To connect God’s world and Word, your students need to think. Asking questions is an effective way to get your students to think and to make connections. Watch this video to learn 5 things about using questions:



Want to work with your colleagues to get better at using questions? If so, then purchase Use Questions (US$25), a discussion-based kit with 7 sessions. These 7 interactive sessions will help you…

• Evaluate and improve your use of questions to help your students connect God’s world and Word.
• Analyze and explain why God asks questions.
• Analyze and explain how questions help students connect God’s world and Word.
• Understand and apply the characteristics of good questions.
• Document and then ask your students questions to help them connect God’s world and Word.
• Get your students to respond sincerely to the questions you ask.
• Increase your commitment to using questions to help your students connect God’s world and Word.

Download a sample session.

Purchase Use Questions (US$25). This kit is 1 of a 4-part series:

1. Help Your Students Connect God’s World and Word
2. Use Assessment
3. Use Questions
4. Meet Student Learning Needs

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “What questions should your students respond to?”
 
Define: Get the facts defined.

1. Who are your students?
2. Where are your students from? Where will they live in the future?
3. What questions do you ask your students?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. What excites/concerns you about your students considering difficult questions in your classroom?
2. What excites/concerns you about your students considering difficult questions after they leave school?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. What would your students say are the difficult questions they want to think through?
2. What would parents say are the questions they want their children to respond to?
3. What difficult questions do you think graduates wished they had been asked?
4. What would youth pastors say are the challenges teens are facing?
5. What would Christians in the workplace say are the crucial questions for Christians in the subject area you teach?
6. What would your fellow teachers say are difficult questions your students should respond to?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. What are 5-10 difficult questions you want your students to respond to?
2. How can you get your students to respond to your questions?
3. What will you do?

You want your students to connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives. You’ve heard that asking questions is an effective way to help students make connections. And you want to use questions to help your students.

Question: How can you get started?

Answer: By taking the following self-assessment. Rate each item, using the following scale:

4: Strongly agree • 3: Agree • 2: Disagree • 1: Strongly disagree

___ I want my students to connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives. (Watch)
___ My students connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives. (Read)
___ I understand how using questions can help my students connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives. (Read)

___ I understand why God asks questions. (Read, Discuss)
___ My students would say that I value asking them questions. (Read, Discuss)
___ I can give a colleague a clear description of what using questions looks like. (Read)

___ I know what questions I want my students to respond to. (Read, Discuss)
___ When faced with an issue, my students know what questions to ask. (Read, Discuss)
___ I can identify and explain 6 characteristics of a good question. (Read, Discuss)
___ I ask good questions. (Read, Discuss)
___ I ask my students questions about creation-fall-redemption-restoration. (Read, Watch)
___ I have documented the questions I want to ask my students. (Read, Discuss)

___ I know what I want my students to learn when I ask a question. (Read, Discuss)
___ My students sincerely respond to the questions I ask. (Read, Discuss)
___ I use questions effectively. (Read, Discuss)

___ I ask questions to help my students connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives.
___ I want to learn more about using questions to help my students make connections.
___ I am committed to helping my students connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives.


Now, ask yourself 4 questions about the data:

1. How many 4s, 3s, 2s, and 1s do I have?
2. What satisfies/concerns me about the data?
3. Which items would it be helpful to learn more about?
4. What will I do?

Additional resources:

1. Video: Why ask questions?
2. Tutorial: Use questions to help students understand and apply a Biblical perspective
3. 99 questions
4. Ask questions—help your students increase their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective 
5. Teacher and student testimonials regarding how using questions helps
6. To learn more about using questions, explore these 11 questions

You want your students to connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives. You’ve heard that asking questions is an effective way to help students make connections. So, you want to learn more. Good.

Question: How can you learn more about using questions?

Answer: By exploring the following list of 11 questions. The list comes with readings and discussion guides:

1. Why use questions? (Read, Discuss)
2. Why does God ask questions? (Read, Discuss)
3. How valuable are questions? (Read, Discuss)
4. What does using questions look like? (Read)
5. What questions should your students respond to? (Read, Discuss)
6. What questions should your students ask? (Read, Discuss)
7. What makes a good question good? (Read, Discuss)
8. What question do you want to ask your students? (Read, Discuss)
9. What do you want your students to learn (when you ask a question)? (Read, Discuss)
10. How can you get your students to sincerely respond to questions? (Read, Discuss)
11. How can you use your questions effectively? (Read, Discuss)

Remember: The real question isn't "How can you learn more about using questions?" The real question is "How will you use questions help your students connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives?"


Additional resources:

1. Video: Why ask questions?
2. Self-assessment: To get started with using questions, take this self-assessment
3. Tutorial: Use questions to help students understand and apply a Biblical perspective
4. 99 questions
5. Ask questions—help your students increase their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective 
6. Teacher and student testimonials regarding how using questions helps
7. Ask your students questions about creation-fall-redemption-restoration

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “What question do you want to ask your students?”
 
Define: Get the facts defined.

1. In one of your classes, what are your students studying?
2. What connections are your students making between what they study and what the Bible teaches?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. How do you feel about asking questions?
2. How do you feel about asking questions that help students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. Which questions from the list do you like, feel comfortable with, and have some answers for?
2. Which questions from the list do you think your students will find engaging?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. What question will you ask your students?
2. When will you ask it?
3. How will you invite your students to respond to your question (journal writing, small group discussion, brainstorming….)?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “How valuable are questions?”

Define: Get the facts defined.

1. What types of things do you tell your students?
2. What types of things do you ask your students about?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. How you do feel when you’re allowed/not allowed to ask questions?
2. How do you feel when your students ask/don’t ask questions?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. If due to a disability you were unable to ask or answer any questions, how would this affect your life and your teaching?
2. If due to a disability your students were unable ask or answer any questions, how would this affect their learning?
3. How do questions help students learn?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. What percentage of your teaching is statements/questions? What would you like it to be?
2. What good questions can you ask your students?
3. What good questions will you ask your students that will help them connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “What do you want your students to learn when you ask a question?”

Define: Get the facts defined.
What question are you going to ask your students?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. Generally speaking, what excites/concerns you about asking questions?
2. What excites/concerns you about asking your question?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. To what extent do your students understand what the question means?
2. When you think of your question, what Bible content (verses, values, concepts, and principles) comes to mind?
3. How would you answer your question?
4. What Bible content do you want your students to learn when you ask your question?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. As appropriate, how will you help your students understand what the question means?
2. What Bible content will you help your students learn when you ask your question?
3. How will you help them learn it?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “What makes a good question good?”

