Knowing inquiry as practice and theory : developing a pedagogical framework with elementary school teachers

In this article, the authors characterise the inquiry practices of four elementary school teachers by means of a pedagogical framework. Their study revealed core components of inquiry found in theoretically-driven models as well as practices that were regarded as integral to the success of day-to-day science teaching in Singapore. This approach towards describing actual science inquiry practices - a surprisingly neglected area - uncovered nuances in teacher instructions that can impact inquiry-based lessons as well as contribute to a practice-oriented perspective of science teaching. In particular, the authors found that these teachers attached importance to (a) preparing students for investigations, both cognitively and procedurally; (b) iterating pedagogical components where helping students understand and construct concepts did not follow a planned linear path but involved continuous monitoring of learning; and (c) synthesising concepts in a consolidation phase. Their findings underscore the dialectical relationship between practice-oriented knowledge and theoretical conceptions of teaching/learning thereby helping educators better appreciate how teachers adapt inquiry science for different contexts. [Author abstract]