
Creative Commons Image: Fidelman, M. (2010). Curation Analytics Equation Diagram. Retrieved 27th December 2014 from https://www.flickr.com/photos/fidelman/4893340316/sizes/l
As I walked out of the woods through the overgrowth I could see a clear path ahead of me. I have taken time to curate 10 of the most relevant and useful sources that I encountered throughout my re-search. I think that you will find these an informative source of professional readings in relation to inquiry learning pedagogy…I certainly gained a new perspective!
In addition to this, I have addressed one of my inquiry questions:
Which stage of the inquiry process should focus questions be posed and how can I assist students in developing meaningful questions?
After considerable reflection and evaluation of my sources I decided to respond to what I believe to be the most important of my inquiry questions. At the beginning of this journey you may recall that my focal point of inquiry learning pedagogy within my classroom was for students to find the answers. Previous inquiry lessons that I have implemented have focused on students posing re-search questions at the beginning of the task then to find the answers. I now realise that this was a weakness in my teaching practice from what I now know effective and authentic inquiry learning to be. It is evident to me that for inquiry learning to be successful I must change the way I implement the inquiry cycle and place a stronger emphasis on questions rather than answers.
Rich and meaningful questions can only come from inquiry learning if the cycle is implemented effectively. Maniotes and Kuhlthau (2014, p.10) declare “authentic research questions come towards the middle of the process after exploration and before collection, rather than at the beginning”. From analysing my current practice I can see that my students have been getting “mired in the collection stage of re-search” and have ended up “reporting on disconnected facts” (Maniotes & Kuhlthau, 2014, p.10) because I had not implemented the inquiry cycle correctly, resulting in a poor questioning framework. In order to rectify this I need to ensure that each stage of the inquiry cycle is implemented accurately with the emphasis on the processes rather than the outcome (assessment).

Image created by site author: adapted from the Inquiry Model Diagram: Branch, J, & Oberg, D. (2004). Inquiry Model Process. Chapter 2, p. 10
Questions are the foundation of inquiry learning. Engaged inquiry classrooms are characterised by students actively posing meaningful questions, therefore, enhancing their own questioning skills (Whitehouse, 2008, p. 36). For teachers like myself, this means they need to teach thinking skills to their students. The development of metacognitive skills is an essential aspect in refining the questioning techniques that students employ. If inquiry pedagogy and the questioning abilities of students are to be improved, teachers need to know how to teach metacognitive skills (Milvain, 2008, p. 7; Hamston, 2014 post, para. 1-2). This is done best through teachers modelling their own thinking, making it visible to students. This will allow students to identify their own metacognitive processes, enhancing their ability to pose quality inquiry questions.
Meaningful and relevant inquiry must come from within the student rather than the teacher. If students are to become independent learners they need to be skilled in asking questions, not just answering them (Godinho & Wilson, 2004, cited in Whitehouse, 2008, p. 32). Clearly, “the questions that are posed by students shape the way discovery unfolds” (Whitehouse, 2008, p. 32). This requires teachers to explicitly teach questioning techniques. The most effective form of questioning for inquiry is open-ended questions. Teaching students how to pose open-ended questions leads to:
- greater investigation of the topic,
- authentic inquiry learning experiences and,
- independent learners.
Sample Activity for Planning
Developing Good Inquiry Topics and Questions
Teach students, as they brainstorm possible questions, ideas and issues, to keep asking: “Am I going to be telling my audience something they didn’t know before?” (commonly called the Who Cares? Test). The following question stems (Owens, Hester & Teale, 2002, p. 618) assist in the development of engaging topics:
How is ____________ related to ____________?
What is a new example of ____________?
What are some possible solutions for the problem of ______? Explain why ____________.
What do you think would happen if ____________?
Why is ____________ important?Branch, J, & Oberg, D. (2004). Inquiry Model Process. Chapter 6, p. 49
Students need to be skilled in posing inquiry questions that are intellectually stimulating. Their questions should challenge and extend their understanding of the topic (Milvain, 2008, p. 9). This is the true objective of inquiry learning. From the clarity that I have gained from my re-search my future teaching practice will change for the better as I now realise QUESTIONS are at the KEY to discovery in inquiry learning.
Response: 547 words (10% margin)
References
Branch, J, & Oberg, D. (2004). Focus on inquiry: A teacher’s guide to implementing inquiry-based learning. Alberta, Canada: Alberta learning. Retrieved 21st December 2014 from, https://education.alberta.ca/media/313361/focusoninquiry.pdf
Hamston, J. (2014). Cited by Murdoch, K. (2014 November 11). Something to talk about: Dialogic teaching- putting classroom talk at the centre of inquiry. [Web log post]. Retrieved 23rd December 2014 from http://justwonderingblog.com/2014/11/11/something-to-talk-about-dialogic-teaching-putting-classroom-talk-at-the-centre-of-inquiry/.
Maniotes, L. & Kuhlthau, C. (2014). MAKING THE SHIFT. Knowledge Quest, 43(2), p. 8-17. Retrieved 22nd December 2014 from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1620878836?accountid=13380
Milvain, C. (2008). Thinking skills within the humanities discipline. [Online]. Ethos, 16(4), p.6-10. Retrieved 21st December 2014 from http://search.informit.com.au.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/fullText;dn=174318;res=AEIPT
Whitehouse, J. (2008). Talking humanities: questions and co-operative learning. [Online]. Social Educator, 26(1), p.32-36. Retrieved 21st December 2014 from http://search.informit.com.au.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/fullText;dn=168678;res=AEIPT.


















