"Teacher inquiry" refers to a process where teachers explore and investigate their teaching practices, classroom strategies, and student learning to improve their teaching methods and student outcomes.
Full definition
The transformative potential
of teacher inquiry work, however, does not stop at the individual teacher level.
Whatever your philosophy, it's hard to argue that engaging
in teacher inquiry provides many benefits.
In wrapping up this series
on teacher inquiry, I want to emphasize the importance of making inquiry a regular part of your practice.
As previously mentioned, dissemination of this knowledge and experience can occur through
teacher inquiry groups.
First, we will introduce the concept
of teacher inquiry, as a method of data - driven reflection on - action.
However, engaging
in teacher inquiry can be a challenging and time consuming process while teachers today are allowed limited time for reflection on their teaching practice.
Presenters: Debra Murphy, Ben Mardell, Frances Rust, Karen Capo, Debra Paz, Jordan Khadam - Hir Teachers and teacher educators will explore and discuss strategies to develop and
support teacher inquiry networks.
Collectively, we decided to replicate the three - stage structure of co-inquiry — documentation, communication, and action (Abramson 2012)-- and rely on the cycle of
teacher inquiry for guidance.
Dana and Yendol - Hoppey (2009) define
teacher inquiry as a systematic intentional study of one's own professional practice.
The Coach will work directly with teachers in a school providing classroom - based demonstrations, collaborative and one - on - one support, and
facilitating teacher inquiry and related professional development.
This edition of Everybody's Kids, Engaging in Collaborative Action Research to Promote EL Success, focuses on methods and models of collaboration through which
collaborative teacher inquiry drives decision - making and instructional planning for ELs.
Teacher inquiry begins with what Dana and Yendol - Hoppey (2009) call «wonderments» or questions that drive your research.
This can take a variety of forms,
including teacher inquiry, as we find in Oakland, California, or social activism, as we find in Chicago, Illinois.
Processes
like teacher inquiry, lesson study, critical friends, or the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards's Take One professional learning model can be of great help in providing structure and protocols for the collaborative work.
For example, educators can
join teacher inquiry groups to critically examine their own teaching practices and how that affects student learning (Nelson, Deuel, Slavit, and Kennedy, 2010).
Time for collaboration and
teacher inquiry played a pivotal role in these schools» successful responses to student disengagement.
In addition, the FMTI provides leadership development for teacher leaders in facilitating professional learning communities,
guiding teacher inquiry, and using formal protocols to guide meetings.
Anna Yates is a K - 8 school in their second year of partnership with Mills Teacher Scholars in building a school -
wide teacher inquiry community.
She is also pursuing her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership at Mills College, researching the connection
between teacher inquiry, teacher efficacy beliefs, and retention.
We have a commitment to partnering with Mills Teacher Scholars: working together to build
reflective teacher inquiry practices that support both student and adult learning.
Student teachers in a teacher credential program
featuring teacher inquiry evidenced many indicators of attention to the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students in their inquiry products and processes.
The Prime Online oTPD program was developed as the result of a collaborative effort between three teacher educators and researchers with expertise in special education, mathematics education, and teacher professional development with a focus
on teacher inquiry.
Further, in addition to relying solely on traditional approaches to educational research, the action research model
of teacher inquiry / teacher leadership seems to be a sensible approach given the rapid changes in contemporary computer technologies.
The ultimate goal of
teacher inquiry is to improve the learning conditions for students.
Teacher inquiry is recognized as a prominent method for data - driven reflection on - action.
Understanding the potential of
teacher inquiry for improving teachers» practice, as well as the related difficulties, digital technologies are now being considered for supporting teacher inquiry.
Therefore, the concept of Teaching and Learning Analytics can be embedded in
the teacher inquiry cycle and support teachers engage in continuous reflection, as follows:
In particular, a synergy between Teaching Analytics and Learning Analytics has been recently proposed with the potential to facilitate in the efficient implementation of the full cycle of
teacher inquiry, namely Teaching and Learning Analytics.
In previous blogs, we covered how to design and launch
a teacher inquiry and ways to collect data.
«We joined collaborative planning teams, where we sat and chatted to teachers, had observations in classrooms, informal walkthroughs... [and]
a teacher inquiry group which ran for a semester where a group of teachers who were looking into their practice in mathematics engaged in challenging some of the things that they were doing.»
Note: The following blog is the first of a three - part series on
teacher inquiry.
Note: The following blog is the final installment of a three - part series on
teacher inquiry.
The Summer 2010 Induction Spotlight includes examples of Year 2
Teacher Inquiries.
Applying
a teacher inquiry model to program planning and assessment needs to become ingrained into practice, for our own growth and for gathering a rich body of evidence for demonstrating the value of the school library learning commons to the broader educational community.
The opportunity to dialogue with colleagues or cohorts is an important aspect of
teacher inquiry and reflective practice (Wilson & Berne, 1999).