This issue of NASET’s Practical Teacher was written by Jill Swanson of Miami University. Inquiry is a valuable teaching tool for students and can be implemented in any classroom and is beneficial for special education students.Inquiry-based instruction is beneficial for all students as it increases student engagement, provides a deeper understanding of content knowledge, improves critical thinking skills, and increases collaboration skills. For special education students, inquiry has been proven beneficial as it allows them to use alternative learning styles while reducing the emphasis of memorizing facts. While inquiry has been proven to be beneficial, there are some challenges to consider. These challenges include more planning time needed to create lessons, increased amounts of professional development focusing on the use of inquiry, and creating alternate forms of assessment.
Abstract
Inquiry is a valuable teaching tool for students and can be implemented in any classroom and is beneficial for special education students.Inquiry-based instruction is beneficial for all students as it increases student engagement, provides a deeper understanding of content knowledge, improves critical thinking skills, and increases collaboration skills. For special education students, inquiry has been proven beneficial as it allows them to use alternative learning styles while reducing the emphasis of memorizing facts. While inquiry has been proven to be beneficial, there are some challenges to consider. These challenges include more planning time needed to create lessons, increased amounts of professional development focusing on the use of inquiry, and creating alternate forms of assessment.
Introduction
The term inquiry can mean many things depending on with whom you talk. What started as hands-on activities can now be considered inquiry in some situations. However, this is not always the case. Because of the confusing nature of the term “inquiry”, it must be defined in order to be understood. The definition of inquiry used in this literature review comes from the national science education standards. In these standards inquiry has two focal points; scientists and students. When concerning scientists, inquiry is defined as, “the diverse ways in which scientists study the natural world and propose explanations based on the evidence derived from their work” (National Research Council, 1996). When applying inquiry to a student population, inquiry is defined as, “the activities of students in which they develop knowledge and understanding of scientific ideas, as well as an understanding of how scientists study the natural world” (National Research Council, 1996).
Types of Inquiry
There are two main types of inquiry: open and guided. Open inquiry is the most challenging type of inquiry. Open inquiry is unstructured; students pose a question and create the investigation on their own. While this type of inquiry is most closely related to what scientists conduct in the field, it is not the best starting point for students or inexperienced teachers (Sadeh & Zion, n.d.; Crawford, 1999). Guided inquiry is easier to implement in a classroom setting. In guided inquiry the teacher poses a question or a challenge for the students to solve. This form of inquiry is structured and supported by a facilitator, generally the classroom teacher. Support in can also be provided by an intervention specialist to support students’ discoveries.
Benefits of Inquiry-Based Teaching
Inquiry-based teaching is just one of many instructional strategies used to teach students. Inquiry-based learning has been studied for many years and has been found to be beneficial for all students. One benefit of using inquiry in a classroom is this process allows students to develop a deeper understanding of content knowledge by asking students to explain how they arrived at their conclusions (Marshall & Horton, 2011; Van Garderen, Hanuscin, & Lee, 2012).In a study conducted by Minner, Levy, and Century (2010), researchers found that participating in inquiry-based activities improved content knowledge retention rates of students Other studies have found inquiry-based learning to improve critical thinking, science literacy, and scientific process skills (Ash, 2000; Brickman, Gormally, Armstrong, & Hallar, 2009).
In addition to higher retention rates and deeper understanding of content, inquiry-based learning is beneficial for students because it keeps them engaged in the learning process. Students are engaged in inquiry lessons and activities because they feel responsible for their learning (Minner et al., 2010). Most inquiry activities also require students to work with a partner or a group. This is beneficial because it allows for collaboration between students of many different backgrounds and abilities (Dyasi, 2000; Ormsbee & Finson, 2000).
Inquiry and Special Education
Inquiry is beneficial for special needs students for various reasons. One main reason is the idea that inquiry does not focus as heavily on reading and memorizing facts (Scruggs & Mastropieri, 2007).Inquiry is also useful in a special education setting because it allows tactile and kinesthetic learners to participate using the learning style which is most beneficial to them (Melber, 2004).In addition, inquiry-based instruction allows students to apply their knowledge to real life examples (Scruggs & Mastropieri, 1994).
While inquiry is very beneficial for students with special needs, extra support needs to be given when participating in inquiry-based activities and lessons. Special education students will need more scaffolding than other students (Therrien, Taylor, Hosp, Kaldenberg, & Gorsh, 2011; Villanueva & Hand, 2011). Instructional strategies such as emphasizing main points, using graphic organizers to display connections between content, and using memorization strategies are critical when conducting inquiry-based investigations with special education students (Kaldenberg, Therrien, Watt, Gorsh, & Taylor, 2011).
Challenges of Inquiry-Based Teaching
Inquiry lessons and activities can be very challenging to implement in a classroom for many reasons. First, inquiry activities take time and effort to create. The preparation time for inquiry-based activities is more intensive than a traditional textbook based lesson. In an inclusion setting, especially in elementary grades, special education teachers should work with the general education teachers to plan these activities and scaffold them appropriately for all students. This will provide the extra support students need to foster growth of scientific process skills when they are young. When conducting inquiry activities in a classroom, teachers must learn to give up some control to their students. During inquiry, teachers must function as facilitators. This may cause a classroom to appear unorganized and out of control (Quigley, Marshall, Deaton, Cook & Padilla, 2011).This environment may seem chaotic, but is necessary for students to become leaders and investigators. To help organize students, jobs could be assigned to each individual (i.e. team leader, data collector, record keeper, etc.). Other challenges to overcome include student motivation and some students may not be ready for the higher level thinking skills required (Brickman et al., 2009; Heppner, Kouttab, & Croasdale, 2006).
