4 Phases of Inquiry-Based Learning: A Guide For Teachers by Terry Heick According to Indiana University Bloomington, Inquiry-based learning is an “instructional model that centers learning on a solving a particular problem or answering a central question. There are several different inquiry-based learning models, but most have several general elements in common: Learning focuses around a meaningful, ill-structured problem that demands consideration of diverse perspectives Academic content-learning occurs as a natural part of the process as students work towards finding solutions Learners, working collaboratively, assume an active role in the learning process Teachers provide learners with learning supports and rich multiple media sources of information to assist students in successfully finding solutions Learners share and defend solutions publicly in some manner” The process itself can be broken down into stages, or phases, that help teachers frame instruction. 4 Phases of Inquiry-Based Learning: A Guide For Teachers 1. Student-to-material. 2. 3.
Information Instruction: Research Models to follow At the completion of this section, you should be able to: Compare and contrast information inquiry models Identify key topics in information literacy Create an instructional analysis. Begin by viewing the class presentation in Vimeo. Then, read each of the sections of this page. Explore each of the following topics on this page: To develop effective instruction, it's important to have a clear vision of the content being taught. Information inquiry involves the processes of searching for information and applying information to answer questions we raise personally and questions that are addressed to us. Meaningful information application comes from analysis of information need, analysis of information gained, and synthesis of information to address the need in the most efficient and effective manner possible. questioning exploring assimilation inference reflection Read! Many educators view information inquiry as the foundation of all "traditional content areas." Linear vs Recursive Approaches
Why Instructional Design Must Focus on Learning Outcomes, Not Learning Activities It’s no secret that kids learn better when teachers provide learning activities that keep them engaged. Teachers work tirelessly to plan engaging lessons that capture and keep the interests of their students, thereby making content more accessible. However, teachers continue to feel the daunting pressure to compete for their students’ attention amidst the ever-evolving and rapidly-hanging mass media, social media, and entertainment industry, as these elements do a stellar job of keeping students highly engaged outside of the classroom. Although it is vitally important for us to know and understand our students' interests and the best conditions under which they learn, there is good news: It’s not necessary that we focus our efforts on competing with the devices and activities our students engage in during their downtime outside of the classroom! Recreation, entertainment, and downtime for students outside of the classroom are just that: recreation, entertainment, and downtime.
Bloom's Taxonoms: Verbs for online learning objectives | Tech & Learning from Educators' eZine Introduction and Background: Bloom's Taxonomy In the 1950's Benjamin Bloom developed his taxonomy of cognitive objectives, Bloom's Taxonomy. This categorized and ordered thinking skills and objectives. Bloom's Revised Taxonomy In the 1990's, a former student of Bloom, Lorin Anderson, revised Bloom's Taxonomy and published this- Bloom's Revised Taxonomy in 2001.Key to this is the use of verbs rather than nouns for each of the categories and a rearrangement of the sequence within the taxonomy. Bloom's Revised Taxonomy Sub Categories Each of the categories or taxonomic elements has a number of key verbs associated with itLower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS) Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) The elements cover many of the activities and objectives but they do not address the new objectives presented by the emergence and integration of Information and Communication Technologies into the classroom and the lives of our students. Bloom's digital taxonomy map Remembering Applying
The Big6 and Super3 — TheBig6.org The Big6 is a process model of how people of all ages solve an information problem. From practice and study, we found that successful information problem-solving encompasses six stages with two sub-stages under each... 1. Task Definition 1.1 Define the information problem 1.2 Identify information needed 2. 2.1 Determine all possible sources 2.2 Select the best sources 3. 3.1 Locate sources (intellectually and physically) 3.2 Find information within sources 4. 4.1 Engage (e.g., read, hear, view, touch) 4.2 Extract relevant information 5. 5.1 Organize from multiple sources 5.2 Present the information 6. 6.1 Judge the product (effectiveness) 6.2 Judge the process (efficiency) The Super3 contains the same basic elements as the Big6 but is written for younger students to understand. When students get an assignment or a task, BEFORE they start doing anything, they should think: What am I supposed to do? Big6 Steps: Task Definition Information Seeking Strategies In the Middle the students DO the activity.
Writing Measurable Learning Objectives - Teach Online When you begin creating a course, you want to design with the end in mind. The best way to approach this is to start by writing measurable, learning objectives. Effective learning objectives use action verbs to describe what you want your students to be able to do by the end of the course or unit. Aligning assessments with course expectations is much easier when you have written measurable objectives from the beginning. Identify the noun, or thing you want students to learn. Example: seven steps of the research processIdentify the level of knowledge you want. Here are some examples of learning objectives we’ve seen and how we revised them: Course level outcome examples Original version: Understand the American criminal justice system.Revised version: Describe the history of the American criminal justice system. Understand is not a measurable verb, however the intent of the instructor was to have the students be able to describe, which is measurable. Unit level examples
Evaluating Online Sources Lesson Plan Grade: 01 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.6 Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text. Grade: 02 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.6 Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe. Grade: 03 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.6 Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text. Grade: 04 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.6 Compare and contrast a firsthand and secondhand account of the same event or topic; describe the differences in focus and the information provided. Grade: 05 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.6 Analyze multiple accounts of the same event or topic, noting important similarities and differences in the point of view they represent. Grade: 06 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.6.6 Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text. Grade: 07 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.6 Grade: 08 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.6 Grade: K CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.6 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.8
One of my friends spent this past weekend working with her 2nd grade daughter on a research project. While her daughter flew through the arts and crafts portion and was able to handwrite the “sloppy copy” of her presentation, she struggled when it came to typing the final draft. She didn’t know where the period was. This reminded me how easy it is to overestimate our students’ abilities when it comes to technology. One of my favorite things to work on with students in this area is website evaluation. When working with older students (8th through 12th grade), I’ve always relied on the CRAAP Test (pdf) from California State University Chico. As wonderful a tool as it is, the CRAAP Test has a sophistication (despite its name) that makes it inaccessible for the 5th through 7th grade. (Perhaps at this point I should pause to let you know that my school, while co-ed, is predominantly boys – they make up about 88% of our student population. F: Is the site Friendly to the eyes? Like this: