There are so many ways to ask a question! I was reviewing some assessments yesterday and noticed that one or two simple word changes can totally change the sophistication needed for the response. When we consider what we want a student to know, and then create the question, I think we need to look at the question from a different perspective. We need to ask ourselves if the question leads to a response that truly measures understanding.

We have all seen examples of nonsense paragraphs like the one that follows.

In Ferenstein, the morgats turn into wolderdise in spring. As a result, wolderdise are picked and used to make Smacka. Smacka is important to people who suffer from Brethia because it essentially eliminates the symptoms by supporting the growth of nadites. Nadites have the ability to reverse the negative impact of this unfortunate disease.

I’ve created some questions below and am confident that they can be answered by anyone who can read the paragraph, even though many of the words are meaningless.

• Where do morgats turn into wolderdise in spring?
• To whom is Smacka important?
• What is Brethia?
• What can nadites accomplish?

So, although the paragraph contains meaningless words, we are able to answer questions. We have no level of real understanding, yet our responses to the questions can be accurate. If we think about this in reference to questions asked on assessments, it is similarly possible for students to answer questions correctly, even if they don’t understand the content.

The good news is, by using words slightly differently, we can we make sure that an accurate response truly indicates understanding. In the case of the nonsense paragraph, had we been asked to explain why wolderdise can make Smacka, but morgats cannot, we would not have been able to respond with any level of confidence or accuracy.

If we are teaching young children about quantity, we might ask if six is greater than or less than nine. Students have a 50 percent chance of getting a correct answer whether they understand or not. What if, instead, we asked them to show that the quantity of six is less than the quantity of nine? Through an illustration, they would not only prove it to us, but to themselves as well.

If our topic is the revolutionary war, we could ask students to name four key leaders. We could extend that by asking them to name four key leaders, then choose two of them, compare and contrast their leadership styles and state their impact on history. This would give us the confidence that students not only know who was involved, but can provide more in-depth insights on their impact on history.

Other examples are listed in the chart below. Our intent is the driving force. Knowing what we want students to understand drives the language we use in the questions we ask.

The questions we pose should correspond with our purpose. If we look at what we’re asking and how we’re asking it, we can tweak questions to get students to think at higher levels. If students think more, it seems that it follows that they will learn more. We can encourage deeper thinking through the questions we ask. What a difference our words make!