 The Good Question Game revolves around what is called a question focus statement -- the QFocus. This component of the right question formulation technique requires the teacher/leader to give thorough consideration when introducing a topic or idea. Sometimes the QFocus may be introducing the next unit of study for students in their their social studies class, for example. The QFocus could be a picture or painting that prompts a group to ask themselves, "what might this be about?" The QFocus could be a passage from sacred text, a statistic, a quote. It could be a very traditional start:
The American Civil War was fought from 1861 to 1865. If you're in seventh grade and this QFocus statement were being presented to your class, you likely don't already know all about this civil war. You might know what a war is and you might know that 1861 is a long time ago. When I was that age, I remember a classroom teacher writing the facts on the chalkboard. Later, we would be tested on our recall, possibly our understanding. It's possible the class started with, "who knows who fought in this Civil War? Who can tell me what this war was about?" And so would have begun that kind of game with hand raising, maybe some praise. The First-to-Raise-their-Hand Game is the competitive approach that leaves many behind. The American Civil War was fought from 1861 to 1865. In a classroom where the RQFT is used, rules have been explained, discussed, open and closed-ended questions reviewed. And then for timed period, students generate as many questions as possible. As many questions as possible. Quantity is prioritized over quality. (This part is brain and social science and cannot be discussed quickly here.) The timed period of a group generating as many questions about the QFocus statement as possible creates an open, creative, nonjudgmental, level field of learning. The Good Question Game (aka the Right Question Formulation Technique), is not a process to establish who knows what and certainly who knows the most. It is a deeply thoughtful and powerful experience to establish what each and all does not know. As such, something important is tapped. We're talking about a group/class reflecting on and asking questions of and about a big idea. This is collaboration in a very pure form -- enhancing the capacity of each other by sharing and hearing what we do not know. What follows can be amazing. What follows is a process and an experience in which the participants have created a shared map to discovery. As such, there is individual and collective engagement from the beginning. As a leadership coach and community minister, I have used the RQFT with young adults who are experiencing homelessness, connecting their paths of self-discovery and success with the skill of asking essential questions along the way. I've used it in college freshmen classrooms as they studied identity, sense of place, and writing. I've used it in adult and teen social justice development trainings for teams to prepare for an immersion experience in a community that is not their own. Here is a QFocus statement I've used this context several times: The racial makeup of Lynn, Massachusetts is 42% non white. About 19.2% of the population is considered to be living below the poverty line. Questions ranged from: Does this amount change? Is the 19.2% mostly non white? How are these statements related/similar? to... What types of activities are there for teenagers? How does it feel to live in Lynn? What is the food like? What is the crime rate? What do people do for fun? How do the politics of the City Government affect those living below the poverty line? What does Lynn have that my community does not? How do children play? Could I live here? These are Some Questions! A QFocus can be a statement, a quote, an image, almost anything except a question. Questions are the tools of the learners. The work of creating an effective QFocus resembles the work we do in designing an effective prompt. It should have a shared and clear focus, provoke and stimulate new thinking, and not reveal a teacher’s bias or preferences. When the leader displays the QFocus, s/he should not comment on it. On this day of the summer school program in which we were about to set sail on an energetic round of the Good Question Game, here is the QFocus the kiddos would be asking questions of: Take a moment to jot down your own wandering, wondering and specific questions. In the next episode of The Good Question Game, we'll take a look at the questions generated by the middle/high schoolers. Yours in questions, Anne
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