Chris Giordano

Sister Mary Ann

EDUC 378
11/14/17
Inquiry Based Learning in the Classroom

Inquiry-based instruction is an idea that is spreading quickly across classrooms

across the world, and is even starting to be integrated into Education Standards,

especially in math and science. Inquiry is used to describe both the teaching and the

doing in a class, and it is a way to productively engage students in student-centered

activities and lessons. There are four types of inquiry-based learning: confirmation,

structured, guided, and open, and each of these different types of inquiry act as different

steps, or levels, of learning.

The most restrictive, or teacher-guided, type is confirmation inquiry. In

confirmation inquiry, the students are given the question, the method, and the result.

While given all of that, the students are asked to prove why. In order to do this, they

must explore the evidence given and explain the processes in which they are being used.

This is the most teacher-driven concept, as the students arent given much room to

critically think. The next type is structured inquiry. This style is one step closer to a

student-driven classroom, and the style I will be focusing on in this essay. In a structured

inquiry classroom, the students are given a question and the method and means to solve

it, but are not informed of the expected outcomes. The students are asked to discover

relationships and generalize data, while also providing an explanation that is supported

by evidence. The teacher has control in a structured class by directing and guiding

students towards the answers.

 The next step in these inquiry-based instructions is guided inquiry. Again, in this

type of inquiry, it takes one more step towards student independence. Here, students are

only given the questions, and they must design a method or investigation in order to

arrive to the answers. The students do the majority of the work in these classes, and it is

very student-guided. And finally, open inquiry. This is the last step in this sequence, and

as you would imagine, the students have to formulate their own problems, figure out a

method to solve it, and then arrive at a solution. The student carries out the inquiry here,

and this class is the most student-driven.

After reading about how beneficial inquiry based learning can be for students, I

thought to myself: what are efficient ways that I, as a teacher, could successfully

implement this into my classroom, and what is my role in that class? I thought that

maybe my role within the classroom might not be as important, however, I found that my

role would actually be enhanced. I must possess certain attitudes and skills to encourage

student success, and set a level of enthusiasm and curiosity within my classroom that

will rub off on my students. It is important to ask open-ended questions, respond to

students without criticizing, avoid telling students what to do, and maintain a disciplined

classroom (Colburn, 2000).

Although this type of inquiry based learning seems like a new trend, studies have

actually been done in inquiry based learning since the 1960s. In a 1972 study of ninth

graders in Ferguson, Missouri, teachers wanted to see if this new style of learning was

actually effective. For this study, 132 of the 225 total students were studied. Three

different teachers were used for the study, and the experimental group was chosen by a

coin flip between the teachers. The critical thinking level of all the students was tested
before the study began, and again when they concluded their study. In the inquiry-based

class, they found that after the experiment was over, students scored over two points

higher on the critical thinking exam from the experimental group, while their

counterparts actually scored almost two points lower (Starr, 1972) This result rejected

their hypothesis that there would not be a significant difference in critical thinking levels

between the inquiry-based group and the control class.

Because inquiry based learning is problem driven and student centered, these

different types can be very beneficial for student learning. In order to find out just how

useful inquiry based learning can be within a classroom, the University of Colorado

Boulder recently performed a study to measure just that. This study looked at student

learning and the affective outcomes of inquiry based courses and the various teaching and

learning activities. They gathered data from 42 course sections, in both inquiry based

learning (IBL) classes, and non-inquiry based learning (Non-IBL) classes, and each

course was observed between four and eight times throughout the semester. The results

they found were telling of the significance of inquiry based classrooms. They found that

in the IBL sections, over 60% of the class time was spent doing student-centered

activities, while in the non-IBL class, this number fell to just 8%. This lead to students in

the non-IBL classroom spending over 87% of class time listening to their instructors talk,

while that number fell to just 27% in the IBL class. There was not just a discrepancy in

classroom participation, however. IBL courses allowed for more opportunities to display

student leadership, more students asking questions, and a greater variety in classroom

activities. Students in the IBL classes were engaged in about four and a half student-

centered activities per hour, while their non-IBL counterparts were engaged in only 0.6
student-centered activities per hour. This also lead to a big difference in lecture times

between the two classes, as the average lecture in IBL sections were 9.2 minutes, as

opposed to 43.2 minutes in the non-IBL sections (Laursen, 2014).

