{"id":82776,"date":"2022-11-03T18:04:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-03T22:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=82776"},"modified":"2022-11-07T21:35:32","modified_gmt":"2022-11-08T01:35:32","slug":"the-importance-of-asking-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-importance-of-asking-questions\/","title":{"rendered":"The Importance of Asking Questions: Exposing Flaws & Gaps"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What are the flaws and gaps in your logic and knowledge? If you don’t already know what they are, how can you surface them?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Constantly asking questions will help you strengthen your foundational knowledge because it expands your thinking, opening you to new insights about what you already know (or think you know). You can use questions to expose flaws in your reasoning and gaps in your knowledge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading to learn about the importance of asking questions<\/a> when it comes to understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The Importance of Asking Questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In The 5 Elements of Effective Thinking<\/em>, Edward B. Burger and Michael Starbird discuss the element of air<\/em>, which they say represents the constant questioning of what you know and what you\u2019re learning. The authors stress the importance of asking questions<\/a> to broaden and deepen your current understanding of a topic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: The principles conveyed in the \u201cair\u201d section reflect many of the same concepts as Inquiry-Based Instruction<\/a>, which Michael Starbird is a well-known proponent of. Inquiry-Based Instruction emphasizes the value of questioning as a method of learning about a subject. This style of instruction involves giving the student agency over their own learning while the teacher guides that learning through open-ended questions or problems, which students then investigate through questions of their own.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just because you already know the answer to a problem doesn\u2019t mean you shouldn\u2019t still ask questions or explore it further by asking a \u201cwhat if\u201d question. This question can show where the gaps in your understanding are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Some educators have suggested that \u201cwhat if\u201d questions are just one of several kinds of questions you can ask as you seek solutions<\/a>. \u201cWhat if\u201d questions explore the myriad directions or possibilities for this information, while \u201cwhy\u201d questions establish the underlying information and \u201chow might\u201d questions follow through on the \u201cwhat if\u201d questions to see what solutions can be found.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similarly, just because you think you\u2019re supposed<\/em> to know the right answer to a problem doesn\u2019t mean you shouldn\u2019t ask questions. Being an expert on something means understanding that there are no stupid questions<\/strong>, or, no questions not worth asking. To get you into the mindset of asking questions, the authors recommend that you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n