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Using questions to guide your research...
Consider this...
topic + search facts = report
The ideas and information are not yours. You are simply reporting out factual information. You may learn something new, but you are simply reproducing what you find.
- Who invented the helicopter?
- What are the symptoms of post-tramatic stress syndrome?
- When was the cell phone first introduced to the public?
- Where can hand guns be used for hunting?
- How were helicopters used in Vietnam?
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On the other hand...
problem + inquiry investigation = research
The nature of your inquiry depends on the question(s) asked. The question asked will suggest personal connections and generate unique answers.
- Who is the most powerful man in America?
- Which treatments for cancer are the most humane?
- When should youth be allowed to vote in federal elections?
- What is the effect of technology on teen literacy?
- How do athletics impact student achievement?
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What is an essential question?
Open-ended
no simple or single right answer
addressed through reason rather than opinion/belief
Thought-provoking
unique, often counterintuitive or controversial
answers through problem solving (not found, but invented)
generate new questions
Universal
addresss fundamental issues
interdisiciplinary concepts, central to greater understanding
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Developing an essential question....
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Who?
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Substitution
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Who else…? Who might…? NOT Who did…?
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What?
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Predict (hypothesis posed) Modify/Magnify/Minimize Eliminate/Reverse/Alternative
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What if…? NOT What is…?
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When? Which? Where?
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Compare and Contrast
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Which one…? Here or there? Now or later?
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Why?
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Cause and Effect
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Why do things happen the way they do?
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How?
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Propose Solution
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Which?
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Evidence-based Decision
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Should?
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Moral/Ethical/Practical reasoning
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