I feel pressured sometimes to cover the content and then do an "inquiry" lab activity. True inquiry should be FIRST, so the students can discover for themselves. An inquiry lab or activity shouldn't merely confirm what students already know. I really liked the you tube videos ...they were so inquiry based. Showing the demo and then asking why, what is happening, I wonder,....and letting the students come up with possible explanations. The greatest learning through inquiry happens because a student's curiosity and interest is piqued. As a teacher, I can also ascertain what students already know or what misconceptions they may have based on their responses.
As a tech ed teacher I find that I have the time in my schedule and the room in my curriculum to help my science teachers with true inquiry lesson plans. This is the true nature of iSTEM Ed! I long for the days that my science teachers come to me and ask me to help integrate inquiry with their SOL driven units! Again, the time is coming for this integration as well. We just need to get more Tech Ed teachers to realize the connections that can be made.
ReplyDelete