Effective Questioning
What questions do you currently use when talking with students? How do you know they are effective?
I ask them, " how are you doing today?" And, do yo need any help with anything?"
Kolt, Great questions to start a conversation. How do you know these are effective? What are some questions you can ask to gain more in depth information about your student?
Dr. Jean Norris
I ask them "How are you doing, and how have your classes been? Is there anything that you need from me to help you?
The question I start off with most students is, "Tell me about your day?" I like to get to know how they see the day first. The effectiveness in this questions comes from their response.
1. "It's great, how is yours?" By this response that the conversation is not serious, but probably going to be positive.
2. "It's okay. I need to talk to you about a situation. By this response, it is clear the student means business, and wants to avoid small talk.
Patrick, Great question. It opens the conversation up to build rapport and allows the student to direct the conversation.
Dr. Jean Norris
I try to focus on asking open-ended questions like, "How do you feel this program will benefit you?" I know this is an effective question because it forces the prospective student to elaborate on their answer.
I always start my conversation by asking the student how their day is going and acknowledge their answer. I feel that students ease into the conversation by this question and gives me an opportunity to ask more questions.
I answer the phone with a smile and ask how can I assist them today? That opens up the dialog and they I frame my question depending on what the student needs, at this point I can used closed or open questions depending on situation
NaTesha, Again, excellent answer. Thank you for sharing.
Elizabeth Wheeler
Salma, We agree! Building rapport is a huge part of being able to ask questions.
Elizabeth Wheeler
I ask students, "What steps do you think you will need to take to achieve your goal?" It gets them thinking about the individual tasks they will need to perform to get to their desired outcome. Verbalizing these steps also gives them the framework for a plan to achieve that goal. It also takes the focus off the end result and puts it on the role the student will play in reaching that outcome.
I ask a lot of, "What do you mean by that?" questions. It allows me to gain a better understanding of their perspective, and prevents me from misinterpreting or using my own judgement to fill in the blanks. Students can then rephrase their responses and share some more detail about the situation.
If I'm talking to a current student I will always ask "How are things going?" That warrants a response about not only how classes are going but if there are any other distractions outside of school that are effecting their school performance.
If I'm talking to a perspective student I always ask what their current situation is. I ask this mainly to have them recognize what situation it is that they want to get out of/change.
I agree, for me the most effective question to ask would be "How are You doing today? and how are you doing in your classes. This generates a response from the student which is either an expression or a response. The answer or the expression helps me To proceed on with what I see or here.
I always greet a student by asking, "How are you doing today?" This generally opens a conversation. If the student is someone I've never talked with before (like a prospective lead) my second question is usually something like, "Tell me a little about yourself, what is your current situation like?" This allows the student to open up and based on what they initially tell me, I can guide my future questions based on their reply. It gives me a baseline to gauge our conversation and sets me up for more engaging questions.
Thanks, Christina! Sounds like you start with questions for building rapport and then move into discovery questions. Great!
Dr. Jean Norris
Barbara,
Thanks for your response! Asking a question to begin building rapport is an excellent place to start!
Dr. Jean Norris
Emily,
Thanks for sharing! These are great ways to open up a conversation with current and prospective students. I'm curious...do you also ask questions to help prospective students discover where they want to be, or what their goals are?
Dr. Jean Norris
Thanks for your post, Adrienne! Sounds like you clarify understanding for both you and the student, which is excellent! What questions do you use to encourage them to share more details?
Dr. Jean Norris
