A questioning classroom: Five practical questioning techniques

In this final instalment, I would like to share five practical questioning techniques.

1, Hot-seating

Hot-seating is a role-playing technique commonly used in drama lessons to deepen students’ understanding of characters, historical figures, or concepts. It works by immersing students in the perspective of the subject being studied. It is an engaging way to encourage critical thinking, empathy, and active participation.

Here is how hot-seating works in practice:

1. Choose a character, historical figure, or concept relevant to your curriculum. This could be a literary character, a historical figure, a scientist, or even an abstract concept.
2. Assign specific roles to students. One student will take the role of the chosen character or concept, becoming the “hot-seater”, while other students will take the roles of interviewers.
3. Instruct the interviewers to prepare a list of thoughtful and relevant questions they would like to ask the hot-seater. These questions can delve into the character's motivations, experiences, thoughts, and feelings.
4. Have the hot-seater take on the persona of the character or concept. The interviewers take turns asking questions, engaging in a role-playing conversation with the hot-seater.
5. The hot-seater responds to the questions as if they were the chosen character or concept. Encourage the hot seater to think deeply and respond authentically based on what they know about the subject.

Hot-seating prompts students to step into the shoes of the character or concept, fostering empathy and a deeper understanding of their perspectives and motivations. The process also encourages critical thinking as students analyse and synthesise information to respond effectively. After the hot-seating session, facilitate a discussion where students reflect on the experience. Discuss how their understanding of the character or concept evolved and what insights they gained.

You could extend the activity by having students switch roles, allowing different students to take on the hot-seater role. Consider introducing additional elements, such as incorporating historical context or setting the scenario in a different time period.

Hot-seating is particularly effective in English literature when exploring characters' motivations and perspectives, in history lessons when studying historical figures' actions and decisions, and in science lessons when discussing the viewpoints of scientists or concepts, though it can of course be utilised to good effect in any subject discipline because it is a versatile technique that engages students' creativity, empathy, and critical thinking skills while making the subject matter come alive in a memorable way.

Creating a questioning classroom: A five-part SecEd series

• Part 1: 13 techniques for teachers: Published November 1
• Part 2: 38 Socratic questions for your teaching: Published November 8
• Part 3: How to encourage debate and discussion: Published November 15
• Part 4: The purpose and timing of questions: Published November 21
• Part 5: Practical questioning techniques: This article

Matt Bromley has also appeared on an episode of the SecEd Podcast focused on great teacher questioning in the secondary school classroom. Find this episode here.

2, Think-pair-share

Think-pair-share is a cooperative learning strategy that encourages active participation, collaboration, and deeper thinking in the classroom. It involves a structured process where students first think about a question or prompt individually, then discuss their thoughts with a partner, and finally share their ideas with the whole class. Here is how it works:

1. Think: The teacher poses a question, prompt, or topic related to the lesson. Students are given a few moments (typically 1-2 minutes) to think quietly and independently about their response to the question.
2. Pair: After the thinking period, students are paired up with a partner. Partners take turns sharing their thoughts with each other, discussing their individual responses to the question. During this phase, students actively listen to their partner's ideas, ask clarifying questions, and engage in a dialogue.
3. Share: Once partners have had a chance to discuss their thoughts, the teacher opens the discussion to the whole class. Students are invited to share key points from their partner discussions or their own thoughts. The teacher guides the class discussion, summarising ideas, asking follow-up questions, and encouraging participation.

There are several benefits of using this technique:

• Active engagement: All students are actively thinking, discussing, and sharing their ideas.
• Reflection: The initial thinking phase allows students to reflect on the question and organise their thoughts before discussing.
• Peer interaction: The pair-sharing phase encourages peer interaction and the exchange of diverse perspectives.
• Enhanced participation: Quieter students are more likely to share their thoughts with a partner before speaking to the whole class.
• Deeper understanding: Discussing ideas with a partner often leads to deeper understanding as students explain and challenge each other's viewpoints.
• Confidence-building: Students gain confidence in their ideas through the partner-sharing phase, making them more comfortable sharing with the whole class.
• Time efficiency: Think-pair-share allows for individual reflection and in-depth discussions in a relatively short amount of time.

There are also several variations on the theme if you wish to shake things up:

• Think-write-pair-share: Instead of just thinking, students can write down their responses before pairing up. This provides a written record and encourages more thoughtful responses.
• Think-triple-share: After pairing, students form groups of three to share their discussions, promoting further collaboration and diverse perspectives.

