Professional Documents
Culture Documents
CTABC-NWCSI Convention
October 2015
Quentin Flokstra (@qflokstra)
Using Student
Questioning to
Improve Instruction
A presentation covering the
Question Formulation Technique
from the Right Question Institute
www.rightquestion.org
Synopsis
Overview & Rationale
Go through the process
Designing the Question Focus
Discuss
How many questions do your
students ask each day? How often?
How many questions do you think a
pre-schooler asks? a middleschooler? high-schooler? adult?
Improves academics
fosters skills needed for workplace
and university
Conversation
Thoughts?
How can we encourage students to
ask their own questions?
The Question
Formulation
Technique
(QFT)
Overview
Practice
Choose a Question
Focus
The Question Focus (QFocus) is a
prompt presented in the form of a
statement, visual/audio aid, piece of
text, etc.
Attract the student and stimulate
questions
What makes a
good QFocus?
It has a clear focus
It is NOT a question
provokes and stimulates new lines
of thinking
it does not reveal teacher preference
or bias
Examples
Torture can be justified
Pollution harms Boston residents
Math problems
Textbook titles
Students Improve
Their Questions
Analyze differences between open &
closed questions
advantages/disadvantages of each
type
change one type to another
Students Prioritize
Their Questions
Have students choose their top 3-5
questions
Some teachers choose to give
guidance
Others let them decide
Students
Reflect on
Their Learning
Reflection is critical
Not just about end
product
Focus on the process
Resources
Twitter:
@rightquestion
Web: rightquestion.org
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