I am fascinated with many of the processes that are outlined in the first chapter of this

book. I am a very hands on, person; I like to be involved in the process and understand every
component of the things that I am personally involved in. This distinction has definitely extended
into my teaching career. I collaborate and learn from peers and mentors on as much as I can but I
am very reluctant to completely adopt a single lesson let alone an entire unit or an approach. I do
not like being told we will implement this system, or you will utilize this style. I am my own
preferred methods bases on years of experience and monitoring people that I have come to
admire and regard as experts in the field. With that mentality in mind I am constantly amazed at
the amount of experts that I am supposed to follow, agree with, and endorse when my classroom
is concerned. I spend so much time in class telling my students to verify and validate every
source, that they should investigate on their own, and develop their own voice that it resonates
with me how easy it is to approach hypocrisy in regards to outside influence in the classroom. I
should spend as much time validating information and advice for my classroom as my students
do for every source they present as valid for their grades. Being introduced to the actual concept
of Teacher Inquiry and looking at its relationships with educational process improvement has
strongly reinforced my personal position that the teacher in the classroom must-have at least as
much consideration and validity as a third party source; and that it the responsibility of the
teacher to ensure that continuance and furtherly to make it a positive development.
While the first chapter remains elusive on a true, definition of Teacher Inquiry, the
general definition given on page 8 is; focused movement on the concern of teachers that engages
in the design, data collection, and interpretation of data around a question within their classroom.
Getting more specific into the actually functioning of Teacher Inquiry, it is a self-perpetrating
cycle of diagnosing a situation that needs to be improved, formulating action strategies to
improve the situation, implementing the strategies and evaluating them, and clarifying the
situation. These processes occur in the actual classroom of the teacher and tend to continue one a
singular situation has been addressed into another situation that can be then diagnosed and
improved upon again, truly a never ending or self-perpetuating process for inquiry. Following the
actual definition of the term and further explanation of its practicalities the further detailing of
the term in comparison to two other research paradigms. The definition and explanation of
Teacher Inquiry touches heavily upon the impact and importance of the research and inquiry
taking place with the teacher; the actual refinement being done by the person that will actually
utilize the gained knowledge and apply it directly in the classroom. This is stressed heavily in a
comparison to the other research paradigms where that dynamic is not present; the research is
conducted outside of the operatives presence and the path from origin to implementation is
much more obscure.
The Process-Product and Qualitative research paradigms are virtual opposites of the
Teacher Inquiry paradigm. The primary differences coming in the origin of research and guiding
questions most often utilized in each respective discipline. Within both opposing disciplines
there is a third party, most often an expert or university employee that is actually conducting the
research in a different environment. The actual person/s conducting research to answer questions
about classroom efficiency or situations will most likely never be within the classroom or
physically impact the students. The guiding questions are also very different for each process;

Qualitative and Process-Product are much closer in practicality with their primary goals focusing
outside the initial practice of the classroom whether it be a control, prediction, or process. It
seems as if the process is more scientific with these two disciplines, Process-Product and
Qualitative, being hypothesis then test and record results often times in a clinical or very upper
tier academic environment. This is seemingly much removed from the hands on, everyday
approach of constant improvement that Teaching Inquiry seems to center upon. It becomes easy
to understand the difference purposes and potential impact for a classroom instructor when all
three research paradigms are considered.
Identifying an area that needs improvement should be a daily task for every school
teacher. Not a single day goes by that I do not realize that my lessons could be refined or a better
technique could be used to reach a larger audience of students simultaneously within the lesson. I
really enjoyed the example given on page 16 about collecting reading habits of students. Taking
notice of what the students actually read and altering the course work to reflect current interest
from students is a brilliant move. Reflecting on how you can actually affect the data, and putting
into motion was a simple and effective example of Teacher Inquiry. This is something that I hope
to be able to do within my own classroom this semester. After modeling a few reading techniques
and piloting a program with students on out first classroom novel they will be able to break into
literature circles and select their own work for the second novel read in the class. I will evaluate
the effect after the unit is complete and check for the development of the units selected skills. If
the freedom of choosing a story is something that helps I will continue to use it in groups if not I
will most likely limit the options to a pre-selected list of novels that I feel will develop those
same skills.
This process of guided inquiry from the teacher transitions very well into so many aspects
of the educational world. One that truly surprised me at first consideration was the relationship
from Teacher Inquiry to Common Core. I have been in a personal transition about Common
Core; I was definitely not a fan at inception but have come to appreciate the outline skilled but
freedom of movement allowed within the concept. This is echoed in the book, on page 21 the
reference to Common Core as a guide not a bible, and the implication that the Common Core
is more a direction of skill development instead of a rigid course planner fits in well with my
experience thus far. Common Core provides teacher with several problems that can be easily
identified; CCSS.ELA.W.1 states students shall be able to write arguments to support claims in
an analysis of substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient
evidence. Knowing what skill is required of the students the teacher would then inquire about the
best methods to achieve this. Selecting a popular and emotional topic for students to consider
may be one approach. The teacher may note that emotions become heightened and certain
students spend more time arguing about opinion and morals then they do actually refining their
technique but that quite a few students enjoy the topic freedom and do quite well. Refining the
topic selection may be one path to go, selecting items that are still modern and enjoyable but
avoiding one that are mainly political or religious to avoid the constant opinion storm would be a
middle ground. The teacher could decide that group work on an assigned topic then forcing the
same students to consider the opposing viewpoint may be better than allowing the students to try
to develop their own skill on an initial attempt; hoping that scaffolding is happening in real time

and allowing for students to share their opinions in a comfortable environment while also
developing team building skills. The flexibility to choose and alter are both freedoms allowed to
the classroom teacher by the Common Core. By practicing Teacher Inquiry; identifying the skill
listed in the Common Core, selecting a strategy to attempt accomplishment of the skill, putting
the strategy into trial, then reviewing results and refining the process the teacher is not only
practicing inquiry but providing a superior learning environment for the students.

The actual process of Teacher Inquiry seems to be something that I am engaging in

already. I was hesitant following the differences listed within the book in regards to reflection
and inquiry at first. The idea that daily reflection is somehow different from inquiry was off
putting but after considering the aspects and looking at the benefits it seems to make sense.
Taking an actual approach to where I select an individual problem and address it is more
technical then therapeutic. To me that is the main difference from reflection to inquiry, guided
destination. Treating each diagnosable situation or improvement as a process itself and working
towards a further solution is something that I wish to do personally and model for the students to
do as well. The actual act of inquiry seems to lead to more inquiry and deeper thinking, again
perpetuating a cycle that seems to lead to a more refined educational process with every attempt.