How to ask questions that stimulate discussion
- 2. uncertainty of the question Before posing a question to students, consider the question’s level of uncertainty.
- 3. 1 right answer uncertainty of the question A question with only one right answer has no uncertainty.
- 4. Too broad 1 right answer uncertainty of the question A question with an infinite number of acceptable answers is totally uncertain.
- 5. Too broad Just right 1 right answer uncertainty of the question
- 6. What happens when we pose a question that has no uncertainty at all?
- 7. What is the square root of 4?
- 8. Q: What is the square root of 4? Quá dễ It’s two sir.
- 9. Q: What is the square root of 4? Quá dễ Is there any other answer? It’s two sir.
- 10. Q: What is the square root of 4? Quá dễ Questions that have only one right answer don’t stimulate discussion.
- 11. Let’s look at a few more examples of zero uncertainty questions.
- 12. Who is the president of our school?
- 13. Who is the president of our school? SATA supports a maximum of how many drives?
- 14. Who is the president of our school? SATA supports a maximum of how many drives? How many habits does Steven Covey describe in his book?
- 15. Who is the president of our school? SATA supports a maximum of how many drives? How many habits does Steven Covey describe in his book? 1 right answer
- 16. Now let’s see what happens when there’s too much uncertainty.
- 17. What must one do in order to get a job?
- 18. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ We must wear clothes, of course.
- 19. What must one do in order to get a job? And comb our hair too! We must wear clothes, of course.
- 20. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ We should slip a $20 bill to the head of human resources.
- 21. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ We should slip a $20 bill to the head of human resources. Or we should ask our dad to introduce us to his friends.
- 22. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ Go to the temple and offer prayers!
- 23. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ I have no idea what answer the teacher wants us to say.
- 24. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ I think it’s better to just keep quiet.
- 25. Let’s study that exchange in more detail.
- 26. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ We must wear clothes, of course.
- 27. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ We must wear clothes, of course. The student’s answer is correct but it sounds silly, and even disrespectful. Why?
- 28. This dot represents the space of all answers discussed in the literature.
- 29. The teacher tends to think inside this small, finite space because he has studied the literature.
- 30. The green dot represents the set of all correct answers to the question.
- 31. Students minds operate in this space.
- 32. “What must one do in order to get a job?” To merely give a correct answer to this question is not sufficient because answers too far outside the teacher’s intended context will be perceived as rude or inappropriate.
- 33. In addition to formulating a correct answer, the student must also guess the context within which the teacher intends for the students to think.
- 34. The context guessing problem is usually much harder than the problem of simply formulating a correct answer.
- 35. Now, let’s see how the students handle the context guessing problem.
- 36. What must one do in order to get a job?
- 37. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ Let’s assume this is a computer science course.
- 38. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ He’s probably thinking something about real-world programming skills.
- 39. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ No, that’s too easy. This teacher likes us to think outside the box.
- 40. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ It’s probably something related to computers but slightly counter-intuitive.
- 41. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ Maybe he’s thinking of IT communication skills?
- 42. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ Maybe this is an aside that doesn’t relate to computers at all.
- 43. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ Well, we need to be able to provide value for our potential employer.
- 44. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ That idea is too vague. He’s probably looking for something specific.
- 45. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ These students are having trouble identifying the context.
- 46. What must one do in order to get a job? Quá dễ In this situation, students won’t volunteer to answer the question.
- 47. Let’s see some more examples of questions that are too broad.
- 48. Too broad What is unique about our university?
- 49. Too broad What is unique about our university? In the movie Star Wars, what does the main character do?
- 50. Too broad What is unique about our university? In the movie Star Wars, what does the main character do? In the future, how will computers develop?
- 51. The hope of providing a definitive answer is the force that motivates students to discuss.
- 52. What is the best colour for website design?
- 53. What is the best colour for website design? Students have no hope of answering this question definitively. As a result, they will not attempt to answer at all.
- 54. The the level of uncertainty determines the amount of time a class will spend discussing the question.
- 55. One correct answer: Less than one minute of discussion
- 56. Infinitely many answers: discussion is inconclusive One correct answer: Less than one minute of discussion
- 57. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 58. Useful for quick review of a previous lesson. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 59. Useful for quick review of a previous lesson. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute Useful for more in-depth discussion.
- 60. Students will not attempt to answer Useful for quick review of a previous lesson. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute Useful for more in-depth discussion.
