What does a research based classroom look like? blog 2 - Inquiry Based Science

I found a great website with information about an inquiry based appraoch.  Wilfred A. Franklin is a biology labratory instructor at Bryn Mawr in Pennsylvania.  Franklin has multiple pages to his website and the direct lick to the page that discusses inquiry based instruction is locates at the following link:   http://www.brynmawr.edu/biology/franklin/InquiryBasedScience.html.  The website gives an overview of the general principles of an inquiry based approach, as well as links to additional websites that can help turn your classroom into an inquiry based classroom.

How the inquiry based classroom differs from a traditional classroom is significant and virtually every activity would change.  In a traditional classroom, the teacher will discuss some vocabulary and key points that the students will then use in a variety of ways.  The inquiry based classroom starts with the teacher presenting a question or problem and then letting the students figure it out. 

Using guiding questions (like I discussed in blog 1) the teacher will guide the students through the following steps: 
-what is our background knowledge regarding the new problem
-what ideas do we have on how to solve it
-what do we need to know about the new problem
-assign responsibilities and investigage
-research and summarize findings
-whare findings and discuss as a group
-refine what we need to know based on what we now know
-present a possible solution to the problem

The part that I really like is that this process is cyclicle and able to jump from step to step.  While discussing background knowledge, a student may think that they have a possible solution.  They can then research or test that solution to see if it appears correct.  If not, jump to another step and make additional observations.

The logic behind this process seems simple and to be a common sense approach to science.  In our daily life, when we encounter a new problem, we do not just ask someone what vocabulary we need to make sense of this problem.  We dig into the problem and try to solve it our selves and that is what an inquiry based classroom does.

There is more information on this website that I need to digest and reflect on and I will touch on additional aspects in future blogs.

Source:  http://www.brynmawr.edu/biology/franklin/InquiryBasedScience.html