Reflection on the Readings ‘The Art of Questioning’ and ‘We have found the Wonders of Difference’
[The author’s name]
Abstract
Questioning’ and ‘The Wonders of Difference’. The reflection will be given under a personal perspective, since it derives from the personal impacts formed upon the readings of both texts.
Key Words: art of viewing things, art of questioning
Reflection on the Readings ‘The Art of Questioning’ and ‘We have found the Wonders of Difference’
[The author’s name]
Both texts are on the field of art. The first text titled ‘We have found the Wonders of Difference’ prepares the readers with its title to read about some wonders. Both my imagination and curiosity were equally intrigued from the introduction of this text. Greene who wrote this text in 1994, talks about a theme which is of high importance in the educational field and in life in general. If we accept the belief that there are different ways of looking at things, then which of these ways could be taught to people? Another question arising from the observations of Greene is, in my opinion, the criterion upon which some ways ought to be chosen in order to be taught to people and some others should not. Although I have always felt that there are various ways of looking at things, Green’s text made me realize that this variety of ways is not always approachable to people. People need to be taught in order to think in a broadening way. I believe that education is the field which carries a burden of responsibility, as far as the way,s in which reality is approached, are concerned. I realized that Art is one of the educational fields which can significantly contribute to making people better viewers of things. Keeping in mind what Greene says about Jean –Paul Sartre and John Dewey, I have come to agree with their beliefs in the importance of looking at things. There seems to be a line which is not so easily distinct, which separates one common thing from a masterpiece of art. If people are not taught to learn to trust their instincts and their passions, then their freedom is automatically limited. And if people are brought up within an environment which limitates their freedom, then it is very difficult to learn to trust or even simply follow their imagination. Therefore, it is important that art is not only taught in schools. It is even more important to make sure that art is taught in such a way that liberates people from their hesitations, their common way of thinking and their social norm which imprisons them in an expected, conventional way of thinking. If our society wishes to bring up free minds which have the ability to think in innovative ways, then education ought to serve this wish in a highly competitive and attentive way and method.
The second text titled ‘The art of Questioning’ focuses on the importance of teaching people, regardless of their age, to ask any kind of questions they may want. It emphasizes on one aspect of questioning which is mostly neglected. There seems to be great emphasis on making people feel free to ask questions in case they do not understand something or they need any kind of clarifications. But one of the most important aspects of questions is the nature and characteristics of questions. Wolf emphasizes on the fact that questions ought to be characterized by specific traits in order to serve their main role. The main role of any question is the desirable knowledge. People need to ask questions in order to enrich their horizons and clarify any vague ideas they may have. At the same time, people also need to make sure that others have realized what they have meant to say. It is this double sided interaction which takes place within any communicational frame which makes questions, even the rhetoric ones, and a necessary element in the communicational procedure. Therefore, questions are a very important educational tool. But if teachers fall in the trap of asking the same, repetitive questions, or they do not pay attention to the nature of their questions, then the procedure of questioning falls short and does not serve its initial and main goal. There is an art in questioning. There is a specific kind of art in every aspect of the human behavior and this is why art ought to be applied in the questioning procedure as well. The goals of each question and the audience to which each question addresses are the most basic characteristics of each questioning procedure.
Conclusion
Both texts highlight main fields of the educational procedure and emphasize on the need for art to be widely implemented in all fields of life. Art should be applied to the way people think so that innovation and new effective methods of dealing with arising difficulties can be found and applied.
References
Greene, M. (2001) We have found the wonders of difference In Variations on a blue quitar (pp. 186-191). New York : Teachers College Press
Wolf, D.P. (1987, Winter) The art of questioning Academic Connections, 1-7
