Developing Questioning Skills

Questioning is a familiar, everyday practice which we use, often unreflectively, in order to gather information, communicate with each other, and advance our inquiries. Yet, not all questions are equally effective and not all questioners are equally adept. Being a good questioner requires a degree of proficiency and judgment, both in determining what to ask and in deciding who, where, when, and how to ask. Good questioning is an intellectual skill. Given its ubiquity and significance, it is an intellectual skill that, I believe, we should educate for. In this paper, I present a central line of argument in support of educating for good questioning, namely, that it plays an important role in the formation of an individual’s intellectual character and can thereby serve as a valuable pedagogical tool for intellectual character education. I argue that good questioning plays two important roles in the cultivation of intellectual character: good questioning (1) stimulates intellectually virtuous inquiry and (2) contributes to the development of several of the individual intellectual virtues. Insofar as the cultivation of intellectually virtuous character is a desirable educational objective, we should educate for good questioning.

My "Contemplation Music Project" can be taught in classroom settings to students from grade 2 and beyond, and also, to parents and educators. The contemplation lessons at home are similar to the classroom lessons: music is played, participants--kids and parents--contemplate inner experiences, reflect on them, write about and discuss them with classmates and through teacher questions. For example, the parent plays music--favorite sounds of child--as both contemplate while the music plays. Afterward, both participants will reflect on their inner experiences and write about them. At the end, the parent--and the child--can question each other about their mutual experiences. Basic questions are about: Feelings and thoughts experienced, mind-pictures visualized, and focusing or concentration skills.

What is the Socratic method? How can we bring the Socratic method into the middle school and high school classroom? How does one lead a Socratic discussion? How does one develop the discussion skills of students? Using passages from the works of Plato and Xenophon, Teach Like Socrates answers each of these questions, clearly explaining the most famous and the most misunderstood teaching method in the world. Unrivaled as a constructive method for guidance in critical thinking and problem solving, the Socratic method can be brought into the classroom every day for the inductive exploration of ideas and scaffolded problem solving as well as for cooperative discussion. The book includes templates, sample lesson plans, and discussion games. Socratic teaching leads students to critical thinking, problem solving, and independent learning. Every teacher should be familiar with the Socratic method.

Questions are used as a basic investigative interviewing tool. The types and wording of questions during interviews or interrogations are critical to increase the chances of educing needed information. One problematic tool investigators use may hinder the effectiveness and efficiency to obtain requested information – the bipolar trap. The bipolar trap increases the probability of not getting the required information. Law enforcement training manuals and texts perpetuate the use of bipolar traps by including them as examples, without precautions, of properly phrased moderately closed and open-ended probes. Reducing or eliminating the use of bipolar traps and such pitfalls may assist investigators in conducting more effective and efficient interviews.

Leadership development is one of the popular training programs that are currently used by business organizations. Leader is not limited to an executive or high level managers, but includes all supervisors and employees at all levels in an organization. Leader needs to have an ability to manage and solve challenging organizational problems. Current leadership development programs are aimed at transferring or teaching about functional business knowledge and conducted as a training program. However, after training, problems still exist with no room for practicing on leadership skills in the training program. Action learning is a tool or process that creates both learning and an action to solve an organizational problem. Action learning is also allowing a practice on leadership skills, which are embedded in the process. Action learning could also develop or change an organizational culture to generate co-learning, trust and teamwork in an organization.
การพัฒนาภาวะผู้นำเป็นหลักสูตรการฝึกอบรมที่ได้รับความนิยมขององค์กรธุรกิจในปัจจุบัน คำว่าผู้นำไม่จำกัดอยู่เฉพาะผู้บริหารในระดับสูง แต่รวมถึงหัวหน้างานตลอดจนบุคลากรในทุกระดับขององค์กรที่ต้องมีความสามารถในการจัดการและแก้ไขปัญหาที่ท้าทายในองค์กรได้ การพัฒนาผู้นำในปัจจุบันมุ่งเน้นที่การให้ความรู้เพื่อสร้างความเข้าใจเกี่ยวกับการดำเนินธุรกิจในหน้าที่ต่างๆ และมักเป็นรูปแบบของการฝึกอบรม ซึ่งจะพบปัญหาหลังการอบรมว่าปัญหาและกระบวนการทำงานเดิมยังไม่ได้รับการแก้ไข และขาดการฝึกฝนทักษะของการเป็นผู้นำในระหว่างการอบรม การเรียนรู้จากการปฏิบัติเป็นเครื่องมือหรือกระบวนการที่ช่วยให้เกิดการเรียนรู้และการลงมือดำเนินการเพื่อแก้ไขปัญหาขององค์กร และเปิดโอกาสให้เกิดการฝึกฝนทักษะหรือคุณสมบัติของผู้นำในระหว่างกระบวนการ และเป็นเครื่องมือในการสร้างหรือปรับเปลี่ยนให้เกิดวัฒนธรรมของการเรียนรู้ ความไว้วางใจ และการทำงานร่วมกันเป็นทีมในองค์กร

The importance of teachers’ questioning strategy cannot be underestimated due to its widespread usage and pivotal role in teaching and learning regardless of grades and subjects. This qualitative case study de- sign was employed to investigate middle school mathematics teachers’ awareness of asking two types of questions, probing and guiding. The study further explores teachers’ habits or skills of questioning and their acquisition of this behavior through face-to-face interviews with four middle school mathematics te- achers. It was found that teachers were asking questions consciously and purposefully. Also, teachers’ answers revealed that why questions require more higher order thinking than how questions. For the second question, several themes emerged indicating how to acquire more effective questioning skills; student teac- hing or field experiences, watching and observing their colleagues, and workshops. It was also found that the colleges our participants attended did not provide good education for developing questioning skills. Video clips played important roles in reminding teachers what and why they taught. Importance of letting teachers’ watch their own teaching’s videotape and questioning strategies in teacher trainings was discus- sed.

Questions are used as a basic investigative interviewing tool. The types and wording of questions during interviews or interrogations are critical to increase the chances of educing needed information. One problematic tool investigators use may hinder the effectiveness and efficiency to obtain requested information – the bipolar trap. The bipolar trap increases the probability of not getting the required information. Law enforcement training manuals and texts perpetuate the use of bipolar traps by including them as examples, without precautions, of properly phrased moderately closed and open-ended probes. Reducing or eliminating the use of bipolar traps and such pitfalls may assist investigators in conducting more effective and efficient interviews. Key Words: Law Enforcement, Interview, Questions, Probes, Bipolar Trap, Interviewer, Interviewee, Investigator