelieved that knowledge and awareness were an intrinsic part of each learner.Thus, in exercising the craft of good teaching an educator must reach into the

learners hidden levels of knowing and awareness in order to help the learnerreach new levels of thinking.

Questions serve many purposes, including assessing what students already know,setting the stage for a new lesson by piquing students curiousity, determiningwhat factual information students have absorbed, and stimulating higher-order

thinking so students can apply what theyve learned to new situations.


12/52

Questioning and Critical Thinking

Critical thinking has become a hot topic in education

today. The concept of critical thinking is applied in all

subject areas. Education is nothing more, nor less, than

learning to think!

The common feeling in education today is that studentsmust become critical thinkers in order to assimilate and

accommodate information, thus becoming a true learner.


13/52

Can Thinking Skills Be Taught? Yes! The purpose of critical thinking is to achieve

understanding, evaluate view points, and solve problems.Since all three areas involve the asking of questions, we

can say that critical thinking is the questioning or inquirywe engage in when we seek to understand, evaluate orresolve. Critical thinkers: distinguish between fact andopinion; ask questions; make detailed observations;

uncover assumptions and define their terms; and makeassertions based on sound logic and solid evidence.

Maybe the question should be Can children be taught to

think more effectively?


14/52

The Griney Grollers Thinking Skills Test

The griney grollers

grangled in the

granchy gak.

1. What kind of grollers were they?

2. What did the grollers do?

3. Where did they do it?

4. In what kind of gak did they grangle?

5. In one sentence, explain why-the grollers were grangling in the granchy gak.

6. If you had to grangle in a granchy gak, what one item would you choose to

have with you and why?


15/52

The Moral of the Griney Grollers Story

Students can answer low-level questions without thinking.

Students enter/exit classrooms with no more

understanding of what theyve learned than The Griney

Groller taught you!


16/52

Thinking is what

happens when yourmouth stops and

your brain keeps

working.(Dennis the Menace)


17/52

Resnick (1987) argues that a new challenge to develop

educational programs that assume that all individuals, not

just the elite, can become competent thinkers becausethese competencies are now required of all. The cognitive

approach suggests that learners must develop an

awareness of themselves as thinkers and learners and

practise the approaches and strategies for effectivethinking.


18/52

Blooms Taxonomy and Critical Thinking

Thirty years ago, Benjamin Bloom (1956) suggested thatthe same information can be handled in more and less

demanding ways. Students can be asked to recall facts, to

analyze those facts, to synthesize or discover new

information based on the facts or to evaluate knowledge.


19/52

Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis,Evaluation

Bloom proposed a theoretical ranking of the levels of thinking that people use.At the simple and basic level, Bloom suggested that people operate at a very

concrete level of knowledge. Moving beyond that, people are able to comprehendwhat the facts are about and to some extent, they are able to manipulate thoseideas by comparing or contrasting or even retelling events in their own words.

At the next level, people are able to apply what they have learned from facts and

comprehension. This level of thinking permits them to demonstrate knowledge,solve or apply what they know to new and related situations. Moving beyondapplication, the next level of thinking allows people to analyze what they know.At this level, typically they can classify, categorize, discriminate or detectinformation.


20/52

All our knowledge results from questions, which is another way of saying thatquestion-asking is our most important intellectual tool (Postman, 1979)

The two highest levels of cognitive thought according to

Bloom are synthesis and evaluation. In synthesis theindividual is able to put ideas together, propose plans,

form solutions, and create new information. In the

evaluation stage, the thinker is able to make choices, select

evaluate and make judgements about information andsituations.


21/52

H

ow Blooms Relates To Our View of theStudentBlooms Taxonomy divides the way people learn into three domains. It is

concerned with the development of the whole student and the whole student

can be said to be divided into three parts:

1. What the student thinks and knows (The Cognitive Domain).

2. What the student feels about what he/she thinks and knows (The Affective

Domain).

3. What the student does as a result of his or her knowledge, thoughts and

feelings (The Psychomotor Domain).


