Inquiry education (sometimes known as the inquiry method) is a student-centered method of education focused on asking questions. Students are encouraged to ask questions which are meaningful to them, and which do not necessarily have easy answers; teachers are encouraged to avoid giving answers when this is possible, and in any case to avoid giving direct answers in favor of asking more questions. The method was advocated by Neil Postman and Charles Weingartner in their book Teaching as a Subversive Activity. Neil Postman (March 8, 1931 - October 5, 2003) was a prominent American educator, media theorist, and cultural critic. ...
The inquiry method is motivated by Postman and Weingartner's recognition that good learners and sound reasoners center their attention and activity on the dynamic processs of inquiry itself, not merely on the end product of static knowledge. They write that certain characteristics are common to all good learners (Postman and Weingartner, 31–33), saying that all good learners have:
Self-confidence in their learning ability
Pleasure in problem solving
A keen sense of relevance
Reliance on their own judgment over other people's or society's
No fear of being wrong
No haste in answering
Flexibility in point of view
Respect for facts, and the ability to distinguish between fact and opinion
No need for final answers to all questions, and comfort in not knowing an answer to difficult questions rather than settling for a simplistic answer
In an attempt to instill students with these qualities and behaviors, a teacher adhering to the inquiry method in pedagogy must behave very differently from a traditional teacher. Postman and Weingartner suggest that inquiry teachers have the following characteristics (pp. 34–37): A teachers room in a Japanese middle school, 2005. ... Pedagogy is the art or science of teaching. ...
They avoid telling students what they "ought to know".
They talk to students mostly by questioning, and especially by asking divergent questions.
They do not accept short, simple answers to questions.
They encourage students to interact directly with one another, and avoid judging what is said in student interactions.
They do not summarize students' discussion.
They do not plan the exact direction of their lessons in advance, and allow it to develop in response to students' interests.
Their lessons pose problems to students.
They gauge their success by change in students' inquiry behaviors (with the above characteristics of "good learners" as a goal).
References
Postman, Neil, and Weingartner, Charles (1969), Teaching as a Subversive Activity, Dell, New York, NY.
Inquiryeducation (sometimes known as the inquiry method) is a student-centered method of education focused on asking questions.
The inquiry method is motivated by Postman's and Weingartner's recognition that the activities and behaviors of intelligent people ("good learners") at all stages in life focuses on the process of inquiry, not an end product of static knowledge.
In an attempt to instill students with these qualities and behaviors, a teacher adhering to the inquiry method in pedagogy must behave very differently from a traditional teacher.
Inquiry is an approach to learning that involves a process of exploring the natural world.
In other disciplines, inquiry - and the "scientific method" upon which it is modeled - allows learners to face the challenges and complexities of the rapidly changing modern world.
The Academy for Inquiry enables professional educators to master the skills and gain the essential experience necessary to create classrooms that are supportive environments for students' inquiry.
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