Define: Get the facts defined.
What questions do you ask your students?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. What questions that you ask your students are you excited/frustrated about?
2. What student responses to your questions are you excited/frustrated about?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. What kinds of questions do your students like/dislike responding to?
2. What kinds of questions help your students use upper-level thinking?
3. What kinds of questions help your students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
4. What are the criteria for a good question?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. What good questions can you ask your students?
2. What good question(s) will you ask your students?
3. What good question(s) will you ask your students to help them connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “Why use questions?”
 
Define: Get the facts defined.

1. What questions did your teachers ask you?
2. When do you ask your students questions?
3. What questions do you ask your students?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. How did you feel when your teachers asked you questions?
2. What do you like/dislike about asking your students questions?
3. What do your students like/dislike about you asking questions?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. How do questions help students learn?
2. How do questions help students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
3. What can a question do better than a statement?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. What questions can you ask your students?
2. How will you use questions to help your students learn?
3. How will you use questions to help your students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “How can you use your questions effectively?”
 
Define: Get the facts defined.

1. What questions do you ask to help your students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
2. When do you ask these questions?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. What satisfies you about your use of Biblical perspective questions?
2. What concerns you about your use of Biblical perspective questions?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. What happens when Biblical perspective questions are used effectively?
2. What are some effective ways you are using your Biblical perspective questions?
3. What are some other effective ways you could use your Biblical perspective questions?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. What’s 1 additional way you will use your Biblical perspective questions effectively?
2. What will you do?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “What questions should your students ask?”
 
Define: Get the facts defined.

1. When do yourstudents ask questions?
2. What kinds of questions do your students ask?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. For your students, what is easy/hard about asking questions?
2. What responses do your students get when asking questions?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. What challenges do your students face?
2. What challenges will your students face when they graduate?
3. How can questions help your students grapple with challenges?
4. How can questions help your students apply a Biblical perspective to challenges?
5. How helpful are the following questions?: What do you mean by…? How do you know? How does the Bible help? How can you respond?
6. What questions would help your students apply a Biblical perspective to challenges?
7. What helps/hinders your students from asking wise questions?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. How will you help your students ask wise questions?
2. How will you help your students ask questions that help them apply a Biblical perspective?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “How can you get your students to sincerely respond to questions?”
 
Define: Get the facts defined.

1. What questions do you ask your students?
2. What questions do you ask your students in order to help them connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. What’s satisfying/unsatisfying about student responses to your questions?
2. What kinds of questions do your students tend to respond to?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. What does a sincere student response to a question look like?
2. What helps/hinders your students from sincerely responding to your questions? to questions designed to help them connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. To help your students sincerely respond to your questions, what do you need to keep doing? stop doing? start doing?
2. What will you do?

Here's a set of DRAW questions you can use for a discussion of “Why does God ask questions?”
 
Define: Get the facts defined.

1. What questions does God ask? Gen. 3.9, 3.11, 3.13, 4.6-7, 4.10, 18.9. Job 38.2, 38.4-11, 38.12-13, 38.16-20, 38.22-41, 39.1-5, 39.9-12, 39.19-20, 39.2-27, 40.2, 40.8-9, 41.1-7.
2. What questions does Jesus ask? Mark 2.8, 2.9, 2.19, 3.4, 3.23, 3.33, 4.13, 4.21, 4.30, 4.40, 5.9, 5.30, 5.39, 6.38, 7.18, 8.5, 8.12, 8.17-21, 8.23, 8.27, 8.29, 8.36, 8.37, 9.12 9.16, 9.19, 9.21, 9.33, 9.50, 10.3, 10.18, 10.36, 10.38, 10.51, 11.17, 11.30, 12.9, 12.10-11, 12.15, 12.16, 12.24, 12.26, 12.35, 12.37, 13.2, 14.6, 14.37, 14.41, 14.48, 15.34. Acts 9.4

Respond: Get the facts responded to in terms of feelings/experiences.

1. Which question that God asks in Genesis or Job interests you? Tell me about that.
2. Which question that Jesus asks in Mark or Acts makes you uncomfortable? Tell me about that.
3. What do you think about questions God or Jesus ask?

Analyze: Get the facts, feelings, and experiences analyzed.

1. Why does God ask questions?
2. Why does Jesus ask questions?
3. How do questions help you grow?

What’s next?: Get next steps considered.

1. What questions can you ask your students?
2. How can you use questions to help your students love God

Asking questions is a good way to get students to reflect on the connections between what they study, life, and Biblical teaching. But just because ask you ask a questions doesn't mean students will reflect, as this video demonstrates.

Want to help your students better understand and apply a Biblical perspective? Ask questions!

Here are my top 3 ways to use questions effectively. These 3 ways work. Use them:

1. Frame each of your classes (and each of your units) around your Biblical perspective questions. For example, our English 10 course is framed around 4 questions: Who am I? Who is my neighbor? What’s wrong with the world? What is the significance of words?
   
2. Use Biblical perspective questions as the basis of unit and semester assessments. Be sure the assessments require your students to connect course content, their lives, and a Biblical perspective.
   
3. Post your questions on a bulletin board. This provides you and your students with an effective visual aid.

Here are 8 more ways:

1. When introducing your questions, help your students understand what each question means. For example, if I ask in science class “Why breathe?”, my students need to know that I am asking about why human beings need to breathe and about what the purpose of life is.
   
2. Prominently feature your questions on your course syllabi and Web site.
   
3. Invite parents to use your questions when talking to their child.
   
4. Have your students memorize your questions, give them a quiz on the questions, and grade the quiz. If your students have to memorize your questions, they will understand that you take your questions seriously. Even better, if your students memorize your questions, they can recall and use them.
   
5. Use one or more of your questions to start a unit.
   
6. During a unit, have your students journal on a question or complete a Venn diagram on a question.
   
7. Use questions as a springboard to having your students read the Bible and articles by Christians. For example, when considering “How should Christian respond to suffering?” ask your students to study Genesis 3:1-19. Have them read articles regarding Christian responses to poverty, discrimination, and exploitation.
   
8. Use your questions to review a unit. For example, at the end of a unit on Archibald MacLeish’s JB, an existentialist version of Job, make a web answer to “What’s wrong with the world?”

