Why has asking become so hard?
For surely we have all seen this. Events open to public response these days are swamped with people who don’t know how to ask questions. College campuses present some of the worst spectacles of faux-questioning prolixity and inconsequence. In principle, students and faculty members should have long since mastered the art or know enough not to display their incompetence. But no, they seem more and more possessed with a demon of self-expression that has recklessly discarded restraint.
Write down your question in advance, edit it and revise it to be succinct and open ended. No yes or no questions. And most importantly, don't ask a question just to do so or appear like you're curious, that wastes everyones time. Ask a question only when you truly want to know the answer. I agree, most people don't know how to ask a good question.
That statement really boils it down for me. There are two kinds of people that speak up at lectures, the ones that are looking for answers and the ones that just want to hear themselves speak, and the rest of the people are simply reluctant to ask anything. I find it terribly distracting when 'questions' are dominated by people who just want to spread around their own genius and appear intelligent and critical. That sort of thing never leads to interesting discussion because it discourages the speaker and everyone else from engaging. Good question asking abilities are invaluable, they allow you better access your thoughts and opinions of the content you are exposed to. If you have a good question it means that you have really considered the proposition. I think everyone in university could benefit from workshops in debating and question asking.