You walk into a classroom, greet your students, and turn toward the whiteboard. The buzz and anticipation is electric among your students as your hand starts writing the "thought of the day," which provides an entry point to a big idea or an insight to spark discussion on that day's topic. They can anticipate something new coming their way: a new topic to debate or a new idea to reflect on. This special time at the start of your lesson encourages all to contribute without any hesitation or fear of ridicule. They know that their views and opinions are held precious by you and equally respected by all.
If this is the way that a classroom works, then questioning becomes the most effective tool in the hands of the instructor and the students to build learning. A lively and empathetic class can think critically and formulate essential questions for any topic. The shy learners can speak confidently, and the extroverts also get their moment of glory in the classroom. Middle and high school students aren't the only ones who can generate questions; primary school kids can also develop research-based questions and formulate answers through group work.
How do teachers create such classrooms, and what role do teachers play in engaging students in intriguing, essential questions? Also, how do teachers encourage shy students to speak up and take charge of their learning by exploring difficult themes and topics with their peers?
I teach English in a private institution in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. After becoming familiar with constructivist theory, I applied its principles in all my classrooms. The one rule of this theory that works like magic is that we teach concepts in relevance. When students can relate concepts to previous learning or their own experience, they take interest and want to look at a topic from different angles. How deeply students search for answers depends on the kinds of questions teachers ask (Brooks, 1999). In addition, teachers should always pose problems of increasing relevance and must be aware of the ways that students think and reflect on different events, themes, and concepts—especially those from their daily lives. The best way to use effective questioning to help students learn is by adapting the curriculum to their needs.
After the tragic terrorist attack on a school in Peshawar, Pakistan, on December 16, 2015, and similar incidents in the country, my students struggled to process the violence and ugliness. Schools were closed for almost a month. After studies resumed, everyone—even young students—wondered how to restore peace and stability. The heavy security and "lockdown" mode in school didn't help ease students' discomfort. They had questions that were difficult, if not impossible, to answer.
The teachers started lessons while keeping in mind all these issues. Being a 7th grade language teacher, I was lucky that I could easily formulate lesson plans to help my learners in this turbulent time. Hence, I chose to focus our first lessons after the long winter break on the concept of "peace."
I wrote the following open-ended questions on the board to start the discussion, and let the ball roll:
- What is your definition of peace?
- Are you at peace or at war?
- What will you do to achieve peace for yourself?
As usual, I asked the class to spend time thinking before discussing. I didn't break students into groups because the topic was sensitive and relevant to all of the students, especially after the hard break.
Their answers came from all degrees and angles. Those led to further questions, as they formulated inquiries about one another's perspectives, which were often surprising.
Students had interesting and unique definitions of peace: some said that peace was peace in their homeland; others said that peace was the peace to complete their studies. One or two defined peace as a comfortable environment at home and at school. Their shared ideas led to more inquiry-based learning, and students constructed knowledge about peace as they both questioned and understood one another's perspectives. Throughout the discussion, I orchestrated the channel of discussion and maintained class decorum.
Students also gave surprising solutions to achieve their definitions of peace, with solid reasoning behind them. Most agreed that education was the best weapon against war, and those who were fighting a war with illness said that looking after their health was the best way to fight their war. To steer their discussion and questioning to another level, I put in my fourth and the final question: Is there any price to pay for peace?
I realize that it was a sensitive question for this age group, but they had engaged in so much thoughtful understanding that this question actually expanded their learning. As expected, the students came up with amazing, thoughtful answers. One student said he was at peace because his elders had worked hard and made sacrifices that allowed him a comfortable home and a good education. Students who felt at war with terrorism noted the price they paid in lost school time, and the ultimate price paid by the victims of the Army Public School massacre in Peshawar. One of my students related that he lost his cousin in the attack. Still others who battled with illness said they avoided harmful activities, which sometimes meant not going outside to play as the price for their peace or health. After the reflective discussions, they wrote paragraphs of 150 to 200 words to sum up their points of view.
I had started with only three questions, but the students picked up momentum from those and formulated additional questions easily, established connections to what peace actually means to others and how to respect others' points of view, and understood why people feel differently about this topic. This questioning technique frequently works for my language and literature classes.
In that process, a teacher establishes a good entry point, keeping in mind the students' cognitive processes, and from there, the questioning for learning shifts from the teacher to the learners. Using the thought or question or theme that served as the entry point, the students form relevant questions and discuss all possible answers, either in groups or as whole class. The teacher only facilitates the discussion to keep it relevant to the concept or the unit at hand.
Constructivism's guiding principles are essential for any teacher to pose relevant questions that maximize learning for a class. I firmly believe that good teachers become instructional leaders in their classrooms when they learn the art of asking thought-provoking questions that guide students to be critical, curious, and empathetic thinkers.
