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The Global Insight

How do you think of good discussion questions?

Author

James Olson

Updated on February 09, 2026

Below you’ll find four tips to help you write questions that accomplish these goals:

  1. Ask Open-Ended Questions. Strong open-ended questions guide our thoughts without expecting specific answers.
  2. Think about Community.
  3. More Questions = More Participation.
  4. Offer Incentive (Grade the Discussion)

What is a thinking question?

Have you ever thought about what makes for stimulating critical thinking questions? To us, such questions inspire thinking beyond our assumptions and opinions. They take us deep into exploration, inquiry, and dreaming big. They’re all about asking “Why” and “How” and “What if …”

What is a discussion question?

A discussion question that is truly great is challenging and inspires students to think critically and respond with well thought out answers. These questions are a framework for creating prompts that encourage inquiry, challenge students to think bigger and connect the classroom to real world ideas and events.

What are the different types of discussion?

These different types of discussions serve different purposes, are useful in different phases of a lesson or unit, and have different characteristics depending on their purpose.

  • Discussion Type Summary. Initial Ideas Discussions.
  • Building Understanding Discussion. Purposes/Goals.
  • Consensus Discussion.
  • Consensus Discussion.

    What are the 6 questions?

    The method is about asking the questions starting with who, what, where, when, how and why. And How and Where and Who. Six Questions is one of the most general while most effective analytical techniques. The method is also known as Five Ws and one H, Six Ws or Six Servants.

    How to ask questions that prompt critical thinking?

    Plan your questions in advance, utilise Bloom’s Taxonomy to identify whether they are likely to prompt, “higher order thinking”. 6. Creation / Synthesis: the ability to put facts together into a coherent whole, or, creatively achieve a new understanding by linking facts together 5.

    How to answer multiple questions in a discussion?

    Often discussion questions can run long and may actually be multiple questions in one. When answering, you will want to answer all the parts of the question. Look for conjunctions, such as the word “and,” that may be breaking the question into multiple thoughts.

    What makes a good topic for a discussion?

    When you can clearly envision the purpose of the discussion, it is easier to formulate stimulating questions and an appropriate strategy for facilitating the discussion. Communicating your objectives to your students, moreover, helps to focus their thinking and motivate participation.

    Are there filler words in a discussion question?

    They might seem like filler words, but they are not. Every word in a discussion question is a clue to the answer.