The following are typical questions that may come up in a Paideia Seminar:

1.  Clarification Questions:

·        What do you mean by ______?

·        What is your main point?

·        How does ____ relate to ____?

·        Could you put that another way?

·        What do you think is the main issue here?

·        Let me see if I understand you; do you mean _____ or _____?

·        Jane, would you summarize in your own words what Richard has said...Richard, is that what you meant?

·        Could you give me an example?

·        Would this be an example: ____?

·        Could you explain that further?

·        Could you expand upon that?

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2.  Questions About the Initial Question or Issue:

·        How can we find out?

·        What does this question assume?

·        Would ____ put the question differently?

·        How could someone settle this question?

·        Can we break this question down at all?

·        Is the question clear? Do we understand it?

·        Is this question easy or hard to answer? Why?

·        Does this question ask us to evaluate something?

·        Do we all agree that this is the question?

·        To answer this question, what questions would we have to answer first?

·        I'm not sure I understand how your are interpreting the main question at issue.

·        Is this the same issue as ____?

·        How would ____ put this issue?

·        Why is this question important?

·        Does this question lead to other questions or issues?

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3.  Assumption Probes:

·        What are you assuming?

·        What is Karen assuming?

·        What could we assume instead?

·        You seem to be assuming ____. Do I understand you correctly?

·        All of your reasoning depends on the idea that ____. Why have you based your reasoning on ____ rather than ____?

·        You seem to be assuming ____. How would you justify taking this for granted?

·        Is it always the case? Why do you think the assumption holds here?

·        Why would someone make this assumption?

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4.  Reason and Evidence Probes:

·        What would be an example?

·        How do you know?

·        Why do you think that is true?

·        Do you have any evidence for that?

·        What difference does that make?

·        What are your reasons for saying that?

·        What other information do we need?

·        Could you explain your reasons to us?

·        Are these reasons adequate?

·        Can you explain how you logically got from ____ to ____?

·        Do you see any difficulties with their reasoning here?

·        Why did you say that?

·        What led you to that belief?

·        How does that apply to this case?

·        What would change your mind?

·        But is that good evidence to believe that?

·        Is there reason to doubt that evidence?

·        Who is in a position to know if that is so?

·        What would you say to someone who said ____?

·        Can someone else give evidence to support that response?

·        By what reasoning did you come to that conclusion?

·        How could we find out whether that is true?

5.  Origin or Source Questions:

·        Where did you get this idea?

·        Do your friends or family feel the same way?

·        Have you been influenced by media?

·        Have you always felt this way?

·        What caused you to feel this way?

·        Did you originate this idea or get it from someone else?

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6.  Implication and Consequence Probes:

·        What are you implying by that?

·        When you say ____, are you implying ____?

·        But if that happened, what else would happen as a result? Why?

·        What effect would that have?

·        Would that necessarily happen or only probably happen?

·        What is the probability of this result?

·        What is an alternative?

·        If this and this are the case, then what else must also be true?

·        If we say that this is unethical, how about that?

7.  Viewpoint Questions:

·        You seem to be approaching this issue from ____ perspective. Why have you chosen this rather than that perspective?

·        How would other groups/types of people respond? Why? What would influence them?

·        How could you answer the objection that ____ would make?

·        What might someone who believed ____ think?

·        Can/did anyone see this another way?

·        What would someone who disagrees say?

·        What is an alternative?

·        How are Ken's and Roxanne's ideas alike? Different?

(Paul, Richard, Critical Thinking: How to Prepare Students for a Rapidly Changing World, 1993)

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