Professional Learning Goals

• Learned to integrate the inquiry process into our geography program
• Developed a digital space for students to store their inquiry ponderings and discoveries and to create a shared space for the class
• Created/discovered lesson and assessment tools to help assess students during the inquiry process
• Compiled electronic resources on relevant geographic topics  

Activities and Resources

The main goals for our first meeting was to create the framework for the Digital Inquiry Portfolio using Google Drive and to come up with a few lessons that would introduce the folder and use at least two of the folders. The main Inquiry folder was broken into the following five subfolders:  Questions, Gather and Organize, Interpret and Analyse, Evaluate and Draw Conclusions, and Communicate and Reflect. After we created the Inquiry Folder, we focussed on how to introduce two of the processes to our students. We reviewed the curricular expectations for the first 7/8 geography units and discussed how we could intertwine explicit teaching of the inquiry processes while exploring the curriculum’s specific expectations. We spent the rest of the day researching how to incorporate the inquiry process into our classroom and developed lessons and assessment tools that addressed geography curricular expectations and questioning strategies. We started to develop lessons focussing on how to guide students in gathering and organizing their research.

Our second planning day was used to discuss the introductory lessons and the actual student creation of Digital Inquiry Portfolios. We also wanted to create lessons/assessment tools for the other folders and continue to familiarize ourselves with the Grade 7/8 geography curriculum expectations. By the end of the planning day, we had a clear idea of how we were going to have students utilize each folder in their portfolio while completing an inquiry project for the first unit in geography. The inquiry project required students to ask a question relevant to Unit One. We created guidelines in each folder for students to use to help facilitate them through the inquiry process. The guidelines included how to pick an inquiry question, types of inquiry questions, a research gathering template, distinguishing helpful web resources from unhelpful web resources, how to make sense of research they gathered, how to put all the research together, and different ways to share their learning.

On the third planning day, we shared the progress and struggles experienced thus far in the project. We looked at student work to identify their areas of solid understanding and areas in need of more support. In the afternoon, we created a video for documentation purposes. The video traced the progress that we had made and also explored our students’ opinions on the inquiry project. We had students representing a diverse range of abilities represented in the interviews. We ended the planning day discussing how we would use the Digital Inquiry Portfolio in history.

Our fourth planning day was used to discuss how the Digital Inquiry Portfolio was working in history and to develop a plan for a Unit 2 geography inquiry project.  We spent the day developing an extensive plan for an Inquiry Project. In this project, students would explore curricular expectations through teacher-created overarching questions. After researching the overarching questions, students would then start the inquiry process using the guidelines set out for them in their Digital Inquiry Portfolio folders. The end product would be an evaluative piece – an online magazine. In groups, students would research the overarching questions, create a magazine layout, form an assignment schedule, discuss their specific interests and finally complete the online magazine. Each student would be expected to write a feature story and an alternate writing piece, and complete two alternate story forms. The Digital Inquiry Portfolio would be used to guide students through this process.

Unexpected Challenges

Time was the biggest challenge in this project. Time to explicitly teach how to do inquiry while addressing curriculum expectations was the hardest. Allowing the students to take the time that was needed for this process was hard to wrap our heads around and sometimes left us feeling overwhelmed and time-crunched. Team members are relatively new to the intermediate division and thus still learning a new curriculum. We feel that since we have now had a year to work on this we will be better prepared for next year.

Learning how to differentiate inquiry-based learning for all students was difficult. Some students had issues with the research area and needed more structure and guidance throughout the inquiry process. More time is needed to discover best practices for scaffolding the inquiry process for learners who may struggle.

Enhancing Student Learning and Development

This project enhanced student learning and development through student engagement. Through conversations with and observations of students, we found that the Digital Portfolio helped to keep students organized throughout the inquiry process. Overall, students enjoyed the inquiry process for the following reasons:

• They were allowed to be in control their learning
• They enjoyed becoming experts and sharing their knowledge with peers and teachers
• They became active learners rather than passive learners
• They learned concrete research strategies
• The portfolios helped keep the learners organized

Sharing

We have just begun the sharing process. We shared with staff at staff meeting and discussed the benefits of using student portfolios in the classroom.

It was also shared with teachers in the board through our Intermediate Board Conference. This can be accessed by all teachers in the board.

We have also recently shared on Ontario Intermediate Teacher’s Facebook page.

Opportunities for sharing will hopefully come within the next year as we continue to further develop the lessons.

Project Evaluation

Overall, we believe that this project was successful.  We believe it was successful for the following reasons:

• Through research and practise, we were able to gain a concrete understanding of how the inquiry process works in an intermediate geography class
• We were able to extend our understanding of inquiry and the use of the student Digital Inquiry Portfolio into our history program
• The Digital Portfolio provided students with an organized platform to aid them throughout the inquiry process
• Students expressed that they enjoyed learning geography through the inquiry process

This project has been invaluable and has left us wanting to continue the inquiry learning journey. We realize that to use inquiry as a pedagogical tool, a teacher must possess a very strong knowledge in curricular expectations and provide students with a concrete framework, with strong guidelines. We believe that the Digital Inquiry Portfolio is a great tool; albeit, a tool that is in need of further development. We look forward to continuing the development of this tool and extending the Digital Inquiry Portfolio into other subject areas. We also learned that the individual folders within the Digital Inquiry Portfolio often overlapped each other during a large inquiry project. There was not a sequential order on how to use the portfolio, rather, students would bounce from folder to folder throughout the process. For example, new questions may arise during the research and gathering stage, or reflection pieces in the communication phase were written throughout the whole process, action plans may develop before the evaluative piece is complete, etc.

We enjoyed working on this project, but know that we are still climbing the mountain of using inquiry as a pedagogical tool.