| Study circle questions help participants elaborate on
the text and think more deeply about the issue. They also enable the leader to move the
conversation along and to focus it on key points and issues. Some
questions that are helpful for focusing the discussion on almost any issue are:
Questions to Start the Discussion
 | What experiences have you, or people you know, had with this issue? |
| How is this an issue or problem in your community or organization? |
| Why do you think it's such a problem? How does it affect you
personally? |
Questions About Key Points
| What is at the crux of this issue? |
| Could you give an example or describe a personal experience to
illustrate that point? |
Questions That Encourage the Expression of a
Diversity of Views
| What do you find most persuasive about that point of view? |
| Does anyone have a different view? |
| What do people who disagree with that view say? |
| What are the strongest arguments against what you just said? |
| What is it about that position that you just cannot live with? |
Questions About Values
| What are the most important concerns that underlie your views? |
| What do you think people who hold that opinion care deeply about? |
| What experiences or beliefs might lead decent and caring people to
hold that view which is so different from your own? |
| Are there any common values, concerns, or ideas that unite all or
most members of our study circle, despite different views on the issue? |
Questions That Lead Toward Next Steps
| With what approach, if any, would most of this group agree? |
| What is already being done in the community to deal with this
problem? |
| What are some first steps in dealing with this problem? |
| What might we do about this problem? |
Source: Guidelines for Creating Effective Study Circle Material,
Study Circles Resource Center, Pomfret CT, 1994. |