The Clearing House

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Questioning: An Effective Teaching Method

Imogene Ramsey, Carol Gabbard, Kenneth Clawson, Lynda Lee & Kenneth T.
Henson

To cite this article: Imogene Ramsey, Carol Gabbard, Kenneth Clawson, Lynda Lee & Kenneth
T. Henson (1990) Questioning: An Effective Teaching Method, The Clearing House, 63:9,
420-422, DOI: 10.1080/00098655.1990.10114144

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/00098655.1990.10114144

Published online: 29 Jul 2010.

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 Questioning: An Effective
Teaching Method
IMOGENE RAMSEY, CAROL GABBARD, KENNETH CLAWSON,
LYNDA LEE, and KENNETH T. HENSON
T he value of using questions to teach has been
recognized for centuries. As early as 200 B.C.,
Socrates used questions to provoke his students and
make them listen carefully, analyze their thoughts, and
think critically. In this country, questioning has a long
history of use in education. In 1912 Stevens (see Dean
1986) reported that teachers used approximately 80 per-
cent of the school day to ask questions and receive stu-
dent answers. Clegg (1971) found that, on the average,
today’s high school teachers ask 395 questions each day
(Dean 1986, 184).
Educators recognize that teachers need to have exper-
tise in the skill of asking questions. As early as 1906,
Hamilton was quoted as saying that questions are the
core of effective teaching. Ornstein (1987) said that “the
essence of good teaching is related to good questioning”
(71). Questioning serves a number of essential functions
in teaching. If students are to participate in the nation’s
social structure, they must learn to think and act in-
dependently (Dean 1986). Questioning can play an im-
portant role in this development. In general, question-
ing is closely related to the accomplishment of the
school’s educational goals (Frager 1986). This is true
because questions are effective tools that teachers use to
guide student thinking.
Historically, teachers have focused their attention
primarily on meeting the needs of the school. In recent
years, however, teachers have been concerned with
meeting student needs as well. Dean (1986) explained:
“Questions must be used to stimulate student thinking
and enhance class participation. The effective use of
questions automatically causes a shift from teacher
Imogene Ramsey is a professor, Carol Gabbard is an
associate professor, Kenneth Clawson is a professor,
Lynda Lee is an associate professor, and Kenneth Hen-
son is a professor and dean, all at the College of Educa-
tion, Eastern Kentucky University, Richmond, Ken-
tucky.
420
domination toward student involvement .” As one
author (Kloss 1988) said: “Asking questions, then, can
help the teacher step back a little and allow those who
should be most involved in learning-the students-to
come forward as full and equal participants in the col-
laborative adventure of the mind” (248).
Recent research t o determine whether teachers are
asking higher-level questions showed the answer to be
an unqualified and resounding no. Kloss (1988, 245)
quoted a 1986 study by Daines, which reported that 93
percent of the questions asked by elementary and second-
ary teachers were at the literal level of comprehension,
and 88 percent of the students’ answers-regardless of
the teaching style and grade level-were also at the
lowest level of cognitive skills. Clearly, attention should
be given to preparing teachers to ask more higher-level
questions that will elicit more thinking and analysis.
Teachers should also be concerned with the questions
their students ask. In many classrooms, students ask
few questions.
Limitations
Asking and answering questions is a common human
activity and one of the most frequently practiced teach-
ing strategies. Yet teachers d o not appear to be using
this teaching strategy adequately. Skillful questioning
must be constant and consistent so that it becomes an
art. However, few teachers are willing to devote time
and energy to cultivate this teaching strategy (Kloss
1988).
Most of the questions asked in a typical classroom re-
quire only recitation of memorized material and are on
the lowest cognitive level. Teachers appear to be un-
aware of the extent t o which they are omitting meaning-
ful, well-phrased, and higher-order questions from their
teaching. Only “20% of the questions asked in the
elementary and secondary classrooms require critical
thinking skills” (Hamblen 1988, 200).
An additional limitation of the question-and-answer
strategy practiced by teachers is that teachers often
answer their own questions. Dantonio (1987, 48) stated
1990, Voi. 63 Questioning
that “answering your own questions also stifles think-
ing, not only by inhibiting the discussion but by cluing
students that you will give them the answer if they are
silent long enough. If you repeatedly rephrase your
question, the students get confused and discussion drifts
away from the focused thinking you are trying to
foster. ’’
Ainley (1986) referred to the asking of questions to
which one already knows the answers as a very odd
linguistic activity that appears to be almost entirely
restricted to classrooms. “It is part of the ‘school
games,’ and teachers and students both know its pur-
pose: the teacher does not want to find out information,
but rather to ascertain whether or not the students know
the answers” (Ainley 1986, 24).
Teachers very often ask multiple follow-up questions
of students before a response can be given. Yet this
“quantity of questions asked does not necessarily de-
mand quality responses on the part of the learner”
(Dean 1986, 184). Follow-up questions should be used
by the teacher to move students through learning steps
from lower-level to higher-level thinking, and to “usher
the habit of an intellectual pause in the discussion, re-
freshing both leaders and participants” (Will 1987, 34).
“Asking questions is a slower means of teaching than
lecturing” (Kloss 1988, 247). It should be emphasized
that time and planning are needed in preparing ques-
tions for the classroom. “Teachers must develop and
present proper questions in order to receive the ap-
propriate response” (Dean 1986, 185). “Teachers need
to spend time coding and analyzing their own questions,
student answers, and student questions” (Hamblen
1988, 199). “One must keep in mind that the nature of
the question has a remarkable impact on the progression
of thought in the class” (Dean 1986, 185). Sometimes
teachers rely too heavily on questions. For example,
rather than beginning each lesson with questions,
“research shows that it is far more effective to wait until
