The+Art+of+Questioning

//**__The Art of Questioning__**//



Bloom’s Taxonomy Question Stems

Developing the art of questioning can be as simple as practicing. It is with practice that we gain competence and “pattern” the process

Look at the question types below (from low to high order}. Choose one question, ask it and then give two follow up questions.

__**Identifying Errors -**What is wrong with__ _? __**Inferring -**What might we infer from__ _?What conclusions might be drawn from ___?__ __**Identifying Attributes and Components -**What are the characteristics/parts of__ _?**Predicting -**What might happen if ___?__ __**Classifying -**How might we organize into categories___? __Give an example of__ _.**Ordering -**Arrange into sequence according to ___?__ __**Summarizing -**Can you summarize__ _? __**Identifying Relationships and Patterns -**Develop an outline/diagram/web of__ _?
 * Recalling -**Who, what, when, where, how ___?__
 * Comparing -**How is similar to/different from___?__
 * Elaborating :** What ideas/details can you add to ___?__
 * Establishing Criteria -**What criteria would you use to judge/evaluate ___?__
 * Identifying Main Ideas -**What is wrong with ___?What conclusions might be drawn from___?
 * Verifying -**What evidence supports ___?How might we prove/confirm__ _?
 * Representing -**In what other ways might we show/illustrate ___?

**Techniques of Effective Questioning**
 * 1. Establish an appropriate environment.** Only certain questions should be posed in front of students; “bedside” (beginning) questions should focus principally on knowledge and recall and to a lesser extent on comprehension.
 * 2. Create a climate conducive to learning.** A happy facial expression, nod, or verbal acknowledgement of a correct response encourages other students to participate in the discussion. Pose questions in a non-threatening way and receive answers in a supportive fashion. A harsh tone, especially when used to interrupt a response from the student, can be devastating for both the student and his or her peers.
 * 3. Prepare the students for the questioning session and discussion**. Explain to students the format, expectations, and how this knowledge will help them.
 * 4. Use both pre-planned and emerging questions.** Pre-planned questions are those incorporated into the teaching plan that are asked during the teaching session to introduce new concepts, focus the discussion on certain items, steer the discussion in specific directions, or identify student knowledge / level on the topic. Emerging questions derive from the discussion itself and the specific answers given to previous questions. Think quickly and act decisively to phrase these questions accurately and pose them at appropriate times in the discussion.
 * 5. Use an appropriate variety and mix of questions.** One good strategy is to start with convergent questions and then continue with divergent questions, perhaps asking questions in hierarchical sequence and building from the recall of facts to higher levels of thinking and problem-solving. If a question requiring a higher level thinking skill blocks the student, go down to a question requiring lower-level thinking skills and then work up the hierarchy.
 * 6. Avoid trick questions and those that require only a YES or NO response**. Trick questions should be avoided, as they frustrate students and tend to encourage frivolous responses. YES or NO questions encourage students to respond without fully understanding or thinking through the issue. When used, such questions should be followed by other questions to determine the thinking process of the student. However in English Language teaching, closed questions are encouraged at the beginning stages of language development.
 * 7. Phrase the questions carefully, concisely, and clearly.** Improper phrasing and the use of multiple questions related to the same topic may result in unintentional cueing (guessing) and inability to accurately assess student understanding.
 * 8. Address questions to the group, versus the individual.** Pose the question to the entire group and wait before identifying a student to respond. The wait time encourages all students to think about the response, as they do not know who is going to be called upon to answer the question. Select students at random to answer questions, as it tends to keep everyone attentive and involved.
 * 9. Select both volunteers and non-volunteers** to answer questions.
 * 10. Adapt questions to the needs of the learners.** Assess the students’ needs and tailor questions to maximize the number of correct answers while moving toward more and more difficult questions. Remember, no two groups of students will be alike or at the same level.
 * 11. Use sufficient wait time.** The teacher can significantly enhance the analytic and problem-solving skills of students by allowing sufficient wait times before responding, both after posing a question and after the answer is given. This allows everyone to think about not only the question but also the response provided by the student. Three to five seconds in most cases; longer in some, maybe up to 10 seconds for higher-order questions.
 * 12. Respond to answers given by students.** Listen carefully to the answers given by students; do not interrupt students while they are responding to questions unless they are straying far off course, are totally unfocused, or are being disruptive. Acknowledge correct answers and provide positive reinforcement. Do not use sarcasm, reprimands, accusations, and personal attacks. Repeat answers only when the other students have not heard the answers; other repeats waste time. Keep questioning until the learning objectives for the session have been achieved; this may be the best opportunity to teach a particular concept. Handle incomplete answers by reinforcing what is correct and then asking probing questions.
 * 13. Use questions to identify learning objectives for follow-up self-study.** Pose questions towards the end of the teaching session to identify specific areas for additional learning opportunities that students can pursue on their own time.

//Adapted from: The office of curriculum development, University of Alberta http://www.uab.edu/uasomume/cdm///