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A friend posted some thoughts about the ways in which we're taught to question authority (or not), another acquaintance posted about someone claiming to challenge the status quo by repeating (generally nasty) comments that have been made by other people since the dawn of time, and I was thinking about classroom management. All of which brings me to
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I think the first thing is to distinguish "Question authority" from "Rebel against, attack, or undermine authority." The latter is sometimes worth considering, but really doesn't work as a stand-alone inspirational injunction.
To my mind, "Question authority" means two things. First, ask questions of yourself about the ways you think and how they've been influenced by authority. For instance, I often realizing that I'm repeating things people told me as true, without actually having the slightest information on the subject. I give people authority to describe reality to me, and then I propagate their descriptions. I find it worthwhile to question this as much as possible. If I perceive that I'm doing something because of authority I have accorded someone else, it's important for me to decide whether that was a good decision and why, and what kind of authority I am willing to give that person. For instance, my academic advisor has the authority to tell me whether or not I'm doing something in a way which is acceptable by the standards of the Social Work profession. She doesn't have authority to tell me if I'm a bad person or not.
Secondly, it can mean questioning authority figures. But that's questioning. Not 'mindlessly attacking in zombie hordes' or 'snarking in a self-righteous and shallow manner.' Say you're someone who has authority over me, and you attempt to exercise your authority over me on a specific matter, and I choose to question this. I say, "Tayefeth, can you please tell me why you want X done in Y way, or you won't permit me to do Z?" Now, say your reason is that you've been told to do things this way by people who have authority over you, and you're not at all sure you wouldn't change it if you could. We'll leave aside the question of whether you would do well to question that, for the moment. You have several options available to you.
You can say, "Because that is how the so-and-so has said it has to be done." You can say, "I won't discuss it with you now, but I will talk with you about it in private if you come to my office this afternoon." You might say, "I didn't make the rule. I believe the reasoning behind it was ______. However, I'm not going to discuss it further." You might say, "Because I said so. I'm sorry if you don't like that answer, but that is the answer." And many more things.
In other words, not having the authority to change something doesn't mean that your use of authority over other people should never result in those people asking you questions about your actions.
As to the first half... It strikes me that that the real problem with "repeating (generally nasty) comments that have been made by other people since the dawn of time" is that it describes people "repeating comments," not asking questions, and being "generally nasty", which is not ever okay, more than the fact that people have wondered similar things "since the dawn of time." I accept that it gets a little tiresome to have very similar conversations many, many times, especially when one is fairly confident that one knows how they will go and that they will not produce change. This is why many people and organizations attempt to address Frequently Asked Questions - which is indeed about exactly what you endorse: finding out in advance whether the question has already been answered satisfactorily. But on the other hand, every question contains the seed of a conversation, every conversation the seed of a relationship, and every communicating relationship the seeds of change.
So I can feel the weariness rolling off you, and as someone who has spent quite a while being an authority figure as well as attempting to deal with authority figures of my own, I sympathize with the weariness. But to me it seems like some of it's misplaced. I don't see questioning authority as problematic; I see other things which are problematic being justified by being called "questioning authority." But I'd rather name them than throw the potential revolution of consciousness out with the bathwater.
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As usual, there's background... My students are fond of asking questions. I would like to encourage this, except when they ask a question that five of their classmates have asked in the past five minutes. Part of this is normal teenaged self-centered oblivion. Part of it is a desire to derail the class discussion and avoid work/thinking. Part of it is the very natural desire to have an answer to a question as soon as that question pops into their heads. Part of it is rampant ADD and classical mechanics not being the most entrancing subject for non-mathematical 16 year olds. But part of it seems also to be the... fetishization of "question authority"/"be independent"/"don't let The Man tell you what to do" that has infested youth culture since, oh, Socrates's time. :-)
I'm all for questioning authority. I'm willing to reconsider my decisions when necessary. I don't mind giving any of the responses you've suggested when I don't have the authority to fully discuss a particular decision. I just really resent having to run through all of them in fifteen minutes because five different students are convinced that they are special snowflakes who don't have to pay a blind bit of notice to anything that isn't prefaced with an engraved invitation for their attention.
So, yeah, this would be why I didn't comment on your icon directly. It's not really about your icon, after all. You're reasonably sane and not spoiled about questioning everything. I just wish everyone else was.
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The difference between what you describe and the "appropriately" in my icon is that the "appropriately" in my icon is the kind of "appropriately" which is used as a code for shutting people up. It's sort of like "compliant" in the medical setting.
Your situation does sound teeth-grindingly frustrating. Not so much as advice as just musing on it in type: I think that if I were in that situation, I would try one of two things. Either make a sign - a lovely, glossy sign - which states, "Questions about ___, ____, or ____ may be asked on class time. Questions about ___ or ___ should be kept for after school." And then I'd make any special snowflake who thought this didn't apply to him/her to read it out loud to me in lieu of answering the question. Or else I'd develop one line which I consistently said exactly the same way every time: "That's an interesting question, but I can't take up class time to discuss it now. If you want to write it up in your own time and give it to me outside of class time, I will be happy to reply." Or something. I find that stolid repetition takes the wind out of a lot of cocky acting up.
I'm sure you'll find your own solution which allows you both to encourage children to think independently and critically and not to be brats. And, in fact, when you do, I hope you'll post about it.
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Another case of people using a word to the point of obscuring its original meaning, I suppose. Kind of similar to how "politically correct" managed to morph from "what TPTB want to hear" into "what TPTB don't want to hear".
And, in fact, when you do, I hope you'll post about it.
If I do, I'll try to remember to post about it!:-)
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