When Inquiry Doesn’t Work

Coaches appropriately prompt planning and reflection by asking questions. But what happens when inquiry doesn’t work?
 
Inquiry approaches to learning make sense from a constructivist perspective. When learners construct their own knowledge, they connect the new to the known in ways that make concepts more “sticky” – they are more likely to be remembered. You’ve probably seen how engaging such an approach can be with young learners. That’s one of the reasons that inquiry applications like project-based learning have increased in popularity.
 
However, inquiry only works when learners have sufficient prerequisite knowledge. This is a possible explanation for why some meta-analyses have found that Project-Based learning doesn’t work.  Similarly, asking questions may be an ineffective mentoring and coaching practice when teachers don’t have sufficient pedagogical content knowledge to draw on.  If you don’t have the knowledge before you go into inquiry mode, it doesn’t work.  When teachers have the knowledge and experience, asking questions is a dramatically powerful coaching approach. When they don’t, it’s not.
 
Another challenge with inquiry approaches is that they are very situation-specific. Deep understanding is needed to flexibly use prerequisite knowledge. Even if a practice has been read about, or even used before, if the context is different, prior experiences may not spring to mind. Before rushing to ask, “How are you going to work this out?” effective coaches consider teachers’ background knowledge and previous experience.
 
When coaches anticipate that inquiry won’t be effective, making a recommendation might be the most appropriate first move. We can also pivot to recommending when we ask questions and come up empty.  It feels cruel and unusual to continue asking questions when a teacher is looking for more-specific help.
 
Asking questions is an effective coaching move, but not a generic one. The GIR Model for Mentoring and Coaching (below) shows that recommending is a more supportive move than asking questions, and it may be just what is needed. As coaches, we have to consider the context to make sure we get the balance right of pedagogical content knowledge, situational-specific knowledge, and inquiry.

This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
Increasing engagement during project-based learning:

https://www.edutopia.org/article/pbl-maintaining-student-engagement
 
 
Nourishing your soul for the work:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/nourishment-making-time-and-space-for-little-joys/
 
 
Ideas for incorporating daily reflective practices:
 
https://www.insightadvance.com/blog/4-ways-that-teachers-can-incorporate-daily-reflective-practices
 
 
A short video on setting up a student-centered classroom:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OsQS7Sanxg
 
 
Image Candy is a free site to modify images (remove background, add text, etc.:
 
https://imgcandy.com/
 
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
 
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My book, Differentiated Mentoring & Coaching in Education: From Preservice Teacher to Expert Practitioner is available from Teachers College Press!  I’m so excited to share it with you! You can use the code: JAN2023 for 15% off plus FREE SHIPPING. Click  here  and I’ll email you the free Book Group Study Guide that includes questions, prompts, and activities you can use as you share the book with colleagues.  I hope you’ll love this book as much as I loved making it for you!
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