Applicability of Inquiry-Based Learning in Education

Introduction

In life, it is inevitable to ask questions that need to be answered by acquiring the high quality and high quantity of data and information about the phenomena occurring in the world. Education is among the pillars of teaching individuals how they can effectively inquire about things and make conclusions based on the information gathered for the purposes of answering. However, there has been a problem with the traditional approach to education to discourage inquiry and limit students’ natural desire to question things. The discouragement of students’ need to know and ask questions has enabled a shift in the educational system’s focus from inquiry to assessment, making learners, in general, less likely to ask questions and more likely to be instructed on which questions to answer and what to learn. On the one hand, the memorization of facts can be a fundamental skill that students should master. On the other hand, inquiry is an essential aspect of learning that enables the creation of skilled and prepared individuals who will enter the workforce with a stronger awareness of how they can use creativity and problem solving to be successful specialists in their fields.

Thus, inquiry must be considered a detrimental component of education that will strengthen the desire to find out information, determine, and continue exploring various topics to arrive at resolutions that will be enough to address their desire for understanding. Effective inquiry practices depend on the successful implementation of methods of instruction, dependent significantly in favor of exploration. Structures supporting increased engagement and collaboration as well as calling for answering open-ended questions and teacher facilitation are considered the tenets of inquiry-based learning. This study aims to study the applicability of inquiry-based learning to education, drawing from the available research case studies that explored the topic. It is expected that the subject will be studied mainly through the qualitative research methodology because of the need to draw data from students’ and teachers’ real-life experiences.

Theoretical Framework

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) represents an alternative method that involves the inclusion of students as active participators in the learning process. The method’s implementation in education requires significant attention from researchers because it can enable the needed transformation of the learning process with the increased engagement of students. IBL goes beyond asking questions for the sake of asking them. Instead, learning-driven through inquiry is a matter of igniting curiosity and the desire to get answers. Even though there are different approaches that teachers can implement to facilitate IBL, there are several core phases of the process that must be taken into consideration.

The first essential component of inquiry-based learning is orientation or also referred to as observation. It is concerned with the introduction of a new topic or concept, with students expected to explore it with the help of research, direct instruction, and hands-on activities (Attard, Berger and Mackenzie, 2021). The second component is questioning and conceptualizing, which is associated with developing questions related to the studied topic or concept, making predictions about it, and posing hypotheses (Attard et al., 2021). The third component of IBL is the investigation, which tends to be the most extensive among all other components, thus making it the lengthiest process. Students are expected to take the lead when answering questions, usually with appropriate support from teachers to discover answers, thus finding evidence to support or disprove the hypotheses, and carrying out research.

The conclusion component of inquiry-based learning means that, having collected all data and information, students will develop conclusions and answers to the questions that they pose (Attard et al., 2021). Moreover, when making conclusions, students may develop further questions to be answered later. The final component of IBL is discussion or sharing, which enables students to learn from one another when they present results. The role of a teacher within this IBL stage is to guide discussions, encourage an open debate, and facilitate reflection. The

The Applicability of IBL in Education

Research has indicated that in education, inquiry-based learning has several benefits. The majority of the studies that focused on IBL utilized the qualitative research approach. This is due to the need to extract relevant data from the perspectives of teachers and students who have had some experience with IBL and can comment on it. Moreover, the focus group approach is highly relevant within this methodology as researchers could look at their study population in real life and assess the impact of IBL based on their reactions, behaviors, and opinions. To determine the advantages of IBL, scholars have investigated the impact of inquiry-based learning methods on various indicators of students’ success. In their study, which was quantitative in nature, setting it apart from others, Şahintepe, Erkol, and Aydoğdu (2020) investigated the outcomes of the science course based on the IBL approach to learning. It was concluded that in the intervention group involved in the study, the scientific process skill levels of students increased statistically significantly in contrast to the control group.

Importantly, when being taught through IBL instruction, students made more progress when it comes to understanding the goals and purpose behind their questioning, formulating questions, explaining their ideas better, making controlled comparisons, and so on (Şahintepe et al., 2020). Notably, to attain the best results possible when implementing IBL, it is necessary to reduce the level of teacher guidance (van Uum, Verhoeff and Peeters, 2017). Students become more engaged and active in learning according to the IBL framework when they can engage in self-directed learning, thus making inquiry more open. van Uum, Verhoeff and Peeters, (2017) proposed the scaffolding method during inquiry lessons to increase students’ effectiveness at self-directed learning. Therefore, teachers’ role in IBL is concerned with enhancing learning rather than directing the process with their instructions.

The findings of Şahintepe et al. (2020) were supported by Subba et al. (2019), who explored the impact of IBL pedagogy in teaching science. Interestingly, in their study, IBL has been conceptualized as an essential factor in democratizing the classroom, with the latter characterized as “the cradle of democracy [with the teacher being] one of the most influential nurturers of the democratic process” (Subba et al., 2019, p. 45). The researchers found that the IBL teaching approach has an overall positive impact on students’ achievement in science, with 82% of surveyed students agreeing that the method helps enhance the interests of students, their attitudes toward learning science, and overall achievement. IBL has been instrumental in assisting science class students in learning how to investigate, develop relevant assertions, and justify them within the classroom community (Wilson, 2020). Overall, greater conceptual understanding of sciences increases as a result of IBL implementation.

