Inquiry Approach
















Student voice and choice
Questions and concepts
Collaborative work
Strategic thinking
Authentic investigations
Student responsibility
Student as knowledge creator
Interaction and talk
Teacher as model and coach
Cross disciplinary studies
Multiple resources
Multimodal learning
Engaging in a discipline
Real purpose and audience
Caring and taking action
Performance and self
assessments
Coverage Approach
















Teacher selection and
direction
Assigned topics and isolated
facts
Solitary work
Memorization
As if/surrogate learning
Student compliance
Student as information
receiver
Quiet and listening
Teacher as expert and
presenter
One subject at a time
Reliance on a textbook
Verbal sources only
Hearing about a discipline
Extrinsic motivators
Forgetting and moving to the
next unit
Filling in bubbles and blanks
“Teachers lead students on lively, sociable
inquiries that investigate big ideas so deeply
that kids enjoy, remember, and often act
upon them…These teachers view the
curriculum as an overarching umbrella for
self-selected inquires into a topic related to
the curricular content.”
S. Harvey and H. Daniels
Inquiry Circles in Action:
Comprehension and Collaboration, 2009









students show curiosity
practical connection to the real world
topic is rich
interpretation and analysis are required
subtopics to be explored
opportunity for debate
a values, social or moral dimension
multiple outcomes, understandings or solutions
investigation leads to even more questions,
problems or puzzles



Teacher heavy upfront and during…
Passion/choice leads to engagement!
We know that people become invested in
learning that offers choice.
◦
◦
◦
◦
Invite curiosity
Build background knowledge
Find topics
Wonder
•For example, in our new Social Studies
curricula, essential questions are:
•Gr. 2: Community: How do we meet
needs and wants in my community?
•Gr. 4: Saskatchewan: What can be done
to ensure continued sustainable
development in Saskatchewan?
•Gr. 8: Canadian Society: How do you
define Canadian culture and identity?
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
Develop questions
Search for information
Discover answers
Ask more probing questions
Search and research
Subsidiary Questions:
1. How is a need different than a want?
2. Could different people have the same
needs or the same wants?
3. What are some examples of a need?
4. What are some examples of a want?
◦
◦
◦
◦
Refine research
Synthesize information
Make inferences and draw conclusions
Build knowledge



Share learning
Demonstrate understanding
Take action
◦ Activism – doing something specific
◦ Awareness – educating others
◦ Aid – contributing your own resources.
• Projects may have more teacher control;
Inquiry is driven by students as they have
more responsibility for determining their
learning.
• Teacher often chooses topics in project
work.
• Lack of authentic purpose or audience
• Lack of models and modeling
• Projects often focus on research
technicalities instead of content and thinking
• Projects often lack well structured student
collaboration
• Go Public is not always present in projects.

A rubric is required as the tool needs to be
broad use…see sample