So, what’s the real question? Well, it’s not “How can I use my questions effectively?” It’s “How will I use questions effectively today to help my students apply a Biblical perspective?”

Remember: Success is your students increasing their application of a Biblical perspective as a result earnestly responding to a good question you ask. Success is not you knowing how to use questions effectively or even you using your questions effectively. But remember, using questions effectively helps your students earnestly respond to them.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

First, let me share what “sincerely respond” means.

• By “sincerely,” I mean genuinely, earnestly, honestly, personally, authentically, from the heart.
  
• By “respond,” I mean consider, grapple with, reflect on, mull over, interact with, engage with.
  
• By “sincerely respond,” I mean genuinely consider, earnestly grapple with, honestly reflect on, personally mull over, authentically interact with, engage with from the heart.

Second, let me share what the opposite of “sincerely respond” means. Let me share what “insincerely” and “react” mean.

• By “insincerely,” I mean superficially, impersonally, hypocritically. Insincerity makes me cringe and feel sad.
  
• By “react,” I mean oppose, fight, counter. Reactions lead to lack of learning, lack of reflection, and lack of sharing.

Now, let me give you a starter list of 10 ways you can help your students sincerely respond to Biblical perspective questions:

1. Ask God for help. Regularly. Ask God to help your students sincerely respond to your questions so that they can increase their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective.
   
2. Ask open-ended questions that connect course content, life, and a Biblical perspective.
   
3. Make sure students understand what each Biblical perspective question means.
   
4. Be natural when asking your questions. If you feel uncomfortable, practice talking with colleagues about a Biblical perspective and about using questions to help students understand and apply a Biblical perspective. Talk until talking becomes natural. Students respond to natural conversation. Students don’t respond to conversations that feel fake or forced.
   
5. Make the class environment safe. Make it safe to sincerely respond to Biblical perspective questions. Have your students talk about what it feels like to be in a “sincere” discussion and an “insincere” discussion. Challenge your students to contribute to “sincere” discussions.
   
6. Build Biblical perspective questions into your class. How? Put your questions on your syllabi. Post your questions on your bulletin boards, and regularly use them as a visual aid. Target one or more questions during each unit, and develop a unit assessment that targets the unit question(s).
   
7. Use engaging instructional strategies that involve each of your students in responding to a question, like small group discussion, role play, and journaling.
   
8. Encourage your students to think through answers for themselves.
   
9. Give significant time in class for your students to reflect on your Biblical perspective questions. Sincere responses take time to develop. Don’t hurry your students.
   
10. Give your students repeated opportunities to respond to the same question.

Note: If you want to don’t want your students to sincerely respond to your Biblical perspective questions, here are 10 things you can do to encourage insincerity and reaction:

1. Make sure your Biblical perspective questions only address course content. Don’t ask questions that involve students reflecting on their lives.
2. When you ask your question, talk really fast. Or whisper. Or make sure your pronunciation is unintelligible. Better yet, do all three. And then quickly move to other matters.
3. Convey a superficial interest in your students’ responses. Listen, but glance away from the student who is talking. Don’t ask a follow-up question.
4. During discussions, allow your students to attack each other and to interrupt each other. Find ways to encourage talkative students to interrupt shy students.
5. Don’t post your Biblical perspective questions anywhere. Not on your bulletin boards. Not on your handouts. Not on your Web site. Remember, if your students don’t know the questions, your students can’t respond to them.
6. Don’t assess what your students learn from responding to Biblical perspective questions. Don’t take their learning about a Biblical perspective as seriously as you would other content they learn. By not assessing your students’ responses, you’ll help your students understand that what they learn about a Biblical perspective is unimportant.
7. Always use whole group discussion. This will ensure that some students don’t respond. To get even fewer students to participate in the discussion, encourage 3-5 students to dominate the discussion.
8. Answer your own Biblical perspective questions. Immediately. By lecturing. At the end of your lecture, face the board and ask “Any comments?” Give 1 second for your students to respond, and then say (while still facing the board), “OK, let’s move on.”
9. Ask Biblical perspective questions right before the dismissal bell rings. Better yet, ask questions when dismissal bell is ringing.
10. Over the course of the semester or year, ask your questions once. Not twice. Never 3 or more times. If you repeat your questions, your students might think about them.

Seriously: Please be careful. The stakes are high. If you don’t help your students to sincerely respond to questions…

• Your students may learn that the purpose of school is to get into college or to get a job, not to become equipped to impact the world for Christ. Your students’ answers will be limited to course content. This will reinforce that the real stuff of education addresses college and career, and the superficial stuff of education addresses a Biblical perspective.
  
• Your students might become cynical. Wouldn’t you get cynical if you were asked questions but not allowed to really respond? And, what’s the impact if students get cynical about increasing their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective?
  
• Your students may rely on you for the right answers. You will ask questions, and you will give answers. Your students know this. So, they will know they don’t need to think, don’t need to understand or apply a Biblical perspective. Ouch.

So, what’s the real question? Well, it’s not “How can I help my students to sincerely respond to questions?” It’s “How will I help my students sincerely respond to questions today?”

Remember, success is your students increasing their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective by responding sincerely to a good question you ask. Success is not you helping your students to sincerely respond. But remember, by taking steps to encourage your students to respond sincerely, you increase the likelihood that they will respond sincerely—and so increase their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective.

Help your students sincerely respond to Biblical perspective questions. Today.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

To get an idea of how you can more effectively help students increase their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective, complete the following self-assessment on Biblical perspective questions. Next, use your self-assessment data to develop action plans.

Rate each statement below. Use the following scale:
4: Consistently • 3: Usually • 2: Sort of • 1: Rarely

Self-Assessment for Teachers

1. My Biblical perspective questions are posted in my classroom.
   
2. My questions grab my students’ attention.
   
3. My questions require students to use upper-level thinking.
   
4. My questions allow for a variety of acceptable answers.
   
5. My questions connect a Biblical perspective and what students are studying.
   
6. My questions connect a Biblical perspective and my students’ lives.
   
7. My questions connect what students are studying with their lives.
   
8. My questions are timeless/universal.
   
9. My questions use developmentally appropriate vocabulary.
   
10. My questions are 10 words or less.
    
11. My questions frame the content students are learning.
    
12. My questions frame the skills students are learning.
    
13. My questions frame one or more assessments.
    
14. During my units, I ask Biblical perspective questions.
    
15. I am committed to using questions to help students increase their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective.

