Designing inquiry learning into courses

Mick HealeyHE Consultant and Researcher, UK

mhealey@glos.ac.uk; www.mickhealey.co.uk

• HE Consultant and Researcher and Emeritus Professor University of Gloucestershire, (UoG) UK; Adjunct Professor Macquarie University;

• Previously Director Centre for Active Learning, University of Gloucestershire• Ex-VP for Europe Society for Scholarship of Teaching and Learning• National Teaching Fellow and Principal Fellow HE Academy• Co-Editor of International Journal for Academic Development (IJAD) (2010-13)• Visiting expert to Higher Education Authority for Ireland evaluating teaching and learning

components of Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions (2003)• Advisor to Canadian Federal Government ‘Roundtable on Research, Teaching and

Learning in post-Secondary Education’ (2006)• Advisor to National Academy for Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning

(Ireland) (2007-12); Visiting Teaching Fellow UCC (2012)• Advisor to Australian Learning and Teaching Council / Office of Learning and Teaching

Projects on the ‘Teaching-research nexus’ (2006-08), ‘Undergraduate research’ (2009-10); ‘Teaching research’ (2011-13 ); and ‘Capstone curriculum across disciplines’ (2013-14)

• Advisor to EU Bologna and HE Reform Experts on research-based education (2012)• Research interests: linking research and teaching; scholarship of teaching; active

learning; developing an inclusive curriculum; students as change agents; students as partners

Brief biography

What does the term inquiry or inquiry-based learning mean to you?

Developing a question

Anticipating possible answers & determining

relevant information

Identifying resources & gathering information

Assessing information

Weighing evidence & synthesising

understandings

Communicating newunderstandings

Evaluating success

Self-reflection &Self-evaluation

Model of the inquiry process (Justice et al., 2007)

Engaging a topic & building basic knowledge

Taking responsibility for learning

Forms of IBL

IBL activities may be designed to last over different lengths of time:

• A short exercise in a class, • A whole class• A whole semester course• A whole program

In pairs each look at a different whole semester IBL course (pp2-4 and pp5-8).

Discuss the similarities and differences

IBL involves:• Learning stimulated by inquiry i.e.

driven by questions or research problems

• Learning based on a process of constructing new knowledge and understanding

• A student/learner/learning-centred approach with the teacher as a facilitator

• A move to self-directed learning• The development of skills in self-

reflection

Optional attributes of IBL:• Collaborative/group learning• Community involvement• Field-based activity• Resource-based learning• Multi or inter-disciplinary focus

Students engaged in IBL should develop:

• Critical thinking skills• The ability for independent inquiry• Responsibility for their own learning

• Intellectual growth and maturity(Lee et al., 2004)

IBL is a pedagogy which best enables students to

experience the processes of knowledge creation

Stage of inquiry learning

Upon successful completion of this course a student should be able to:

1.develop a researchable question and give a rationale for its significance;

2.choose appropriate research methods to obtain information relevant to answering the question;

3.critically evaluate the validity and relevance of sources;

4.communicate a coherent response to the research question and interpret the findings in a wider context;

5.critically reflect on the learning process.

Break out activity

Establish 5 small groups (ideally from related disciplines)

• Each group takes one stage of inquiry learning

• Identify c3 activities that you could do with your stage to develop the students’ skills in this stage

• Record your activities on the chart paper – be prepared to share in plenary

Allocate 20 minutes

“Once you have learnt how to ask questions – relevant and appropriate and substantial questions – you have learnt how to learn and no one can keep you from learning whatever you want or need to know.”

Postman and Weingartner (1971, 23)

Mainstreaming undergraduate research and inquiry: discipline and department strategies

!nquiry planner, and active learning suggestions

In groups of 4 look at:– 3. Inquiry Planner – (pp9-10)

– 4. Inquiry Based Learning in a Professional Learning Context – (pp. 11-13)

– 5. Activities to get students active in their learning (pp14-17) (2 people)

– Discuss ideas which are transferable

Time: 15 minutes

Modes of IBL

• Importance of scaffolding provided by lecturer and development of independence in learner

• Structured – where lecturers provide an issue or problem and an outline for addressing it

• Guided – where lecturers provide questions to stimulate inquiry but students are self-directed in terms of exploring these questions

• Open – where students formulate the questions themselves as well as going through the full inquiry cycle

(after Staver and Bay, 1987)

Does IBL enhance student learning?

Increasing evidence that shows:• enhanced academic achievement, student perceptions,

process skills, analytic abilities, critical thinking and creativity (Prince & Felder, 2006)

• deeper understanding, higher degree of reflection, more motivated and achievement of higher order learning (Berg et al., 2003)

• higher grades, more Honours, better retention (Justice et al. 2007b)

(Spronken-Smith et al. 2009)

(Spronken-Smith et al. 2009)

Scaffolding inquiry throughout a degree

1st year

1st year

2nd year

3rd year

2nd year

3rd year

Anticipated Challenge Areas

Each table should come up with a question concerning a challenge they face in developing inquiry based learning into their classes which they would like help with.

Keep the question short and simple

Allocate 5 minutes

Break out activity

Pass your question to the next table

Identify one key strategy for answering the question that you have received.

Allocate 5 minutes

Action planning

Decide on a key change you want to implement in your practice by yourself and or with immediate colleagues•The central idea is …

•This is so important because …

•The (three) central ways that this will be implemented are …

•The (two) main challenges to implementation are … and how I expect to deal with them …

•Something else I want to say about this idea is …

Display these on a poster (20 mins)

THE END

For more pictures and a 1.5 min movie of Tess

see:

www.mickhealey.co.uk