Register by April 1 for Harvard course
Our online course, offered through the Harvard Graduate School of Education, takes place from April 12 to May 2. Teaching Students to Ask Their Own Questions: Best Practices in the Question Formulation Technique is RQI’s flagship course, and it’s a great option for educators who want to dive into using the Question Formulation Technique as a way to boost student-centered inquiry and curiosity.
The deadline to register is April 1 | Learn more
Libraries, information literacy, and questions
The library is a powerful space where learners can engage in research, explore interests, and develop intellectual independence. Librarians play an important role in guiding learners through a complex and often overwhelming information landscape — one where asking questions about issues, facts, sources, and more is central to navigating the terrain. Here are some posts about using the QFT in the library:
How Questioning Can Drive Arguments, Productive Debate & Information Literacy Among Students (EBSCO)
Using the Question Formulation Technique to Rebrand Libraries (Teaching Channel)
My Favorite Grab-and-Go Places for Finding Primary Sources to Use with the QFT (Right Question Institute)
My Ah-Ha Moments with the Question Formulation Technique (Right Question Institute)
An Equitable and Authentic Approach to Teaching and Learning (Right Question Institute)
Online event: developing research questions
This free event, hosted by the Metropolitan New York Library Council and the Brooklyn Public Library, will explore how the QFT can support students, clients, library patrons, and others to develop research questions that align with their personal needs — and to do so with confidence. Katy Connolly, RQI’s education project coordinator, and Connie Williams, a veteran teacher librarian and author, will lead this presentation on April 19.
Engaging voters in primaries
Starting this spring and continuing through the summer, most states will hold primary elections. This is a good opportunity to talk to people about issues they name as important and to build people’s motivation and determination to vote. You can use our free “Why Vote?” resources to get started.
What we’re reading
Here are a few stories that caught our attention this month.
- Need a pep talk from kindergartners? A new hotline gives you options for joy — KQED’s MindShift
- Student Podcast Challenge — NPR
- New fire insurance map research guide available — Worlds Revealed: Geography & Maps at the Library of Congress
- A school created a homeless shelter in the gym and it paid off in the classroom — The Hechinger Report
Upcoming learning opportunities
Starting April 6: Teaching Students to ASK Their Own Geo-Inquiry Questions. In partnership with the National Geographic Society.
Starting April 12: Teaching Students to Ask Their Own Questions: Best Practices in the Question Formulation Technique online course. Registration deadline April 1.
April 19: Info Lit 101, Part 1: Developing Research Questions.
Your contributions make a difference
Your support makes a difference. When you support the Right Question Institute, you help bring free resources to teachers and schools. You also help equip people with skills and strategies for participating in decisions and advocating for themselves, their families, and their communities.
Thank you for contributing to a more inclusive educational system, society, and democracy, where all people, even those furthest from power, can develop the skills and confidence to ask questions and make their voices heard about issues important to them.