In many churches when asked a question you can answer Yes, No, or Jesus and be assured you have the correct answer. The reason is the most used type of question used in the church and often in other leadership circles is a Closed Ended Question. Closed Ended Questions very rarely if ever create a learning experience. Closed Ended questions are not learning initiators and employ only static recall – reciting a simple piece of information from one’s brain storage. Most Closed Ended Questions call for simple one word, or one statement answers of recall from our memory bank.
What day of the week is today? This is an example of a closed ended question. It employs no learning technique and only asks for recall of known information – static recall. When used in a group setting, as soon as one person gives the correct answer, “Wednesday,” the thinking of everyone in the room is shut off. There is no longer a need to engage thought processes. Closed Ended Questions requiring only static recall, do nothing to engage the Higher Order Thought processes as we wrote about in our last blog post. Static recall is a very basic use of the brain and cannot produce learning.
To encourage true learning that will bring about behavioral change in one’s life, (which is what all true learning does) we must engage his/her higher order thought processes. Questions is one of God’s greatest gifts to us in leadership for engaging these higher order thought processes and fostering learning. The challenge is to learn to develop the proper type of question to engage these higher order thought processes which will promote a learning experience.
Learning to use Open Ended Questions is a key in life-changing leadership. An Open Ended Question is one that prompts the listener to use his own knowledge base and life experiences applying these to the new information being shared. Relating the new information to something he already has knowledge of creates a connection to the new information. This connection is the handle for the new tool (information, truth, expectation). Without a handle a tool is useless. However, with the proper handle a tool is a valuable resource.
What does Wednesday mean to you? This is an example of an Open Ended Question. Whether speaking with one person or 1,000, everyone in the room must engage his or her higher order thought processes to consider this question. The leader may call for some to answer verbally. As one person speaks, each person in the room will consider what is being shared, weighing it with their own experience. Perhaps adding to or taking away from their knowledge of the topic. Not everyone will answer verbally. But everyone will continue the thought process until the leader says it is time to move on.
Open Ended Questions engage every person’s higher order thought processes and causes them to recall from memory past experiences, knowledge, and information. Unlike static recall where the thinking shuts down, in this higher order thinking, the new information is attached to the old so it can be stored into the memory bank. Learning builds upon learning.
Learn to use questions properly and watch your team soar and true behavioral change take place.
For more information on engaging higher thought processes and proper use of questions in leadership and teaching contact George Yates and visit SonC.A.R.E. Ministries. Purchase your copy of Teaching That Bears Fruit and Turnaround Journey as both books share some about this topic.