Asking Better Questions with Bloom's Taxonomy

http://specialed.about.com/od/teacherchecklists/a/bloom.htm
http://inventors.about.com/library/lessons/bl_benjamin_bloom.htm

The scholar Benjamin Bloom described six different levels of thinking, from low to high
level. Bloom also talked about how to ask questions that get people thinking on each of
these levels. The six thinking skills, listed from low to high level are:
* Knowledge * Comprehension * Application * Analysis * Synthesis * Evaluation

To really understand what this means, let's take the story Goldilocks and the 3 Bears, and
the topic of blood types showing peopleʼs character, and apply Bloom's taxonomy to it.

Knowledge - focus on facts and details.

Who was the biggest bear? What food did Goldilocks eat?
What is your blood type?

Comprehension - demonstrate that you understand something. Shows a “big picture”

understanding of something, rather than just remembering facts. Most 5W questions.
Why didn't the bears eat the porridge? Why did the bears leave their house?
What are some characteristics of your blood type? Why donʼt scientists believe in blood
type profiling?

Application - take the “big picture” understanding and connect parts of a story, or look for
patterns.
List the sequence of events in the story. Chart the storyʼs beginning, middle and end.
Describe personality traits you have that do or donʼt match your blood typeʼs character.
Guess which people in your class are blood type A, B, AB, and O.

Analysis - take your understanding and use it to look at other questions or areas. Make
the topic more personal sometimes, more general at other times.
Why do you think Goldilocks took a nap? How would you feel if you were Baby Bear?
Why do you think people love using blood types to understand othersʼ personalities?

Synthesis - take the information you have learned and generate new ideas or insights.
Includes thinking about hypothetical situations.
Re-write this story in a city setting. Write a set of rules Goldilocks should have followed.
Invent a set of rules that will predict somebodyʼs character by the shape of their ears.
Imagine a fairy tale or myth that could explain the origin of the Blood Type Myth.

Evaluation - judge, measure, compare, make recommendations, debate pros/cons, rank

Write a review for the story and describe the type of audience that would enjoy this book.
Act out a mock court case as though the bears are taking Goldilocks to court.
Rank the different measurements people use to judge othersʼ characters (for example:
hometown, accent, school, blood type, body type, religion, fashion sense, etc.) from least
likely to be accurate, to most likely to be accurate.

Remember to ask open-ended questions: questions about possibilities and reasons, that
require explanations, instead of closed-ended (short, limited answer) questions.

Donʼt be afraid to ask follow-up questions to get more specific information about
someoneʼs answer.
Why ask Questions?
by Rob Ouwehand, from The 7 Powers of Questions, by Dorothy Leeds, and other sources

1. People think theyʼre in control of a conversation when theyʼre talking, but in reality, the
person asking the questions is in control of the situation. It is a subtle way to stay on
top of a situation.
2. People like talking, so they enjoy talking to someone who seems like a good listener.
3. A good question can stick in somebodyʼs head for a long time, and sometimes change
their thinking, long after the conversation is finished.
4. Everybody wants to be understood. By asking questions, your partner feels like you
want to understand them. Listening is a sign of respect.
5. Though asking good questions is not a skill that often attracts praise (or translates
easily into higher TOEIC scores), the way something like a large vocabulary does, it is
an underrated skill that will help your conversation style become flexible, preparing you
for a great variety of situations.

Why should I Learn to ask better Questions?

1. Better questions lead to better answers; more specific questions lead to more specific
answers. You will learn more if you can ask more specific questions.
2. Getting people to think like we do is the goal of persuasion...but human nature resists
when somebody tells us how to think. By using questions to guide peopleʼs thoughts,
they think it was their idea, instead of yours, and they convince themselves.
3. People trust what they say more than what they are told. When people convince
themselves this way, they will “own” the idea, and they will trust its truth more.
4. When you check that you understand what somebody meant by asking questions, you
can clear up miscommunications before they begin.

How Can I Ask Questions more Effectively?

1. Before you start a line of questions, ask, “What do I want out of this situation” and plan
questions that will help you get it.
2. Know when to ask another question, and when to pause, and let silence be.
Sometimes the most thoughtful answers and ideas come after a bit of silence, while a
person is gathering the courage, or choosing the words, to say something really
interesting.
3. Donʼt start with the toughest question: start with some easier ones related to the topic,
to get everybody comfortable with talking, and thinking about the subject.
4. Instead of asking questions focused on problems: “Why canʼt I do it right?” “How did
this go wrong?” ask questions focused on solutions: “How can we make sure this
doesnʼt happen again?” “What can we do to help you improve your performance?”
5. If you want a positive response, ask a positive question: Donʼt ask “Why did you fire
me?” because your boss will start thinking about the reasons she fired you. Instead,
ask, “Which of my abilities helped your company the most?” so that your boss thinks
about your strengths, and might change her mind.
6. Too many questions, coming too quickly, make people uncomfortable and defensive.
7. “Status check” questions help people know you care that they understand you properly:
8. Donʼt forget the all-important, “Have I answered your question?”
9. Start general, and slowly make your questions more specific. Start with simpler, lower-
level questions, and move to more complex or specific, higher-level questions.