Uzbekistan Republic Navoi State Pedagogical University Faculty of Foreign Languages Course work Subject : Questioning and answering period in the classroom

The Importance of Asking Question
Sir Francis Bacon once said, “A prudent question is one-half of wisdom.” Many people focus on trying to find answers and solutions to problems, but they often forget just how valuable good questions are. Questions provide unique frameworks for thinking, which can open up doors to unexpected revelations. Whether it’s in your personal life, education, or work, here are ten reasons why questioning is important:

#1. Asking questions makes you more likable

Most of us worry about other people liking us. For some, it can be a source of serious anxiety and make even everyday conversations stressful. If you aren’t sure what to do when making small talk, ask questions. According to a 2017 study, people who ask questions make a better first impression than those who don’t. When questioning is paired with good listening and responsiveness, a person’s likability increases.

#2. Asking questions encourages intimacy

Besides making you more likable, asking questions builds intimacy between you and others. In relationships where questioning is valued and welcomed, there’s better communication. A person isn’t worried that a respectful question might trigger a fight. Questions can also be used to learn more about the other person. This leads to better intimacy whether the relationship is romantic or not.

#3. Questioning strengthens the learning process

Children learn by asking questions. When this trait is encouraged, it sets up good habits for learning in school and beyond. How? When a teacher supports questioning in the classroom, it fosters a stronger sense of participation. The student is taking a more active role in the learning process; it isn’t just a one-way street where a teacher talks and never engages with the students. Students will learn more and remember that asking good questions results in better learning.

#4. Asking questions is the mark of good leadership

Contrary to what you might think, the best leaders aren’t the ones who think they have all the answers. Leaders who think they know it all are more limited and resistant to innovation. Good leaders, however, are curious. They’re always asking questions and chasing down new and interesting ideas. They’re aware of the gaps in their knowledge and aren’t self-conscious about using questions to learn more.

#5. Questions are essential to the scientific method

The scientific method is a process of collecting data, analyzing it, and drawing conclusions. It’s used in medicine, chemistry, and other fields. Throughout the process, researchers ask questions about what kind of data they’re finding, what the data might mean, and the methodology. Questions beginning with “how,” “what,” and “why” are very common. Taking the time to consider questions ensures the scientific method is as complete as possible. This is essential because science often involves high stakes, like developing a cure for a disease.

#6. Questions encourage critical thinking

The scientific method is an example of critical thinking in practice, but questioning encourages critical thinking in any area. When you don’t ask questions, you’re not fully engaging with whatever is in front of you. You’re stopping in the shallows. Questioning is like trawling with a net. You reach deeper to form an opinion and find evidence in support or opposition to it. You’ll gain more whether you’re studying a textbook, trying to solve a problem, or examining your biases about something.

#7. Questioning broadens your mind

If you lived your life without ever asking questions, your world would be very small. Asking questions – whether it’s about yourself, about others, or how things are done in the world – gets you thinking about new possibilities. It opens your mind to other perspectives. That’s an important part of personal growth.

#8. Asking questions can increase happiness

It’s easy to get distracted and feel lost in life. Asking existential questions like “What’s my purpose?” can help a person refocus and figure out what makes them happy. Using questions, they’ll identify areas in their life they want to change and ones that are fine the way they are. Without questioning, a person’s life is unlikely to improve and they’ll suffer from unhappiness.

#9. Questioning fuels innovation

The act of questioning challenges the status quo. Digging into why things are the way they are and how they can be different paves the way for creativity and innovation. If nobody asked questions about how things were done, everything would stay the same. It would be business as usual and nothing unique or interesting would come into existence.

#10. Questioning can encourage positive change

In the same way that questioning can bring about innovation, it can also encourage positive change. When there’s a problem in society, the first step is to ask questions like, “How did this happen? How can we make it better?” Good activists and policymakers are experts at using questions to collect information and develop strategies for change.
First, asking questions can both motivate students and encourage them to approach topics with curiosity. When students get curious about a subject, they’re no longer learning just for a grade, and you as a teacher are more likely to instill a passion for learning. Asking and answering questions in class allows students to engage in two-way communication with you. You (and they) are better able to understand their thinking, and they can use your support to solve problems themselves. It also gives other students an opportunity to share their socio-cultural experiences about a question and learn from one another.
Plus, encouraging students to ask questions can help you pinpoint gaps in their understanding. It’s a simple way to determine and focus on the topics where a student may need more practice. Even if only one child asks the question, other students may have the same question but feel too nervous to speak out.
Best of all, students are more likely to understand new material if they ask questions. One study found that when elementary students were taught to ask questions during science lessons, they could discuss what they had learned on a more complex level. Teach students how to ask questions so they understand the material at a level well beyond just memorization.
We've all experienced times when we've not succeeded at being good questioners, perhaps without even realizing it. Have you had this experience? You're sitting in a meeting where a project team was reviewing its progress with a senior executive. During the presentation, it's clear from the executive's body language that she's uncomfortable and increasingly impatient with the direction the team is taking. However, without any real questioning of the team, the meeting ended without approval of the next steps. The executive wants further discussion with the team leader. When she meets with the team leader, she chastises him for allowing the team to go off-course. Eventually, the team leader explains the thinking behind the plan, convinces the executive that they are indeed on target to achieve their objectives, and gets the go ahead to proceed. Yet, in the meantime, the team has lost its momentum (and a week of productivity) and has begun to focus more on pleasing the boss rather than doing the project in the best way.
This is not a unique scenario. Many managers and leaders don't know how to probe the thought process of their colleagues and bosses and instead make assumptions about the basis of their actions. When those assumptions are wrong, all sorts of dysfunction can result. Who hasn't heard the following story? A a major product upgrade has been delayed by months because the product and IT managers have different assumptions about what is to be delivered by when, and both sides keep blaming each other for the delays. When a third party finally intervenes and helps them ask the right questions, they are able to come up with a plan that satisfies both sides and move ahead with the implementation.
Improved "questioning" can strengthen managerial effectiveness. Most of us never think about how to frame our questions. Giving this process some explicit thought might not only make you a better manager and leader—it might also help others improve their inquiry skills.
Here's why asking questions is important:

