Types of Questioning in Teaching

A question is any sentence which has an interrogative form or function. In classroom settings, teacher questions are defined as instructional cues or stimuli that convey to students the content elements to be learned and directions for what they are to do and how they are to do it. iTeachers ask questions to make students think and to test or recall students knowledge. Questioning is one of most popular modes of teaching. For many years, teachers have used it to transfer factual knowledge and conceptual understanding. There are different levels and types of questioning. The Levels of Questioning uses the classification system developed by Benjamin Bloom and his colleagues of the University of Chicago over forty years ago. This system is called Bloom’s Taxonomy after its creator.ii Questions must be asked at different levels that require students to go through a variety of mental processes ranging from simple to complex. There are lower level questions and higher level questions. Lower level questions focus on the cognitive domain levels of knowledge, comprehension and application. Higher level questions, on the other hand focus on analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Some types of questions are: cognitive memory, convergent, divergent, contrast and comparison, relationship and cause-and-effect, evaluative and analysis and synthesis. Cognitive Memory questions- Cognitive means knowledge, so cognitive memory refers to memorized knowledge. Cognitive memory questions tend to be restricted to the lowest levels of thinking. Questions of this type seek one right answer, which usually requires students to respond with factual information or definitions that rely on recall or recognitioniii. This type of question is the simplest form. Students are required to answer questions from memory; no critical thinking required. Answers to these questions tend to be short phrases or merely a single word. There is usually a right or wrong. These questions often times start with,