Inquiry Benefits All Students 7
adapting to the latest innovation. Young people may pick up these new technologies easily and
learn their functions with little or no formal instruction. We know that for this generation of
learners, learning all of the bells and whistles of a new device isn’t the hard part of information
technology use. Schools need to provide opportunities for students to learn to use information
technologies for creativity and enlightenment.
Inquiry Is a Way of Teaching and Learning
Many districts, schools, and teachers are turning to inquiry learning as a way to address
this change. Inquiry has the potential to motivate learners, as it requires the integration of
content areas and application of skills in an authentic learning context. Many school lead-
ers are recognizing that inquiry learning helps them to meet the challenge of preparing their
students for life and work in the information environment and to be college ready. Initiatives
such as project based learning (PBL), expeditionary learning, blended learning, and Interna-
tional Baccalaureate (IB) schools all embrace inquiry approaches to learning. These initiatives
are increasingly being employed in schools to motivate students. For example, PBL seeks to
get students involved in an extended project that engages them in deeper learning (Boss and
Krauss, 2014). These systemic shifts are happening in public schools, charters, and indepen-
dent schools. Guided Inquiry is not only aligned with these initiatives; it provides a research-
based framework to support teachers to design deeper learning for their students within these
contexts (Kuhlthau, Maniotes, and Caspari, 2012). Some teachers have called Guided Inquiry
the “roadmap to success” for their IB and PBL schools.
The Common Core State Standards (2010) and American Association of School Librar-
ians (AASL) Standards (ALA, 2007) both advocate an inquiry approach. Inquiry is a way of
learning new skills and broadening knowledge in the midst of rapid technological change.
Inquiry is the foundation of the information age school. The underlying concept of inquiry
learning is considering a question or problem that prompts extensive investigation on the part
of the student.
Inquiry Benefits All Students
An inquiry approach engages all students, not just those who have already shown that
they are academically inclined. In the Rutgers University Center for International Scholar-
ship in School Libraries (CISSL) study of student learning through inquiry projects conducted
by Todd, Kuhlthau, and Heinstrom (2005), a wide range of students participated, including
those classified with learning disabilities, students at risk for dropping out of school, and ESL
(English as a Second Language) students. These students were shown to benefit from learning
through inquiry. They gained a sense of their own learning process by successfully pursuing a
project from start to finish. But more important, they learned strategies and skills transferable
to other inquiry projects and other situations in which information would be needed (Todd
and Kuhlthau, 2005a, 2005b). An inquiry approach to teaching and learning seeks to develop
independent academic competency, career readiness, and life skills, essential in all schools for
all students.