- 61. 1. What is the algorithmic complexity of insertion sort? 2. What’s the difference between int and float? 3. What does judging mean in the Meyers-briggs personality test? 4. What are the notes in the first inversion of a D Major chord? 5. What are the locations of the three dan tian? Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 62. This type of question is useful for checking students’ understanding of a previous lesson. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 63. In order to inspire longer discussions with more lasting impact, we must ask broader questions. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 64. Let’s look at some examples. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 65. self-actualisation esteem social safety physiological According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, needs on the lower levels must be satisfied before an individual can feel strong motivation to satisfy the needs at a higher level. Here’s an example from a business communication skills course.
- 66. self-actualisation esteem social safety physiological According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, needs on the lower levels must be satisfied before an individual can feel strong motivation to satisfy the needs at a higher level.
- 67. self-actualisation esteem social safety physiological For example: Humans who are struggling to find food for survival (physiological need) are not strongly motivated to seek recognition as scientific researchers (esteem level need).
- 68. self-actualisation esteem social safety physiological For example: Humans who are struggling to find food for survival (physiological need) are not strongly motivated to seek recognition as scientific researchers (esteem level need). Now, let’s write some questions pertaining to this lesson.
- 69. Question: What type of needs are in the foundation level of Maslow’s hierarchy? Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 70. Question: What type of needs are in the foundation level of Maslow’s hierarchy? Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute This type of question is sufficient for less than one minute of discussion.
- 71. In wartime we often hear stories of soldiers who bravely risk their lives for their comrades and country. Are these stories an example of a contradiction to Maslow’s theory or an indication that our understanding of the theory is incomplete? Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
- 72. Too broad 15 minutes 10 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute The question on the previous slide points out an apparent contradiction in the material of the previous day’s lesson and asks students to give their personal opinion. This is a typical strategy for eliciting more enthusiastic student participation.
- 73. Too easy OK Too hard Difficulty level
- 74. Too easy (everyone knows)
- 75. How many key points were there in yesterday’s lesson? Quá dễ
- 76. How many key points were there in yesterday’s Quá lesson? dễ In the video we just watched, what did the main character do?
- 77. How many key points were there in yesterday’s Quá lesson? dễ In the video we just watched, what did the main character do? Why do we need computers?
- 78. Why do we need computers?
- 79. Why do we need computers? Quá dễ Why is he asking such an easy question?
- 80. Why do we need computers? Quá dễ It’s probably a trick question. Why is he asking such an easy question?
- 81. Why do we need computers? Quá dễ What does he mean by that?
- 82. Why do we need computers? Quá dễ I think it’s better to just keep What does he mean by that? silent.
- 83. Too hard (no one knows)
- 84. Who is the CEO of Fujitsu corporation?
- 85. Who is the CEO of Fujitsu corporation? When was the first telephone manufactured?
- 86. Who is the CEO of Fujitsu corporation? When was the first telephone manufactured? What’s the maximum number of cells in an excel spreadsheet?
- 87. In what year was the world’s first financial audit conducted?
- 88. In what year was the world’s first financial audit conducted? Quá dễ How should I know?
- 89. In what year was the world’s first financial audit conducted? Quá dễ 1282? 1555? What’s the point of guessing random numbers?
- 90. In what year was the world’s first financial audit conducted? Quá dễ It’s probably better to just keep quiet.
- 91. Students are motivated by the feeling of accomplishment that comes from giving a correct answer. Difficulty
- 92. Difficulty Why do computers have mice? Students get no sense of accomplishment from answering easy questions.
- 93. Difficulty Why do computers have mice? They also avoid questions that are too hard. How many keys are on a Dvorak keyboard?
- 94. To get students to discuss, ask for their opinion on open questions that are neither too easy nor too hard. Are touch screens going to replace mice in the future? Difficulty
- 95. easy hard Too easy and not broad enough 1+1 = ? broad 1 answer
- 96. easy hard Too hard, too specific Who is the leader of the national bank of Australia? broad 1 answer
- 97. What does MS Excel do? Too easy, too broad broad easy hard 1 answer
- 98. How should we carry out a tax audit of a fortune 500 company? Too hard, too broad broad easy hard 1 answer
- 99. To easy broad easy hard 1 answer Give examples of English-speaking countries.
- 100. To broad broad How do we debug runtime errors? easy hard 1 answer
- 101. broad Discussions happen in this middle area. easy hard 1 answer
- 102. The quickest way to start a real discussion is to ask about a subject that’s controversial.
- 103. Ask students for their opinion.
- 104. Invite them to disagree with the experts.
- 105. Opinion Questions: • A and B are both right but which is better? • A and B are both bad but which is less bad? • Some experts believe A. Are they correct? • Person A took action B. Was that good or bad?