22/52

Blooms Taxonomy and Assessment

Blooms Taxonomy Knowledge

Comprehension

Application

Analysis

Synthesis

Evaluation

Achievement Chart Knowledge/Understanding

Application

Thinking/Inquiry/Problem Solving


23/52

Attributes of a Critical Thinker(Ferrett in Peak Performance, 1997)

Asks pertinent questions

Assesses statements and arguments

Is able to admit a lack of understanding or information

Has a sense of curiousity

Is interested in finding new solutions

Is able to clearly define a set of criteria for analyzing ideas

Is willing to examine beliefs, assumptions, and opinions and weigh them againstfacts

Listens carefully to others and is able to give feedback

Sees that critical thinking is a life-long process of self-assessment

Suspends judgement until all facts have been gathered and considered

Is able to adjust opinions when new facts are found

Looks for proof

Examines problems closely


24/52

Elements of a Skilled Questioner

The crucial elements of a skilled questioner are that they are brief and concise, are

prepared to rephrase questions, are prepared to draw further responses from

participants, use a variety of techniques, redirect questions/responses, provide

feedback and reinforcement without repeating answers and spread questions

around the class.

The ability to ask questions is an art form and one, which takes commitment and

perseverance. For many instructors, it is necessary to pre-plan questions.

Planned questions can provide a framework for a lesson plan and keep theinstructor and the students on topic.


25/52

Types of QuestionsThe quality of the students thinking, and subsequent responses, will be influenced by the questioningtechniques used by the teacher.

Closed Questions: typically begin with do, is, can, could, will, would, shall orshould. Closed questions usually have only one response. These are usually usedto recall information and assess the prior and post activity knowledge of the

students.When this type of question is necessary, follow with an open-endedquestion.

Open Ended Questions: usually begin with who, what, when, where, or how.Open ended questions are useful to stimulate group discussion. In open endedquestions there may be many different responses.

Higher level questions are questions that require students to work out answersrather than memorize them. The goal of higher level questions is to give thestudent a license to explore the possibilities. Bloom categorizes higher levelquestions into three categories: analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Higher level

questions encourage students to think more deeply and critically, to problemsolve, inspire discussions and stimulate students to seek information on their own.


26/52

Transforming Closed Questions into Open

Questions

Look at the type of question. Is it a closed question?(Only one possible answer)

Use different language to change it into an open question(with more than one answer or no possible answer).


27/52

A skilfully orchestrated question and answer session

causes a chain effect, in which, the instructor and

students can journey from simple factual inquiries to

an insightful exchange of information, ideas and

realizations. As an instructors ability to engage the

learner, and incorporate questioning techniques intothe classroom increases, so will the opportunity of teachable

moments.

Beginning to Ask Questions:


28/52

Applying Blooms

Blooms Taxonomy gives a six-fold model to comprehension.

Here is an example of questions used with a simple

source, the nursery rhyme Little Boy Blue, during a

Primary environmental study.

Little Boy Blue, come blow your horn,

The sheeps in the meadow, the cows in the corn,Where is the boy who looks after the sheep?

Hes under the haystack, fast asleep.


29/52

Questioning with Little Boy Blue

Knowledge (Remembering):In this picture, what is the colour of the boys coat?

Comprehension (Understanding):Can you describe his coat in your own words?

Application (Solving): Do you know someone like Little Boy Blue?

Analysis (Reasoning): Why might he have fallen asleep?

Synthesis (Creating): I wonder how he will explain to the farmer how the cow gotinto the corn?

Evaluation (Judging): Does it matter if he falls asleep if no one ever finds out?


30/52

The Mysteries ofH

arris BurdickBy: Chris Van Allsburg

The House on Maple Street:

Knowledge: What is happening in the

picture?

Comprehension: How did you determine what is

happening?

Application: What questions would you ask if you

could interview the owner of the house?

Analysis:W

hat evidence can you find thatthis is an unusual event?

Synthesis: What would happen if your house

started to rise?

