THE INQUIRY MODEL April Washburn

EED 509

WHAT IS THE INQUIRY MODEL?According to page 244 in our textbook Teaching Models Designing Instruction for 21st Century Learners, “the inquiry model is a process-oriented instructional model that aims to teach students the skills, knowledge, and dispositions required for thinking systematically to answer important questions.”

It is:

•Engaging

•Active

•Includes collaboration

•Benefits students in every level of education

•Can be used in different subject areas

•Used to teach content from the knowledge dimensions– factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive knowledge

WHAT IS INQUIRY?•On page 244 the definition of the Inquiry Model was given, but the question remains what is inquiry?

•In our textbook Teaching Models Designing Instruction for 21st

Century Learners on page 247 it defines inquiry as, “the process of asking meaningful questions, finding information, drawing conclusions, and reflecting on possible solutions.”

•An example given in the text is the 5E Instructional Model. This model should be familiar to Jacksonville State University students, especially in the science education classes. In my content block classes last semester, we learned about and used the 5E lesson plans for Practicum.

•Questioning is a common thing in life. Children from a very young age question everything, “Why is the sky blue? What does the birdie say when it tweets?”

•We should allow students to grow through their natural curiosity of questioning.

NATIONAL SCIENCE TEACHERS ASSOCIATION (NSTA)

The skills needed for NSTA standards that address inquiry include:

•Collecting

•Interpreting

•Observing

Cognitive process dimension, processes in inquiry include:

•Analyzing

•Understanding

•Evaluating

INQUIRY MODEL LEVELS

•Inquiry lessons are never the same, just like no two students are the same.

•Some inquiries focus more on student lead or open ended.

•Some inquiries are more focused and teacher led.

•Some fall in between.

•Each inquiry has a different purpose and that purpose relates to the specific level of inquiry in use.

•Teacher awareness is a key factor in the Inquiry Model as it is in the day to day run of the classroom.

•There are four levels of inquiry.

FOUR LEVELS OF INQUIRY

1. Confirmation/Verification

2. Structured Inquiry

3. Guided Inquiry

4. Open Inquiry

In each level, the amount of guidance and structure provided by the teacher varies.

Is it teacher or student directed? It will differ from each level.

CONFIRMATION/VERIFICATION AND STRUCTURED INQUIRY

Confirmation/Verification

•The results are already known. Typically the teacher already knows the outcome.

•Through a specific activity, students “confirm” the end results.

Structured Inquiry

•The question is given by the teacher.

•The students complete a specific activity or procedure to investigate.

GUIDED INQUIRY AND OPEN INQUIRY

Guided Inquiry

•The question is given by the teacher.

•The students choose or create their own activity or procedure.

•The students then investigate.

Open Inquiry

•The students present the question concerning the topic to be learned.

•The students create or choose which activity or procedure to use.

•The students investigate the question.

WHEN TO USE THE INQUIRY MODEL

As previously stated the Inquiry Model can be used to teach content from the knowledge dimensions– factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive knowledge.

In particular it is used when teaching:

•Problem-solving

•Cognitive process skills

WHEN TO USE THE INQUIRY MODELProblem-Solving

•A skill that should be repeatedly practiced and taught.

•A procedural process.

•It is important for students to have repeated exposure, modeling, guidance, and practice.

•This skill is important outside of the classroom in real-life situations as well.

(page 251 from our textbook Teaching Models Designing Instruction for 21st Century Learners)

Cognitive Process Skills

•Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy.

•Six major categories:

1) Remember 2) Understand

3) Apply 4) Analyze

5) Evaluate * 6) Create*

*Inquiry Model allows students to use the higher levels in relevant ways.

INQUIRY MODEL STEPS

Inquiry Model has 6 major steps:

1. Identify or present/pose a question

2. Make a hypotheses

3. Gather data

4. Assess your hypotheses

5. Generalize

6. Analyze

Page 253 from our textbook Teaching Models Designing Instruction for 21st Century Learners

STEP ONE: IDENTIFY OR PRESENT/POSE A QUESTION

•First you must identify or present your question or problem.

•This will be the focus of the upcoming investigation.

•Students need the prerequisite knowledge and skills expected to be used before moving forward.

STEP TWO: MAKE A HYPOTHESES

•Before beginning the activity or procedure, students should make a hypotheses or inference about the upcoming results.

•These should be based on prior knowledge and previous experiences.

•It is always a good idea to record the students’ hypothesis.

STEP THREE: GATHER DATA

•Once steps one and two have been completed, the students may begin gathering data that pertains to the question or problem stated in step one.

•Students data gathering process and recording will vary based on which level of inquiry in which they are working.

•No matter the level of inquiry teachers should use scaffolding to assist their students in their success.

•Support from the teacher is always beneficial.

•It is important to note that as the teacher you should not expect that all students will know how to organize their data.

STEP FOUR: ASSESS HYPOTHESES

•Once the data has been gathered, students can begin assessing and analyzing their findings.

•Did the findings prove or support the hypotheses? Why or why not?

•By assessing their findings the students are reflecting on their work and deciding what worked or what did not work and why or why not.

•If the findings did not support their hypotheses then they can look for other ways that might support their hypotheses. It is like a trial and error type of experience.

STEP FIVE: GENERALIZE

•To generalize the question in step one the students do not simply answer it.

•With the generalization of their findings students will include the connections, conclusions, and the process they made and used with the data analysis.

STEP SIX: ANALYZE THE PROCESS

•Metacognitive thinking is experienced during this last step.

•Metacognitive thinking, thinking about thinking, allows your self-awareness to become greater and your development and thought processing will grow.

•This skill should be repeatedly modeled, taught, and practiced.

