Concept-based inquiry is a central part of the Primary Years Program (PYP) philosophy. Concepts are broad, abstract, timeless and universal ideas. With their help, PYP studies transdisciplinary and topical entities. With the help of concepts, students can deepen their thinking and create connections between learned things. By identifying and researching key concepts, students learn to think critically.
There are seven key concepts in PYP:
The understanding that everything has a form with recognizable features that can be observed, identified, described and categorized.
The understanding that everything has a purpose, a role or a way of behaving that can be investigated.
The understanding that things do not just happen; there are causal relationships at work, and that actions have consequences.
The understanding that change is the process of movement from one state to another. It is universal and inevitable.
The understanding that we live in a world of interacting systems in which the actions of any individual element affect others.
The understanding that knowledge is moderated by different points of view which lead to different interpretations, understandings and findings; perspectives may be individual, group, cultural or subject-specific.
The understanding that people make choices based on their understandings, beliefs and values, and the actions they take as a result do make a difference.