Final Reflection

How have my conceptions of inquiry and information literacy developed over time?

When I began this inquiry learning journey I believed that I had a sound grasp on what inquiry was and how to implement it within the classroom. However, after completing my ‘inquiry in action’ research task I have realised that inquiry learning and information literacy are complex but essential elements in education. Inquiry learning can take many forms ranging from structured to open; it is dependent on the educational context and the needs of the students that teachers must select the most appropriate form of inquiry to suit their learner’s needs. At the heart of inquiry are questions, thus, questioning frameworks are critical to any inquiry. Posing questions for many students is hard. According to Milvain (2008) questions in inquiry should be used to probe, challenge and extend students’ understanding of a concept. That is why my favourite model to prompt student questioning during an inquiry learning activity is the inquiry circle. This model embraces all that is wonderful about inquiry and assists students and teachers throughout the entire process, particularly the ISP.

After analysing my findings from my research I was surprised at how much a student’s emotions during the ISP impacted on their learning. Without resources from Kulthau and her colleagues on guided inquiry I would have had limited knowledge and understanding of how and when to assist my students. In saying this, the one area where my learning has grown exponentially is my understanding of information literacy and critical literacy. The GeSTE windows were a new concept to me. It challenged me in the way I taught information literacy, consequently improving my ability to develop the critical literacy of my students. I acknowledge that in the past my teaching has never extended into the transformative window, however, I am ready to transform my teaching and the way students learn in my class, so that they can become empowered citizens of the future.

Reflection of my inquiry learning journey

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Above are just sample of the questions I have asked as I have travelled along this journey of inquiry. Without asking these questions and conducting my own professional inquiries my teaching would be none the better. Similarly to my students, at the beginning of my travels I also found posing my own inquiry questions difficult. However, as I jumped headfirst into the waters of inquiry learning I became more and more curious, wanting to know more…and the questions began to flow! Many of my questions revolved around effectively structuring inquiry research, such as when should students pose questions and when/how should I provide students with guidance. I have found the answers to all of these questions but as I learned on the ‘road not taken’ “the value of collecting questions rather than answers is crucial” (Lupton, 2012).

Where to from here?

My inquiry journey is far from over! As a life-long inquirer I will continue to pose questions and embark on a quest for discovery…but where will my next inquiry quest take me? From the analysis and recommendations made in relation to the inquiry learning activity I have decided I need to become a leader in my school on inquiry learning and information literacy. Therefore, my new questions are:

1. How can I (with the support of the Teacher-Librarian) encourage and implement a consistent whole school approach to inquiry?
2. Who or what resources can I utilise as professional development tools for my colleagues and myself?

References:

Lupton, M. (2012, November 28). Collecting Questions. [Web log post]. Retrieved 20^th December 2014 from http://inquirylearningblog.wordpress.com/.

Milvain, C. (2008). Thinking skills within the humanities discipline. [Online]. Ethos, 16(4), p.6-10. Retrieved 21^st December 2014 from http://search.informit.com.au.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/fullText;dn=174318;res=AEIPT

Initial Post

What I already know about Inquiry learning

The term inquiry learning was first introduced to me when I was at university studying my teaching degree. Inquiry learning is a prominent pedagogy used in my school, thus, my understanding of the inquiry learning cycle has developed from teaching experiences in the classroom. As a Year 7-10 History teacher, historical inquiry is very much embedded in the Australian Curriculum, therefore I use inquiry as a form of pedagogy on a regular basis. My understanding of inquiry learning is that it is first and foremost, a quest for knowledge- to ask QUESTIONS and find ANSWERS. That is, questions are posed; re-search is conducted; answers are found and findings are presented. The image below is a visual representation of my understanding.

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What I want to know

Upon reflection of my teaching practice, I feel the need to examine the effectiveness of how I implement inquiry learning in my classroom. From what I currently know about inquiry learning and what I am beginning to discover from brief re-search, I feel that there is a disconnect in my teaching practice. Lupton (2012, para. 6) states that in the inquiry learning process “the value of collecting questions rather than answers is crucial”. I feel that I have been placing too much emphasis on my students ability to find the answers to their inquiry rather than focusing on the power of questions. I believe that this is partly due to time constraints. As many teachers would agree, I feel pressured to cover all of the content and skills prescribed in the Australian Curriculum, along with completing student assessments each term. As a result, I often question if I am implementing an effective inquiry learning framework, and wonder if I am offering my students the best educational experience.

Another area I would like to focus on is how engaged and motivated my students are during the inquiry learning process. At times, I feel that I give students too much guidance, taking away ownership of their learning. I am beginning to believe that I am contradicting the whole concept of inquiry learning, as the philosophy behind the pedagogy is designed to assist learners understand their own learning processes (Kulthau, Maniotes and Caspari 2012, p. 5). Thus, I have two choices. I can continue my teaching practice as it is (flaws and all) or I can improve my teaching practice to benefit the learning outcomes of my students. As Robert Frost (1916) once said,

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less travelled by,

And that has made all the difference.”

Basic Google Search for “Inquiry Learning”

After typing the words “inquiry learning” into Google I was astounded at the 194,000,000 results that appeared. This in itself reveals that inquiry learning requires expert re-search skills to decipher the mass of information that is on the Internet. I was not surprised to see Wikipedia in the top three search results. It has been my previous experience that Wikipedia is usually always one of the first sites to appear in any Google search. Which is concerning as now that I think about it, 8/10 of my students will reference a Wikipedia page in their bibliography. This makes me question, am I teaching my students expert re-search skills? I was surprise to see that the second article on the search list was a PDF document from Kath Murdoch. The source outlined the many benefits of inquiry learning and provided a scaffold on how to conduct an inquiry learning activity. This source was informative and set me off to a great start on my journey, however, a link to Kath Murdoch’s webpage would also have been beneficial. The other search items of interest were the blog from Neil Stephenson who documented his inquiry learning journey and an article by Luke Touhill who had written an article about inquiry learning in early childhood education.These sources provided basic explanations of inquiry learning, however, did not offered the depth I was looking for. Clearly, I need to take the road less travelled and up-skill my re-search abilities.

What questions do I have about Inquiry Learning?

As two roads diverge into the unknown, and I take the road less travelled by I have decided I to start my inquiry journey with these questions:

1. How can I use class time effectively to teach the core content in History but also implement effective and worthwhile inquiry learning experiences for my students?
2. What are some strategies that would engage and motivate my less historically inclined students in inquiry learning?
3. How much guidance is too much? How can I assist in the development of my students in becoming independent learners?

References

Frost, R. (1916). Cited by Poetry Foundation. (2014). The Road Not Taken. Retrieved 21^st December 2014 from http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/173536.

Kulthau, C., Maniotes, L. and Caspari, A. (2012). Guided Inquiry design: a framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara: Libraries Unlimited.

Lupton, M. (2012, November 28). Collecting Questions. [Web log post]. Retrieved 20^th December 2014 from http://inquirylearningblog.wordpress.com/.