2009 February 10 « Nina Feyruzi

How can I use inquiry-based learning in conjunction with other educational techniques?

How can I use inquiry-based learning in conjunction with other educational techniques?

Inquiry-based learning works well with many educational techniques discussed in our other workshops. Inquiry is an important part of multiple-intelligence work — and cooperative and collaborative learning is inherently inquiry-based. Inquiry is also a key tool for learning in constructivism. Standards can be met with inquiry-based learning by ensuring that they are incorporated early in your planning and by guiding your students toward questions that will help them learn the required material.

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What are some critical perspectives?

What are some critical perspectives?

Education is not preparing students for a world that is static and fixed. Rather, education must prepare learners to cope with changes that will increase in complexity throughout their lives and many of which cannot be foreseen at this time. Most learners will probably deal with several job changes, move to several different locations, be involved in complex social changes, and other such issues. Education cannot give learners all the information that they need to know, but rather it must provide the tools for continuing to learn.

In a society in which education has focused on transmitting “what we know,” it is a challenge to develop a widespread view that “how we come to know” is very important in modern society.

There is a very deeply held view on the part of many educators, parents, and other members of society that inquiry learning takes too much time and that it is much more efficient for students simply to be given the information they need to know. This point of view is strongly reinforced by the kinds of things students are expected to know to pass the majority of tests they are given. There are those educators and discipline experts who feel they have known and continue to know what knowledge is most important.

There are also those who feel strongly that there is a “core knowledge,” or elements of cultural literacy, that should be the emphasis of education. E. D. Hirsch, a noted literary analyst and educator, strongly advocates a sequenced K-12 curriculum in which students cover a larger number of specific topics and concepts for each year of school. Howard Gardner¹ describes this approach in THE DISCIPLINED MIND: “At other schools, often in the same neighborhood as efforts like the Key School, students work on a core curriculum, perhaps one inspired by E. D. Hirsch or the privately funded Edison Project. At each age and grade level, there are prescribed lists of concepts, words, and spheres of knowledge that children should know or acquire. Youngsters are regularly tested on this information, rewarded when it has been acquired, and encouraged to study harder when their familiarity with it proves spotty.”

1.

Many, especially older, people have not mentally moved past the time when our country was an industrial, or even an agrarian, place. Those were times that moved more slowly and did not require workers and companies to constantly “work smarter” to stay ahead of global competitors. Older members of society learned that it was important to study hard — which often meant the memorization of content — to get good grades, graduate, get a job, work hard, and move up a relatively stable career ladder to achieve success. This general approach has much merit still today, but the focus on what to “work harder” on has shifted.

Most people — those graduating from high school and from colleges and those who will not graduate — eventually will enter the world of work. Even for the small number who do not enter the workforce, all will have to resolve ever increasingly complex problems throughout life. The business world is fast recognizing that to be successful in modern society it is essential to work smarter. The attributes, described earlier, that are essential for life-long learning have to be the emphasis in education.

Surveys of business communities regarding workforce skills reveal interesting findings. Workforce skills are not specific job skills but rather more broad understandings that provide one the abilities to quickly adapt to new job-skill demands. Some examples of skills essential for the modern workforce are:

The work requires one to research possible causes of problems.
The work requires one to isolate factors that are possible causes of problems.
The work requires one to arrive at resolutions to problems by brainstorming with other people.
The work requires one to search for information stored in computer files by using electronic data research skills.
The work requires one to write clearly to convey complex information to other people to describe situations or events and to make recommendations.
The work requires one to interpret correlations by comparing two sets of data.

Several dozen more examples could be stated. You will notice there is very little stress on knowing specific kinds of content information. This omission is probably influenced by the fact that content knowledge is changing very rapidly, and little content knowledge is retained if it is not constantly used. However, the workforce skills competencies deal with attributes that permit one to continue to learn.

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What are the benefits of inquiry-based learning?

What are the benefits of inquiry-based learning?

One of the important missing pieces in many modern schools is a coherent and simplified process for increasing knowledge of a subject from lower grades to upper grades. Students often have difficulty understanding how various activities within a particular subject relate to each other. Much more confusion results when the learner tries to interrelate the various subjects taught at school.

Too little effort is devoted to defining important outcomes at the end of high school and planning backwards and across subjects. Inquiry-based learning can help make these connections.

