THE POWER OF QUESTIONSMark Gillow

Lead Instructional

Designer

The Thinker by Auguste Rodin

THE QUESTION IS…

Why are there so many little

questions in education when Marie

Curie spent her whole life on one

BIG question.

THE QUESTION IS…

Why must I find answers to already

answered questions when I have

questions that have not yet been

answered.

TYPES OF QUESTIONS

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

These are questions which

touch our hearts and souls.

They are central to our lives.

They help define what it

means to be human.

ESSENTIAL EXAMPLES

What do I want to do with my life?

How do I cope with the loss of a loved one?

What does it mean to be a good friend?

How do I want to live?

TELLING QUESTIONS

They focus investigation so that we

gather only the very specific

evidence or information that we

require.

They provide sorting and sifting during the gathering and discovery

process.

TELLING EXAMPLES

What is the violent crime rate for Australia’s capital cities?

Which are the most popular VET courses in Australia?

How much money does Australia devote to foreign aid?

What is the youth unemployment rate in Queensland?

PROBING QUESTIONS

They take us below the

surface to the heart of the

matter.

They rely on a person’s gut

feelings – these feelings are

part logic, prior knowledge,

intuition and trial-and-error.

PROBING EXAMPLES

What happens if I click on this link?

Which way do I feel is the right way to go?

How has the author structured this website/information?

Have I seen a problem similar to this one in the past?

HYPOTHETICAL QUESTIONS

They are designed to explore

possibilities and test relationships.

They project a theory or option

out into the future – wondering

what would happen if...?

They are useful when trying to

decide between choice or when

solving a problem.

HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLES

How would Australia be different if the French settled here instead?

How would education be different if everyone was home schooled?

What would change if Australia had a large permanent inland sea?

How would life change if the earth had no moon?

PROVOCATIVE QUESTIONS

They are meant to push, to

challenge and to throw

conventional wisdom off balance.

They give free reign to doubt,

disbelief and scepticism.

They play a positive role in

debunking propaganda,

mythologies, hype and spin.

PROVOCATIVE EXAMPLES

What is the point in doing all this work?

Who cares if a species goes extinct?

Why are we wasting all this time studying fractions?

Who said the author was an expert on anything?

IRRELEVANT QUESTIONS

They distract us from the task

at hand – that is their beauty.

The creation of new

knowledge almost always

requires some wandering off

course.

Truth may not appear where

we might logically look.

IRRELEVANT EXAMPLES

Did Captain Cook take a dog with him on his voyages?

Did Neil Armstrong use the toilet just before he walked on the moon?

What do you do in your spare time Premier/Prime Minister/President?

Did Ned Kelly ever play cricket?

CLARIFICATION QUESTIONS

They seek to define words, jargon,

concepts and phrases.

They ask about the underlying assumptions and methods used so

nothing is taken for granted.

CLARIFICATION EXAMPLES

How did they determine what is ‘popular’?

What does the government mean by ‘foreign aid’?

What do they mean by ‘violent crime rate’?

How do they define ‘mental illness’?

PLANNING QUESTIONS

They lift us above the action

of the moment and require us

to think about how we will get

the job done.

They prevent us from wasting

time and effort following

dead ends.

PLANNING EXAMPLES

What resources are needed to complete the project in the time available?

What are all the tasks that need to be completed?

Which tasks depend on others being completed first?

Who should project manage this?

SORTING QUESTIONS

They determine if something is useful

or relevant.

They keep our output short and

succinct.

SORTING EXAMPLES

Which pictures are worth keeping/adding?

Which video improves my understanding?

Which of these quotes enhances my assignment?

Who should I employ on this project?

WHAT QUESTIONS WILL YOU ASK TODAY?