Tip: Spectrum of Inquiry > What is it?
Along the spectrum of inquiry (from closed, to mixed, to open), projects can be Confirmation (closed)—Students confirm a principle through an activity when the results are known in advance; Structured (mixed)—Students investigate a teacher-presented question through a prescribed procedure, Guided (mixed)—Students investigate a teacher-presented question using student designed/selected procedures; and completely Open Inquiry—Students investigate questions that are student formulated through student designed/selected procedures (Banchi & Bell, 2008).
To move a lesson to student-owned on the Spectrum of Inquiry, teachers can gradually give the students more control over the key features. With closed projects, the teacher defines the question, process, and conclusion; whereas, an open lesson allows learners to take the reins to define the question, process, and conclusion. The process can be gradual to scaffold students to more autonomous learning. Each week this month will provide tips to open up your lesson on the Spectrum of Inquiry.
View previous tips on the Spectrum of Inquiry: bit.ly/eMINTSInquiryTips
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