Questioning

Among the instructional skills, questioning holds a place of prominence in many classrooms. When questioning is used well:

• a high degree of student participation occurs as questions are widely distributed;
• an appropriate mix of low and high level cognitive questions is used;
• student understanding is increased;
• student thinking is stimulated, directed, and extended;
• feedback and appropriate reinforcement occur;
• students' critical thinking abilities are honed; and,
• student creativity is fostered.

Good questions should be carefully planned, clearly stated, and to the point in order to achieve specific objectives. Teacher understanding of questioning technique, wait time, and levels of questions is essential. Teachers should also understand that asking and responding to questions is viewed differently by different cultures. The teacher must be sensitive to the cultural needs of the students and aware of the effects of his or her own cultural perspective in questioning. In addition, teachers should realize that direct questioning might not be an appropriate technique for all students.