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  It helps you uncover the challenges you're facing and generate better solutions to solve those problems. We're all spending too much time and energy solving the first iteration of a challenge with the first idea we have. That's both limiting and counterproductive.
  
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  It's how you increase the capacity and potential in those you lead. A good question can create an "aha" moment, which can then lead to innovation and growth.
  
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  It keeps you in learning mode rather than judgment mode. If you're asking a question, you're not rushing in to provide the answer, give the solution, or take on the challenge. It's a good self-management tool to keep you focused on the bigger picture, and as a leader/manager, that's your responsibility to your team and to the organization.
  

Paul and Elder (2000) state that ‘Thinking is not driven by answers but by questions. Had no questions been asked by those who laid the foundation for a field…the field would never have developed in the first place’. In order to keep a field of thought (or a concept/topic) alive teachers have to constantly ask questions of it, rather than simply allowing that field to close down. Teachers are then able to challenge existing or established answers through questioning to challenge students’ thinking.

Research by Smith (1998) states that language-rich classrooms are more conducive environments for learning and thus progress. Objective studies conducted by Smith have shown that young children have a higher IQ at a younger age if their parents regularly spoke to and questioned them, compared to those whose parents did not engage them. In our classrooms, the ability of students to be able to express their views and thoughts is generated through our questioning of them.
As well as these two functions, there are more basic functions of questioning in our classrooms:

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  To develop interest and motivate students to become actively involved in lessons.
  
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  To develop critical thinking skills.
  
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  To review learning.
  
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  To stimulate students to pursue knowledge on their own and ask their own questions.
  

Cotton (2001) outlined these functions of questioning and states that ‘Instruction which includes posing questions is more effective in producing achievement gains than instruction carried out without questioning students’.
Questioning cannot be discussed without referring to the work of Socrates, a Greek philosopher, dating back more than 2000 years. Socrates spent most of his life asking deliberate and organized questions about people’s beliefs and values and examining the same. Through questioning, Socrates encouraged his students to explore prior-held beliefs and subsequently to build stronger and more scholarly views. What we now refer to as the Socratic approach involves posing a succession of systematic and prearranged questions designed to help students to reflect and therefore improve their thinking and gain a better understanding of their own beliefs and ideas. An instructor using the Socratic approach is not looking for a specific correct answer but is, in fact, inspiring students to reflect on their thinking. Socrates respected the experiences, understandings, and knowledge that individuals had gained through life experiences and believed that, through questioning, previously attained knowledge could be used to develop thinking supported by rationales and logic (Byrne, 2011). Tienken, Goldberg, and DiRocco (2009) focused on the procedures of questioning and cited a distinction in the cognitive processes used when asked recall or lower level questions as opposed to higher level questions that required students to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate. Higher level questioning that requires students to analyze, synthesize, evaluate, categorize, and/or apply information has been found to be particularly advantageous to student learning, yet higher level questions are rarely used (Peterson & Taylor, 2012; Tienken, et al., 2010). Generally, higher level questions do not have one correct answer but encourage students to engage in critical thinking. Lundy (2008) found that addressing higher level questions is essential to student learning. In addition, Lewis (2015) found that asking higher level questions presents teachers with more information in relation to student understanding. The implications are that teachers need to plan questions strategically to encourage students to investigate further the concepts under study to obtain a deeper understanding. A seminal study conducted by Glaser (1941) identified the following three characteristics of critical thinking: an attitude of being disposed to consider in a thoughtful way the problems and subjects that come within the range of one’s experience; knowledge of the methods of logical enquiry and reasoning; and some skill in applying those methods. Critical thinking calls for a persistent effort to examine any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the evidence that supports it and the further conclusions to which it tends. (Glaser, 1941, p. 5) To exercise the components of critical thinking as identified by Glaser, students must develop the ability to recognize problems, collect information that will enable them to address the problems logically, weigh the issues against beliefs, and make accurate decisions.