Inquiry Based LearningWhat is it and how is it achieved?

Israel_Johnson_Schlosser Module 2 Assignment 6 Board of Ed Proposal

Why Inquiry?

All learners must be able to access quality information from diverse perspectives, make sense of it to draw their own conclusions or create new knowledge, and share that knowledge with others.

American Association of School Librarians, Standards for the 21st Century Learner in Action

Are our students ready ?

Students are more likely to be successful in developing the skills and dispositions of learning when they are given the opportunity to construct their own understanding and develop skills through guided practice.

American Association of School Librarians, Standards for the 21st Century Learner in Action

Why Inquiry?

Students learn best when they….• have a part in the decision making process

• are intrinsically motivated to learn

• are actively engaged in the learning process

• construct their own meaning

Benefits to Students•Increased social, language and reading skills

•Become more independent learners and researchers

•Experience greater motivation and engagement

•Learn problem solving strategies that they can apply to many other situations

•Construct their own meaning

Benefits to Teachers

•Share responsibility and expertise with the Instructional team

•Integrate information literacy skills into the content

•Allow for more creative thinking

•Enrichment of the content areas

Philosophy

Inquiry is a process that is active and is driven by questioning and critical thinking.

Inquiry-based learning follows a process that is recursive and reflective throughout.

Stripling provides a simple process to help students acknowledge “I am a thinker” (NYC Dept. of Ed 9).

Phases of Inquiry

Connect – Students access previous knowledge or gain background.

Wonder – Students develop questions or make predictions.

Investigate- Students find and evaluate information to answer questions or test hypothesis.

Construct- Students draw conclusions and relate understandings to previous knowledge.

Express- Students apply new understandings to new context or situation and share with others.

Reflect- Students as new questions and reflect on learning.

Connect

Show students how to:• Identify prior knowledge and misconceptions• Develop context through acquiring

background knowledge• Use mapping to develop overall theme

Cautions:• Lack of background knowledge• Sources as disconnected bits of

information • Misinterpretations due to limited

prior exposure

Wonder

Show students how to:• Develop questions at different levels• Connect questions to larger theme

Cautions:• Sources used as illustrations only• Students enticed by images and not text

Investigate

Show students how to:• Determine purpose and accuracy• Corroborate evidence• Take notes• Make inferences• Interpret evidence

Cautions:• Lack of knowledge make valid

interpretation difficult.

Construct

Show students how to:• Organize information• Compare evidence• Draw conclusions

Cautions:• Limited experience drawing conclusions or

forming opinions

Express

Show students how to:• Think creatively• Employ writing, speaking, and visualizing skills• Use technology to create a final product

Cautions:• Students may focus on production only

Reflect

Show students how to:• Question• Give and receive feedback• Use thinking strategies

Cautions:• Reflection confused with evaluation• Even students with high grades should reflect

Final Tips for Stripling Model of Inquiry

• Focus inquiry on big ideas and themes.• Frame the learning experience with an

inquiry process.• Teach critical thinking and information skills

of inquiry.• Confront students with both conflicting and

corroborating evidence.• Engage students in locating and

interpreting primary sources on their own.

(Teaching With Primary Sources 4)

Implementing the Inquiry Model by Collaborating with Teachers

Constructivist View

• What does this mean?

• What does this look like?

Implementing a Successful Inquiry Model by Committing to Developing Information Literacy

• No more “teaching to the test”

Works CitedAmerican Association of School Librarians. Standards for the 21st-Century Learner

In Action. Chicago: ALA, 2009.

Crow, Sherry R. "INFORMATION LITERACY: What's Motivation Got to Do with It?." Knowledge Quest 35.4 (2007): 48-52. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Feb. 2011.

Donham, Jean, Ph. D. “ Deep Learning through Concept Base Learning.” School Library Monthly XXV11.1: 8-11. PDF file.

Harada, Violet H. and Joan M. Yoshina. Inquiry Learning Through Librarian Teacher Partnerships. Worthington, OH: Linworth, 2004.

Kuhlthau, Carol C., Leslie K. Maniotes, and Ann K. Caspari. Guided Inquiry Learning in the 21st Century. Wesport: Libraries Unlimited, 2007. Print.

Library of Congress. "Supporting Inquiry Learning." Teaching with Primary Sources Quarterly (Summer 2009): 1-4. Pdf file.

New York City Department of Education. “Information Fluency Continuum.” 2010. Pdf file.

New York City Library System. "Handbook." 10 Oct. 2008. Pdf file.

Riedling, Ann. Information Literacy: What Does It Look Like in the School Library Media Center? Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited, 2004.

Stripling, Barbara. "Inquiry: Inquiring Minds Want to Know." School Library Media Activities Monthly 25.1 (2008): 50-52. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Feb. 2011.

Thompson, Helen M. and Susan A. Henley. Fostering Information Literacy; Connecting National Standards, Goals 2000, and the Scans Report. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, Inc., 2000. Print.

Veltze, Linda. "The Pitts/Stripling Model of Information Literacy." Apr. 2003. Pdf file.