Self-Assessment for Principals

1. Teachers post their Biblical perspective questions in their classrooms.
   
2. The Biblical perspective questions teachers ask are effective.
   
3. In all units, teachers ask Biblical perspective questions.
   
4. I model asking effective Biblical perspective questions.
   
5. I am committed to having teachers use questions to help students increase their understanding and application of a Biblical perspective.

As a result of you asking a Biblical perspective question, your students should learn 3 things:

1. What the question means.
   
2. A Biblical answer that adds value.
   
3. How to use the question.

Thing 1: As a result of you asking a Biblical perspective question, your students should learn what the question means. Make sure your students understand:

• What each word in the question means.
  
• What Biblical truth(s) you are targeting.
  
• What related questions you are asking.

For example, when I ask high schoolers, “What’s wrong with the world?”:

• I know they understand what each word in the question means.
  
• I share what truth(s) I’m targeting: the impact of sin on each person and on all of creation.
  
• I share the related questions I am asking: What’s the conflict? How are we alienated from God, ourselves, each other, and creation? Why do we suffer?

Thing 2: As a result of you asking a Biblical perspective question, your students should learn a Biblical answer that adds value. Meaning, the answer should provide new content and/or should result in your students making new connections between a Biblical perspective, course content, and life.

To add value, provide a Biblical answer that includes at least 1 verse and 1 principle or value. Here’s an example from high school English on racism:

• Question: What’s wrong with the world?
  
• Verse(s): Genesis 3
  
• Principle: As a result of sin, we are alienated from God, ourselves, each other, and creation.
  
• Value: Shalom

To add value, help students make new connections by asking 2 questions:

1. What are 5 ways you could apply a Biblical perspective to what you’re studying?
   
2. What are 5 ways you could apply a Biblical perspective to your life?

Thing 3: As a result of you asking a Biblical perspective question, your students should learn how to use the question. Questions are useful tools. Ask your students to identify which of your questions would be helpful to ask in a given situation. Asking questions will help your students use a Biblical perspective to look at a given situation.

Try this out yourself. Imagine that you’re a student in a class in which the teacher routinely asks the following Biblical perspective questions:

• What’s wrong with the world?
  
• How can I be a wise steward?
  
• How can I use my learning to serve?

Which question(s) would be helpful for you to ask if the situation is _____?

• Experiencing the death of a family member
  
• Negative advertisements targeting young children
  
• Pollution

Review: As a result of you asking a Biblical perspective question, make sure your students learn 3 things:

• What the question means.
  
• A Biblical answer that adds value.
  
• How to use the question.
  
  *For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

Answer: The question that will help your students increase their understanding and use of a biblical perspective. Keep in mind there is more than 1 question you can ask your students. So, choose a question.

Choose a question that…

• Relates to the content your students are learning.
  
• You like, feel comfortable with, and have some answers for.
  
• You think your students will find engaging.

You have 3 options, only 2 of which are useful:

1. Stop now and don’t choose a question. It’s an option, and choosing this won’t help your students increase their understanding and use of a biblical perspective.
   
2. Choose a question from the list of 99 questions (see below).
   
3. Develop your own question.

Here’s the list of 99 questions:

1. How are you a witness for God?
   
2. How are God's mercy and justice related?
   
3. How aware should you be of culture?
   
4. How can art express your beliefs?
   
5. How can art express our relationship with God and creation?
   
6. How can you be a good caretaker?
   
7. How can you be a wise steward?
   
8. How can you bring change?
   
9. How can you care for God's creation?
   
10. How can you care for your body?
    
11. How can you care for sound?
    
12. How can you communicate the truth in love?
    
13. How can you depict the Christian faith?
    
14. How can you maintain your body as God's temple?
    
15. How can you make healthy decisions?
    
16. How can you relate to the target culture?
    
17. How can you bridge cultural differences?
    
18. How can you repair relationships?
    
19. How can you serve God and others?
    
20. How can you solve the problem?
    
21. How can you use ___ (subject/topic) wrongly?
    
22. How can you use a biblical perspective?
    
23. How can you use math to serve others?
    
24. How can you use mathematical habits of mind?
    
25. How can you use music?
    
26. How can you use your creativity?
    
27. How can you use your gifts and learning?
    
28. How can you use the Bible to guide your life?
    
29. How can you work with others?
    
30. How can learning a language change you?
    
31. How can math help you learn about God and creation?
    
32. How can music help you learn about God and creation?
    
33. How can religion undermine God's work?
    
34. How can you use math to make sense of God's world?
    
35. How can we praise God through music?
    
36. How can we see God's creative power in creation?
    
37. How do authors help us see truth?
    
38. How do you balance head and heart?
    
39. How do cultures affect/reflect worldviews?
    
40. How do you balance needs and caretaking?
    
41. How do you learn, live, and serve with others?
    
42. How do you live out your convictions?
    
43. How do others help us see?
    
44. How do patterns help you make sense of God's world?
    
45. How do we know?
    
46. How do we know God cares?
    
47. How do we use language?
    
48. How do worldviews affect life?
    
49. How does ___ (subject/topic) help you develop as a person?
    
50. How does ___ (subject/topic) help you serve others?
    
51. How does a belief system influence a point of view?
    
52. How does belief affect design?
    
53. How does culture affect who you become?
    
54. How does evil work in our lives?
    
55. How does God show sovereignty?
    
56. How does God show us who He is?
    
57. How does God speak to us?
    
58. How does God use ordinary people to do His work?
    
59. How does God want you to carry on His work?
    
60. How does God want you to live?
    
61. How does God want you to view others?
    
62. How does God work?
    
63. How does God's Word help you see?
    
64. How does nature reveal God?
    
65. How has culture shaped you?
    
66. How can you reflect God's glory?
    
67. How important is this?
    
68. How is Jesus the purpose of your life and learning?
    
69. How shall we then live?
    
70. How should Christians apply truth and justice?
    
71. How should Christians live in a world filled with suffering?
    
72. How should Christians respond to bias?
    
73. How should Christians use wealth and power?
    
74. How should you deal with injustice?
    
75. How should you live?
    
76. How should you respond to competition?
    
77. How should you respond to God?
    
78. How should you use resources?
    
79. How should we live in God's world?
    
80. How tolerant can a community be?
    
81. How will you achieve the "good"?
    
82. What does being a disciple of Jesus mean?
    
83. What does it mean to be human?
    
84. What does it mean to lead a meaningful life?
    
85. What does Jesus' life mean to you?
    
86. What if?
    
87. What’s the problem?
    
88. What’s your responsibility?
    
89. What’s the significance of words?
    
90. What’s the solution?
    
91. What’s wrong with the world?
    
92. What makes good music good?
    
93. What makes us who we are?
    
94. What's true?
    
95. Where do you belong?
    
96. Who are you?
    
97. Who is God?
    
98. Who is your neighbor?
    
99. Why breathe?

Write down 1 question you want to ask. If you are reading this and you have not yet written a question down, stop reading, choose a question, and write it down. Now that you have your question, keep reading.

