A year ago we started to talking in detail about 21st century learning and personalized learning (the 3 C’s and the 7 C’s and sometimes the 8 C’s) and, in the process, the focus in our district has been on delving deeper in order to fully understand and embrace the concept of inquiry. While most jurisdictions around the world largely agree with the skills and attributes espoused by those questioning the current educational system, the challenge has been to formulate what this new model tangibly looks like for students in schools. For us, this “inquiry” is helping us define what “it” really is.
For a couple of our schools this rubric created by the Galileo Educational Network is proving to be a very helpful starting point.
Inquiry is another term that can have very different meanings to different people. The Galileo Educational Network sees it as:
. . . a dynamic process of being open to wonder and puzzlement and coming to know and understand the world. As such, it is a stance that pervades all aspects of life and is essential to the way in which knowledge is created. Inquiry is based on the belief that understanding is constructed in the process of people working and conversing together as they pose and solve the problems, make discoveries and rigorously testing the discoveries that arise in the course of shared activity.
Inquiry is a study into a worthy question, issue, problem or idea. It is the authentic, real work that someone in the community might tackle. It is the type of work that those working in the disciplines actually undertake to create or build knowledge. Therefore, inquiry involves serious engagement and investigation and the active creation and testing of new knowledge.
In West Vancouver, this process of inquiry is taking several forms. In some places it is well-defined and in others it is more organic. In listening to principals and vice-principals discuss areas of focus for their schools for next year, almost all of the schools have some focus on inquiry.
At Eagle Harbour, the approach is linked to Montessori, while at Cypress Park and West Bay it is connected to the Primary Years Program International Baccalaureate Program (IB). At Rockridge Secondary, they also link their inquiry work to IB, using the Middle Years Program as their foundation. Caulfeild Elementary is launching its IDEC (Inquiry based Digitally Enhanced Community) as a foundation for its school structure. While not as tightly defined, similar thoughtful work is taking place in other schools — many being guided by Understanding by Design (UbD) assessment work. UbD, particularly in the elementary schools, has had a dramatic impact on lesson and unit construction, instruction and assessment. As I have often said, it is some of the most difficult, least glamorous professional learning we can undertake, but it can really improve our practice.
A common theme with inquiry is one that is also true with the conversations around personalized learning — it really redefines the role of the student and teacher and what each of them does in the course of their day. Combined with emerging technologies, this approach to themes and topics is changing what engagement can look like in our schools.
For all who lament the slow speed of change in education, it is fascinating to see how quickly our district is coalescing around inquiry as part of what we do in West Vancouver.
cultureofyes.ca 
Great post Chris. When I look at the role of student and teacher, I also look to the relationship in the context of the task at hand – this can help, through our inquiry process, predict the learning that will happen.
Erin
Great help to other districts that are working to make inquiry a way of life in their change work – really appreciate how transparent you are making the truly exceptional work your educators are doing. The Galileo thinking has always been the best in Canada from my perspective.
From my educational travels I would say – world leading.
Linda K
Adult inquiry is the analogue to children’s play. Both are rooted in wonder and driven by a desire to learn how to be more effective in the world. Both are best done in groups. Both are their own reward. Both benefit from a focus but suffer when scripted. And both enable personalized learning, so inquiry seems like the perfect way to learn how to define and enact “it” for students and for ourselves.
Thanks for the article, I am always interested in inquiry-based teaching/learning.
May I submit the following forms for your use for inquiry…
An observation tool based on teacher behaviors and teacher/student dynamic in a science classroom –
http://marksalata.blogspot.com/2011/01/indicators-of-inquiry-tm-science.html
An observation tool based on teacher behaviors and teacher/student dynamic in a classroom in general –
http://marksalata.blogspot.com/2010/12/indicators-of-inquiry.html
Five essential features of inquiry in a classroom in general –
http://marksalata.blogspot.com/2010/12/five-essential-features-of-inquiry-for.html
[…] wrote a full post last spring on inquiry available here. While the term was previously reserved for the world of International Baccalaureate, it is […]
[…] have also written about the intensification of inquiry and self-regulation — two other key theme areas we are seeing in our schools. However, […]
Recently I had the pleasure of observing the impact an inquiry based lesson had on student engagement in a 7th grade middle school science classroom. The student engagement led to learning that, hopefully, will be long lasting as opposed to short lived beyond the next assessment. The learning was composed of students working collaboratively to use a variety of resources, including the web, to discover how our planet naturally recycles rocks; a topic that otherwise would have been presented in a step by step reading to complete a graphic organizer. Bravo to the science teacher who was willing to take a risk!
That is outstanding. I am so impressed when I spend times in classrooms that are taking an inquiry-based approach. The student engagement is great to see!
The timing of your article “Connecting to the Earth and the Digital World” was perfect. To be honest, I was somewhat doubtful as to how these two themes could authentically mesh in the classroom, but I have recently observed the successful integration of technology and nature at our school. Over the last few months the students have been working on a whole school “Big Idea” around “Survival”. To be more specific, through inquiry-based learning, they have been exploring and researching the plant lifecycle, pollination and the decline of the Bees. From building mason bee habitats and exploring our surrounding environment to accessing websites and ipad applications the learning process has been engaging and multifaceted. For the culmination of this inquiry students in the grade 2/3 classroom demonstrated their understanding with the use of ipads. Click onto ScreenChomp on the recent school posting. http://go45.sd45.bc.ca/blogs/schoolblogs/lbblog/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=14
From here the students have decided to become “Citizen Scientists” and launch a campaign to “Save the Bees” http://www.greatsunflower.org/about-great-sunflower-project. (We are using pumpkin plants instead of sunflowers).
The whole process has been very exciting for students and staff and yes, I can now say that I get it!
[…] have taken a stab at defining inquiry in my post All About Inquiry; I referenced the work of the Galileo Educational Network and in reviewing previous posts realize […]