Implementing Inquiry
Inquiry-based learning can be implemented in any classroom. The easiest way to begin using inquiry in classrooms is to change the activities currently being used. This can be done by removing background information and data tables, posing questions, providing simple directions and objects not needed for the investigation, and requiring students to support their conclusions with data (Corder & Slykhuis, 2011).In addition to modifying existing activities, new ones may be developed. Some popular inquiry-based activities include: design challenges, product testing, black boxes (determining the contents of the box), taxonomy (grouping objects), discrepant events (students try to figure out what is happening in a situation that does not make sense), and modeling (create models to mimic natural systems) (Meyer, Kubarek-Sandor, Kedvesh, Heitzman, Pan, & Faik, 2012).
Conclusion
Inquiry is a valuable teaching tool for students and can be implemented in any classroom or venue. The benefits of inquiry are: increased student engagement, deeper understanding of content knowledge, improved critical thinking skills, and increased collaboration skills. While inquiry has been proven to be beneficial, there are some challenges to consider. Inquiry-based lessons are more work intensive for teachers to create, teachers must be taught how to use inquiry-based activities, and assessing student knowledge can be more difficult if not designed appropriately. Special education students can participate in inquiry-based activities, but will need more support during inquiry investigations. However, these students have been shown to benefit greatly from inquiry-based instruction.
References
Ash, D. (2000) Chapter 8: Setting the stage for inquiry. Foundations, 2, 63-70. Retrieved from
www.nsf.gov/pubs/2000/nsf99148/ch_8.htm
Brickman, P., Gormally, C., Armstrong, N., & Hallar, B. (2009). Effects of inquiry-based
learning on students’ science literacy skills and confidence. International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 3(2), 1-22.
Corder, G., & Slykhuis, J. (2011). Shifting to an inquiry-based experience: Start small and
experiment using this prescriptive method. Science and Children,48(9), 60-63.
Crawford, B. A. (1999). Is it realistic to expect a preservice teacher to create an inquiry-based
classroom?. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 10(3), 175-194.
Dyasi, H. (2000) Chapter 2: What children gain by learning through inquiry. Foundations, 2, 9-
13. Retrieved from www.nsf.gov/pubs/2000/nsf99148/ch_2.htm
Heppner, F. H., Kouttab, K. R., & Croasdale, W. (2006). Inquiry: Does it favor the prepared
mind?. The American Biology Teacher, 68(7), 390-392.
Kaldenberg, E., Therrien, W., Watt, S., Gorsh, J., & Taylor, J. (2011). Three Keys to success in
science for students with learning disabilities. Science Scope, 35(3), 36-39.
Marshall, J. C., Horton, R. M. (2011).The relationship of teacher-facilitated, inquiry-based
instruction to student higher-order thinking. School Science and Mathematics, 3(3), 93-101.
Mastropieri, M. A., & Scruggs, T. E. (1994). Text versus hands-on science curriculum:
Implications for students with disabilities. Remedial and Special Education, 15(2), 72-85.
Melber, L. (2004). Inquiry for everyone: Authentic science experiences for students with special
needs. TEACHING Exceptional Children Plus, 1(2), Article 4.
Meyer, D. Z., Kubarek-Sandor, J., Kedvesh, J., Heitzman, C., Pan, Y., & Faik, S. (2012). Eight
ways to do inquiry: A study of over 300 inquiry activities recommends eight models for the classroom. The Science Teacher,79(6), 40-44.
Minner, D. D., Levy, A. J., & Century, J. (2010). Inquiry-based science instruction – What is it
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National Research Council. (1996). National science education standards. Retrieved from
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instruction for students with learning and behavioral problems. Intervention in School
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Quigley, C., Marshall, J. C., Deaton, C. C. M., Cook, M. P., & Padilla, M. (2011). Challenges to
inquiry teaching and suggestions for how to meet them. Science Educator, 20(1), 55-61.
Sadeh, I., & Zion, M. (n.d). The development of dynamic inquiry performances within an open
inquiry setting: A comparison to guided inquiry setting. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 46(10), 1137-1160.
Scruggs, T. E., & Mastropieri, M. A. (1994). The construction of scientific knowledge by
students with mild disabilities. The Journal of Special Education, 28(3), 307-321.
Scruggs, T. E., & Mastropieri, M. A. (2007). Science learning in special education: the case for
constructed versus instructed learning. Exceptionality, 15(2), 57-74.
Therrien, W. J., Taylor, J. C., Hosp, J. L., Kaldenberg, E. R., & Gorsh, J. (2011). Science
instruction for students with learning disabilities: A meta-analysis. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 26(4), 188-203.
Van Garderen, D., Hanuscin, D., & Lee, E. (2012). QUEST: A collaborative professional
development model to meet the needs of diverse learners in K-6 science. Psychology in the Schools, 49(5), 429-443.
Villanueva, M. G., & Hand, B. (2011). Science for all: Engaging students with special needs in
and about science. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 26(4), 233-240.
About the Author
Jillian Swanson is a 4th and 5th grade Math and Science teacher at a suburban charter school in Ohio for students with special needs including Autism Spectrum Disorders and ADHD. She is working towards a Master of Arts in Teaching: Biological Sciences, which she hopes to complete in December 2014. She lives with her husband Casey and two rescued German Shepherds, Max and Alex. In her spare time, Jillian enjoys reading, watching movies, and cooking.
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