•In this step, students will reflect on the process and procedures, as well as the analysis of the data gathered, to determine what they learned and how their knowledge and skills expanded through the process.

DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION

•Not one student is the same as another.

•All students learn differently and at different levels.

•By differentiating the instruction, teachers are better equipped to help their students succeed.

•Because of the different levels and nature of the Inquiry Model, it is helpful in creating differentiation in the classroom through the active engagement role of the process.

•Teachers can help students with differentiation of the content, process, and the product.

DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION:CONTENT

•There are many ways teachers can differentiate the content for students based on the level of inquiry used.

•Examples can include different media sources, which can focus more on the student reading level and/or interest.

•Teachers can also give different materials to the students to use.

DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION:PROCESS

•Teachers should try to vary how much student and teacher involvement and decision making occurs throughout the process.

•Scaffolding again is another method to be used.

•Using different levels of scaffolding at different steps.

DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION:PRODUCT

•Allow the students to decide the best way to show what they have learned throughout the process.

•Give the students the chance for ownership in their work and they should give you their best work.

•By giving students a chance to have a choice they should be more motivated to do their best and complete the process.

TECHNOLOGY AND THE INQUIRY MODEL

•Technology can be an asset in the planning, implementing, and assessment stages of the Inquiry Model.

•Planning examples: Survey Monkey, Curriki, Weebly

•Implementing examples: Brainpop, Google Docs, Wordle

•Assessing examples: Rubrics, Digital video recording, digital audio recording, wikis

TECHNOLOGY AND THE INQUIRY MODEL:

PLANNING•Pre-assessment can be important, not only in helping differentiate instruction, but gives the teacher a look at what the students already know, think they know, as well as their prerequisite knowledge and skills.

•Pre-assessment allows students to have an impact on the learning process.

•There are many pre-assessment tools online that can give digital on time results to the teacher and students.

•Collaboration with other students, teachers, and experts can be beneficial for all.

•Teachers should plan for such collaboration that is to be used.

•Teachers can use Curriki, or ask an expert sites to reach out to others for collaboration.

TECHNOLOGY AND THE INQUIRY MODEL:

PLANNING•Supporting the students is important. Scaffolding through teacher created documents, or worksheets, can help.

•Students can also use technology while collecting, organizing, recording, analyzing, and sharing the information they have discovered.

•Using technology tools such as, Weebly, and Assign-A-Day, teachers can build the lesson in an organized manner that students can follow and complete through the discovery process.

•There are many online tools that can be used to help students and teachers with scaffolding during the learning process.

TECHNOLOGY AND THE INQUIRY MODEL:

IMPLEMENTATION•Technology can be used at each of the steps of the Inquiry Model.

•Presenting/posing a question: the use of videos, simulations, and other forms of media can be used. Brain Pop and Discovery Streaming are just two examples.

•Making hypotheses: using audio or video, and other digital recording tools both online and not, to record hypotheses will be beneficial.

•Gathering sources: With the vast reaches of the Internet, students can gather information from different sources.

•Organizing data: through spreadsheets, word-processed reports, and other visuals students can organize and present the information they have gathered. One example to note is Google Docs.

TECHNOLOGY AND THE INQUIRY MODEL:

IMPLEMENTATION•Assess hypotheses: replaying video, using databases, and other technological tools, students can begin to analyze the information they have discovered.

•Generalizing findings: editing and revision can be done through technology. Students can use multimedia to share their findings. Examples such as wikis, and YouTube are just some way to share through multimedia.

•Analyzing the process: Several technology tools can be made available to aide in the analyzation of the inquiry process. Word-processing software, audio and video tools can help students reflect on what and how they learned.

TECHNOLOGY AND THE INQUIRY MODEL:

ASSESSMENT•Assessment helps to know: what the students know and what they can do.

•Online quizzes can help measure the information students know, and track learning throughout the process and upon the conclusion.

•Online tool examples: Quizstar and Rubistar.

•Technology also helps students show what they know, how they know, and what skills they used and gained. Digital cameras, podcasts, and video cameras are all beneficial tools.

•Online posters also aid students in sharing the information they discovered in the Inquiry Model lesson.

BENEFITS OF INQUIRY MODEL •The knowledge dimensions: factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive become more developed.

•Active and engaged learning allows students natural curiosity to emerge and the students are part of the process of answering even their own questions.

•Cognitive process skills become more developed.

•Students gain a more personal connection to the learning as they discover information.

•Student ownership and partnership in their learning.

•Increased understanding of intellectual property.

•Students are lifelong learners and can take the processes and skills they have learned to out of class situations.

MY EXAMPLE

With all the different holidays and kids birthdays that my childrens’ classrooms observe during snack time, I thought about this idea.

The classroom is hosting a class party before Spring Break to celebrate the upcoming Easter holiday. With the help of the students we need to know what is the best choice, cake or cupcakes?

Students will use the tablets in their small groups to record and help discover which option can more easily be shared, has the cheapest price, and is the best value using these credentials that our class should purchase for the party.

The teacher will provide students with the prices of half-sheet cakes and cupcakes from local bakeries and grocery stores.

The students will need to take the following into consideration:

•How many students are in the classroom.

•How much the half-sheet cake costs.

•How many cupcakes would need to be purchased and their cost.

ON TWITTER AND FEEDLYOn Twitter I followed:

Mindshift @MindShiftKQED

TeachThought @TeachThought

Louise Robitaille @Robitaille2011

On Feedly I found these blogs:

http://inquiry-based.blogspot.com/2014/01/a-day-in-life-of-inquiry-based-classroom.html

http://inquiry-based.blogspot.com/2015/08/educators-learning-together-about.html

REFERENCE

Kilbane, C. R., & Milman, N. B. (n.d.). Teaching models: Designing instruction for 21st century learners.