Given the importance of questions in science, it is critical that students learn
to ask questions as well as learning to answer them. This paper describes a
classroom exercise to help students better ask their own questions. It has
been classroom-tested in multiple formats and has also been used for curriculum
development workshops for faculty. This exercise in creating questions can
be easily customized to suit different instructional contexts; some variations
are outlined. More broadly, this paper also discusses the pedagogical significance
of questioning, raising four salient points: (1) learners are more likely to
have a personal interest in the questions they raise; (2) questions can serve
as entry points for issues relating to ethnicity and gender; (3) questions
give control to the person who asks them; and (4) questions can challenge existing
structures, categories, and norms.
More Information
Citation
Middlecamp, Catherine Hurt; Nickel, Anne-Marie L. J. Chem. Educ.2005 82 1181.
Keywords
Collaborative / Cooperative Learning; Curriculum; Enrichment / Review Materials; Professional Development
Our Secondary School editors work hard to distill all the JCE materials to produce a fraction of particular interest to high school teachers. We call it CLIC.
In recent years we have worked hard to better match our advertisers with our readers. When shopping for chemistry education materials, visit our advertisers' WWW sites first.
Take JCE along on your outreach missions. Copies of the Journal, guest access to JCE Online, our publications catalog, and more are available for your participants.