This document discusses essential questions, which are open-ended questions that go to the core of an issue and can be debated for a long time without definitive answers. Essential questions engage critical thinking skills rather than just recalling facts. The document provides examples of essential questions and compares them to more straightforward questions. It also outlines traits of essential questions and discusses how to incorporate them into learning at home and school to promote deeper understanding. The concept of essential questions was developed by education theorists in the late 1980s to enhance student understanding.

1. Essential Questions
By Debbie Hilderbrand

2. Examples of Essential Questions
How could the Civil War have What kind of person
changed had Abraham Lincoln should I be friends with?
been assassinated during the first What kind of friend should
month of his presidency? I be?

3. What are Essential Questions?
Essential Questions are questions that go to the heart of the matter or
points to the very core of the issue. They are questions that recur
throughout one’s life as they can be debated for a long time.
These are questions that engage learners and follow the premises of
“Bloom’s Taxonomy”. They are not answered by simple answers.
They require new original thoughts instead of just a collection of
facts.

4. Traits of an Essential Question
There are six traits or components of an essential question:
• The question asks something of importance – makes the person
have deep thoughts
• The question makes one make a choice or form a decision – need to
gather information and evaluate it
• The question can not be answered by a “yes” or “no” – requires an
original answer
• The question and answer changes with time – problems change
with time so the solutions will as well
• The question may be unanswerable
• The question causes some frustration because there will be
no definite answer – reader needs to use critical thinking
skills and not just memorize facts

5. Comparison of Regular and Essential
Questions
Regular-non thought provoking Essential Question
questions
• What did Abraham Lincoln do as • What qualities did Abraham
president? Lincoln have that contributed to
his success?
• What types of things could make
our internet experience not safe? • How would your life be different if
you didn’t have the internet?
• What was it like to live in the
fictional town of St. Petersburg, • Compare the life in St. Petersburg,
MO during the time of Tom MO and another town in the
Sawyer? Midwest during the time of Tom
Sawyer?

6. How to incorporate this theory
Incorporating this theory into our everyday language, it is essential that
this begins at home. Parents should begin asking these kinds of
questions of their children at a young age so that the children will be
familiar and used to finding answers that invoke their thought
processes so that they can create an answer.
If this process begins at home, it will be that much easier to incorporate
essential questions in the classroom. Education is a multifaceted
process. Not only are items needing to be memorized, but
education requires people to think outside the box to be able to ask
and answer essential questions.

7. How to incorporate this theory
If one is to be able to use previous knowledge and experiences to
formulate thoughts then one must be provided opportunities to
research and have life experiences that will help them be able to
ponder questions of importance and life relevance.
Parents, Teachers, and Students need to work together to create an
atmosphere of learning and a desire to continue learning throughout
life. Too often parents don’t have the time or don’t take the time to
spend time with their children to help them with their learning. To
truly learn, it needs to take place 24/7 not just from 7:30AM-3:30PM
daily.

8. Development of the theory
This is a theory that was formulated by Mr. Grant Wiggins and Jay
McTighe in the late 80’s. They have written books and formulated a
curriculum that is called Understanding by Design. Essential
Questions are truly the core of this curriculum.
This curriculum’s primary goal is to develop and enhance the student’s
understanding of what is being taught. As students understand
more of the concepts then teachers can better assess them on what
they have learned. It encompasses a curriculum design that begins
with goal and assessment formation. Then after that is developed,
then a teacher can move into more of the classroom activities and
techniques to have the children better learn and understand the
concepts.

9. Bibliography
• n.d. <http://tnellen.com/alt/essential.html>.
• Connection, Technology. Dare to Differentiate. 1995.
<http://daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com/file/view/essential.pdf>.
• McKenzie, Jamie. Essential Questions Vol 1/No 5/March/2005. March
2005. <http://questioning.org/mar05/essential.html>.
• Understanding by Design. n.d.
<http://authenticeducation.org/ubd/ubd.lasso>.
• Vol 6/No 1/September 1996. n.d.
<http://www.fno.org/sept96/questions.html>.
• 150+ Essential Questions for Math. n.d.
<http://www.derry.k12.nh.us/dvs/staff/cmccallum/imagescurric/questio
ns.jpg>.