Start with a question - even with an elearning course

Whenever I'm teaching a class, making a presentation, or facilitating a discussion, I always begin with a question. Why?

Questions are engaging. You can’t hide from them as easily as you can while a facilitator runs through the learning objectives in the first couple of minutes of a workshop you’re attending, or by clicking the next button while skimming through an online course’s opening screens of introductory material.

A few years ago, I was leading a team of instructional designers and two of them were discussing an online course they were working on. It was a short, professional development piece and they were going through the learning objectives and talking about what to include in the opening screens.

Being an involved, hands-on kind of manager, I joined their discussion and suggested that they start the course with a question. A hard question. One that would challenge the learners.

They were aghast and queried how could I justify asking such a question at the start of a course when the students might not know the answer, because we hadn’t provided them with any content yet.

Aristotle’s empty vessel theory again (see: Content isn't king)!

I explained that my idea behind this approach is that if students can’t answer the opening question, give them well-crafted feedback that explains that they will learn the answer to this and other such questions by doing this course, which should pique their curiosity and get them engaged from the start.

If the students know the answer, they are given positive reinforcement in the feedback and receive a dopamine hit for their achievement, which should motivate them too.

It’s a technique that works well for novices and more experienced learners alike.

Questions at the start of a training course get people engaged. Learners can’t ignore them as easily as they can a screen of bullet points or pretending to listen to a trainer drone on. Learners have to put their thinking caps on right from the get go. There’s no mindless behaviour, such as repeatedly clicking a next button.

Learners should be eager and at their most attentive when they begin, so why immediately turn them off with some boring minutia that we educators think is necessary, but that doesn’t really add much to the learning experience?

If asked carefully and thoughtfully, an opening question sets the scene for what will follow. If the students know the answer, the feedback gives them a nice pat on the back via positive reinforcement. If they don’t know the answer, the feedback outlines the learning journey they’re about to commence.

Either way, starting with a question is a winner.