Last week, we learned about facts and concepts and how their
connectedness is essential when developing inquiry-based lessons. Facts are
isolated pieces of information that are detailed and concepts are the
connections between pieces of information. Students need to first understand
the facts before they can understand concepts to their full extent (Topic B:
Facts vs. Concepts, 2020).
The card activity where we had to read the statements and
decide if the statement was a fact or a concept was very challenging for me. Some
statements were very obvious, and others proved to be more difficult, leaving
me to make a guess. Even though this activity was hard, I’m glad we had to
complete it because it gave me a better understanding of the difference between
the two and helped me to understand how they are interconnected.
Week four introduced another new topic for me – investigable
and non-investigable questions. Like the fact and concepts topic, this topic
also proved to be challenging for me. I am still not sure I have a firm grasp on
the difference between the two. My current understanding is that investigable
questions can be tested and non-investigable questions cannot be answered
through hands-on action or experiment (Topic D: Understanding Question Types,
2020). In addition, students need to realize that it is possible to change
non-investigable questions to investigable questions.
This week was all about web 2.0 tools – a topic I finally
know something about! I’ve been using web 2.0 tools with my students for a few years
now, but this week I learned that inquiry-based learning can be enhanced
through the use of these tools. With this new knowledge, I need to be more
aware of how my students are being engaged in inquiry while using technology.
Some questions I still have about inquiry-based learning:
1.
How do I help my students create questions to
investigate on their own?
2.
How can I differentiate inquiry-based learning?
References
Wilkes
University (2020). Unit 4, Topic B: Facts vs. Concepts. In EDIM 513: Inquiry
Based Learning: Spring 2020 [Course content]. Retrieved from
Wilkes
University (2020). Unit 4, Topic D: Understanding Question Types. In EDIM
513: Inquiry Based Learning: Spring 2020 [Course content]. Retrieved from
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