Inquiry Investigations
Inquiry in science
Let's face it we are science teachers, our job is to teach science...simple as that. So, what does it mean to "do science"? When I use the word "do", to me that means action. So, to do science means to be in action and actively engaged in the learning. Whether that means to have an active discussion about a topic or to be actively engaged in an experiment, it is important for all science students to be involved and actively doing science. Cookbook labs and traditional lecturing does not accomplish this goal...all it does is turn students off and make an amazing subject dull and boring. That is in my opinion, of course. For much of my career I have worked on creating experiments that are interesting and engaging and allow my students to do science and not simply follow a set of instructions to determine some already known constant, like the acceleration due to gravity. There most certainly is a place for a good traditional experiment, but they should be used with inquiry investigations and not as the only means of performing an experiment. I switch between the two forms of experiment, depending on time and my educational learning goal. Inquiry labs often do take up a lot of class time, so they need to be used appropriately. That being said, inquiry science does not need to be a big experiment, but can be done through questioning, through demonstrations, or through smaller experiments. Getting your students thinking and doing, rather than sitting and listening or following instructions, is the ultimate goal of inquiry.
more thoughts on inquiry
I found this image when I performed a web search for inquiry science and I agree with the author on two points, but I think point #3 is not correct. And, in my conversations with teachers about why they DO NOT do inquiry this is one the main reasons that I hear. Inquiry science is hard for the teacher, much more so than the traditional way of teaching. You have to find materials for your students, you have to answer a lot of questions, and you have to be in constant motion redirecting, assisting, guiding your students as they work on their investigations. You are most certainly working harder than your students...asking your students to follow a set of instructions is easy. You give them the directions, point to where the materials are, mention a few items of note and away they go...you can sit back and watch. More than likely, they will give you exactly what they are supposed to and not really be engaged or learn anything. Another issue that I hear from teachers, is that they are afraid that they will not know the answer to all the questions that comes from doing an open ended inquiry lab...good! That is the point...we are not supposed to know all the answers. If your students are doing real inquiry, they most certainly may go places with their work that you are not confident about...so, you can learn right along with them. How is this a bad thing? I have been doing inquiry labs for many years now and I am constantly learning from my students even from labs that I have used for numerous years.
getting started with Inquiry LAbs writing & Grading
In this section, I have included many of the experiments that I have created and used over the years. Some of them are experiments that I have used with my AP students and the others are for my advanced students. One of the hardest parts in inquiry work for me has been the report writing. Students have a very difficult time writing scientifically. To write what you learned and then to support what you learned with evidence from your experiment and from your research...sounds simple, but for high school students, it is quite the challenge. So, I work very hard on the report writing and since the experiments and reports take up a lot of time, I typically only do one inquiry investigation a marking period.
Recently, I have adopted the CER method with all of my classes. I have found that this method works amazing and helps my students write better responses to essay prompts on assessments.
Using LoggerPro_Constant Velocity Experiment For most of the experiments, my students will use Vernier Software and Technology and this experiment is the first one they are asked to complete at the start of the school year. It is not an inquiry experiment, but it is vital that my students are familiar with the Vernier tools before we start doing inquiry. It is a very simple lab that just requires the students to roll a ball down an incline and determine the velocity of the ball as it rolls along the floor using a few different data taking methods. It's a start...I do not expect a student to learn everything, but I do hope that they will be more familiar with the tools after completion.
Getting Started With Inquiry Investigations So, how do you introduce the idea of inquiry, but with a little teacher guidance? Here is what I use...a simple demonstration/class discussion leads into a small group inquiry experience using a mass-spring system. The students do not really understand the physics, nor are they expected to learn any physics...the intent of this lab is for them to learn what it means to do an inquiry experiment and how to analyze results and what to do with them. It works and it promotes a lot of questions and good discussion.
Writing an Inquiry Report The information that I share with my honors students to help explain what my expectations are regarding their inquiry report writing. This document has gone through a lot of rewrites and there is a lot of information, but that is the point. After I go through this with my students, I recommend that they put it in the front of their notebooks for frequent future reference.
Rubric for Inquiry Reports This is the document that I use to evaluate my honors students inquiry work. Again this has gone through many edits and if you are looking for other options, please email me and I will be happy to check my files to see if I have something that might better fit your needs.
AP_Rubric for Grading Inquiry Reports This is the document that I use to evaluate my AP students inquiry work. It is pretty much the same as what I expect from my honors students, just with a little more expected from them when it comes to their conclusion writing. Again this has gone through many edits and if you are looking for other options, please email me and I will be happy to check my files to see if I have something that might better fit your needs.
CER Based Inquiry Reports This is the introduction and rubric that I provide my first year physics students regarding their inquiry report writing.
CER Based Rubric This is the rubric that I use to evaluate my second year physics students conclusion writing using CER.