So, what’s the real question? It’s not “What question do I want to ask my students?” It’s “What question am I going to ask my students?”

Remember, success is your students increasing their understanding and use of a Biblical perspective by responding personally to the question you have asked. Success is not you choosing the question or even you asking your students the question. But you have to choose the question and then ask it before your students can respond personally to it.

In preparing to ask your question, ask a colleague for help. Why? Because reading about asking questions is one thing, and doing it is another. Let’s be honest. It’s hard to do new things, to change, to ask questions to help students understand and use a biblical perspective. And doing new things while teaching is even harder. So, ask for help. Working with someone dramatically increases the likelihood of success.

In preparing to ask your question, be sure to plan your lesson so that it’ll go well. Here are some things you can do:

• Pose your question to the class that is most likely to engage the in responding to the question. Or pose your question during the subject or time of day in which your students are most likely to engage in responding to the question.
  
• Write the question on the board, and then set the context by showing how the question is related to course content and a biblical perspective.
  
• Invite your students to respond in a way that they like to respond—journal writing, small group discussion, brainstorming….

Get help. Prepare your lesson. Then ask your question. Today.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

It’s 9:00 p.m. on a Friday night. Your student JuShin is talking on the phone with Melody, her friend since 2nd grade. JuShin has noticed changes in Melody’s behavior, like change in friends and less interest in school. Melody wants to know if JuShin wants to go “hang out with her friends around town” and get back “late.” What questions should JuShin ask Melody?

It’s 5 years from now. Calvin, your former student, is sitting with 4 college classmates in a coffee shop, talking about social issues. Statements are made: “We should help the poor.”“We need to be more tolerant.” “It’s the parents’ responsibility.” What questions should Calvin ask his classmates?

It’s 10 years from now. Tomoko, your former student, is reading an editorial on taxes in which the author urges readers to support Proposal 23. The proposal “reduces taxes for wealthy and increases taxes for the middle class.” What questions should Tomoko ask as she reads the editorial?

What questions should JuShin, Calvin and Tomoko ask? How about…?

1. What do you mean by…?
   
2. How do you know?
   
3. How does the Bible help?
   
4. How can I respond?

Why these 4 questions? Because they help. Let me explain how:

1. What do you mean by…? Ever been in a conversation where someone thought you meant something and you didn’t? Or you thought someone meant something and she didn’t? I have. I didn’t like it. I don’t think anyone else does either. By asking “What do you mean by…?” your students invite the other party to clarify what she means when she uses terms like hang out, late, poor, tolerant, wealthy, and middle class. As a result, your students will have a deeper understanding of the idea, value, situation, or perspective being presented.
   
2. How do you know? In other words, cite your sources. Explain the basis of your claims. Tell me where you’re coming from. If the issue is hanging out, how important is it to know that the invitation really comes from Melody’s mom or from her new friends? If the issue is poverty, how important is it to know that the information comes from The Economist or the school newspaper? If the proposal addresses changing the tax structure, how important is it to know which political party is pushing for the proposal? If the topic is Jesus, how important is it to know that the information comes from the novel The Da Vinci Code and not the Bible?
   
3. How does the Bible help? In other words, let’s see what the Bible says. After all, the Bible is the best-selling book of all time, the text of the world’s largest religion, and most significantly, the Word of the living God.
   
4. How can I respond? Once your students understand the idea or situation, the basis of the idea or situation, and what the Bible says, they can then determine how to respond. And there may be more than one biblical response.

If your students ask these 4 questions, how will it help them understand and use a biblical perspective?

1. When your students ask these 4 questions, they’re working to develop biblical responses. (Keep in mind that your students are more likely to use the biblical responses they have developed than ones you have shared.)
   
2. When your students ask these 4 questions, they increase the likelihood that they’ll have a thoughtful conversation. Why? Because asking questions demonstrates an interest in others—and people are more open about what they’re thinking when someone is interested in them. Because asking questions decreases the likelihood of misunderstanding, misdiagnosis, and, consequently, misapplication of the Bible. Because asking questions increases the likelihood of identifying sources instead of symptoms, and of skillfully using pertinent biblical teaching.
   
3. When your students start by asking questions, rather than by giving answers, people will be more likely to talk with them. This means your students will be more likely to have opportunities to use a biblical perspective. More opportunities means more practice. And practice is a necessary step in effectively using a biblical perspective.
   
4. Asking questions gives your students natural opportunities to model a biblical perspective of behavior, including being concerned for others, being quick to listen, and showing humility when they don’t know the answer. Modeling is practice. Practice helps your students increase their proficiency in applying a biblical perspective.

Find out for yourself how the 4 questions work. Find out by using the 4 questions to respond to 1 or more of the following statements. Better yet, find out by having your students use the 4 questions to respond to one or more of the following statements:

• We should love everyone.
  
• You should obey the government and fight in the war.
  
• This won’t hurt you.
  
• Abortion isn’t murder.
  
• Language is evolving.
  
• Budgets are moral documents.

So, what’s the real question? It’s not “What questions should my students ask?” or “Should I teach my students to ask the 4 questions?” Rather, it’s “How will I help my students right now to routinely ask wise questions?” You might want to teach your students to use the 4 questions, or you might want to teach your students to use questions you develop.

Remember, success is your students asking wise questions to better understand and use a biblical perspective. Success is not you teaching your students to ask wise questions (or even you asking your students wise questions). But remember, if you teach your students to ask wise questions, you increase the likelihood that they’ll ask wise questions.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

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Bonus: Lead by asking. Ask questions to help your colleagues focus, think through problems, and reach their goals. For example:

• If your colleague wants to increase student understanding and application of a biblical perspective, ask: How can questions help? What questions do you want your students to ask? What questions do you want your students to respond to?
  
