Final Blog Post – Inquiry-based Learning

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Inquiry-based learning is a student-centred and semi-autonomy learning method. To get started, either instructor or student can introduce a question, and the following studies are primarily developed by the students. Students research, present and integrate their ideas. There are four levels of inquiry-based learning which ranked according to the involvement of the instructor. On the beginning confirmation inquiry level, the instructor demonstrates the essential concepts. On the next structured inquiry level, the instructor brings detailed instructions for students to follow. On the third guided inquiry level, the instructor is only providing a direction, and students are in charge of the rest of the studies. On the ultimate open inquiry stage, students are encouraged to develop their inquiries and complete the research. 

The topic my group is designing is “Making Decisions Like Economists”. The opening inquiry would be “how do I manage limited resources efficiently” In the confirmation inquiry stage, the instructor is going to introduce basic economic concepts by making connections to real life. At this point, the instructor is re-inforcing existing knowledge to help the learners understand economic principles are happening in daily life. When it comes to structured inquiry stage, the instructor will first provide a detailed explanation of a concept. For example, the instructor will explain the relationship between demand and supply before assigning a pricing problem. On the guided inquiry stage, the instructor will provide a research question. For instance, “what is inflation and why people buy less product with the same amount of money over time?” Students are guided to carry out research on the relationship between inflation and purchasing power. Open inquiry instruction could be executed when students master essential economic principles. Eventually, students would be able to analyze economic problems and propose new ideas. As the inquiry-based learning method allows the student to see problems in creative perspectives, students might perform beyond their existing ability. As Caroline mentioned in her blog, inquiry-based learning can be carried out not only in science class but also in English classes. The instructor should vary the level of involvement according to the students’ ability.

Reference:

Bates, A.W. (2019). “Chapter 3: Methods of teaching: campus-focused.” Teaching in a Digital Age – Second Edition. Vancouver, B.C.: Tony Bates Associates Ltd. Retrieved from https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/teachinginadigitalagev2/