IB TDT- Inquiry about inquiry

 

Tuning in…

 

Experiences of Inquiry

 

• Contexts: in school, at home, at university

 

Benefits

 

• Good because you learn new things you didn’t know before.
• Get issues that concern you sorted out by asking the right people for help/ clarification/ reassurance.
• Curiosity will get you far in life because if you don’t ask, you will never know.

 

Challenges

 

• Myself personally I am really shy so I sometimes find it nerve-racking asking questions in front of a class full of other people- fear of being judged.

 

 

Opportunities of Inquiry

 

In primary and secondary school I used KWL approach when learning about a new topic (what do I Know, what do I Want to know, what have I Learnt?)

 

How did/does it make you feel?

 

I feel it is an amazing method as it is very stimulating for pupils in the sense that it gets them thinking about their own learning actively as a class. It gets pupils to think about what they already know and be curious about what they want to know- making it very pupil led. It also helps the teacher prepare lessons better as it allows them to teach the pupils things they want to learn and prepare the best they can to provide high quality lessons. Personally when I was a pupil, I found it very stimulating, giving me curiosity about the topic and intrigued to learn more.

 

Did I see it on my MA1 placement

 

I experienced inquiry-based learning on placement by seeing the KWL activity in action when the class started their new topic of Transport. The teacher did the activity as a whole class, getting all the pupils actively participating together and teaching them to listen to each others ideas and inputs. I will definitely use this approach in future as the pupils found it really interesting and it was a very useful tool for the teacher himself.

 

 

 

 

Finding Out…

 

Questions about inquiry

 

Why do we make inquiries?
How do we inquiries?

How can we promote inquiry-based learning in schools?

What ways is inquiry- based learning beneficial to learners?

What barriers can exist that lessen the impact of inquiry- based learning?

 

Sorting Out…(Using Inquiry in the Classroom- Teresa Coffman)

 

Question- Why do we make inquiries?

 

Sentence:“inquiry ensures that students are not only memorising required factual information, but are also applying the facts to the development of meaningful questions and their own understaning.”

 

Phrase: “special interest”, “actively involved”

 

Word:“curiosity”, “explore”

 

Question- How can we promote inquiry based learning?

 

Sentence: “As a teacher, you can develop inquiry skills in your students by helping them to develop a curiosity of the world around them and then to question and seek answers to help solve relevant problems”

 

Phrase: “functional skills” “unique interest”

 

Word: “motivation”

 

 

Making Conclusions…

 

New questions:

 

• Why wasn’t inquiry-based learning reinforced as much in the past in schools.

 

 

Taking Action…

 

I am going to make sure I implement lots of inquiry-based learning throughout my future placements in my career by teaching pupils about concepts that truly interest them and make them feel a sense of passion when learning. I will use the KWL approach when beginning every topic so I can achieve this.

 

Inquiry Reflection

 

What was it like to learn through inquiry

 

It was very interesting learning through inquiry as it prompted discussion as a class and got us as pupils to think deeper about what we wanted to find out, giving us the chance to make our own decisions about our own learning by choosing things that are of great interest to us. It brought out our curiosity as a class which I feel is fundamental for children to feel when learning something new as they will fully immerse themselves in what they are learning about.

 

What do you notice about yourself as a learner

 

I felt that as a learner it was of great benefit to me as I learned in class in an active way, and I felt much more engaged during lessons and found myself participating more rather than just sitting quietly in the corner. I feel it brings learners out of their shell because it encourages them to feel more comfortable in the classroom to speak out by creating a friendly ethos throughout the discussion. Personally, it helped me massively at university as I feel more and more comfortable answering out in workshops when before I would not open my mouth, even when I did have ideas.

 

How will that impact on

 

• my future studies:I will try to make sure to take advantage on all inquiry-based learning in future as it will help me to communicate my ideas and also listen to what others have to say and I can learn from others too by thinking about ideas I may not have considered before.
• The work I do with my pupils:Now that I understand the benefits of inquiry-based learning, I will use the KWL approach when beginning every new topic so that I introduce this method of learning quickly and early. It will allow pupils to feel comfortable expressing their thoughts collectively as a class which will hopefully get them over the hurdle of the intimidation of speaking out.