Creating the right research question is crucial for a successful study. One of the simplest ways to do this is by making sure your question is a “what” question instead of a “how” or “why” question.
Why?
“Why” and “how” questions are difficult to answer, especially for high school students, because they often don’t have the tools or resources to fully explore them. Instead, “what” questions are easier to investigate using experiments.
Examples of Good Research Questions:
✅ What is the relationship between two variables?
Example: What is the effect of temperature on plant height?
→ This can be answered by conducting an experiment where you measure plant height at different temperatures.
✅ What is the value or effect of a variable?
Example: What is the antibacterial activity of guava leaf extracts?
→ This can be tested through an experiment that measures the effect of guava leaf extracts on bacterial growth.
These types of questions are much easier to turn into research topics because they have clear answers and can be tested using scientific methods.
- Use “what” questions instead of “how” or “why” to make research easier.
- Make sure your question has a clear answer and can be tested through experiments.
- Focus on identifying relationships between variables or measuring the effect of a variable.
- A simple research question leads to easier data collection and analysis.
Tanim Talino 