Today my professor said something rather important. He asked, "When a question is asked, who learns the most?". My wheels started turning as I sifted through various possible answers. He let a few of us guess and then said, "The students that learn the most are the ones that think".
The incredible thing about humans is that we all have that ability. We can all think. There are many different patterns of thinking. Some people think quickly while others are more methodical, some imagine pictures while others think with their emotions. But no matter how you think, if you think, you can learn.
So, I now ask myself what my role as a teacher is to help others think. Certainly the types of questions I ask, the quality of material I present and the overall learning environment I create have an effect on whether or not students will think. Some students need a lot of prodding, inspiration or encouragement while some will think and learn regardless of what the teacher does (sometimes called daydreaming).
What kind of questions invite learning by thinking?
It is sad, but true, that in most classrooms the most common questions posed by teachers and students have to do with the logistical set up and procedure of the course. Often questions are used as a way to review or evaluate the current understanding of the students, but far to seldom questions are asked that ignite imagination, creativity and real problem solving skills. Even if such questions are asked it only helps the students that think. I, as a teacher, must be conscious of strategies to make everyone think. (often involves waiting longer than would seem normal)
Understanding good questions can be done by looking at various question taxonomies. Probably the most well known (or at least the one I am most familiar with is Bloom's Taxonomy, created by none other than Benjamin Bloom. The later revised version of his taxonomy has six levels which are: Remembering, Understanding, Applying, Analyzing, Evaluating, and Creating. An example of questions that could fall in these categories are:
- Remembering: "Does anyone remember who wrote this song?" "What was the principle we discussed yesterday?" "What is the definition of meter?"
- Understanding: "Can anyone tell me what key this song is written in?" "What type of interval is this?"
- Applying: "Will you play this section with more legato articulation?" "What would this note be if we transposed this to the key of F?"
- Analyzing: "What is the difference between staccato and marcato?" "What can we do to achieve a more centered tone?"
- Evaluating: "What do you think we could do to make that performance better?" "What can you do to improve your practicing?"
- Creating: "What mental picture could portray the feeling of this piece?" "Come up with your own short melody or song?"
There are many other ways you could divide these questions, and you may even see some that I put in one level that you would think better in another. The important thing is that none of these levels are bad but that if a classroom is stuck in just one of these levels all the time then learning will be very narrow and boring. Asking questions has the power to awaken the intelligence of anyone willing to think. Questions can inspire the active brain to travel roads before unimagined. Because everyone learns better when they think.