• If your curriculum committee is brainstorming ways to improve the curriculum, ask: Where are we? Where do we want to go? How can we get there?
  
• If your administration wants to achieve its mission, ask: What’s our mission? What’s our definition of mission achievement? What’s our current level of mission achievement? How can we close the gap between current and targeted levels of mission achievement?
  
• If your school is reviewing its philosophy of education, ask: What happens at a Christ-centered school? What is the role of biblical perspective in Christian education? How can we help students internalize a biblical perspective?

Answer: I’m not sure.

Longer answer: I’m not sure. But I know Christian school students should consider difficult questions like “If God is good, why does He allow suffering?” and “How do you know?” And I know that Christian school students should consider questions like these while they are in a nurturing Christian environment. From what I hear, students don’t have positive experiences when they first encounter questions like this in a non-Christian environment.

Back to your question, “What questions should my students respond to?” I say I’m not sure what questions your students should respond to because there’s no definitive list. Why isn’t there a definitive list? Because the list of key questions your students should respond to depends on a variety of factors, including:

• Who your students are: What are their hopes and dreams? What do they talk about with their parents? Do they come from Christian or non-Christian homes? Do they attend church and do family devotions?
  
• Where they live now and will live in the future: What does the culture they live in value and not value? Are they citizens of the country in which they live? How likely are they to live their adult lives in their country of citizenship?
  
• The challenges they face and will face: How are they affected by wealth, power, technology, and mass media? How are they affected by various religions? How does the culture respond to Christians who use a biblical perspective?
  
• What they already know about a biblical perspective and how well they can use a biblical perspective: Do they understand how the world was created? How well do they understand and share the plan of salvation? To what extent do they understand and apply the biblical principles found in the 10 Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount? How well can they apply a biblical perspective to issues like self-fulfillment, drug abuse, terrorism, poverty, pollution, euthanasia, national debt, homosexuality, deforestation, stem cell research, AIDS, discrimination, and exploitation?

To identify the questions your students should respond to, ASK: Ask • Seek • Keep

Ask:

• Ask students, “What questions do you want to think through?”
  
• Ask parents, “What questions do you want your children to respond to?”
  
• Ask graduates, “What questions do you wish you had been asked?”
  
• Ask youth pastors, “What questions are teens facing?”
  
• Ask Christians in the workplace, “What are the crucial questions for Christians in your field?”
  
• Ask teachers, “What key questions should students respond to?”

Seek God’s help. Pray about which questions you should ask your students to help them understand and use a biblical perspective. While you can’t ask every question there is and your students can’t respond to every question there is, God can guide you to what questions He wants your students to consider.

Keep lists:

• Social issues: ecology, sexuality, technology, war
  
• Religions: Animism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Shintoism
  
• Worldviews: theism, pantheism, monism, deism, nihilism, existentialism, modernism, post-modernism
  
• Values: honesty, integrity, faithfulness, stewardship, respect, justice, mercy, humility
  
• Questions: Where did evil come from? If God is good, why do we suffer? If you say Jesus is the way, aren’t you being intolerant? How do you know the Bible is true? What is the relationship between Christian faith and science? How should wealth and power be used?

By asking others, seeking God’s help, and keeping lists, you can identify questions your students should respond to. Start today.

Start by asking me, “What are 10 key questions you want students to respond to?” Here goes:

1. Who is God?

1. Who are you?
2. What’s the problem?
3. What’s the solution?
4. How can you be in the world but not of it?
5. When do you wage war and wage peace?
6. How should you use your body?
7. How should you use wealth?
8. How valuable is life?
9. What’s good?

That’s my list—for students at my school.

Now ask yourself: “What are 10 questions I want my students to respond to?” Write down your 10 questions.

So, what’s the real question? It’s not “What questions should my students respond to?” It’s “What questions are my students going to respond to today?”

Remember, success is your students increasing their understanding and use of a biblical perspective by responding authentically to a good question. Success is not you identifying a good question or even you asking your students a good question. But you have to identify and ask a good question before your students can authentically respond to it.

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Bonus: Your students are going to be asked difficult questions. Prepare your students to respond effectively. How? Teach them to do 7 things:

1. Trust God and His Word.
   
2. Remember that all truth is God’s truth.
   
3. Relax. Just because they don’t have answer, doesn’t mean that there isn’t one.
   
4. Affirm the person asking the question by saying, “That’s a good question.”
   
5. Show an interest in the question by asking questions about the question: What do you mean? Why is this question important to you? How would you answer your question? How do you think I would answer your question?
   
6. Be honest when they don’t know. Say, “You probably already thought about this. I’d like to share thoughts worthy of your question. To do that, I need time to think. If you’re willing to talk later, I’m willing to think about your question before we talk again.”
   
7. Build relationships, not debates. If someone presses your student on a difficult question, coach them to politely say, “When I talk with others, I work to build relationships, not debates.
8. When you keep asking me what I think, I feel like you want to build a debate. Did I misunderstand?”

You: I like the idea of using questions to help my students increase their understanding and use of a biblical perspective. Seems doable. I know how to ask questions, and my students know how to answer questions. And from what you say, using biblical perspective questions works. I want to move on this. It would really help me if I could “see” what using questions looks like. What does using questions look like?

Me: How about if I let you “see” how the English 10 teacher at Christian Academy in Japan uses questions?

You: That sounds good. What questions do the students respond to?

Me: They consider 4 biblical perspective questions:

1. Who am I?
   
2. Who is my neighbor?
   
3. What’s wrong with the world?
   
4. What is the significance of words?

You: How does the teacher use the questions?

Me: The teacher posts the biblical perspective questions on a bulletin board, puts them in the course syllabus, explains them in the introductory unit, links them to subsequent units, teaches specific lessons during a unit on appropriate questions, and gives students assessments so they can demonstrate their learning about the questions.

You: What does a “biblical perspective question” lesson look like?

Me: Let me give you 2 examples. As students study racism and racial reconciliation in the context of the Night/Hotel Rwanda unit, they consider “Who is my neighbor?” After reading Night and watching and Hotel Rwanda, students work in small groups to complete the following assignment:
Assign each person in your group a set of verses from the list. Each person will look up the assigned verses, jot down significant ideas, and summarize how the verses relate to prejudice, etc., and how they relate to each other. When everyone is finished, each will present his/her finding to the group. Be sure to take notes, because you will be talking with people from other groups. (Verse sets: (A) Genesis 1:27, James 2:1-9, Luke 10:25-37; (B) Revelation 7:9-10, Matthew 6:9-10; (C) Galatians 3:26-28, John 4:1-38; (D) Matthew 25:31-46, Matthew 5:21-22.)

