 In today's world, information is everywhere. One of the features of today's information society is the ability to find quick answers to questions using resources accessed via the Internet. You're probably familiar with the process. Let's say I have a question about the lead actor of a particular movie. I can Google the name of the movie and the search engine fetches results. Resources like the Internet Movie Database and Wikipedia are good resources for certain kinds of questions. But for college-level research, the questions you'll be asking and the resources you'll be using are on a different level. You'll be learning to question critically and you'll be looking for answers in more scholarly sources. Questioning is an essential skill for critical thinking. Good questions drive thinking. In fact, questioning is the driving force of critical thinking. Really, there are two significant areas for questioning. We can ask questions about the information we need, but we also ask questions about the information we encounter. Asking questions about the information we need helps clarify what we're looking for. If I'm interested in finding information about credit card debt among college students, before researching this concept, I can begin by asking questions about my topic. Who do I mean by college students? Students 18 to 24 years old? Freshmen? Seniors? Recent graduates? What companies specifically target college students for credit cards? And what is the average amount of debt among students? Where can I find reliable information about this topic? Why does this information matter? And what is its significance? Questions like these provide direction as I begin looking for information. But just as important are the questions we ask about the information we encounter. When we encounter information, whether written, spoken, or as an image, we are encountering someone's thinking. Often, the information we encounter is intended to shape our own thinking. For example, consider the information presented in these two images. Each image presents a very different message about credit cards. Questioning helps us discern the meaning and intention of this information. For example, we might ask questions like what is the issue or problem the information is addressing? How is this information intended to shape my own thinking? How does the information affect me emotionally? What evidence is used to support its claim? For whom does the information have implication? Questions like these empower us for better critical thinking about the information we encounter. Learning to ask good questions about both the information we want and the information we encounter is crucial for college-level research. Critical questioning takes practice, but it is an important skill for critical thinking and for lifelong learning. Remember, if you have any questions, be sure to ask a librarian. Team librarians and staff are here to help you succeed throughout your studies at Oklahoma Christian University, and we look forward to getting to know you.