Land-Grant Press — Teaching Section

The Art of Asking Good Questions

Publication Date

Spring 3-3-2022

Summary

Higher education involves more than the simple accumulation of knowledge; it requires the development of critical thinking skills necessary to analyze, evaluate and apply knowledge. One critical thinking skill that is often overlooked is the ability to formulate good questions. Good questions are those that elicit a thoughtful response, those that cannot be summarily answered with a “yes” or “no” or brief factual statement. Good questions demand reflection and prompt further questioning and debate. Students can be coached in the art of asking good questions. In this article, I examine the use of a “fishbowl” discussion format for prompting skillful questioning and meaningful debate in a classroom setting.

Publication Type

Brief

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