Card

Question Generating

This instructional strategy switches the role of “question generator” from the teacher to the student as students use critical thinking to explore a concept by creating and asking their own good questions.

Question Generating

Summary

A prompt is provided for students and they are asked to provide “good” questions regarding it. This strategy can be used at the beginning of a unit or concept to guide students toward the investigation of a certain topic or it could be used at the end of learning to review material.

Procedure

Explain the purpose of this exercise and discuss what kind of question is considered a "good" question (criteria will vary from teacher to teacher).
Provide a prompt for the students. This can be a picture, statement, or problem among many other options.
Provide students with time to create "good" questions about the prompt.
Discuss the students' questions. Students could volunteer to share their questions; students could pose their questions to the class for a response; several of the best questions could be stored for use in future class periods; or any other method that is effective in assessing, reviewing, or previewing the necessary content may be used.

Keeley, P., & Tobey, C. R. (2011). Mathematics formative assessment: 75 practical strategies for linking assessment, instruction, and learning. Corwin, SAGE.