EDIM513 - Inquiry Based Learning

Week 3 -


I think that there is somewhat of a disconnect between standards based teaching and incorporating real-world activities into the classroom.  The last few weeks of this class has helped to close the gap of the disconnect and provide ideas and strategies for everyday teaching.  In Inquiry based learning teachers guide students towards deeper meaning and learning of classroom content.  Students are more active in case studies, problem-solving, investigations and resolving real-world issues.  What we learned in the first two lessons sounded reasonable but I didn't know how to put the ideas into practice.  

The video of the science teacher changed my thinking of how to put inquiry and investigation into practice.  His lessons were simple and straightforward but the students demonstrated a deep understanding of the content.  It was clear that he focused on the science learning standards for physics.  When he spoke to the audience and reflected on the goals and objectives of the lesson, he mentioned the science/physics vocabulary, math & equations.  He also had activities that the students progressed from basic optics concepts to a real-world application. (human eye functions)  I also liked the way he paired the students in groups.  Often when I pair students together, one or two students stand out as leaders and get the work done.  What I observed in the video is that one group could see the "big picture" and described how the eye works but didn't include the fine details.  Another group worked on the fine details but could not explain the overall workings of eyesight.  I think that it is very important to know students individual strengths and pair groups together accordingly.  That is a new strategy that I will take away from this class.   I also read that it is very common in the workplace for people to work in teams.  The team model makes sense when each member has a specific role and job.

One question that I have is how should you grade some of the inquiry projects or activities?  The science teacher had the students work on several projects but didn't go over grading.  I wonder if students grades come primarily from tests?