You can also use a variety of question types, including factual, analytical, and open-ended questions, in order to encourage different levels of thinking.

3, Here’s the answer, what’s the question?

An engaging and creative teaching strategy that flips the traditional approach of asking questions first and then seeking answers. With this approach, students are presented with an answer or a piece of information, and their task is to come up with relevant questions that could lead to that answer.

This technique encourages critical thinking, problem-solving, and the exploration of multiple angles of a topic. Here is how it works:

1. Present the answer: Start by providing students with a specific answer, fact, or piece of information. This answer should be interesting, thought-provoking, or even surprising. For example, give the answer "gravity".
2. Task students with generating questions: Instruct students to work individually or in small groups to brainstorm a list of possible questions that could lead to the answer. Encourage them to think creatively and consider various aspects related to the answer.
3. Discussion and sharing: Have students share their generated questions with the class. Engage in a discussion about the different types of questions and approaches students took to arrive at the answer. Each question can lead to a fascinating discussion.
4. Reveal the original question: After students have shared their questions, reveal the original question that led to the answer. Discuss the effectiveness of different questions in eliciting the answer and the thought processes involved.

This strategy encourages students to approach learning from a different angle and helps them realise the importance of asking thoughtful and relevant questions to deepen their understanding. It is an engaging and effective way to stimulate curiosity and promote active engagement in the classroom. There are several benefits of using this strategy:

• Critical thinking: Students engage in higher-order thinking as they analyse the answer and reverse-engineer questions to reach that answer.
• Creative thinking: As students must explore various angles and possibilities to come up with relevant questions.
• Active participation: Students actively participate in generating questions, fostering engagement and a sense of ownership over the learning process.
• Deeper understanding: By considering multiple questions that lead to the answer, students gain a deeper understanding of the content and its implications.
• Diverse perspectives: Different students may generate different questions based on their background knowledge and perspectives, leading to rich discussions.

4 & 5, Cold-calling and show-calling

These are classroom management techniques that encourage student engagement, active participation, and accountability during discussions. They involve calling on students without prior notice to answer questions or contribute to the conversation. Both techniques aim to create a dynamic learning environment where all students are involved and prepared to participate.

In cold-calling, the teacher selects a student at random to answer a question or contribute to the discussion. Here is how it works:

1. Random selection: The teacher uses a random selection method to choose a student to respond.
2. Question pose: The teacher poses a question to the selected student.
3. Response: The student must answer the question on the spot.

Cold-calling can be used for factual questions, higher-order thinking questions, or to encourage engagement from all students in the class.

Cold-calling is effective because it encourages all students to pay attention and be prepared to contribute, it reduces reliance on a small group of vocal students, it promotes critical thinking and quick-thinking skills, it provides immediate feedback on students' understanding, and it creates an inclusive classroom environment.

To make it work, it is important to foster a safe and respectful environment to ensure students feel comfortable when called upon, to use a variety of question types and difficulty levels to accommodate different learners, and to balance cold-calling with other participation methods to avoid overwhelming students.

Show-calling is a variation where the teacher selects a student and asks them to “show” their answer or work to the class. This technique is often used in subjects that involve problem-solving or calculations:

• Selection: The teacher randomly selects a student.
• Question or problem: The teacher presents a question, problem, or scenario.
• Show work: The selected student explains their thought process, solution, or approach to the class.
• Discussion: The class may engage in discussion, ask clarifying questions, and provide feedback on the presented solution.

The benefits of show-calling are that it encourages students to articulate their thought processes, it provides insights into problem-solving strategies and approaches, it fosters peer learning through discussion and feedback, and it builds confidence in explaining concepts to peers.

To make it work, it is important to ensure that the focus remains on the process and approach, not just the correct answer, to create a supportive environment where students feel comfortable sharing their thought processes, and to give students the opportunity to ask questions or seek clarifications from their peers.

• Matt Bromley is an education journalist, author, and advisor with 25 years’ experience in teaching and leadership including as a secondary school headteacher and academy principal and multi-academy trust director. Matt is the lead lecturer on a national initial teacher training programme as well as a school improvement advisor. He remains a practising teacher. Matt is the author of numerous books on education and co-host of the award-winning SecEd Podcast. Find him on X (Twitter) @mj_bromley. Read his previous articles for SecEd via www.sec-ed.co.uk/authors/matt-bromley