Questions Formulation Technique

Research is question driven. One of the ways to develop questions is with the 4 steps of the Question Formulation Technique: Initial Forcus, Producing Questions, Improving Questions, and Prioritizing Questions.

1- Initial Focus -- this is the subject or topic about which the questions are being made
2- Producing Questions -- make as many questions as possible without judgement or discussion
3- Improving Questions -- categorize all the questions into groups; produce a question for each group that would include all the questions in that particular group
4- Prioritizing Questions -- rank questions from first to last

Initial Focus -- Figs

Producing Questions -- What are the parts of a fig? What is a fig? What soil requirements are there for figs? Why do I want to eat them? Why are figs worth growing? Are they worth taking up valuable garden space? What soil ph do they need? What kind of fertilizer is necessary to grow figs? How long have they been around? What is the origin of figs? Are there poisonous figs? Will figs become a common fruit? Can figs grow big as apples? What nutritional value do figs have? Are they seedy? How did Fig Newtons get started? Did Isaac Newton eat figs? What kinds of figs exist? What kinds grow in Virginia? What kinds of fig stories are told? Do storytellers have stories about figs? Is there mythology about figs? How to figs compare to other fruit, nutrition-wise?  Taste-wise? What folklore surrounding figs? How do people buy figs? How many middle school students have eaten fresh figs? How many adults have eaten fresh figs?

Improving Questions  -- I categorized by grouping questions above in the same color; the improved question color corresponds to the color group above.
4--What is the future for figs?
1--What is the agricultural description of figs?
3--What stories and symbolism surround figs?
2--What is the origin and history of figs?

Prioritizing the Questions  -- (see numbers above)

The Question Formulation Technique would be a good way to start the question process for research. It guides the researcher to producing beginning questions that can lead to other questions. Sometimes it is difficult to know where to begin with a big project....QFT helps get the ball rolling, or in this case gets the fig rolling.