Issues in Teaching Through Inquiry
Rachel Spronken-Smith
Higher Education Development Centre, University of Otago, New Zealand
With input from
INLT Team: Jo Bullard (Loughborough), Waverly Ray (MiraCosta), Carolyn Roberts (Gloucestershire), Artimus Keiffer (Wittenburg)
TMF Team*: Tom Angelo (VUW), Billy O’Steen (UC), Helen Matthews (CPIT) and Jane Robertson
*Funded by
Ministry of Education
Aims of session
• To explore what is meant
by inquiry-based learning
and the nature of an
inquiry curriculum
• To share examples of IBL
and consider how
progression can be made
into an IBL curriculum
Outline
• What is inquiry-based
learning, IBL?
• What are the theoretical
underpinnings of IBL?
• Does IBL lead to better
outcomes?
• What examples of IBL are
there in higher education?
• What are the implications
for teaching IBL?
• What can we surmise
about IBL?
I(enquiry)
Guided-inquiry
Inductive
teaching
What is
inquiry-based
learning?
Undergraduate
research
Discovery
learning
Research-based
teaching
What does the term
inquiry or inquirybased learning
mean to you?
So how have we defined IBL?
IBL is a pedagogy which best enables students to
experience the processes of knowledge creation
IBL involves:
Optional attributes of IBL:
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Learning stimulated by inquiry i.e.
driven by questions or research
problems
Learning based on a process of
seeking new knowledge and
understanding (but new to who?)
An inductive approach to teaching
A student/learner/learning-centred
approach with the teacher as a
facilitator
A move to self-directed learning
An active approach to learning
Collaborative/group learning
Community involvement
Field-based activity
Resource-based learning
Multi or inter-disciplinary focus
Students engaged in IBL should
develop:
• Critical thinking skills
• The ability for independent inquiry
• Responsibility for their own
learning
• Intellectual growth and maturity
(Lee et al., 2004)
Model of the inquiry process
(Justice et al., 2002:19)
Taking
responsibility
for learning
Engaging a topic & developing
basic knowledge
Developing a question
Evaluating success
Communicating new
understandings
Self-reflection &
Self-evaluation
Determining what
needs to be known
Identifying resources,
gathering data
Synthesising
Assessing data
The relations between inquiry-based learning, problem-based learning and
active learning (Spronken-Smith et al., 2007)
What are the theoretical underpinnings of IBL?
• Constructivism
• Motivating learners
• Intellectual development & approaches to
learning
• Strengthening teaching-research links
STUDENT-FOCUSED
STUDENTS AS PARTICIPANTS
Research-tutored
Curriculum emphasizes
learning focused on students
writing and discussing papers
or essays
EMPHASIS ON
RESEARCH
CONTENT
Research-led (or researchinformed)
Curriculum is structured
around teaching subject
content
Lecture-based uni teaching
Future of uni teaching?
Research-based
Curriculum emphasizes
students undertaking
inquiry-based
learning
EMPHASIS ON
RESEARCH
PROCESSES &
PROBLEMS
Research-oriented
Curriculum emphasizes
teaching processes of
knowledge construction in the
subject
TEACHER-FOCUSED
STUDENTS AS AUDIENCE
Healey (2005)
Does IBL lead to better outcomes?
Students…
• Positive
– Academic
achievement
– Process skills
– Analytic abilities
– Critical thinking
– Creativity
– Enjoyment,
enthusiasm and
engagement
• Negative
– Perceived  workload
– Anxiety over need to
become self-directed
learners
– Difficulties with group
dynamics
IBL outcomes for teachers
Need for more studies – particularly those that examine
the teaching-research link
• Positive
– Strengthening of
teaching-research
links
– Pride in student
achievements
– Enjoyment
• Negative
– Anxiety over the lack
of structure
– Anxiety over when to
intervene
– Concern over
disparate tutor input
What are examples of IBL in HE?
