For years I have been talking about writing a book about “best questions” as opposed to best practices. It has always amazed me that there are whole conferences built around so-called best practices which seem to just impose them independent of any consideration of context. Now, I fully admit that there are actions, strategies, and techniques which are research based and have proven effectiveness, but all too often the research subjects and settings are far different from the new context where they are presumed to be “best.” This frequently leads to lack of buy-in and half hearted implementation.
I believe more in strategic questions as the way to identify solutions. Fran Peavey, not the originator, but really the guru of the term, says that with strategic questioning:
1. New information is synthesized from that which is already known. (Your students and staff are smart, why not build on their strengths to find the right solution?)
2. Ownership of the new information is with the person who is answering the question. (The ownership should not be with some “expert” dictating what you should do.)
3. Energy for change is generated in the communication process. (This is the cool part of answering the questions when you really start to get excited about what comes next.)
4. The answer to a powerful question is not always immediately known but will emerge over time. (As you know more, your answer changes and strengthens so that when you know better, you can do better.)
5. Emotion sometimes accompanies the answering of a powerful question and this is part of releasing the blocks to new ideas. (Gotta get down to the real stuff and the hard truths.)
Consider this: perhaps your school recently conducted a school climate survey and found out that students perceive a more significant bullying problem than the adults. (A pretty common result, by the way.) Your school could put in place any number of “best practices” to prevent bullying. There are lots out there and they might very well make a difference.
Or they might not. Or they might for a little while and then things will go back to the way they were.
That doesn’t mean anything is wrong with the approach you chose, but rather, that the approach may not have matched your strengths and your needs, and, therefore, not been your best answer because you didn’t actually ask yourself any strategic questions.
A Strategic Questioning Approach
On the other hand, using a strategic questioning approach, pushes the envelope beyond simple solutions. Like the 1990 song by C+C Music Factory (pretty sure I had it on cassette), strategic questions are about “Things That Make You Go Hmmmm.” In the case above, rather than following a simple “we have a problem, let’s find a solution” sequence, the school (maybe with the help of a great consultant?) would spend some time asking themselves
- why there is a difference between student and adult results,
- asking the students for more information about what it looks like, where it happens, to whom, and when, and
- reflecting on the purpose and effect of whatever they have already put in place to address the situation.
Then, and only then, would they move to a solution which reflects their specific needs, their specific strengths and capacity, and their specific context. (Now, when I’m feeling really feisty, I ask the adults where bullying happens most often in their building. After they produce a list of locations, I ask them why they continue to let it happen, because if they can say where, then they are choosing not to stop it. Oh, but that’s another post for another time.)
In some ways, it’s a subtle difference in process, but the difference in outcomes is measurable. Taking the time to ask these kinds of questions creates the opportunity for truly custom interventions which are not only far more likely to work, but also far more likely to have a positive impact on school culture (in this case) over time.
To learn more about strategic questioning, I highly recommend this terrific article by Fran Peavey. And to learn more about how I can help your school or organization ask and answer the strategic questions which will help you grow, contact me here.