How to Structure Inquiry to Make the Biggest Impact on Your Learners

I had the pleasure of visiting an elementary campus today. It was the culmination of work I had been doing with the coordinator and school over the last few years and the purpose of the in person visit (such a treat now!) was the celebrate their growth in inquiry.

As I walked down the hallways and visited different classrooms, I saw rich evidence of student inquiry. From student created murals demonstrating learning about habitats in kindergarten to the bulletin boards inside intermediate classrooms showcasing their thinking and questions connected to their current inquiries, and even the conversations I had with students who confidently approached me and shared a bit more about the things they were exploring as I entered their classrooms.

I pulled up chairs and sat with students who were independently reading or working on an assignment, curious to hear more about the ways they felt they had the tools and resources they needed to be independent learners. They pointed to walls in their classroom that anchored their thinking and shared the ways they called on their peers to help them solve a challenging math problem. As I walked hallways that I had only heard about through Zoom calls and online coaching sessions, I realized, first hand, I was witnessing the benefits of a school that embraced an approach to teaching and learning that empowers learners towards voice, choice and ownership in their learning. And towards the end of my visit I was greeted by a 5th grader who introduced himself as. Jack.

After a quick tour around the room high, Jack immediately brought me to a wall that showcased their current unit of inquiry. He highlighted the central idea of their unit of inquiry and further shared that this was a newer unit so they had only begun to explore it in their classroom together. Jack then pointed to a small red poster and explained that this was their provocation to their unit. In great detail, he told me about the design challenge he and his classmates engaged him pointing to the evidence of their learning with each detailed sharing. And as he concluded, he pointed to a reflection of thinking from the class. Always curious to dig in a bit deeper, I asked Jack to share more about what he and his classmates uncovered during this particular challenge. With bright eyes, he told me this:

“Oh! Structures are everywhere! They are like the cogs that work together and make things function. It’s like the parts of the plant cycle, or the buildings in our cities, or the schedule in our classroom, it’s how we work in our groups on a project, or the parts of a word problem…”

I got lost in Jack’s emphatic sharing, ever more curious to learn about what new thinking and questions were emerging for him and what direction the teacher would take with this passion for learning. And, if almost on cue, I also became curious about something else.

I became more curious about the “cogs” that were necessary to cultivate and provide the structure for the changes I was seeing in this school. I wondered…

— What are the cogs that we carefully put into place that cultivate a culture of inquiry?

— What structures provide the framework that nudge us more towards inquiry, supporting the changes we want to see in our schools?

— How do we work within our given structures and systems to create space for more teacher and student agency?

What this one student so clearly expressed is something that I am continually reflecting on myself. It goes into the coaching and supporting work I do with schools and coordinators and into the leadership role I have on my campus. At the end of my visit I shared this experience with the administration team and I asked them to consider their cogs as an administration team. How do their roles and mindsets as leaders provide the structures that support the type of teaching and learning we know is best for our students? What are the ways they work together with their staff to support inquiry teaching and learning? And lastly, what are the supports they need, as leaders, to maintain this structure?

Whether you are about to engage in a formal review your programme of inquiry or you’re pausing to informally reflect on systems, structures and growth across an academic year, jot down the questions Jack inspired above. See what big ideas emerge. Allow them to provoke playful conversations with your colleagues and staff. Use them as an anchor that keep you tethered as you sit and sort.