Asking a good question about an exercise: the method for getting a real answer

Information checked on 2 November 2026.

"Can anyone help me with ex 3???" That kind of question often goes unanswered. Not because nobody wants to help you, but because nobody knows where to start. Asking a good question about an exercise means giving, in a few lines, everything needed to answer: the legible paper, the precise question, what you have already tried and where you are stuck. This method works in your class group on Compatri, with a teacher, with a mentor or with a friend. It also teaches you something: by putting your block into words, you often cover half the way on your own.

Why asking your question well changes everything

The person answering you is a student like you, also revising, giving you ten minutes of their time. If they have to guess the exercise, decipher a blurry photo and ask you three times where you are stuck, they move on to the next question. Conversely, a complete question can be read in thirty seconds and solved fast.

There is a second benefit, for you. Research in the psychology of learning ranks self-explanation (explaining your own reasoning, step by step) among techniques of moderate utility, and practice testing (searching your memory for the answer before looking at the solution) among the most useful. Writing "here is what I did, and here is where I am stuck" is exactly that: you explain your reasoning to yourself and you search before asking. Many students find the answer while writing their question.

Asking a good question about an exercise: the method in six steps

1. Phrase a precise question

The title, or the first sentence, must state the subject, the chapter and the block. Compare:

A good question ends with a question mark about one precise thing. "I don't understand anything" is not a question: it is a state of mind, and nobody can answer it in a comment.

2. Show what you tried

This is the step almost everyone skips, and the most important. Write:

• what you did, even if it is wrong: "I calculated Un+1 minus Un and get a fraction";
• exactly where you are stuck: "I don't know how to show this fraction is positive";
• what you have already looked at: "I reread the method in the textbook, page 42".

Three advantages. The person answering sees your mistake instead of starting over from scratch. They know you have worked, and they help more willingly. And you avoid being handed the full solution, which teaches you nothing: you get just the nudge you were missing.

3. Photograph the paper legibly

An illegible photo is a lost question. Before posting, check these points:

On Compatri, a post accepts up to four photos: the question, the figure, and your rough work if you want people to see your reasoning. Also type out the exact question that blocks you: a reader finds it faster than by searching the photo.

4. One question per post

Three exercises in the same post means three discussions tangled in the same comments, and nobody knows who is answering what. One post, one question. If you are stuck on three things, post three questions, or start with the first: unblocking it often unblocks the others.

5. Mark the best answer

In your class group, use the "Ask a question" button when posting: your post then carries the "Question" label. When an answer has really unblocked you, click "Mark as best answer" under that comment. The question becomes "Solved", and the right answer is highlighted.

This gesture mostly helps those who come after you. The student in Natitingou stuck on the same exercise in three weeks will find the answer without rereading forty comments. You can change your mind: "Remove best answer" cancels the choice. Only the author of the question can mark the best answer, and not on their own comment.

6. Say thank you, and return the favour

A comment like "thanks, I get it: you had to factorise first" does three things: it thanks, it confirms the answer works, and it sums up the solution for others. Then return the favour: answer someone else's question. Explaining is also revising for yourself.

Before posting: the checklist

What not to ask

• Doing your homework for you. Posting a whole homework assignment and asking for the answers is cheating, and it teaches you nothing for the exam, where you will be alone. Ask for a method, not a copy.
• A paper during an exam. Posting an exam paper before the end of the exam is fraud. On Compatri, the exam paper archive never publishes a paper before the day after the exam. Our article on sharing exam papers explains the rules.
• Your contact details. No phone number in a question "so someone can explain on WhatsApp". Stay in the group: the answer will help others too.

Allowing for delays

On Compatri, every post is reviewed before it appears in the feed. A question posted at 10 pm for homework due at 7 am may arrive too late. Ask as soon as you are stuck, not the night before. Comments, on the other hand, appear straight away.

Another practical point: answers are given in comments, and a comment contains text, not photos. To write maths as text, a few conventions are enough: x² or x^2, (a+b)/c for a fraction, sqrt(2), U(n+1). If a figure is essential, the person answering can publish their own post with a photo.

Where to ask your question

• In your class group, on the Study page: people preparing the same exam, in your city or elsewhere. Our guide to finding students from your class in other cities explains how to join them.
• To a mentor, on the Mentors page, when the question is about choosing studies, a scholarship or an application rather than an exercise.
• To your teacher, always. A question asked well online can be asked just as well in class.

And to practise on real papers, the exam paper archive (in French) gathers those students share; it is growing, and every paper your class adds helps other cities. Our method for revising for the bac with past papers shows how to use it, and our guide to creating a revision group how to organise sessions.

Sources

• Dunlosky et al., "Improving Students' Learning With Effective Learning Techniques", Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 2013 (PubMed)
• Roediger and Karpicke, "Test-enhanced learning", Psychological Science, 2006 (PubMed)
• Chang et al., "Examining the Academic Effects of Cross-Age Tutoring: A Meta-Analysis", Educational Psychology Review, 2025 (ERIC)