The purpose of this study was to determine if an inquiry-oriented curriculum in elementary science (Science Curriculum Improvement Study, SCIS) transfer to other academic areas. A group of 46 pupils who had experienced SCIS in grades one through four, and 69 who had not experienced a similar course, were administered the Stanford Achievement Test…

An alternative to teacher dominance, inquiry-based learning permits greater choices for the student and thereby encourages initiative and responsibility. Flexible modular (flex-mod) schedules that permit student inquiry can be adapted to fit nearly any teaching situation. For example, a tenth-grade history class is divided into four groups:…

This article points out the flaws inherent in the hypothetico-deductive formulation of inquiry. (CD)

Provides and explains a teacher self-evaluation instrument designed to measure inquiry teaching. Recommends that a lesson be videotaped after which the educator scores the presentation on the criteria of lesson content, student behavior, teacher behavior, and questioning techniques. (CP)

Strategies for encouraging students to articulate and examine their personal values are suggested.

Studied the effect of classroom verbal interactions between teachers and students on the development of skills important in process-oriented elementary science curricula. Both suburban and inner-city sixth-grade students increased their ability to infer when they were exposed to a probing, rather than a nonprobing, discussion strategy. (MLH)

Describes a study in which the attitudes of preservice elementary school teachers are measured before and after their enrollment in an elementary science methods course. Students were found to have significantly higher attitudes toward inquiry strategies after completion of the course. (CP)

Describes a program to prepare inservice elementary school teachers in the subject matter and reasoning skills needed to teach science as a process of inquiry. Included is a procedure for introducing experience-oriented curricula into the schools. (Author/CP)

Investigates the effect of using broadcast ITV to teach inquiry-oriented science lessons upon the criteria of selected verbal behaviors of K-3 teachers and students. (GA)

Fifty-nine secondary school physics students were assigned to treatment groups: (1) Project Physics units, (2) Project Physics and verbal learning unit, and (3) a training program in scientific inquiry. Posttest results revealed that, on most aspects of a science inquiry test, treatments 2 and 3 had significantly greater effect on achievement than…

Investigates the consequences of inquiry and didactic teaching when students either cooperate or compete with each other on (a) students' acceptance of the teaching method, (b) their approval of the teacher, (c) their experience of peer support, and (d) their beliefs that they have learned. Eighty fourth and fifth grade students were randomly…

Educational innovations are frequently undertaken with little or no planning. There are occasions, however, when it is possible to define educational problems with some precision and to plan changes which will "solve" these problems. Here is a report on such a case in the teaching of introductory anthropology at a large land-grant university.…

Sets forth diagramatic representations of the four art disciplines (aesthetics, criticism, history, production) as a basis for devising a discipline-based art curriculum. Provides an example of an inquiry framework to guide the planning and application of instruction. (AEM)

This article reviews current efforts at educational reform in light of what is required to help teaching become more characterized by the spirit, processes, and products of systematic inquiry. Practitioner inquiry is defined, its importance is discussed, and the structural implications of teaching as inquiry are considered. (TE)

To more carefully define the nature of thinking in social studies, this article examines shared features and teaching procedures of three alternative approaches to instruction for thinking: reflective thinking, inquiry, and critical thinking. Discusses the emerging field of cognitive science and draws implications for improving traditional…