Asking questions is a great way to enhance the learning process both in school and later on in life. Unfortunately the human fallacy here is that we sometimes don't feel the need to truly think before we ask these questions, which can lead to frustration, disappointment, and resentment—everything except learning the knowledge we seek—when we don't get the answer we were expecting. There is definitely a science behind asking smart questions, and this article lays it out rather nicely.
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This post from Grant Wiggins explores how Essential Questions are used in classrooms, and provides strategies to help teachers use them so that they become part of student work. Wiggins states "the aim is to use the question to frame specific activities, to provide perspective and focus, to prioritize the course, and to signal to students that, eventually, THEY must – on their own – pose this and other key questions."
A number of examples are provided as is a more detailed description of an essential question. This description states that an essential question has seven parts. The shorthand version is below.
1. Open ended
2. Thought provoking and intellectually challengine
3. Higher order thinking
4. Important, transferable ideas
5. Raises additional questions
6. Requires support and justification
7. Recurs over time
If you are using essential questions, or plan to in the future this post is a great resource!