Weighing-up Questions - May 2025

As we head into exam season, schools become focused, rightly so, on answers. For students, this is the time when their knowledge, recall and understanding are tested and rewarded. It's a culmination of months, sometimes years, of preparation and learning. Answers matter. Results matter. And in this context, it's easy to believe that answers are all that matter.

But this term, while we support students to demonstrate what they know, can we also take the opportunity to pause and reflect on what we might be unintentionally reinforcing, not just for students, but for staff, too? Because when education becomes solely about delivering the “right” answer, we risk devaluing the very thing that fuels growth, innovation, and deeper understanding.

The question.

In schools where results and quick responses rule the day, questions might seem like a luxury we can’t afford. Of course, sometimes simply giving a directive is absolutely the right thing to do. But let’s focus on those many occasions when taking a non-directive, exploratory approach could serve you better, demonstrating:

• A commitment to learning. Rather than presenting yourself as having all the answers, you’re approaching the situation as a lifelong learner: genuinely curious, thinking things through, and open to growing your understanding. This is vital in school leadership because education is constantly evolving. Whether it's changes in policy, pedagogy, technology, or the needs of your students and staff, a leader who continues to learn can adapt more effectively. It also models the mindset we want to see in our teams and students: that learning doesn’t stop at the top, it deepens.

• A strategic mindset. Rather than hunting for the quick fix, you’re stepping back to see the bigger picture. Asking thoughtful questions shows you're considering multiple angles, anticipating potential consequences, and exploring how today’s decisions shape tomorrow’s outcomes. It’s about resisting the urge to act reactively and instead approaching challenges with intention, patience, and perspective. Strategic questioning isn’t just about solving problems, it’s about choosing the right problems to solve, in the right way, at the right time.

• Valuing others. Rather than listening simply to respond, you’re listening to understand. By asking thoughtful questions, you show that you genuinely care about people’s perspectives, experiences, and ideas. This kind of deep listening engenders trust, encourages others to contribute, and strengthens relationships across your team. When people feel heard and valued, they’re more likely to engage meaningfully, collaborate openly, and bring their best thinking to the table, building a culture where everyone feels they matter.

• Professional integrity and innovation. Just as we would expect good teachers to intentionally access a range of questioning approaches with their students to maximise understanding (A guide to successful questioning), should we not also expect our leaders to do the same with their colleagues? In this Harvard Business Review article, "Good Leadership is about Asking Good Questions", the author emphasises that rather than providing immediate answers, leaders who create a culture of inquiry can navigate complex challenges more effectively

  and support their teams in uncovering valuable insights, driving innovation and adaptability for the greater good.

So if questions are so powerful, why aren’t we asking more of them?

Whether intentional or not, too often, the culture of a school actively discourages questioning. This doesn’t usually happen because leaders don’t care. It happens because psychological safety hasn't been intentionally cultivated, and without it, genuine inquiry withers and the hunt for the quickest solution dominates.

As leaders, we need to make it safe - and worthwhile - for people to ask questions in order to feel included, to learn, contribute and challenge without the threat of repercussion. We can work towards this by:

Modelling it:

Be the leader who says, “I don’t have all the answers, but I have a few questions.”

Reinforcing it:

When someone asks a thoughtful question, celebrate it. Don’t rush to the answer,

linger in the curiosity, “I’m so glad you’ve asked that question. It’s really making me

think.”

Coaching it:

Use coaching practices to help staff reflect, explore, and discover, asking questions like

“What’s the real challenge here for you?”, followed up with “And what else?”, as

popularised by Michael Bungay Stanier in his Bestseller The Coaching Habit

"Regardless of where you are in your career, you can't possibly be expected to know all the answers. But you are expected to know all the right questions." - Andrew Morrish

Supporting leaders in developing their coaching skills is a privilege and a pleasure. “Knowing the right question to ask” is often an area they worry about. Certainly, there is skill in choosing the right question, at the right time, in the right tone. But when we begin with the intention of being genuinely curious and present for the response, most

of the time the right question will come; this is so much more effective than simply powering through to the next pre-planned ‘good’ question.