Specific content such as photosynthesis has much more relevance for the learner if set in a larger context of understanding the interrelationship of the sun, green plants, and the role of carbon dioxide and water. Social studies content, such as industrial development, set in the context of interrelating changes in the human-designed world can add new perspectives to this important natural process. Students can still learn content of both science and social studies, but through a series of well-planned experiences, they will grasp the larger conceptual context and gain greater understanding.

Within a conceptual framework, inquiry learning and active learner involvement can lead to important outcomes in the classroom. Students who actively make observations, collect, analyze, and synthesize information, and draw conclusions are developing useful problem-solving skills. These skills can be applied to future “need to know” situations that students will encounter both at school and at work.

Another benefit that inquiry-based learning offers is the development of habits of mind that can last a lifetime and guide learning and creative thinking.

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TEACHER’S ROLE IN AN INQUIRY CLASSROOM: FACILITATOR OF LEARNING.

The teacher reflects on the purpose and makes plans for inquiry learning.

He plans ways for each learner to be actively engaged in the learning process.
She understands the necessary skills, knowledge, and habits of mind needed for inquiry learning.
He understands and plans ways to encourage and enable the learner to take increasing responsibility for his learning.
She insures that classroom learning is focused on relevant and applicable outcomes.
He is prepared for unexpected questions or suggestions from the learner.
She prepares the classroom environment with the necessary learning tools, materials, and resources for active involvement of the learner.

The teacher facilitates classroom learning.

The teacher’s daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly facilitation plans focus on setting content learning in a conceptual framework. They also stress skill development and model and nurture the development of habits of mind.
She accepts that teaching is also a learning process.
He asks questions, encouraging divergent thinking that leads to more questions.
She values and encourages responses and, when these responses convey misconceptions, effectively explores the causes and appropriately guides the learner.
He is constantly alert to learning obstacles and guides learners when necessary.
She asks many Why? How do you know? and What is the evidence? type of questions.
He makes student assessment an ongoing part of the facilitation of the learning process.

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Students Doing Inquiry Learning

An inquiry classroom is quite different from a traditional classroom. These differences become increasingly pronounced as the teacher and students become more comfortable and experienced with inquiry learning. It can often be difficult to locate the teacher in an inquiry classroom, because she is rarely found in the traditional spot: behind the teacher’s desk. Students also move around the classroom as they interact with others and locate the appropriate materials and resources for their work.

STUDENTS DOING INQUIRY LEARNING

What does inquiry-based learning look like? Much of what is said about science and inquiry learning can be applied to all subjects. The following list describes some of what inquiry learning looks like in practice.

Students view themselves as learners in the process of learning.

They look forward to learning.
They demonstrate a desire to learn more.
They seek to collaborate and work cooperatively with teacher and peers.
They are more confident in learning, demonstrate a willingness to modify ideas and take calculated risks, and display appropriate skepticism.

Students accept an “invitation to learn” and willingly engage in an exploration process.

They exhibit curiosity and ponder observations.
They move around, selecting and using the materials they need.
They confer with classmates and teacher about observations and questions.
They try out some of their own ideas.

Students raise questions, propose explanations, and use observations.

They ask questions (verbally and through actions).
They use questions that lead them to activities generating further questions or ideas.
They observe critically, as opposed to casually looking or listening.
They value and apply questions as an important part of learning.
They make connections to previous ideas.

Students plan and carry out learning activities.

They design ways to try out their ideas, not always expecting to be told what to do.
They plan ways to verify, extend, confirm, or discard ideas.
They carry out activities by: using materials, observing, evaluating, and recording information.
They sort out information and decide what is important.
They see detail, detect sequences and events, notice change, and detect differences and similarities.

Students communicate using a variety of methods.

They express ideas in a variety of ways, including journals, drawing, reports, graphing, and so forth.
They listen, speak, and write about learning activities with parents, teacher, and peers.
They use the language of learning, apply the skills of processing information, and develop their own “ground rules” appropriate for the discipline.

Students critique their learning practices.

They use indicators to assess their own work.
They recognize and report their strengths and weaknesses.
They reflect on their learning with their teacher and their peers.

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What does it have to do with my classroom?

What does it have to do with my classroom?

