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Constructing meaningful questions is a crucial part of the critical thinking process. It may be useful to use art or images to help students understand various types of questions. You can begin by asking students to spend two to three minutes writing down all of the questions they can imagine about an artifact. For example, if you were to display the image above, students may generate a list that includes the following items:
- Does the soldier in the painting have a name?
- Does the image depict a particular invasion or battle?
- How did the use of paratroopers change combat missions?
- Did the artist successfully capture the essence of a paratrooper in battle?
- Do paintings like this one glorify war?
- Would you want to be a paratrooper?
You could then ask students to put these questions into three categories:
1. Questions of Fact (Generally questions with a single correct answer):
Does the soldier in the painting have a name?
Does the image depict a particular invasion or battle?
2. Questions of Pure Opinion (Generally questions where individuals are asked to express their own inclinations, biases or tastes):
Would you want to be a paratrooper?
3. Questions of Reasoned Judgement (Generally questions that require critical thinking or the development of a thesis that can be supported by facts, arguments, and analysis.):
How did the use of paratroopers change combat missions?
Questions of reasoned judgement help students begin the critical thinking process. Teaching students identify strong questions is the first step in helping students develop strong analytical skills.
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