Describes the journey of one kindergarten teacher as she discovered, supported, and promoted the passions and interests of an at-risk kindergarten student, and shared in his joys of learning. Details an inquiry project about snakes, initiated by the student's knowledge about snakes, involving field trips, class discussion, learning centers, and…

This exploratory case study investigates relationships between use of an inquiry-based instructional style and student scores on standardized multiple-choice tests. The study takes the form of a case study of physical science classes taught by one of the authors over a span of four school years. The first 2 years were taught using traditional…

With the current intensity surrounding the No Child Left Behind Act, science has moved to the back burner at many schools. Educators everywhere are allotting less time for science. Many teachers have adapted by bringing reading and writing into the science program, but more often than not this has meant using science textbooks to teach the…

This case study documents an example of inquiry learning and teaching during a summer institute for elementary and middle school teachers. A small group constructed an explanatory model for an intriguing optical phenomenon that they were observing. Research questions included: What physics thinking did the learners express? What aspects of…

Despite the ubiquity of the term "inquiry" in science education literature, little is known about how teachers conceptualize inquiry, how these conceptions are formed and reinforced, how they relate to work done by scientists, and if these ideas about inquiry are translated into classroom practice. This is a multicase study in which 14 preservice…

Institutions of higher education, states, and local K-12 districts have been challenged to improve math and science education for our nation's students. In the past few years, there has been renewed interest in inquiry-based, activity-oriented instruction in science for students with disabilities. Yet, there still exists the need for further…

This paper explores whether a scaffolded, multimedia learning environment might mitigate obstacles that dissuade teachers from implementing problem-based practices. We present a longitudinal analysis of one expository-oriented teacher's experience with such an environment and examine underlying belief, knowledge, and dispositional factors that may…

In this article, the author describes how her high school environmental science students led third graders on a dynamic learning adventure as part of their first annual Outdoor Ecology School. At the water-monitoring site in a nearby national forest, the elementary students conducted field research and scavenger hunts, discovered animal habitats,…

The Virtual Gorilla Modeling Project--a professional development project--is a collaboration of middle and high school inservice teachers, Zoo Atlanta primatologists, science and computer educators, and students. During a 10-day professional development summer workshop, middle and high school teachers explore the world of the gorilla through…

Many have called for reform of the science curriculum to incorporate the process of inquiry: this has been shown to improve student understanding of biological concepts. Laboratory activities provide excellent opportunities to incorporate inquiry in to the curriculum. This study used a modified version of the Laboratory Task Analysis Instrument…

The purpose of this study was to investigate 8th graders with different learning styles their motivation outcomes after implementing 10 weeks (40 hours) inquiry-based teaching. Two hundreds and fifty four 8th graders were involved in experimental group, this group of students experienced inquiry instruction. Two hundreds and thirty two 8th graders…

As citizens of the United States respond to legislative and judicial actions that have challenged the prohibition against same-sex couples receiving marriage licenses, schools have a timely opportunity to engage students on this most important debate. Educators can help their students understand the full significance of this issue by encouraging…

Using fiction writing techniques, such as the creation of composite characters and scenarios gathered from data collection and the author's tacit knowledge, this narrative teacher inquiry illustrates how anti-homophobia education might unfold in an elementary school. The art of yarning or storytelling is explored as an effective tool to confront…

The experiential exercise presented here, using a dialectic process similar to that found within Strategic Assumption Surfacing and Testing (SAST), developed by Mason and Mitroff, offers graduate and undergraduate management students the opportunity to study a contemporary ethical problem in a new way. The ethical issues of a plant closedown…

Inquiry training is a powerful teaching model for principals to know and teachers to implement. It is designed to teach students to engage in causal reasoning and to become more fluent and precise in asking questions. Further, inquiry training helps learners build concepts and form and test hypotheses in all curriculum areas. The current emphasis…