Simplifying Inquiry Instruction

Abstract

Inquiry instruction is a hallmark of the current science education reform efforts. Science teachersknow that inquiry is important, yet most teachers lack a practical framework of inquiry to informtheir instruction.Defining inquiry and assessing how much inquiry is supported by a particular activity or lab canbe difficult and confusing. This article presents a simplified explanation of inquiry and provides arubric that will enable science teachers to determine whether an activity is inquiry based and, ifso, to assess the level of inquiry it supports. Additionally, the framework presented will allowteachers to easily adjust the level of inquiry in an activity and increase the amount of inquiry intheir science instruction.