Here’s a second example. After reading Albert Camus’ “The Guest,” students use the question “What’s wrong with the world?” as the context for comparing and contrasting Camus’ existentialist view of life with a biblical worldview. The English 10 teacher mixes existentialist and biblical statements together and asks the students to divide them into 3 categories: existentialist beliefs (that disagree with a biblical worldview—like “Life is absurd”), biblical beliefs (that disagree with an existentialist worldview—like “God created a meaningful world”), and statements about which both sides have some degree of common ground (like “People have a desire to find meaning”).

You: Sounds good. But how does it work to assess what students have learned through studying and responding to questions?

Me: Throughout the year, the students demonstrate their responses to these 4 questions on unit assessments. In the Night/Hotel Rwanda unit, students write a reflection paper about the roots and effects of stereotyping, prejudice, and racism, and about how Christians should respond. The essay prompt is:

Reflect on the power and prevalence of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination—how are Christians to respond to them? Support your answer from literature, history, current, events, your experience, and the Bible. In your 700 to 1000-word essay, be sure to: (1) use examples to describe the power and prevalence of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination, using at least 2 quotations from Night; (2) analyze the biblical principles of how God intends for people to treat other people, using at least 3 quotations from the Bible; and (3) give at least 1 general action people can take and 1 specific thing you can do.

In the short story unit, students respond to the following short answer question on the unit test: Describe the existentialism of the author we read who wrote both essays and short stories on the topic. Be sure to include the definition, the juxtaposition that makes humanity’s situation absurd, the 2 things the author says give meaning, and illustrate those 2 things from the story. What of truth (from a biblical perspective) has the author seen, and what has he missed?

You: What are the student learning results?

Me: Good question. For the Night/Hotel Rwanda unit essay, a student writes: “‘So God created man in his own image.’ This means that if we reject and discriminate against other humans, we are, in effect, rejecting and discriminating against God….”

For the short story test question, a student writes: “Albert Camus believed in existentialism, that life was meaningless and there was no afterlife. Still, he insisted that by acting and living as if there is meaning to life, we can create some for ourselves. He wants to enjoy life to the fullest, which is what Solomon said in the Bible. Yet, if we were randomly created and/or evolved, it makes no sense for us to want meaning and purpose. Camus refused to believe that Christ died for our sin and gave us meaning, or that heaven and hell were real.”

You: Seems like the students are increasing their understanding and use of a biblical perspective. What does the English 10 teacher think about using questions?

Me: She thinks it works. I’ve heard her say that using questions has helped her students think through a biblical perspective and apply it to course content and to their lives.

You: That sounds good. I think I can now “see” what using questions looks like and how using questions can help my students.

Me: Good. And remember, success is your students increasing their understanding and use of a biblical perspective by genuinely responding to your questions. Success is not you knowing what using questions looks like or even you demonstrating that you know what using questions looks like.

But by knowing what using questions looks like, you can use questions more effectively. And if you use questions more effectively, you will increase the likelihood your students will genuinely respond to more questions.

Get your students to sincerely respond to a good question. Today.

Imagine: Your student Patrick is in an accident. Amazingly, he’s OK. Or at least everyone thinks he is. Then his parents notice that Patrick no longer recalls, asks, or writes down questions, three things he used to do. And he doesn’t process questions either. It’s as if he doesn’t hear them when someone speaks or see them when reading. Patrick’s parents take him to a specialist, get a check-up, and learn that for the foreseeable future, he’ll be unable to ask or process questions.

Not a single one.

Can’t ask or answer: How are you? What do you want to do? Will you marry me? Can’t ask or answer: How can I pray for you? What does this verse mean? How does God see this? Can’t ask or answer: What’s the assignment? What career looks good? How can we get this done?

Patrick can’t ask or answer a single question. Until further notice. Possibly for the rest of his life.

How do you feel? I feel worse than terrible. Questions are racing around in my head: How will this affect his relationships? His home life? His friendships? His spiritual growth and church life? His education? His career possibilities?

You don’t want Patrick’s situation to continue. You want him to get better. Right now. So do I. Why? Because like you, I know how valuable questions are to Patrick.

So, how valuable are questions? Extremely valuable. Indispensable.

As a teacher, ask yourself 2 questions:

1. If my students couldn’t ask or answer a single question, how would this affect their understanding and use of a biblical perspective?
   
2. If I couldn’t ask or answer a single question, how would this affect my ability to help my students understand and use a biblical perspective?

So, what’s the real question? It’s not “How valuable are questions?” or even “How will I demonstrate that I value questions?” The real question is “How will I use questions today to help my students understand and use a biblical perspective?”

Remember: Success is your students increasing their understanding and use of a biblical perspective by genuinely responding to your questions. Success is not you knowing that questions are valuable or even you demonstrating the value you place on questions.

But identifying the value you place on questions can help you more intentionally demonstrate the value you place on questions. And if you more intentionally demonstrate the value you place on questions, you will ask more questions, and, consequently, your students will respond to more questions.

Get your students to sincerely respond to a good question. Today.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

Hmm: God knows everything. God asks questions. This seems strange. If God knows everything, why does He ask questions?

Before I respond to your question (“Why does God ask questions?”), please respond to 3 situations for me:

1. You’re teaching single-digit addition in first grade. You know 4 + 5 = 9. Why do you ask SongHo, “What’s 4 + 5?”
   
2. You’re starting a unit on the negative affects of substance abuse. You have researched the topic, developed an effective set of notes, and put up 2 bulletin boards. You start class by asking your 7th graders, “What could happen to you if you take illegal drugs?” Why do you ask this?
   
3. You’re leading a workshop on using questions to help students understand and use a biblical perspective. You have carefully prepared for this workshop. So why do you ask, “How can questions help students understand and use a biblical perspective?”

In each of these 3 situations, you already know the answer:

1. You know that 4 + 5 = 9.
   
2. You know quite few negative affects of taking illegal drugs.
   
3. You know that using questions helps students understand and use a biblical perspective because questions, among other things, help students connect their learning, their lives, and a biblical perspective.

