Galileo Teacher Training Program Workshop in Taipei, at the Taipei Astronomical Museum (TAM), June 2017

1. Inquiry Based Science Education: How to implement
IBSE in your lesson
Thilina Heenatigala
Galileo Teacher Training Program
@ThilinaH @galileoteachers
http://galileoteachers.org

2. "Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I
remember. Involve me and I will learn."

3. Chalk and Talk

4. • Traditional science education
• Focus on ‘what we know’ (facts)
• Direct transfer of knowledge from teacher to
student
• Teacher’s role = dispense knowledge
• Student’s role = receive knowledge
Chalk and Talk

5. “A student-centered, active learning approach
focusing on questioning, critical thinking, and
problem-solving. It's associated with the idea -
involve me and I understand.”
What is Inquiry-based Learning?

6. • The scientific process
• Focus on ‘how we know what we know’
(evidence)
• Indirect transfer of knowledge
• Teacher’s role = facilitator of learning
• Student’s role = active, independent learner
(investigator)
Inquiry-based Learning

7. Engage
Explore
Explain
Extend Evaluate
Learning Cycle

8. Inquiry Levels

9. Inquiry Levels

12. Advantages Disadvantages
• Flexible and adaptable for a variety of
projects.
• Helps to build self-esteem through
allowing them to be more active in
their own learning process, rather
than passive via traditional lecture
based methods.
• Reinforces and builds several skills of
students in the areas of physical,
emotional, and cognitive.
• It can work with any age group.
• Doesn´t work for all science topics.
• Requires more planning, preparation,
and responsiveness from the
educators.
• Educators must be skilled in helping
students learn the art of asking a good
question.
• Requires more class time
• May be less able to meet goals of
standardized testing
“Kids are naturally very inquisitive.
Teachers often train them out of it. I
think our first learning is inquiry
based.” (Anonymous, 2007)
“There are many good teachers who
have no handle on how to teach using
inquiry-based lessons” (Anonymous, 2007)

13. Research Findings:
• Understanding science is more than knowing facts.
• Students build knowledge on what they already
know (preconceptions)
• Students formulated new knowledge by modifying
and refining their current concepts (misconceptions)
Why do inquiry

14. Why do inquiry
Research Findings cont’d:
• Learning is mediated by a social environment in
which learners interact with others.
• Effective learning requires that students take control
of their own learning.
• The ability to apply knowledge to new situations
(transfer of learning) is affected by the degree to
which students learn with understanding.

16. "Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I
remember. Involve me and I will learn."