Evaluation: Based on what you know, how

would you explain this occurrence?


31/52

QUILT TechniqueQUILT questioning and understanding to improve learning

and thinking. This program was developed to enhancestudent learning by improving teachers classroom

questioning techniques.

During 1991-92, the QUILT program was classroomtested in 13 school districts with more than 1,200 teachers.

The QUILT program claims to show an increase inteacher understanding of effective classroom questioningand a corresponding use of effective questioning practices

along with an increase in student thinking.


32/52

5 Stages of QUILTStage 1: Preparing the question:

Identify the instructional purpose

Pause after asking question

Determine content focus

Select cognitive level

Stage 2: Presenting the question: Indicate response format

Ask the question

Select respondent


33/52

Stage 3: Prompt student responses:

Pause after asking question Assist non respondent

Pause following student response

Stage 4: Responding to student responses:

Provide appropriate feedback

Expand and use correct responses

Elicit student reactions and questions

Stage 5: Critiquing the questioning period: Analyze the questions

Map respondent selection

Evaluate student response patterns

Examine teacher and student reactions


34/52

Questioning Dos and Donts

1. Pose the question first, before asking the student to respond.

2. Allow plenty of think time by waiting at least 5 seconds.

3. Make sure you give all students the opportunity to respond rather than relying on

volunteers. Create a system to help you keep track of who you call on.4. Hold students accountable by expecting and facilitating their participation and

contributions.

5. Never answer your own questions. Do not accept I Dont Know.

6. Establish a safe environment for risk taking by guiding students in the process of learning

from their mistakes. Always dignify incorrect responses by saying something positive.

7. After asking the question, the instructor would remove himself from the center of

attention. It is extremely important to pause after a question. This silence allows the

students the opportunity to compose their thoughts,. There is a direct correlation between

the pause time and the quality of the response. Higher level questions require

considerable time for students to formulate answers. A longer response time will foster a

climate for students to become critical thinkers.

8. When a student asks the instructor a question the instructor should redirect the question to the class.


35/52

Asking Questions That Foster Student

Achievement

ask questions of primarily an academic nature

allow three to five seconds of wait time

encourage students to respond in some way to eachquestion asked

balance responses from volunteering and nonvolunteeringstudents

elicit a high percentage of correct responses from studentsand assist with incorrect responses

acknowledge correct responses from students and use

praise specifically and discriminately


36/52

Build a Questioning ToolkitQuestion finding is the ability to go to a poem, a painting, a piece of music a mathematical description

and find a novel direction for investigation. This ability is difficult to teach directly, but it may be one of

the most authentic and humanely posed.

Beginning a new unit: Start a new unit by asking students

to think of questions that could be asked about the topic.Students will model higher level questions if teachersexpose them to this process. Teachers can categorizequestions. Teach students that questions are like tools in a

toolbox. They are used for different purposes. Thinkingrequires a choice of questions. Primary students maycategorize questions according to Fact Questions;WhyQuestions; Imagine Questions.


37/52

Critical Thinking and the Brain-Compatible

ClassroomI think, therefore I am. (Descartes)

Critical thinking ties in with the brain-compatible classroom. The

brain-compatible classroom relies on a four corner framework:

Teach FOR Thinking: Creating a rich, safe learning environment

Teach Skills OF Thinking: Teaching life skills from novice level to expert level

TeachWITH Thinking: Constructing meaning with intense, active involvement

Teach ABOUT Thinking: Fostering application and transfer with metacognitivereflection

When the brain is challenged, it becomes engaged in intense activity

(Sylwester, 1995; Wolfe, 1996; Caine andCaine, 1991)


38/52

Questioning

The Strategy That Propels Readers Forward

Reasons for students to develop their own questions:

Increases motivation to learn

Improves comprehension and retention

Encourages creativity and innovation

Teaches how to think and learn

Provides a basis for problem solving and decision making.

I wonder?


