Asking Questions for Critical Thinking

http://tinyurl.com/8ot27e5

Christopher PriceDirector, Center for Excellence in

Learning and TeachingInstructor, Department of Political

Science & International Studies

? = http://www.booksatruestory.com/2012/01/27/

http://kantianschool.blogspot.com/

http://kantianschool.blogsot.com/

Questions for Today1. What does the research say about questions in the

college classroom?

2. How can you incorporate this research in the way you design and deliver courses?

a. What are some helpful best practice strategies for using questions that transcend disciplines and course types?

3. What questions do you have about using questions?

Research• According to Mayer (2009) questions

prime [the] cognitive process of learning through helping students – select the relevant material from the lesson– organize a coherent representation of that

material in working memory– integrate that representation with existing

knowledge in the long term memory

Asking Questions = No Questions =

http://www.orgsites.com/oh/gsteph/ http://beyondbitsandatomsblog.stanford.edu/spring2010/category/freire-piaget-papert/

Research

• Barnes (1983) found that– college instructors spend less than 4% of

class time on questions– 82% of questions asked were of the

“cognitive memory” type– Findings held true across various conditions

(public/private, small/large, beginning/advanced)

How questions are typically used

Research• Braxton (1993) found that faculty at more

selective colleges and universities ask more “higher-order” questions (questions without memorizable “cognitive memory” or easy-to-figure out “convergent thinking” answers)

• Renaud & Murray (2007) found a positive

correlation between the frequency of higher order questions and measures of critical thinking in three different conditions.

Questions for Today1. What does the research say about questions in the

college classroom? ✓

2. How can you incorporate this research in the way you design and deliver courses?

a. What are some helpful best practice strategies for using questions that transcend disciplines and course types?

3. What questions do you have about using questions?

Course Design

http://classweb.gmu.edu/

Course Design• Create high-order course goals

– analysis, synthesis, evaluation• Provide opportunities for active learning

– Practice integrating, applying, and thinking about course content (McKeachie, 2006)

• Align activities, assignments and assessments with course goals– http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/

coursedesign/tutorial/index.html

Course Delivery

Good questioning practice?

Question Typologies• Gallagher & Aschner (in Barnes, 1983)

– Routine thinking– Cognitive memory– Convergent thinking– Divergent thinking– Evaluative thinking

http://cte.uwaterloo.ca/teaching_resources/tips/promoting_and_assessing_critical_thinking.html

Question Typologies• Brookfield & Preskill, 2005 (discussion)

– Qs that ask for more evidence– Qs that ask for clarification– Open Qs– Linking or extension Qs– Hypothetical Qs– Cause/effect Qs– Summary/synthesis Qs

Question Typologies• Andrews in Nilson, 2005 (high mileage)

– brainstorm– focal (viewpoint)– playground (opinion, hypothetical, etc.)

http://misslwholebrainteaching.blogspot.com/2012_01_01_archive.html

Question Typologies• Nilson, 2003 (poorly designed questions)

– analytic convergent– programmed-answer– rhetorical– quiz show– dead-end– fuzzy– chameleon/shotgun– put down/ego stroking

http://www.tricitypsychology.com/back-to-school-or-back-to-burnout/

Questioning Process

• Cold call or volunteer? • Wait 10 seconds• Mindfully respond (listen & use verbal and non-verbal

cues)• One at a time• Low-order should be brief, early, and spiced-up• Allow for student interaction• Teach how to construct high-order

Adapted from Davis, 2001 & Wood, 2010

Student Generated Questions• Design an entire course around student generated

questions (inquiry based teaching)• Justice et al. (2007) describe such a course and offer the

following criteria for evaluating inquiry questions:1. Interesting2. Analytical3. Problematic4. Complex5. Important6. Genuine7. Researchable

http://www.kentlaw.iit.edu/

A Closing Thought• “Whereas some professors might see their job as

teaching the facts, concepts, and procedures of their subject, the teachers we studied emphasized the pursuit of answers to important questions and often encouraged students to use the methodologies, assumptions, and concepts from a variety of fields to solve complex problems” – (Bain, 2004, p. 45)

http://www.montclair.edu/news/article.php?ArticleID=1728&ChannelID=28

Questions for Today1. What does the research say about questions in the

college classroom? ✓

2. How can you incorporate this research in the way you design and deliver courses?

a. What are some helpful best practice strategies for using questions that transcend disciplines and course types? ✓

3. What questions do you have about using questions?

Questioning ResroucesBain, K. (2004). What the best college teachers do. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Barnes, C.P. (1983). Questioning in college classrooms. In Ellner, C.L. & Barnes, C.P., Studies in college teaching: Experimental results, theoretical interpretations, and new perspectives. Macmillan Publishing CompanyBloom, B.S. (Ed.). (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: The classification of educational goals. New York: Longman.Braxton, J.M. (1993). Selectivity and rigor in research universities. The Journal of Higher Education 64: 657-675.Brookfield, S. & Preskill, S. (2005). Discussion as a way of teaching: Tools and techniques for democratic classrooms (second edition). San Francisco,CA: Jossey-BassDavis, B.G. (2001). Tools for teaching. San Francisco,CA: Jossey-BassJustice, C. et. al. (2007). Inquiry in higher education: Reflections and directions on course design and teaching methods. Innovative Higher Education 31: 201-214.Mayer, R.E. et. al. (2009). Clickers in college classrooms: Fostering learning with questioning methods in large lecture classes. Contemporary Educational Psychology 24: 51-57. McKeachie, W.J. & Svinicki, M. (2006). McKeachie’s Teaching Tips. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.Middlecamp, C.H. & Nickel, A. (2005). Doing science and asking questions II: An exercise that generates questions. Journal of Chemical Education 82: 1181-1186Nilson, L.B. (2003). Teaching at its best (second edition). Bolton, MA: Anker Publishing.Nygren, K. (2007). Elevating knowledge from level 1 to level 3. In Beyerlein, S.W., Holmes, C., & Apple, D.K. Faculty Guidebook. Pacific Crest.Renaud, R.D. & Murray, H.G. (2007). The validity of higher-order questions as a process indicator of educational quality. Research in Higher Education 48: 319-351.Wood, E. (2010). It is yours for the asking: Using questioning to promote discussion in the classroom. In Black,

C. The Dynamic classroom: Engaging students in higher education. Madison, WI: Atwood Publishing.