If you–like many–are wondering how to come up with homework assignments that challenge students on their terms, here’s a really simple tip: go with open-ended prompts or questions.
This is of course an old trick. It has been tried, tested, and is highly recommended. This, however, does not mean that there are no “bad open-ended questions.” Neither is this a call to do away with simpler questions. A simple online search will you give you a number of examples of poor open-ended questions, or poor uses of open-ended questions. Be sure to avoid those pitfalls.
This post is a reminder that well-timed, well-framed open-ended questions can really spice up learning. It can enhance students’ learning experience–and by extension, your teaching experience, too. Perhaps the best feature of a good open-ended question is that it is highly inclusive; it works for students of different intelligence and competency levels. It also gives teachers the opportunity to get to know their students as thinkers.
Here are a few more benefits of a good open-ended question:
- It can make students feel heard
- It gives teachers the chance to offer thoughtful comments on students’ answers
- It can showcase new aspects of students’ personalities
- It is a great way to assess students’ ability as writers, and this in turn will enable you to identify students who might need some help or guidance with their writing and thinking
- An extension of the previous point: it also helps teachers devise other tasks and assignments to improve students’ writing and thinking skills
Essay Writing Tips and Help 