Learning How to Ask Questions
2024-12-11
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1For VOA Learning English, this is the Education Report.
2Suzanne Meyer, the assistant director of the English Language Institute at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, says that many students need to develop critical thinking skills.
3In other words, students need to learn how to collect information, and then evaluate the information and apply it to a new context.
4She says:
5"We need to get students actively engaged in inquiry, from the beginning levels on, into those levels where they really are close to professional and university contexts."
6One way to develop critical thinking skills, Meyer says, is to teach students to be creative about the types of questions that they ask.
7Meyer says that there are many benefits to using question-asking activities with English learners.
8Question-asking activities help students to become better language learners.
9She says:
10"Question-asking overall helps students be better language learners. Not for the obvious, because you ask a question you get an answer. Often, questions are the first point of contact. And so if my question is not good, then that's going to direct the level of our conversation."
11Meyer also says that question-asking may help develop critical thinking skills by allowing for more interactions:
12"People who can ask questions are very confident. And when you are confident, you can have more interaction.That extra interaction might lead to critical thinking. Because you are more likely to actually integrate in some fashion into a new setting if you are in an ESL scenario. So, I think overall, just the whole question-asking idea has so many benefits."
13There are many strategies to improve question-asking and develop critical thinking skills.
14One possible strategy, says Meyer, is to use question-asking patterns that start with concrete questions and move to abstract questions.
15So, for example, if students were reading a new text, they would design a series of questions using three different steps.
16In the first step, students create questions about information in the text that they are reading.
17In the second step, students create questions about how the information in the text connects to their own life.
18In the third step, students create questions about abstract ideas - ideas that came up in the questions about themselves.
19If students follow these three steps, they have not only practiced creative ways to ask questions, they have also started practicing critical thinking.
20Meyer gave an example of what this activity could look like:
21In the activity, students read part of a story.
22In this case, the story is about how different foods affect a person.
23In the first column there are questions about information in the text. One example of a question is this: How can food help a person's performance?
24In the second column, there are questions about how the information in the story connects to students' lives. For example,
25"how do I feel and act when I don't eat well?"
26In the third column, there are questions about abstract ideas that build on questions in the second column. The question "Even though people know some foods are unhealthy, why do they eat them?" is one example.
27These questions, and other questions listed in the table, are examples of how to develop questions.
28You should, of course, create your own questions!
29Meyer says that when teachers tell students which questions to answer, students are less likely to be creative about the types of questions that they ask.
30So, practice developing your own questions!
31Try making a list of questions that go from concrete to abstract, like the steps outlined above.
32Check with your teacher to make sure that your grammar is correct, and try to practice in the classroom.
33You can also write us your questions about this story in the comments section, or on our Facebook page.
34Give question-asking a try, and let us know how it works for you!
35I'm John Russell.
1In the Education Tips series, education experts in the United States give you tips about how to improve your English skills. This week, Suzanne Meyer, the assistant director at the English Language Institute at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, discusses question-asking and the development of critical thinking skills. 2For VOA Learning English, this is the Education Report. 3Suzanne Meyer, the assistant director of the English Language Institute at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, says that many students need to develop critical thinking skills. 4In other words, students need to learn how to collect information, and then evaluate the information and apply it to a new context. 5She says: 6"We need to get students actively engaged in inquiry, from the beginning levels on, into those levels where they really are close to professional and university contexts." 7One way to develop critical thinking skills, Meyer says, is to teach students to be creative about the types of questions that they ask. 8Benefits of question-asking for English learners 9Meyer says that there are many benefits to using question-asking activities with English learners. Question-asking activities help students to become better language learners. 10She says: 11"Question-asking overall helps students be better language learners. Not for the obvious, because you ask a question you get an answer. Often, questions are the first point of contact. And so if my question is not good, then that's going to direct the level of our conversation." 12Meyer also says that question-asking may help develop critical thinking skills by allowing for more interactions: 13"People who can ask questions are very confident. And when you are confident, you can have more interaction. That extra interaction might lead to critical thinking. Because you are more likely to actually integrate in some fashion into a new setting if you are in an ESL scenario. So, I think overall, just the whole question-asking idea has so many benefits." 14How can you practice asking questions? 15There are many strategies to improve question-asking and develop critical thinking skills. One possible strategy, says Meyer, is to use question-asking patterns that start with concrete questions and move to abstract questions. 16SOURCE: SUZANNE MEYER 17So, for example, if students were reading a new text, they would design a series of questions using three different steps. 18If students follow these three steps, they have not only practiced creative ways to ask questions, they have also started practicing critical thinking. 19Example of a question-asking activity 20Meyer gave an example of what this activity could look like: 21SOURCE: SUZANNE MEYER/Text is from Zwier, Lawrence J. "Fat for Brains." Inside Reading 2. 2nd ed. Ed. Cheryl Boyd Zimmerman. Oxford: OUP, 2012. 22In the activity, students read part of a story. In this case, the story is about how different foods affect a person. 23These questions, and other questions listed in the table, are examples of how to develop questions. You should, of course, create your own questions! 24Practical tips: 25Meyer says that when teachers tell students which questions to answer, students are less likely to be creative about the types of questions that they ask. 26So, practice developing your own questions! Try making a list of questions that go from concrete to abstract, like the steps outlined above. Check with your teacher to make sure that your grammar is correct, and try to practice in the classroom. 27You can also write us your questions about this story in the comments section, or on our Facebook page. Give question-asking a try, and let us know how it works for you! 28I'm John Russell. 29John Russell wrote this lesson for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 30We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. 31_________________________________________________ 32Words in This Story 33critical - adj. using or involving careful judgment about the good and bad parts of something 34evaluate - v. to judge the value or condition of (someone or something) in a careful and thoughtful way 35context - n. the group of conditions that exist where and when something happens 36inquiry - n. the act of asking questions in order to gather or collect information 37benefits - n. a good or helpful result or effect 38interaction - n. talking with other people 39strategy - n. a careful plan or method for achieving a particular goal usually over a long period of time 40concrete - adj. relating to or involving specific people, things, or actions rather than general ideas or qualities 41abstract - adj. relating to or involving general ideas or qualities rather than specific people, objects, or actions