39/52

Coding the TextSticky Note Reading

Teachers model how to use post-it notes when reading both fiction and non-

fiction text to understand the text. The students write predetermined symbols on

the note and post it on the page. To differentiate between fiction and non-fiction

text, the codes can be altered.

Example:

Question ?

Interesting Observation !

Important Fact *

Learned Something New

Confusing


40/52

Asking QuestionsW

hile ReadingCreating and Strengthening a Readers Dialogue He came with his little girl. She wore her best frock. You noticed what good

care she took of it. Others noticed too-idly noticed that, last year, it had been, thebest frock on another girl.

In the morning sunshine it had been festive. Now most people had gone home.The balloon sellers were counting the days takings. Even the sun had followedtheir example, and retired to rest behind a cloud. So the place looked ratherbleak and deserted when he came with his little girl to taste the joy of Spring andwarm himself in the freshly polished Easter sun.

But she was happy. They both were. They had learned a humility of whichyou still have no conception. A humility which never makes comparisons, neverrejects what there is for the sake of something else or something more.

-MARKINGS, DAG HAMMARSKJOLD


41/52

The 3Rs Framework for Developing Critical

Thinking

The 3Rs: Retell, Relate, Reflect

by Susan Schwartz and Maxine Bone

The 3Rs framework is a useful tool to help students learn to respond in

meaningful ways. Students share their knowledge by retellinga story; relating

parts of the story to their own experiences and knowledge and reflectingby

thinking, questioning and wondering.

Teachers model and demonstrate the 3Rs using the think-aloudstrategy and/or

the mini-lesson format.


42/52

The 3Rs and Critical Thinking

The 3 Scoops of Reading

Retell (Knowledge/Comprehension)

Relate (Application, Analysis)

Reflect (Synthesis, Evaluation)

(Susan Schwartz and Maxine Bone)


43/52

Beyond Critical Thinking:

Critical LiteracyEnhancing Students Comprehension of Text

Students today experience a constant stream of ideas and information-online, in print, andthrough electronic games and mass media. They need to be taught how to approach alltexts with a critical eye.

Critical literacy provides a way for students to think more deeply about the texts they meetand the text they create. It provides a way to challenge the learner to look beyond theliteral message, to read between the lines, to observe what is present and what is missing,and to reflect on the content and way the author constructed the text to influence thereader. Critical literacy goes beyond conventional critical thinking because it often

includes questions about fairness, equity and social justice.

Critical literacy is a lens or overlay for viewing texts that becomes a regular part ofclassroom practice.

Critical literacies involve people using language to exercise power, to enhance everyday life in

schools and communities, and to question practices of privilege and injustice (Comber, 2001)


44/52

Four Roles of The Literate Learner(Luke and Freebody, 1999)

Meaning Maker:

Uses prior knowledge and experience to

construct and communicate meaning when

reading, writing and speaking.

Code Breaker:

Recognizes and uses the features and

structures of written, visual and spoken texts,including the alphabet, sounds in words,

spelling, conventions, sentence structure, text

organization, graphics, other visuals.

Text User:

Understands that the purpose and audience

help to determine the way a text is structured,

the tone, the degree of formality, and the

sequence of components-and uses this

knowledge to read, write and speak.

Text Analyst:

Understands that texts are not neutral, that

texts represent particular views and

perspectives, and that other views and

perspectives may be missing. The design and

messages of texts can be critiqued and

redesigned.


45/52

Creating Reflective and Thought-Full LearnersHow do I know I know?

Reflective thinking is linked to critical thinking because questioning and assessinginvolve organizing, reasoning, hypothesizing and predicting.

What Do Reflective/Metacognitive Students Do? Question

Link ideas to previous/predicted/current experiences

Think critically

Think creatively

Using Thought-Full Language in the Classroom:

Use specific thinking terms rather than vague abstract terms

Posing questions that cause students to examine their own behaviour


46/52

Explicitly teach the language of critical

thinking-the verbs!

