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One of our main goals as teachers should be to build students’ independence — in other words, to work ourselves out of a job. The more we do for our students and the less they do for themselves, the more we perpetuate a cycle where they become helpless and dependent on us. One way to reverse that cycle is to answer fewer questions from our students. Instead, we can respond with questions that prompt them to find the answers themselves.

Here’s an example: If we’ve given students a set of instructions in writing, and a few minutes later they ask a question that can easily be answered by looking at those instructions, rather than giving them the answer, we can redirect with a question like, “Where might you find that information?” or “Where on the handout could you look for that?” This teaches students that the teacher is not the sole provider of information and that there are resources available to help them help themselves.

Although I have heard this advice before, I was reminded of it during an interview I did with Connie Hamilton on episode 215 of the podcast, where she shared 17 excellent tips to make group work go more smoothly. The tips came from her 2023 book, Hacking Group Work. Here are a few other examples she gave of how we can answer student questions with questions: 

Student: “We finished A and B. What do we do next?”
Teacher: “Where might you look to review the next steps?”

Student: “How many examples do we need to include?”
Teacher: “What resource could help you answer that question?”

Student: “What should we do when we’re finished?”
Teacher: “What is our task completion routine?”

For that last one to work, obviously, you would need to already have a “task completion routine” in place. I think the more we practice putting the onus back on our students, the more likely we are to come up with systems and routines that allow us to hand the responsibility back to students so they can problem-solve on their own.

Here are a few more of the kinds of questions that could all be answered with some version of “Where could you find that information?”:

“What are we doing today?”

“What’s today’s date?”

“When is this due?”

“Do we need our book today?”

Many teachers post the answers to questions like these somewhere in the classroom or in some kind of digital space, and then we get annoyed when the kids don’t access that information. It’s possible that a big reason they don’t avail themselves of that information is because someone, possibly you, is spoon-feeding it to them.

I was absolutely guilty of this when I was in the classroom. I remember feeling like I was constantly racing around trying to meet everyone’s needs; I used to think of them as baby birds in a nest, with all of their beaks open, waiting for the mother bird to feed them. If I had been better about redirecting some student questions instead of answering all of them, I definitely would have had a calmer, more well-run classroom. My students would have been more self-sufficient, turning to themselves and their peers first before running to me. And I would have been way less haggard by the end of every school day. 

I think the reason I defaulted to this behavior was because it was faster to just answer the question than make them find the answer themselves. It’s the same logic I used when my kids were small: Even though I knew it was better to let them help with laundry, for example, I usually just did it myself because it was quicker and the result was neater. But that short-term efficiency comes at a long-term cost. It keeps us working harder than we need to and prevents students from developing the habits that will make them more independent.

One important note that Connie makes about this strategy and that I fully agree with: When you throw these questions back at your students, your tone of voice can make or break the outcome. If a student says “When is this due?” and you ask, “Where could you find that information?” in a sarcastic or nasty tone, you’ve added a layer of humiliation to the exchange that isn’t necessary. You’re just kind of being a jerk. If you want to keep it light and playful, you can do that with a smile, like you’re giving them a little nudge, or even replace it with a statement like, “Look on your sheet.” The goal is to empower the student, to reduce their dependency on you, not embarrass them.

So the next time a student asks you a question, pause for just a second. Instead of answering right away, see if you can reply with something that prompts them to find the answer themselves. It may take a little longer at first, but over time it will save you energy and help your students become the self-sufficient learners we want them to be.

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