Inquiry Based Learning Toolkit

Overview

As stated by Dr. Kathy Kitto in the 2015-16 Inquiry-Based Learning-themed Innovative Teaching Showcase, "Based upon our current understanding of how individuals learn, students must construct their own understanding and knowledge base by actively doing: creating a hypothesis, performing experiments, creating something, making observations, reflecting on these experiences, making sense of the new, and reconciling past misperceptions. The role of the facilitator in Inquiry-Based Learning is also active in that the instructor guides the process by provoking higher-order thinking, delivering new information, and facilitating collaborative learning. As you may guess, it is very easy to write about Inquiry-Based Learning, but it is much more difficult to do it well and to assess its effectiveness."

• What is Inquiry-based Instruction?, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences
• Inquiry-based Learning, Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence, Penn State University
• What is Inquiry-based Learning?, Ophea Teaching Tools, Ontario, Canada
• Problem and Inquiry-based Learning, Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching Effectiveness, University of Saskatchewan

Socratic Method

• How to Use the Socratic Method, The Socratic Method Research Portal
• The Socratic Method: What it is and How to Use it in the Classroom, Speaking of Teaching Newsletter, Stanford University, reposted with permission from the author
• Socratic Teaching, Foundation for Critical Thinking
• The Socratic Method: Fostering Critical Thinking, The Institute for Teaching and Learning, Colorado State University
• The Socratic Method: What it is and How to Use it in the Classroom, Video of presentation by Rob Reich at Stanford University Teaching Commons
• Using the Socratic Method, Troy University Philosophy Professor Richard Garlikov

5-E Model (and Other Models)

• Implementing Inquiry-based Teaching Methods, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences
• Constructivism and the Five E's, Miami Museum of Science
• The Inquiry Cycle, Whitby Primary Years Exhibition Project
• 5-E Model for Teaching Inquiry Science, BioEd Online: Science Teacher Resources, Baylor College of Medicine
• The Inquiry Cycle, (Ask, Investigate, Create, Discuss, Reflect), Chip Bruce, Library & Information Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Moore Method

• Creativity in Mathematics: Inquiry-based Learning and the Moore Method, Academy of Inquiry-based Learning
• A Quick-Start Guide to the Moore Method, Legacy of R.L. Moore Project, Educational Advancement Foundation
• What is the Moore Method?, Legacy of R.L. Moore Project
• The Moore Method in 60 Minutes: Presentation by Ted Mahavier, video recording of presentation available for download
• The Moore Method in 60 Minutes: Presentation by Robert Kauffman, video recording of presentation available for download

Project-based Learning

• What is Project-based Learning (PBL)?, Buck Institute for Education
• Why Project-based Learning (PBL)?, Buck Institute for Education

Assessment Tips and Tools

• Assessment in Inquiry-based Learning, Ophea Teaching Tools, Ontario Canada
• How Do I Assess Students' Progress?, Educational Broadcasting Corporation, Concept to Classroom Workshop: Inquiry Based Learning
• Assessment in the Inquiry Classroom, National Science Foundation (K-12 focus but easily adaptable for college instruction)
• Assessment & Inquiry-based Science Education: Issues in Policy and Practice, book published by the Global Network of Science Academies (IAP) Science Education Programme (SEP)
• Inquiry-based Formative Assessment for Improving Student Learning, Digital Commons at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Discipline-Based Education Research Group

Rubrics

• Rubric for Inquiry-based Project Work, Flexible Learning Division, Centre for Continuing Education, University of Regina
• Rubric Best Practices, Examples, and Templates, NC State University
• Rubrics, TLT Group: Teaching, Learning and Technology
• The Fundamentals of Constructing a Rubric, Assessment Office at University of Hawai'i

Discipline-Specific Resources

Mathematics

• Journal of Inquiry-based Learning in Mathematics, Educational Advancement Foundation
• Soup to Nuts: My Approach to IBL, Dana C. Ernst, Northern Arizona University
• Inquiry-based Learning in College Mathematics, University of Colorado Boulder
• From innovation to implementation: Multi-institution pedagogical reform in undergraduate mathematics, University of Colorado Boulder
• What is Inquiry-based Learning?, includes video of a typical class; Discovering the Art of Mathematics: Mathematical Inquiry in the Liberal Arts
• The Socratic Method: Teaching by Asking Instead of Telling, example of Socratic Method in action

Science

• How to Make Lab Activities More Open Ended, California Science Teachers Association
• FAQ for Learning Science Through Inquiry, Annenberg Learner
• Life in an Inquiry Driven, Technology-Embedded, Connected Classroom: Science, Powerful Learning Practice

Humanities, Social Sciences, and Education

• Inquiry-based Learning in Teacher Education: A Primary Humanities Example, Australian Journal of Teacher Education
• Life in an Inquiry Driven, Technology-Embedded, Connected Classroom: English, Powerful Learning Practice
• Trying Team-Based Inquiry to Teach Research Skills in the Humanities, Inside HigherEd

Art & Music

• Personalized Learning through Project-Based Music, National Association for Music Education

Resources & Books

See also the curricular examples from the Innovative Teaching Showcase:

• Andrew Boudreaux, Designing Learning Experiences for the Introductory Physics Lab
• Science, Math, and Technology Education (SMATE) Team, A Learning Cycle approach to Guided Inquiry in a Four-Course Interdisciplinary Science Series
• Stephanie Treneer, An Inquiry-based Introduction to Proof in Number Theory

Relevant Books

• Ambrose, Susan A. et al., How Learning Works, Jossey-Bass, 2010.
• Fink, L. Dee, Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses, Jossey-Bass, 2013.
• Brookfield, Stephen D., Teaching for Critical Thinking, Jossey-Bass, 2011.
• Blessinger, Patrick, Inquiry-Based Learning for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Programs, Emerald Group, 2015.
• Blessinger, Patrick, Inquiry-Based Learning for the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Emerald Group, 2014.
• Blessinger, Patrick, Inquiry-Based Learning for Multidisciplinary Programs, Emerald Group, 2015.
• Lee, Virginia S., Teaching and Learning Through Inquiry: A Guidebook for Institutions and Instructors, Stylus, 2004.
• Conrad, Clifton and Laura Dunek, Cultivating Inquiry-Driven Learners, John Hopkins University, 2012.
• National Research Council, How Students Learn
• Vaughan, Norman et al., Teaching in Blended Learning Environments: Creating and Sustaining Communities of Inquiry, Jossey-Bass, 2010.
• Coppin, Charles A. et al., The Moore Method: A Pathway to Learner-Centered Instruction, MAA Press.
• Carlson, Marilyn and Chris Rassmussen, Making the Connection: Research and Teaching in Undergraduate Mathematics Education, MAA Press.