One tip, however, is to become aware of your reason for asking each question. This simple framework can be helpful:

Source: The Power of Clarifying Questions – And How to Improve Team Conversations by Gustavo Razzetti

We encourage coaches to prepare for sessions by clearing their mind and tuning into their skills of active, deep listening; certainly not by planning a list of questions to ask! However, it can be helpful to get into the mindset of powerful inquiry by regularly reading through example questions, so the right question may emerge more readily in the moment. You’ll find some here: 50 Coaching Questions.

'The Book of Beautiful Questions' is also a wonderful resource offering thought-provoking but simple questions such as:

What one thing would make your day easier?

What do you wish you could do more of?

Why hasn’t this problem been solved already?

This book also demonstrates the power of regularly asking questions of oneself: "You can't do your job well unless you are able to ask, continuously and through various expressions, the following two questions: What is my job? and How might I do it better?" The point is made that as the nature of our work continually changes, we must continually ask "Given all the changes yesterday, what is my job today?". The author also encourages us to ponder, what if we trade the morning news or a “morning muse”?

Indeed, there is much to muse over in the current education landscape, providing a genuine opportunity to rethink and reshape the system. To navigate our paths as impactfully as possible, balancing moral purpose, professional outcomes and personal wellbeing, we need to slow down and create time to think.

At Leadership Edge, we’re deeply committed to helping school and trust leaders build a culture of inquiry, rooted in genuine care and curiosity. In support of this, we are thrilled to be launching our own set of purpose-driven questions in an independent longitudinal staff survey. We believe this will empower our partner schools and trusts to access greater understanding of their organisational culture over time, specifically across three critical outcomes:

• Enhanced personal wellbeing

• Improved professional development

• Increased staff retention

The NEW Leadership Edge Survey on organisational cultural change whilst embedding a coaching approach

“Coaching questions feel more spacious and intentional than those in most work conversations. They’re not about gathering information or reaching a decision quickly - they invite you to think differently, more slowly, and often more deeply. There’s no pressure to have the ‘right’ answer. Instead, there’s a sense of curiosity and respect for the thinking process itself. It feels like a rare opportunity to connect ideas, emotions, and values all in one conversation. The Foundation Stage programme gave me a much-needed space to pause and reflect on my role in education, something that can be hard to carve out in the busyness of daily work. I now feel more confident in offering that same space to others. I’ve learned how powerful it can be to create an environment where people can reflect, think critically, and find their own solutions. The programme has helped me develop my listening skills and my ability to ask meaningful questions, and I look forward to using these skills to support colleagues in their own growth.”

Feena Patel – Senior School Improvement Lead, Greenshaw

Learning Trust.

So, some questions for you to ponder:

1. What do I believe about the value of asking questions?

2. Thinking about a current challenge I’m facing, what positive result might come from taking a more inquisitive approach?

3. What might get in the way of me being a genuinely attentive listener and curious questioner?

“If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.” – Albert Einstein

Great leadership is not defined by how fast we answer, but by how well we question. Let’s make space for questions again. Let’s model them, encourage them, and see them for what they are: the gateway to sustainable growth, connection, and transformation.

What question will you ask today?

Warmest wishes,

Catherine Hulme

Owner Director

catherine@leadershipedge.org.uk

Leadership Edge is a growing team of experienced school leaders who have seen person-centred coaching create high-performing, happy and healthy cultures within our schools. Our mission is to empower other school leaders to create positive workplaces where staff are solution-focused and actively responsible for their own personal wellbeing and professional development.

Our 3-Tier Coaching Accreditation Programme is low-cost and self-sustaining, providing a systematic and structured model for staff across your school to become powerful coaches for each other, enhancing colleague relationships and their feeling of being valued as an individual within a supportive school community.

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