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As a facilitator, asking meaningful questions is one of the most important skills you have, whether it is to prompt individual reflection, discussion, and/or writing. Below are some guidelines for asking questions that will encourage participants to engage in critical thinking and deep reflection.
Guidelines:
- Ask questions that are thought-provoking.
- Ask open-ended questions. Ensure your questions have more than one right answer (e.g., “what changes could improve X?”).
- Ensure your questions are clear. Effective questions contain enough information so the participants can easily identify what they are asked to reflect on (e.g., “given the conditions I just described, what changes might lead to a more positive outcome?”).
- Be open-minded. Ensure the questions are not slanted toward a particular point of view (e.g., “why do you think X is corrupt?”).
- Provoke analysis and reflection (e.g., “how would you explain…” or “why…”).
- Promote thinking about cause and effect (e.g., “what are the causes of…”).
- Cause dissonance and/or act as the “devil’s advocate” (e.g., “why would some think otherwise?” or “what is an alternative point of view?”).
- Allow participants to compare and contrast (e.g., “what is the difference between…” or “what is the relationship…”).
- Provide space for participants to respond to questions before jumping in to reframe the question. Consider waiting at least three seconds (tip: count to ~5) before speaking. For a virtual workshop, allow a longer delay for participants to think and type/select their response, consider waiting at least ten seconds
- Do not answer your own questions.
- For virtual workshops, you may want to start by asking simple yes or no questions and allow participants to answer in the chat, or having an interactive poll as a way to get participants engaged .
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While this web page is accessible worldwide, Â鶹AV is on land which has served and continues to serve as a site of meeting and exchange amongst Indigenous peoples, including the Haudenosaunee and Anishinabeg nations. Teaching and Learning Services acknowledges and thanks the diverse Indigenous peoples whose footsteps mark this territory on which peoples of the world now gather. This land acknowledgement is shared as a starting point to provide context for further learning and action.
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