The personal opinions of students regarding IBL were expressed in Subba et al.’s (2019) study, which makes the results highly reliable. More than 80% of students indicated that they agreed with the fact that IBL is an innovative and interesting method of learning and agree that, in contrast to the traditional ‘chalk and board’ method, it is more engaging and effective (Subba et al., 2019). The approach can help students more during science class because they find themselves to be more driven and motivated. Thus, it is recommended that science instruction is more mindful of the limitations that traditional instruction methods have, facilitating the implementation of IBL to enhance achievement in the discipline.

While the research articles by Şahintepe et al. (2020) and Subba et al. (2020) focused on science subjects, Wale and Bishaw (2020) explored IBL’s effectiveness as applied to English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. The study found that inquiry-based learning applied in the context of the foreign language learning classroom can significantly enhance the critical thinking skills of students. Specifically, EFL learners’ critical thinking skills improve in such areas as analysis, interpretation, evaluation, explanation, self-regulation, and inference (Wale and Bishaw, 2020). Specifically, when students used IBL to write argumentative essays in English, they showed improved levels of comprehension and could effectively expression of their essay writing queries. Besides, students could identify the elements of claims and make reasonable conclusions when writing their essays. Similarly, students could assess the credibility of claims and the quality of arguments. Therefore, with IBL integration into EFL instruction, students have the opportunity to enhance their crucial thinking skills, which are essential to foreign language acquisition. This calls for the need to promote inquiry-based learning within the EFL teaching setting to enhance students’ skills in critical thinking. There is an opportunity to develop teaching materials in accordance with the approach.

Besides enhancing the accomplishment of students in both humanities and science subjects, IBL has shown positive effects on learners’ engagement. Engagement is imperative to take into account in the context of learning because it is one of the prerequisites of student performance and participation, with learners being more likely to thrive in the educational setting by exploring varied materials and engaging with the (Wheatley, 2018). Thus, because IBL encourages peer collaboration and the learning of communication skills, research has found that it increases student engagement (Kourti, 2019). It has been shown that the traditional approach to teaching that is primarily teacher-centered is no longer effective for maintaining students’ engagement. In lecture settings that emphasize the role of a teacher, learning happens scarcely because the audience is not involved and rather sits and listens. In such a context, the approach “fails to engage the minds of students fully. Put simply, it is difficult to learn if one is not engaged” (Sciullo, 2017, p. 238). Learners require more personalized approaches, so they have the opportunity to fully understand the content being taught to them and interact with it effectively. When the learning makes it possible for students to feel more independence and freedom to question things, they are more likely to be engaged.

In the classroom setting, engagement goes hand-in-hand with exploration and investigation, which can sometimes lead to failure. When students make mistakes, they are required to rethink their research and learn from the failure. During inquiry-based learning, students will fail and re-do, which can help them understand what actions or responses led to the mistakes, thus allowing them to inherently remember the content better (Wheatley, 2018). Therefore, engagement is crucial to be maintained throughout the entire process of learning to ensure that the material being taught makes sense to learners.

In addition to engagement, scholars have looked at the influence of IBL on students’ motivation, which is a central concept of research on affect and is manifested in knowledge, emotion, and behavior (Kourti, 2019). Motivation defines individuals’ energy and desire for learning and the achievement and the work that they do to reach their potential. In inquiry learning, instructional approaches include but are not limited to constructivist teaching, discovery learning, problem-based learning, and project-based learning (Kourti, 2019). IBL highly values the student-centered approach, which means that it is likely to consider their motivational beliefs and expectations. Similarly, in constructivist teaching, which could be a part of IBL, students can employ a greater number and variety of learning strategies, and thus be more motivated to learn. The independence and self-direction that students acquire in self-directed learning allows them to collaborate with one another, engage in authentic activities based on real-world scenarios, and establish clearer learning goals (Kourti, 2019). This suggests that learning motivation enhances when students are exposed to the IBL approach, which, in turn, leads to improved educational outcomes.

Barriers to IBL Application

There is a general consensus among scholars that studied the impact of IBL in the educational setting that the method brings extensive positive results for students. However, it is important to consider the disadvantages of IBL because the method is far from perfect and may improve with time and through applying evidence-based recommendations. For example, in their study, Subba et al. (2019) found that 6% of the surveyed students thought that IBL is a time-consuming approach compared to the traditional method, with many of them facing difficulties when learning through activity. Besides, research has indicated that inquiry-based learning consequently increases the time spent on questioning, hypothesizing, investigating, and reflecting on the newly-taught material (Sotiriou, Lazoudis and Bogner, 2020). In addition, because of the limited resources available to schools, students doubt that IBL can bring the practical results that are expected.

