22/12/2016
Why are we so afraid of a question?
"In school, questions were apt to leave a student exposed rather than inspired". From the book 'A More Beautiful Question'.
The background lies somewhere in our schooling when we start to make a sense of questioning as a tool for the teacher to catch hold or monitor a student.
Questioning has been a powerful tool for teachers for measuring a certain kind of knowledge and differentiating students between the knowledge and the knowledge not’s.
Quote- "Questioning is not to find answers, it is a very sophisticated high-level form of thinking". From the book 'A More Beautiful Question'.
Gradually our image for the concept of questioning has become nothing more than a tool for supremacy, effectively used by a teacher, boss, parent or an institution.
The psychology of questioning among children works same as of a religion. You may not be able to make sense of the story, but you are the one to answer the question imposed by the institution, not the other way round. The assumption is, "question of an institution is important than an individual".
Quote- "Among the brilliant change makers, one thing I kept finding was that many of them were exceptionally good at asking questions" From the book 'A More Beautiful Question'.
So, how do we see towards questioning?
Questioning is the roadmap to a process called the inquiry. An inquiry is a mindset to analyse things rationally and question upon what makes or does not make sense to you. It is when an individual makes sense or a meaning from a subject, learning happens in its real sense.
Questioning as a tool should be an activity initiated by the people to the government or by a student to the teacher or a child to the parent as a medium for the solution.
Questioning should be used to lead innovation and positive change in the existing framework for an institution rather than a tool to control or limit innovation.
Quote- "One good question can lead to several layers of answers, can inspire a decade-long search for solutions". From the book 'A More Beautiful Question'.
Questioning is the greatest skill a human can acquire for the developmental mindset of children and adult. But, if we have initiated questioning in a wrong sense it can be fatal and lead towards a mindset of colonialism, not freedom.
This initiation has its root in schools.
Here are some quotes on questioning from the book 'A more Beautiful Question".
"Questioning is to organise our thinking on what we don't know".
"As kids stop questioning the simultaneously become less engaged in school".
"Young kids learn in much the same way scientists do, by exploring & experimenting. The academic rigour comes soon enough as students begin grade school, which is when questioning by kids starts to disappear".
"Many fear change. But if you are comfortable questioning, experimenting, connecting things, then change is something that becomes an advantage".
"If not now, then when? If not me then who?"
Click on the link to view the original article:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/questioning-can-used-way-healthy-than-grenade-thrown-towards-thomas?trk=prof-post