a knowledge base has been established before initiating
questioning’’ (Henson 1988, 99).
The Teacher’s Role
A well-known teaching principle suggests that the
academic achievement of students is positively corre-
lated with the number of clear academic questions
posited by the teacher. Teachers’ questions often follow
a structured, repetitive pattern. The pattern consists of
(a) establishing the framework, background, or context
of the question; (6)asking the question, and (c) reacting
to the question by correcting, clarifying, expanding, and
praising (Clark, Gage, Marx, Peterson, Staybrook, and
Winne 1979).
On the average, teachers ask 395 questions per day
(Gall 1970). Woolfolk and McCune-Nicolich (1984) said
that these questions might be asked in accordance with
one of six levels of Bloom’s cognitive taxonomy of ob-
jectives. Questions might elicit responses that are con-
421
vergent (only one correct answer) or divergent (many
possible correct answers) (Woolfolk and McCune-Nico-
lich 1984).
There are four types of questions that may help
teachers assess students’ understanding. These four
types are (1) silent questions, (2) oral questions, (3) writ-
ten questions, and (4) student questions (Lindquest
1988).
The research is controversial as to which type of ques-
tion fosters the greatest academic achievement among
students. Woolfolk and McCune-Nicolich (1984) sug-
gest that several types of questions can be effective. The
types of questions asked by the teacher should depend
on the instructional objectives and the student’s age,
socioeconomic background, and ability. For lower-abil-
ity students, simple knowledge or comprehension ques-
tions requiring more convergent responses are more suc-
cessful. For these students, teachers should phrase ques-
tions that result in high frequency of correct responses
followed by much praise and encouragement. For high-
ability students, teachers should ask more difficult ques-
tions that elicit fewer correct responses. For these higher-
ability students, teachers should also quicken the pace
and limit encouragement, praise, and discussion. Dis-
cussion should be limited to clarifying, correcting, or
criticizing students’ responses. For those classes com-
posed of mixed-ability students or students with fragile
self-esteems, a mix of higher- and lower-level questions
should be posed, followed by criticism or praise and en-
couragement as deemed appropriate considering the in-
structional goals and needs of the student (Medley 1977;
Ward and Tikunoff 1976).
Questioning in the classroom can have many pur-
poses. To begin a lesson, questions of evaluation may be
asked. To end the lesson, teachers may ask knowledge-
level questions. Teachers who are skilled at questioning
may use questions to develop lesson structure (Kloss
1988). Questions may be used to probe the students’
understanding of the lesson (Lindquist 1988). Given this
framework, the following tips are offered to help teach-
ers ask more successful questions in the classroom.
1. Ask knowledge-level questions when assessing stu-
dents’ ability to recall, recognize, or repeat infor-
mation as it was learned.
2. When assessing students’ higher-level thinking, use
terms such as how, why, what if to encourage
deeper thought.
3. Prepare questions in advance.
4. Ask questions in a logical sequence.
5. Ask specific questions that students can answer
silently.
6. As direct questions are asked, sprinkle the question-
ing with direct statements.
7. Request that students repeat the teacher’s question
before answering.
422 The Clearlng House
8. When a specific student is asked a question, have
another student repeat the question before allowing
a response.
9. Allow students to converse with each other in a
directed manner after a question is asked or
answered.
10. Request that students express their own questions
fully and specifically.
11. Name specific students in a random order to re-
spond t o questions.
12. Provide adequate waiting time after naming a re-
spondent. Rowe (1974) found that waiting approxi-
mately three to five seconds after naming a respon-
dent before eliciting a response brought better
responses from more students.
Asking successful questions in the classroom is a skill
that requires knowledge of questioning techniques,
planning, and creativity. The art of successful question-
ing in the classroom can be cultivated through practice.
The Student’s Role
Much has been said about the teacher’s role in using
questions effectively. But what of the role of students?
Generally students are thought of as responders-
teachers ask questions and students respond.
Accordingly, the student may benefit from a syste-
matic approach to answering, which includes attending
to the question, deciphering its meaning, generating a
silent answer, and answering overtly. Answers can be
revised as needed (Kloss 1988, 247). The process de-
scribed here involves time-time to listen to or read
questions, time to analyze questions, time to consider
possibilities and select answers, and, finally, time to
share answers through spoken or written language.
There is evidence that “low ability students need more
time” (Ornstein 1988, 75).
The process described here suggests other roles for
students: thinker, speaker, writer. And if the question
to which students are responding cannot be answered
from their reservoirs of information, then they may be-
come researchers.
In assuming the latter role, the student becomes a
questioner. “There is a popular belief that children
learn from asking questions” (Comber 1988, 147). Stu-
dents who ask thoughtful, focused questions may secure
valuable information and, at the same time, help others
gain new insights and knowledge. Such questions reflect
the thinking ability of the students who ask them, and
also reveal something about their self-confidence. Be-
May
cause asking questions can leave students vulnerable,
able thinkers sometimes hesitate to raise questions.
Dillon (1982) has pointed out that the social rules of the
classroom may make students’ questions inappropriate.
In a secure atmosphere, questions can become powerful
catalysts for learning and provide excellent models for
other students.
The potential of questions to unveil students’ confu-
sions and understandings is barely tapped in many class-
rooms. Students must first trust that they can ask ques-
tions without being criticized. It is important that
teachers listen to students’ questions, so that students
who might be ignored, or who are at risk of failure, do
not escape their attention.
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