If you already know the answers, why do you ask the questions? Because you know that questions serve purposes other than helping you learn something. Because you know that questions, among other things, give others the opportunity to learn, share, think, and grow.

God knows this, too. (He knew this before you did.) God knows where Adam is hiding in garden, yet God asks, “‘Where are you?’” (NIV Genesis 3:9) Why does He ask this?

Jesus, the Master Teacher, asks questions. All through the Gospels. Think of 1 question Jesus asks. Why does He ask it?

Want to read some questions that Jesus asks? Look in Mark 2:19, 3:4, 4:13, 5:30, 6:38, 7:18, 8:12, 9:16, 10:3, and 12:16.

Why does Jesus ask questions? Among other things:

• To set the context for learning
  
• To focus attention on something significant
  
• To promote self-examination
  
• To prod thinking
  
• To show an interest in others

Can you think of some other reasons Jesus asks questions? How can you follow Jesus’ example of asking questions?

So, what’s the real question? It’s not “Why does God ask questions?” or “Why does Jesus ask questions?” It’s “How will I use questions to help my students love God?”

Ask your students a question. Today.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

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Tom Postema, math teacher at Christian Academy in Japan, Christian Reformed Japan Mission:
Questions are a great tool for helping my students increase their understanding and use of a biblical perspective. While studying the geometric and artistic concept of the vanishing point, we discussed the relationship between the vanishing point in works of art and the vanishing point in the real world. How? By responding to the question "What does the vanishing point in art tell you about God’s world?"

As a result of our discussion, one student wrote: “Colossians 1:16-17…tells about God…who holds the world together.” I felt good about this. I plan to keep asking questions.

Answer: Because it’s doable. You already know how to ask questions. Your students already know how to answer questions. And you don’t have to have all the answers. You can start with the answers you have. I believe you have the expertise you need to start. Today. Right now. During your next class. Just ask a question. How about “How can we use what we are learning to serve others?”

Better answer: Because it works. Students increase their understanding and use of a biblical perspective when they consider questions like: “How can I be a wise steward?” “How can I bridge cultural differences?” “How can I use math to make sense of God's world?”

Need some testimonials? Read on.

• Student: “Questions challenge me to think in new ways and help me be a discerning thinker, to use a biblical perspective.”
  
• Elementary teacher: “My students have learned to apply a biblical perspective to course content. I ask them questions like, ‘How can I show that I obey God?’”
  
• Middle school teacher: “In my classes I ask questions like, ‘How do authors help us see truth?’ Using questions like this helps my students see God’s will in all that they do and understand that God’s Word applies to all subjects.”
  
• High school teacher: “Using questions has helped my students think through a biblical perspective and apply it to course content and to their lives.”

Need more reasons to use questions? Here’s a starter list:

• Using questions helps your students’ connect course content, their lives, and a biblical perspective.
  
• Using questions is a time-tested teaching practice.
  
• Using questions is fun.
  
• Using questions is something you can do right now.

So, what’s the real question? Well, it’s not “Why use questions?” Instead, it’s “How will I use questions today to help my students understand and use a biblical perspective?”

Remember: Success is your students increasing their understanding and use of a biblical perspective by responding sincerely to the questions you ask. Success is not you dispensing answers to your students or even you asking your students questions. But for your students to sincerely respond to a questions, you need to ask questions.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

Imagine.

Imagine Christian school students routinely asking each other...
What do you mean by...? How do you know? How does the Bible help? How can I respond?

Imagine Christian school teachers routinely asking students...
How can math help us learn about God and His creation? How do cultures affect/reflect worldviews? How do we balance needs and caretaking? How can we use our learning to serve?

Imagine Christian school teachers routinely asking each other...
What questions should students ask? What questions should we ask students? How can we help students increase their understanding and use of a biblical perspective? How can we achieve our mission?

Imagine Christian school principals routinely asking teachers...
What’s our mission? What’s our definition of mission achievement? What’s our current level of mission achievement? How can we close the gap between current and targeted levels of mission achievement?

Imagine a Christian school community routinely asking...
What happens at a Christ-centered school?

Imagine this happening...
How would this affect the efforts of Christian schools to equip students to impact the world for Christ? Questions are powerful. And in a real sense, we become our questions.

Imagine the impact.

To answer that question, let’s start with another question: What happens at a Christ-centered school?

• Students and staff ask good questions.
  
• Students and staff respond to good questions.

So, what makes a good question good? A good question:

• Grabs attention
  
• Requires upper-level thinking
  
• Allows a variety of acceptable answers
  
• Connects course content, life, and a biblical perspective
  
• Is Essential—universal, timeless, at the heart of learning
  
• Is Student/staff-friendly—short, with developmentally appropriate vocabulary

Want a memory tool for these 6 characteristics? Here it is: GRACES. A good question GRACES understanding.

What’s an example of a good question?: What’s wrong with the world?

Use these 6 characteristics (GRACES) to develop a good question. Ask your students a good question. Today.

*For a set of discussion questions you can use to further reflect on this blog entry, click here.

At Christian Academy in Japan, we teach from a biblical perspective. We model Christ and talk with students about Christ. We provide students with Bible classes, chapels, and service opportunities. Why? Because we want our students to understand and use a biblical perspective.

An additional way we do this is by asking students worldview questions:
Throughout the year, students discuss these worldview questions in the context of their studies, learn what the Bible says, and demonstrate their understanding and application of a biblical perspective through posters, PowerPoint presentations, projects, and essays.

Says one student, “Talking about questions has helped me define why I am a Christian. Questions challenge me to think in new ways and help me be a discerning thinker, to use a biblical perspective.”

Adds one teacher, “In my classes I ask questions like, ‘How do authors help us see truth?’ Using questions like this helps my students see God’s will in all that they do and understand that God’s Word applies to all subjects. The more students discuss the questions, the more they are able to look beyond the surface of what they are studying to see what God is calling them to be and do.”

What are some questions you can ask your students?

1. How is Jesus the purpose of my life and learning?
   
2. What’s true?
   
3. What’s wrong?
   
4. How does this fit with other parts of God’s creation?
   
5. How does God’s Word help me see?
   
6. What would happen if…?
   
7. How can I live, learn, and serve with others?
   
8. How can I communicate the truth in love?
   
9. How can I use my learning to serve?
   
10. How can I make healthy decisions?

Use questions to equip your students to impact the world for Christ. Today.