Answering Questions
Writing essays that fulfill the objectives
Core Process—QEDS
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Look at the question
Think it through using the elements
Think it through in terms of the discipline
Keep the standards in mind at all times.
Pitfalls
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Don’t fall back on usual patterns
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Jump right in and answer
Immediately begin looking for information to
include
Have no idea so wait until last minute and write
whatever comes to mind regardless of its
relevance
Reframing the question
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Ask what the question is asking for, e.g.,
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Compare/Contrast
Evaluate
Define
Discuss
Identify
Ask what would answer it fully—consider the
standards of critical thinking.
First step
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Analyze the question using systems thinking
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One-system
No-system
Multiple-system
What is the meaning of a system for Nosich?
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Organized field or area of study
Recognized theory
Recognized authority
One-system
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Requires you to use knowledge from only one
field or knowledge base
Only one right answer exists—either you
know it or you don’t
Based on the “facts” of the field
Often mathematical or scientific
No-system
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Often opinion- or reflection-driven
Does not require critical thinking
In classrooms can be confused with multiplesystem questions
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Can require facts and reasoning to support the
answer
Often need a system to explain one’s preferences
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Preferences themselves are not system-based
Analyzing the systems underlying the preferences would require
multiple systems
Multiple-system
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More complex than one- and no-system
Require more than one system to answer
Facts need to be interpreted through various
viewpoints and contexts using logic and
reasoning, e.g.,
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Sociology: Historical, Political, Socio-cultural
Literature: Critical theory, Historical, Intertextual
Design: Color, Proportion, Finances
A Final Note
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Not every question requires you to go around
the entire circle of elements
Consider which elements “jump out”
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May need only to look at
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The concepts inherent in the question
The information required to answer fully
Implications and consequences
You must critically think and decide which are
important to consider.
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: Define the following terms:
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1. Return on investment
2. Bull market
3. Bear market
A: One-system: They either are defined
correctly or they are not.
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: How fairly did Jefferson treat Native
Americans in the “Declaration of
Independence?”
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A: Multiple-system
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1. Define concept “fair”
2. Analyze and interpret D of I
3. Make interpretations and draw conclusions
based on your sense of (a) morals and (b) values
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: Imagine yourself in a school from which technology has
suddenly disappeared. What unexpected difficulties would
you encounter?
A: Multiple-system
 1. Define concept “technology”
 2. Define concept “difficulty”
 3. Additional systems to analyze based on personal
perspective
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A. convenience
B. importance
C. efficiency
D. comfort
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: What color do you want to paint your
room?
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A: No-system. Merely a personal preference.
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: Is capital punishment ever a justifiable
sentence? Why? Or why not?
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A: Seems to be no-system
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Just asks for your opinion but really wants a CT
answer using multiple systems.
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: At what point in Jonathan Swift’s “A
Modest Proposal” did you first become aware
that he was using irony?
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A: One-system based on defining the concept “irony”
and merely reflecting when you noticed Swift uses it.
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: (Asked during a job interview) What is the
greatest strength you bring to this position?
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A: Multiple-system:
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1. Determine what job requires.
2. Analyze strengths and choose one.
3. Determine what would best impress the
interviewer.
Practice evaluating questions
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Q: A friend has asked your advice about which math
course would be most helpful in everyday life.
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A: Multiple-system:
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Analyze information from multiple math systems.
Consider what the concepts “helpful” and
“everyday” mean.
Consider what values you place on each course.
Where did this student go wrong?