The role of teachers in IBL instruction has some drawbacks in practice. Notably, the success or failure of IBL implementation in the classroom tends to rely on the competence and enthusiasm of the teacher who delivers instruction to students. As found by Romero-Ariza et al. (2019), who explored teachers’ perceptions of IBL use in English and Spanish learning classrooms, the teachers of both languages agreed that the educational system does not support IBL. Besides, teachers indicated that neither English nor Spanish curricula promote IBL and instead emphasize the use of the traditional approach to instruction (Romero-Ariza et al., 2019). As some students in the study by Sotiriou et al. (2020) stated that IBL is time-consuming, English and Spanish teachers in Romero-Ariza et al.’s (2019) research agreed. The majority of respondents mentioned that there is not enough time allocated in the student schedule to implement the approach successfully and that they personally do not have enough time to prepare it due to the abundance of other tasks (Romero-Ariza et al., 2019). Overall, there are some barriers to IBL implementation that need to be addressed to use the method to its full potential.

It is important to note teachers often prefer traditional methods of instruction and avoid IBL because the common approach to teaching is more familiar to students. Because teachers want to do what is best for their students, they choose not to overcomplicate the learning process by applying unfamiliar approaches (Letina and Canjek-Androić, 2021). Thus, teachers’ opinions or perceptions of how students will respond to IBL will influence the way in which they structure classroom learning. However, researchers found instances in which the lack of teachers’ willingness to alter their instruction approach occurred regardless of their opinions about students’ acceptance of IBL (Ramnarain and Hlatswayo, 2018). Therefore, more reform efforts are necessary to facilitate the teachers’ understanding of IBL benefits and how they can successfully integrate them into the curriculum.

Recommendations for Future IBL Application

The research into the impact of inquiry-based learning in the educational setting showed that the method has great potential if implemented correctly. However, the method is far from flawless, and there are recommendations for facilitating its effective integration into the educational process. A recommendation toward improving IBL implementation that considers the limitation in available resources is concerned with the increased digitalization of learning. Because IBL can be time-consuming, it is recommended to integrate more digital tools and resources as an effective strategy to decrease time consumption and increase inquiry processes’ adoption in everyday classroom activities (Sotiriou et al., 2020). Lessons that are supported by technologies have the potential to enrich them with high-quality educational materials, which could support different classroom-setting interventions, meeting the needs of both teachers and students. Digitizing classrooms is an intervention that can help bridge gaps between expectations of learning and experience, even among students struggling with complicated subjects such as science.

The barriers that teachers experience when attempting to implement IBL in their instruction are important to address because educators’ preparedness and awareness can lead to either success or failure of the approach. School leadership should be more aware of the need to educate teachers on how they can implement IBL and allocate time in the curriculum to address this need. In IBL, teachers play the role of motivators and facilitators of student learning, which means that they need to have some teaching competencies to assume the role. Since IBL is an alternative to the traditional approach, the most desirable competency is the capability to apply modern curricula that will encourage students’ active participation (Letina and Canjek-Androić, 2021). The basic teachers’ knowledge necessary for the successful use of IBL instruction includes content knowledge, implementation of authentic scientific research, knowledge in pedagogy and psychology, as well as methodological knowledge about IBL (Letina and Canjek-Androić, 2021). Notably, a positive attitude toward the inquiry-based curriculum is crucial for teachers because their doubts and hesitations are likely to hinder the educational process.

Conclusion

To conclude, inquiry-based learning is an approach that can bring significant benefits in the context of education. IBL is highly relevant to professional development because research has shown that IBL instruction improves students’ performance, increases their engagement and motivation, allows for greater instructional flexibility, and can be used in different disciplines. It is expected that individuals who are educated through IBL will be more effective in their learning. The implemented review of studies on the impact of IBL showed that the approach benefits students’ achievement in both sciences and the humanities because it encourages problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. Students who are exposed to teaching through the inquiry-based learning approach are more likely to understand the material better, ask relevant questions about it, and take more responsibility for their own learning. Notably, scholars who have dug deeper into IBL effects suggested that IBL is conducive to learning from mistakes, which is an essential part of the educational process. Without making mistakes and analyzing why they have taken place, students’ learning can be seen as robotic, with the relevant information and skills not embedding much.

Despite the general consensus that the inquiry-based learning approach to education has a positive impact, and the studies proving it being evaluated as relevant and reliable, there are barriers to the method’s implementation in the classroom. The most resistance has been shown among teachers who have indicated that there is not enough time in the curriculum allocated for IBL because the method is time-consuming. The inability to make changes in the curriculum to facilitate IBL is a challenge that needs addressing through structural shifts and the increased attention of education leaders to the benefits of the method. Further, it is necessary to explore how structural changes in the curricular makeup of education can facilitate inquiry-based learning success. Today, there is not enough consideration given to the time necessary to allocate for preparation for IBL, as many studies have indicated that teachers struggle with implementing the approach because there is not enough time allocated in the curriculum.

Reference List

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