Search results for: Inquiry

This case study aims to empirically distinguish between common dimensions of inquiry-based instruction (IBI) and non-IBI dimensions. Furthermore, the authors were interested to identify the common and unique underlying dimensions of instruction that explain what kind of IBI is being provided within courses taught by instructors who describe themselves as making IBI part of their instruction. The findings reveal that IBI instructors' planning was more thorough and not directly tied to a textbook. IBI instructors scaffolded their courses through activities and evaluation of student learning.

In this article, the authors examined how well the final year of teacher preparation program (TPP) enables preservice teachers (PSTs) to develop a stance toward inquiry. The findings suggest that the PSTs demonstrated increased confidence related to a stance toward inquiry during their final, master’s year in of teacher preparation program (TPP). There were moderate increases in confidence in all three subscales of the PEBD survey. In addition, the findings suggest that while the TPP experiences prior to the completion of the inquiry project supported a beginning stance toward inquiry, there was value added to that stance from the inquiry project and associated master’s year experiences. The results suggest a shift from a more limited, student-oriented, immediate view of inquiry to a more holistic, professional, future-oriented view of inquiry.

This self-study describes the author's transition from teacher to teacher educator. During this transition, the author explored how her beliefs about mathematics teacher education influenced the work of planning and teaching a course for the first time. The transition from teacher to teacher educator is explored through the experience of a course focused on inquiry. Inquiry is embedded within the course from two perspectives: mathematical inquiry and teaching as inquiry. The author concludes that long-term goals related to reflection, career-long learning, and professional growth were what the author felt were missing in the courses she had taken as a teacher candidate, observed as a graduate student, and worked in as a teaching assistant. The tension between the short-term goals of teacher candidates and the long-term goals of the faculty was striking.

The purpose of this study was to examine the ways in which prospective teachers’ conceptions about teaching science as inquiry, and their efficacy for teaching science change across the Science Semester. Entering the Science Semester, the participants related to science as coursework they needed to complete to meet program requirements. The Science Semester was designed to provide inquiry-oriented and problem-based learning experiences, opportunities to examine socially relevant issues through cross-disciplinary perspectives. In contrast to the mixed views on their own learning, all of the participants eagerly embraced the idea that elementary science teaching should involve inquiry-based methods. The idealized image of activity-based experiences for children fulfills their goals for their future classrooms, and is congruent with their goals for a nurturing classroom environment.