Starting January 2015, I began facilitating a series of Collaborative Inquiries focusing on History, Geography and Social Studies (Ontario Curriculum) with Pre-Service Education Students at Brock University.
The objectives of this 10 Week course were to: 1) have a strong understanding of approach, content and rational of the Ontario Social Studies, History and Geography Curriculum, 2) use 21st Century tools and teaching methods to design lessons and learning opportunities for students, 3) have a strong understanding of the theories and research regarding History and Geography as it relates to Education and 4) to use collaborative inquiry planning tools and 4) to publish and share a series of co-created TLCP’s Teaching Learning Inquiry Cycle (adapted from Ontario TLCP)
Adapted from the Ontario TLCP (Teacher Learning Critical Pathways), we used a similar Framework to guide our INQUIRIES
In each section/week of this course and as directed by the learners themselves (depending on readiness), Teacher Candidates would use one area of the Framework to guide their inquiry and investigation.
For example: In week one, teachers investigated the curriculum (purpose, changes, content, rationale). In week two, Teachers picked a ‘Big Idea’ and using an Inquiry Framework decided on a Grade, Topic and Objective for a 6-8 Week Teaching Cycle. In the following weeks, Teachers would use questioning, discussion and investigation to complete the Planning Framework. The below examples demonstrate how teachers incorporated Critical Literacy, Inquiry and Design Thinking as well as using a variety of assessment and evaluation strategies.
Thank you for sharing, Zoe! I have been doing some similar work independently, and the work of developing these rich inquiry questions is so challenging and so rewarding for students and teachers.