In this study, these differences in instruction were directly related to the student

outcomes that were observed, as students in IBL math-track courses reported greater

learning gains than their non-IBL peers on every measure: cognitive gains in

understanding and thinking; affective gains in confidence, persistence, and positive

attitude about mathematics; and collaborative gains in working with others, seeking help,

and appreciating different perspectives (Laursen, 409). Clearly, in this study, the

numbers speak for themselvesinquiry based learning is a very successful way to keep

students engaged and focused on learning, while also enjoying it at the same time.

In the last study, it has shown that a non-inquiry based classroom can lead to less

participation and activity within a class due to the instructor lecturing for large amounts

of time. In another recent study conducted by the Department of Mathematics at the

University of Pretoria in South Africa, they found boredom was a key factor in strong

students not performing up to their standards. Within large classes, the strong students

were found to face a higher level of boredom than their peers, and it was indicated that

too little challenge in a classroom is the main factor of this (Wiggins, 2017).

Academically, stronger students may learn differently from their peers, and are typically

not challenged enough, thus leading to their learning needs to being sufficiently met. In

this study, they sought to implement a strong core of enriched inquiry-based programs.

They had the opportunity to do mathematics outside of the classroom and curriculum,

aimed at benefitting them mathematically (Wiggins, 2017). This study looked to work
in a two semester long study, and be evaluated at the end of the second semester based on

their work in the complex numbers topic of Linear Algebra I. Of the 1000 students

currently on that path, 22 students were selected to take part in this inquiry-based

program.

After the program was completed, they were given a questionnaire, of which 19

students completed. Seventeen students (89.4%) said they strongly agreed that they

enjoyed the program, while two students (10.6%) felt neutral. Upon their projects at the

end of their second semester, these students average score was 65.3%, while the entire

class average was 56.5% (Wiggins, 2017), which showed a somewhat significant

improvement. Similar to the previous study, 78.9% of the students said their view of

mathematics has changed, and the experience helped them to enjoy math.

Inquiry based learning is still being researched, but signs are pointing towards it

being very effective. In the classes that I am observing at the Bronx High School of

Science, and even at Ardsley High School, I have noticed that they are using this inquiry-

based learning within the classroom. Students are asked to work on a problem

individually or in groups when they enter the class, then the teacher will lecture for 5 or

10 minutes, and the students will then work on problems for the rest of the class. After a

few problems are completed, students will come up to the board and share their answers,

explaining what they did along the way and how they arrived at their answers. They then

open it up to the class and will answer any questions any of the other students might

have. It is very encouraging to see it in action in person, as all of the students are always

engaged, asking questions, and focusing on learning. My plan as a teacher would to try

and implement a system similar to this in my classroom. Students will walk in, and they
will get into the habit of doing the same routine every day. They will work on the do

now, take notes on the new information, and then work individually or in groups on new

problems using the new information.

Overall, I think that inquiry-based learning is a very effective way of teaching,

and will benefit students greatly. Not only will the students understand the topics better,

but they will also learn to think abstractly, and become more curious and interested in

topics that they learn about.

 Works Cited

Colburn, A. (2000). An Inquiry Primer. Experiential Learning, UC Davis, 42-44.

Retrieved November 11, 2017.

Laursen, S. L., Hassi, M., Kogan, M., & Weston, T. J. (2014). Benefits for Women and

Men of Inquiry-Based Learning in College Mathematics: A Multi-Institution

Study. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 45(4), 406.

doi:10.5951/jresematheduc.45.4.0406

Starr, R. J. (1972). Structured Oral Inquiry Improves Thinking. The American Biology

Teacher, 34(7), 408-409. doi:10.2307/4444033

Wiggins, H., Harding, A., & Engelbrecht, J. (2017). Student enrichment in mathematics:

a case study with first year university students. International Journal of

Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 48(Sup1).

doi:10.1080/0020739x.2017.1352046