Most of our schools focus on teaching a set of basic skills that do not serve the needs of modern society. Traditionally, schools stressed the accumulation of information, and did not emphasize skill development or nurturing inquiry-based habits of mind. This approach to education was adequate when the United States was a largely rural society, depending on unskilled labor. Our modern society is faster paced, globally networked, technologically oriented, and requires workers who can problem solve and think critically. Today, much learning, if not most, occurs after formal schooling. Our schools must change their approach to education to produce students who can thrive in the modern world.

The traditional focus of education is no longer appropriate. The world has changed: local apprenticeships are rare, and young people must master new ways of acting and thinking. Our society is becoming increasingly larger and more complexly diverse. Young people must develop an understanding for the complexities of modern life and be able to grapple with new ethical and practical issues. We must educate our young so they can participate as responsible members in contemporary society. They also need to be given the chance to grow and develop fulfilling personal identities in settings that are relatively free of risk.

Inquiry learning can turn information into useful knowledge. It stresses skill development and nurtures the development of good habits of mind. Information, lacking a useful context, often has limited applications beyond passing a test. Learning plans and teaching materials need to include a relevant context for new information to lead to broader understandings. It is often hard for students to understand the connections between activities within a particular subject. This confusion is heightened when students struggle to understand the connections between different subjects within traditional schools.

Many traditional schools lack a coherent and simplified process for interrelating subject material between grades. There is little emphasis on planning across subjects. And not enough effort is spent defining the ultimate goals of education — the skills and abilities students should have when they complete high school. While many subjects share information-processing skills, much more can be done to enhance the connections among them.

“Habits of mind” should be an important goal, or outcome, in education. These habits can produce a world view that incorporates different disciplines or subjects. They can be thought of as the “ground rules” for a particular discipline, and include, but are not limited to, verification and respect for data in science, the importance of beauty and desirability in art, and the role of belief and faith in religion.

We are not suggesting that these habits of mind should be taught — or even that they can be taught. They are best nurtured through appropriate modeling and experiences. Nor is it suggested that one world view is right in comparison to another, but rather the different disciplines can offer different and important perspectives. However, it is important that habits of mind are nurtured and valued for the particular discipline being studied. Habits of mind are nurtured through questioning and reflection. Questions like: How do you (I) know? Can we (I) ever know that? What is the evidence? How did you (I) arrive at that decision?

Questions, whether self-initiated or “owned,” are at the heart of inquiry learning. While questions are also a part of the traditional classroom, the sources, purposes, and levels of questioning are quite different. In the traditional classroom, the teacher is frequently the questioner. Questions are usually intended to provoke feedback about a reading or activity assignment. In an inquiry classroom, the teacher asks questions that are more open and reflective in nature. Appropriate questioning techniques are important in an inquiry-based classroom, especially in the lower grades where they become a foundation for self-initiated questioning.

Dennie Palmer Wolf, in THE ART OF QUESTIONING, published by Academic Connections in 1987, suggests that there are four major types of questions: inference questions, interpretation questions, transfer questions, and questions about hypotheses.

INFERENCE QUESTIONS.
These questions ask students to go beyond immediately available information. For example, a high-school photography teacher held up a black-and-white portrait of a machinist taken by Paul Strand and asked, “What do you know by looking at this photograph?” Through careful questioning and discussion, his students realized the image contained hints that implied a whole network of information: clues to content (where and when the photograph was taken), technique (where the photographer stood, where the light sources were located), and meaning or attitude (what Strand felt about industry and workers). To push beyond the factual in this way is to ask students to find clues, examine them, and discuss what inferences are justified.

INTERPRETATION QUESTIONS.
If inference questions demand that students fill in missing information, then interpretive questions propose that they understand the consequences of information or ideas. One day, when her English class was struggling to make sense of Frost’s poem “The Silken Tent,” a teacher asked, “Imagine if Frost compared the woman to an ordinary canvas tent instead of a silk one. What would change?” Faced with the stolid image of a stiff canvas tent, students suddenly realized the fabric of connotations set in motion by the idea of silk — its sibilant, rustling sounds; its associations with elegance, wealth, and femininity; its fluid motions. In a similar spirit, during a life-drawing class, a teacher showed his students a reproduction of Manet’s “Olympia” and asked them, “How would the picture be different if the model weren’t wearing that black tie around her neck?” A student laid her hand over the tie, studied the image and commented, “Without the ribbon, she doesn’t look so naked. She looks like a classical model. With the ribbon, she looks undressed, bolder.”

