Levels of Thinking Levels of Questions

They ask A LOT of questions… What do young children do when they want to know something? They ask A LOT of questions… (including the same one over and over)

And then to be sure, they learn it for them self Ouch! Does he ever need to ask again?

Quality Questions are the basis for Tutorials and Socratic Seminars The greatest learning takes place when you PRODUCE knowledge, not when you REproduce it Make a habit of higher-level thinking Colleges/employers expect you to dig deep, find meaning, ask thoughtful questions, think! Think there is no such thing as a bad question? Some are definitely better than others!

Arthur Costa LEVEL III LEVEL II LEVEL I • Educational researcher • Three levels of questions increasing complexity at each level • Goal/effect: become better thinkers LEVEL III LEVEL II LEVEL I

GATHER INFORMATION • Who were the allied countries during WWII? • List the order of the planets from the sun • Factual info • One/two word answer • Look it up! • Multiple Choice GATHER INFORMATION identify, recall, list, define, memorize, name

• explain how the proliferation of nuclear weapons in the cold war kept the US and USSR from actually going to war PROCESS INFORMATION relate infer analyze contrast demonstrate solve • More abstract • Facts serve as evidence • Short answer Q • relate the dependent variable to the independent variable

APPLY INFORMATION why assess evaluate estimate • Beyond the text • Predict the fate of Romeo and Juliet had Friar Laurence refused to marry them why assess evaluate estimate APPLY INFORMATION • Beyond the text • Apply what you know • Use info to judge, conclude • Essay questions • Design an experiment to determine the specific heat capacity of sand relative to water

What Level Q? 1 3 1 2 3 ____Describe your study habits from last year ____Rationalize why a student should study ____What is the Curve of Forgetting? ____Infer what would happen if your study habits remain the same as last year ____Make a graphic organizer to show your study habits ____Predict your ability to retain knowledge if you don’t study 3 1 2 2 3

3 2 I Clue Words APPLY INFORMATION PROCESS INFORMATION why assess evaluate estimate Clue Words APPLY INFORMATION 3 2 I relate infer analyze contrast demonstrate solve PROCESS INFORMATION identify, recall, list, define, memorize, name GATHER INFORMATION

In summary.. Level 1 questions can be directly answered from a text Define tangent. Level 2 questions are implied in the text Which is greater: the square root of 49 or the square root of 64? Level 3 is beyond the text; incorporate prior knowledge and experience Imagine you were a soldier fighting in the Civil War. How would you feel? (History)