Question Mark Sign On Hobson’s Old Building, Corner Of Henry & Main (Honor, MI). By flickr user takomabibelot, Public Domain, https://www.flickr.com/photos/takomabibelot/472933624/

Questions are the foundation of all research – questions show curiosity and an interest in learning more. Asking questions is a natural part of human development, and something we all do as children without even thinking about it. As we get older, our ability to ask many and varied questions seems to taper off. For this class, and for this lesson, we’d like you to get back in touch with that question-asking ability.

Simple questions can be incredibly powerful. Complex questions can be broken down into smaller, more manageable questions. Silly questions can lead to a serious line of inquiry. There are no “stupid” or “wrong” questions here – just the opportunity to be open and curious, and to discuss your curiosities with your classmates. The only bad question is one that you don’t ask. This module consists of 2 activities:

1. Individual question brainstorming and identifying Open- and Closed-ended questions (4 points)
2. Group work with questions & scenarios (6 points)

Part 1 – Asking Questions (4 points)

This is an individual activity that has two parts. Select either an encyclopedia entry or a news source about your topic as a starting point for this module.

*Note to instructors: you can also pre-select a source for the students to use as a starting point. A variety of sources could work well for this. We have used images, news articles, excerpts from academic articles, and encyclopedia entries.

Group topics are:

1. Housing & New York City
2. Public Health & Pandemics
3. Abortion & Reproductive Rights
4. Censorship & Schools
5. Climate Change & Extreme Weather
6. Gun Policy & School Shootings
7. Diversity & Representation in the Entertainment Industry

Read the source you’ve chosen. You’re going to ask questions based on what you read in that source, with your topic in mind as a focus. There are some rules for asking questions we want you to follow:

• Rule 1 – Ask as many questions as you can
• Rule 2 – Do not stop to judge or try to answer your questions

Follow these steps for the activity:

Part 1.1 – Asking Questions Activity:

1. Read your chosen source – you should use one you found in Module 4.
2. Get out a blank piece of paper or open a blank document on your device.
3. Set a timer for 5 minutes.
4. During that 5 minutes, write down as many questions as you can think of about your topic, following the two rules above. Try to ask questions for the full 5 minutes.

You will be using these questions for the rest of this module as well, so hang on to them!

Part 1.2 – Identifying Open and Closed-Ended Questions

Different types of questions can be used for different purposes in research and in life. Questions are often categorized as open-ended or closed-ended questions.

A former student offered this explanation of the main difference between open- and closed-ended questions:

Closed-ended questions are for when you want an answer. Open-ended questions are for when you want to start a conversation. – Dezwon, LIBR 100 student, Spring 2020

Sometimes we need an answer; sometimes we need to explore and engage in conversation. Some questions don’t fit into either category and instead fall somewhere in between. A few things to look for:

• Closed-ended questions often have a single answer, or they can be answered with a single source of information
• Open-ended questions often require a complex or nuanced answer, or may require engaging with multiple sources of information

Activity:

1. Identify one open-ended question and one closed-ended question by labeling/highlighting/circling them on your question list from above.
2. Post an image of your question list to the Padlet below (be sure to include your name!)

Part 2 – Questions and Scenarios (6 points)

Work with your group to complete this assignment. Submissions will be on a group Padlet (linked below).

Please post the following on your group’s Padlet for this assignment:

• Choose 3 questions from your individual list to share with your group, and post them on the Padlet.
• Label each question as open or closed – note if there are questions that don’t fit neatly into one or the other category, and please comment on each other’s posts until you can reach some sort of agreement
• Look at your group’s scenario (posted below) and together, decide which of your group’s questions would be appropriate to the task set forth in the scenario, or any new questions you agree on that will help you for the scenario – choose 2-4 questions
• Together, start a list of the kinds of information sources you might need in order to address the scenario. We are looking for something more specific than “books” or “articles.” Use the knowledge you have, to create your list of information sources that will help you understand, explore, and/or address this scenario.

Scenarios

*Note to instructors: these are scenarios we created in Fall 2022. We update them periodically to bring in current events.

Housing & New York City 

You are trying to help out some family members, whose building has just been sold, find out what their rights are as tenants in a New York City rent-stabilized apartment. 

Public Health & Pandemics 

You are trying to sort out, for yourself and your loved ones, the truth from misinformation being reported about various current public health concerns in New York.   

Climate Change & Extreme Weather 

You work for an organization that advises local waterfront communities about preparedness for extreme weather events, and you have to give a presentation at an upcoming community meeting. 

Gun Policy & School Shootings 

You work for a local politician who wants to influence policy about guns/firearms, and they have asked you to research school shootings in your state. 

Censorship & schools 

You are a parent with a school-aged child and you’ve been hearing a lot about censorship issues related to school curriculum and reading materials. You want to educate yourself about what is happening so you can speak to your school’s PTA at the next meeting.  

Diversity & representation in the entertainment industry 

You work as a research assistant for a journalist who is writing a book about diversity & representation in film and television. They have asked you to gather information about the conversations happening around this issue as it relates to people both on-screen and behind the scenes. 

Abortion & reproductive rights 

You are a voter who is concerned about sudden changes in abortion laws in various states in the US, but you don’t feel you have a complete understanding of the medical details of abortion or the history of abortion laws. 

*Note to instructors: we made a Padlet of Padlets for this module in order to streamline the process for students. You can view the template here. We populated it with a Padlet for each group (template linked below) that included the prompts for the activity.

This lesson was adapted from the following:

• Brown, Mason; Margolin, Stephanie; and Ward, Sarah Laleman, “SEEK Summer Bridge Program in the Hunter College (CUNY) Libraries 2018” (2018). CUNY Academic Works. https://academicworks.cuny.edu/hc_oers/7
• Rothstein, D. & Santana, L. (2011). Make just one change: Teach students to ask their own questions. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.