TRANSFER QUESTIONS.
If inference and interpretation questions ask a student to go deeper, transfer questions provoke a kind of breadth of thinking, asking students to take their knowledge to new places. For example, the final exam for a high-school film course contained this question: “This semester we studied three directors: Fellini, Hitchcock, and Kurosawa. Imagine that you are a film critic and write a review of “Little Red Riding Hood” as directed by one of these individuals.”

QUESTIONS ABOUT HYPOTHESES.
Typically, questions based on what can be predicted and tested are thought of as belonging to sciences and other “hard” pursuits. But, in fact, predictive thinking matters in all domains. When we read a novel, we gather evidence about the world of the story, the trustworthiness of the narrator, the style of the author, all of which we use to predict what we can expect in the next chapter. Far from letting their students simply soak in the content of dances, plays, or fiction, skilled teachers probe for predictions as a way of making students actively aware of their expectations.

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How Does It Differ from Traditional Approach

How does it differ from the traditional approach?

In general, the traditional approach to learning is focused on mastery of content, with less emphasis on the development of skills and the nurturing of inquiring attitudes. The current system of education is teacher centered, with the teacher focused on giving out information about “what is known.” Students are the receivers of information, and the teacher is the dispenser. Much of the assessment of the learner is focused on the importance of “one right answer.” Traditional education is more concerned with preparation for the next grade level and in-school success than with helping a student learn to learn throughout life.

Traditional classrooms tend to be closed systems where information is filtered through layers to students. In general, the use of resources is limited to what is available in the classroom or within the school. Use of technology is focused on learning about the technology rather than its application to enhanced learning. Lesson plans are used to organize the various steps in the learning process for the whole-class approach. On-target questions that would tend to cause deviations from the plan are met with, “We will get to that later.”

The inquiry approach is more focused on using and learning content as a means to develop information-processing and problem-solving skills. The system is more student centered, with the teacher as a facilitator of learning. There is more emphasis on “how we come to know” and less on “what we know.” Students are more involved in the construction of knowledge through active involvement. The more interested and engaged students are by a subject or project, the easier it will be for them to construct in-depth knowledge of it. Learning becomes almost effortless when something fascinates students and reflects their interests and goals.

Assessment is focused on determining the progress of skills development in addition to content understanding. Inquiry learning is concerned with in-school success, but it is equally concerned with preparation for life-long learning.

Inquiry classrooms are open systems where students are encouraged to search and make use of resources beyond the classroom and the school. Teachers who use inquiry can use technology to connect students appropriately with local and world communities which are rich sources of learning and learning materials. They replace lesson plans with facilitated learning plans that account for slight deviations while still keeping an important learning outcome in focus. They meet on-target questions with, “How do you suggest we investigate that question?”

Another issue regarding inquiry-based learning has to do with a misconception about when to do inquiry. Inquiry is not only done in laboratory or group work — it can also be done in lectures that provoke students to think and question.

Teachers often discount the fact that when they are giving talks or lectures to students, the students, if engaged, are applying listening and observing skills — using their senses. If teachers focus more on “how we come to know” by presenting evidence and information and encouraging student questioning, then talks can even become powerful inquiry models for students. Collaborative meaning-making can take place through discourse.

For example, when discussing the internal structure of the earth, a teacher will often give the students information about just the names and sizes of these earth layers, or the “what we know.” But what really is important and intriguing for the student is the “how do we know?” about these structures. No one has been down there, and physical probes have only scratched the surface. To enhance inquiry learning, the teacher should explain that indirect scientific evidence, mainly the transmission and reflection of different kinds of earthquake waves, provides much of our understanding about the internal structure of the earth. This approach provides the student with the opportunity not only to learn the names and sizes of the structures but, more importantly, to ponder and question the nature of indirect scientific evidence as well. Thus, an inquiry approach can help students connect science with the scientific method. Students learn to apply the method to various fields of study while coming to understand their content.

Perhaps a good way to summarize the important difference between traditional learning and inquiry learning is: Traditional learning focuses more on LEARNING ABOUT THINGS, while inquiry learning focuses more on LEARNING THINGS! Another useful way to contrast the two might be: Thinking WHAT as opposed to thinking HOW.

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How does it differ from the traditional approach?