Inquiry as a Pivotal Element of Knowledge Acquisition Within the Vygotskian Paradigm: Building a Science Curriculum for the Elementary

The effects of teacher discourse on students’ discourse, problem-solving and reasoning during cooperative learning

“…Chinn, O'Donnell, and Jinks (2000), in a study of fifth-grade science students, found that students do not engage in high quality discourse unless they are required to provide reasons for their conclusions. Zuckerman et al (1998), in an investigation of elementary students' ability to engage in persistent and systematic study in a science curriculum, observed that although children's curiosity is widely considered to be a natural resource for classroom inquiry, the numbers of children who spontaneously ask and pursue questions about their natural interests in science are relatively few in number. In short, Galton et al (1999), Chinn et al (2000), and Zuckerman, Chudinova, and Khavkin (1998) found that the children only rarely ask cognitively challenging questions, often responding by reiterating what the teacher had previously stated, if they comment at all.…”

“…Zuckerman et al (1998), in an investigation of elementary students' ability to engage in persistent and systematic study in a science curriculum, observed that although children's curiosity is widely considered to be a natural resource for classroom inquiry, the numbers of children who spontaneously ask and pursue questions about their natural interests in science are relatively few in number. In short, Galton et al (1999), Chinn et al (2000), and Zuckerman, Chudinova, and Khavkin (1998) found that the children only rarely ask cognitively challenging questions, often responding by reiterating what the teacher had previously stated, if they comment at all. This lack of spontaneity may, in part, be due to the transmission method of teaching that children have traditionally be exposed to where the attitude tends to be that ''teachers talk and students listen''.…”

“…It may also be due to the lack of training that teachers provide to students in how to ask and answer thought-provoking questions. Zuckerman et al (1998) argue that the ability to ask and answer questions is stimulated by the adult so the answer supplied must act as an inducement for the child to seek additional knowledge; in turn, often promoting further questions and inquiries. By challenging children to think of how they may be able to find solutions, teachers have the potential to transform children's thinking from seeking basic knowledge to theoretical knowledge requiring metacognition.…”

The relationship between passibility, agency and social interaction and its relevance for research and pedagogy

“…Second, with formal instruction people may not learn what was intended. The first conclusion is easily challenged by many reports demonstrating that most students learn what was intended (and beyond) when instruction was well-designed-these include studies in literacy and language learning (e.g., Aidarova 1982), mathematics (e.g., Davydov 2008;Gal'perin 1992;Schmittau 2003), social studies and science (Hedegaard 2001) life science (e.g., Zuckerman, Chudinova and Khavkin 1998) and life planning (Vianna and Stetsenko 2011). The second conclusion depends on the type of instruction.…”

The Impact of Inquiry Process on the Cognitive Process Dimensions of Nontraditional Writing

“…Research-inquiry can be defined as a process of evaluating a problem, examination of the information or the fact which requires critical thinking, observing, drawing a conclusion, inquiring (Zuckerman et al (1998), thinking as a scientist, interpreting the experiments, and learning a study method ( Bilgin, 2009) and a science (Hofstein & Lunetta, 2004). Furthermore, the American National Science Education Standards (NRC, 1996; s.23) consider the research-inquiry as central to the education and defines it as the following: experimental evidence; using tools to gather, analyze, and interpret data; proposing answers, explanation, and predictions; and communicating the results.…”