Lets compare these two pictures. (instead of look)

What do you predict will happen when? (instead ofthink)

How can you classify? (instead of group)

Lets analyze this problem. (instead of work this problem)

What conclusions can you draw? (instead of what did you

think)


47/52

How we Know Students Are Getting Better At

Thinking:We are interested in assessing not what students know in so much as how students behave when they

dont know

Indicators that Instructional Methods Are Paying Off:

Persistence: When the solution to a problem is not immediately apparent.

Decreasing Impulsivity: Students will think longer before answering, make surethey understand before beginning a task, listening to alternative points of view;planning strategies to solve problems more effectively.

Listening to Others with Understanding and Empathy: Some psychologistsbelieve that the ability to listen to another person, to empathize with and tounderstand their point of view, is one of the highest forms of intelligentbehaviour.

Flexibility in Thinking: They begin to see several ways to solve problems and

that their answers arent the only one to consider.


48/52

You may be a critical thinking teacher if:

You may be a critical thinking teacher if:

Learners are active and in continuous dialogue with teacher

Learning is constructing, not feeding

Truth is discovered, not delivered Teacher leads from behind

Teacher functions as facilitator/mentor instead of lecturer

Questions are answered with explanations or questions, not simply yes or no

Questions rarely have one right answer

Pertinent discussions on related issues often break out Debate is common

Peers exchange ideas

Learner and teacher satisfaction increases

Teachers often face questions for which there are no answers

Social interaction and acceptance in the class is generally high


49/52

The Reflective Classroom: A Model to

Improve Teacher Questioning

1. Teacher Questioning Questionnaire2. Classroom Questioning Tracking Sheet

3. Questioning Strategies Observation Tool

4. Classroom Questioning Tally

5. Designing Questions


50/52

All The Best

In Your

Planning!


51/52

References

Beers, Kylene, (2003) When Kids Cant Read: What Teachers Can Do. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann

Publishers.

Brualdi, Amy, (1998) Classroom Questions.ERICClearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation, The

Catholic University of America, Shriver Laboratory, College Park, MD.

www.ericfacility.net/ericdigests/ed422407.html

Cotton, Kathleen, (2001). Classroom Questioning.Northwest Regional EducationalLaboratory.

www.nwrel.org/scpd.sirs/3/cu5/html

Cotton, Kathleen, (2001). Teaching Questioning Skills: Franklin Elementary School. Northwest Regional

EducationalLaboratory. www.nwrel.org/scpd/sirs/4/snap13.html

Harvey, S., and Goudvis, A. (2000). Strategies That Work: TeachingComprehension to Enhance

Understanding. York, ME: Stenhouse Publishers.

Heffernan, Lee, (2004). CriticalLiteracy and Writers Workshop. Bloomington, INDIANA: International

Reading Association.


52/52

References

McLaughlin, M., and DeVoogd, G., (2004) CriticalLiteracy: Enhancing StudentsComprehension of Text.New York, NY: Scholastic.

Mittelstaedt, M. (1991) A Research Proposal for a Study to Support That an Early Childhood Teachers Perception of the Importance ofHigher Cognitive Questioning

Techniques Impacts the Implementation of the Questioning Techniques Done in the Classroom. Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation.

Morgan, N., and Saxton, J., ((1994).Asking BetterQuestions. Markham, ON: Pembroke Publishers.

Muth, Jon, ((2002). The Three Questions. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.

Schwartz, S., and Bone, M. (1995).Retelling, Relating, Reflecting: Beyond the 3Rs. Toronto, ON: Irwin Publishing.

Urbanoski, Janice, (2000). The Role of Questioning Techniques in the Classroom. www.instructordiploma.com/core/102%20B/jan.htm

Van Allsburg, Chris, ( (1984). The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Publishing.

Wolf, Dennis Palmer, (1987). The Art of Questioning. Academic Connections, 1-7, www.exploratorium.edu/IFI/resources/artofquestioning.html

The Art of Questioning - Formatting Checked

Documents

Transcript of The Art of Questioning - Formatting Checked