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Communications (Oliver 2006)
History (Slatta 2004)
Literacy (Hutchings & O’Rourke,
2003)
Foreign languages (Luke, 2006;
Kennedy & Navey-Stokes, 2004;
Malinowski, 2004)
Music (Kramer & Arnold, 2004)
Social Science (Justice et al.,
2002)
Psychology (Muukkonen et al.,
2005; Pond, 2004)
Social work (Plowright & Watkins,
2004)
Design (Davis & Tesar, 2004)
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Medicine (Houlden et al., 2004)
Physics (Abell, 2005; Volkmann &
Zgagacz, 2004)
Meteorology (Yarger et al., 2000)
Chemistry (Ball et al., 2004; Barak
& Dori, 2005; Zoller, 1999)
Microbiology (Hyman & Luginbuhl,
2004)
Science (Rangachari, 2006; OliverHoyo & Beichner, 2004)
Food science (Turner & Daubert,
2004)
Engineering (Kirkman et al., 2004)
Forestry (Yin, 2006)
Plus numerous cases of problem-based learning (a subset of IBL)
Social science – a grammar for inquiry
(Justice et al., 2002)
• Provide a ‘recipe’ that any discipline could use as a basis
for an inquiry course (their recipe is for a first year
course)
• Initiative aimed to develop a course that focused on the
development of broad academic and intellectual skills in
the context of student self-directed learning
– Outcome hoped for was that students would
approach their studies more deeply and think critically
and reflectively about the production of knowledge
Model of the inquiry process
(Justice et al., 2002:19)
Taking
responsibility
for learning
Engaging a topic & developing
basic knowledge
Evaluating success
Communicating new
understandings
Developing a question
Self-reflection &
Self-evaluation
Determining what
needs to be known
Identifying resources,
gathering data
Synthesising
Assessing data
Model of the inquiry process
(Justice et al., 2002:19)
Taking
responsibility
for learning
Engaging a topic & developing
basic knowledge
Evaluating success
Communicating new
understandings
Developing a question
Self-reflection &
Self-evaluation
Determining what
needs to be known
Identifying resources,
gathering data
Synthesising
Assessing data
Fostering use of inquiry
– within class activities
• Lectures: using
inquiry questions and
getting students to
work together to find
possible answers
• Tutorials (face-toface or online):
discussion questions
based on key
readings or concepts
• Other examples?
Within-course activities
• Project work: individual or group research
• Reports, posters, presentations, proposals
• Inquiry modules
• Tutorials based around problem-solving or
considering issues
• Other examples?
Inquiry courses
• To take learners (students and teachers?)
through the whole inquiry/research cycle
• First year  advanced
• Questions supplied or generated?
– If supplied – by whom?
• External agencies
• Teachers
• Past students
• Checklist for inquiry course
• Examples?
Ecology degree
at Otago University
Stage 1
Invertebrate biodiversity project
- Undertake field work
- Laboratory analysis
- Data processing
- Write a report
Stage 2
Community and ecosystem research
- Work in small groups on a guided
research project
- Choice of ecosystem
- Produce a scientific poster
- Produce a research proposal
- Peer review proposals
Stage 3
Ecology Field Course
- Field work to learn skills and
develop inquiry questions
- Three days of data gathering in field
- Produce a presentation
- Produce a report in journal style
What are the implications for teaching IBL?
• Which type of IBL and at what stage?
– Prolonged exposure best
– Many advantages of beginning at stage 1
– Plan to have advanced students design and complete
a research project (collaboratively and/or
independently)
Implications for
teaching (cont.)
• How to manage the
teaching team?
– Involve team in
planning
– Draw on research into
learning theory and IBL
– Support teachers (ptc
new ones)
• Develop a community of
practice
• Have regular meetings
and share experiences
of teaching in this mode
Implications for teaching (cont.)
• How to facilitate IBL?
– Orient students to this type of learning environment
• Rationale
• Group functioning
– Ask open-ended questions that provoke further discussion
– Support students – value their ideas and contributions
– Encourage students to reflect on their experiences (keep a
reflective diary; have assessment that requires reflection)
– Monitor progress
– Challenge student thinking
– Develop an atmosphere of trust
– Gain feedback on the course
What can we surmise about IBL?
• IBL – contested term and relations between IBL and PBL are not well
understood
• Motivation for IBL is well grounded in educational theory
• There are clear benefits of using IBL for both students and teachers
(but there are challenges too) BUT more studies are required
• IBL has been used sparsely in most discipline areas
– Can be used for within-class activities  projects  courses 
degree programmes
• Implications for teachers:
– Consider what type of IBL to implement, and at which stage
– Course coordinators need to carefully manage the teaching team
– Students need to be oriented to this learning environment,
particularly if engaged in an inquiry course
Thanks to the Ministry of Education for funding this research