Dr. Yendol-Hoppey

Dr. Yendol-Hoppey, a renowned educator at the University of South Florida, discussed teacher inquiry as wonderings and problems of practice occur. Inquiry is the basis on the continuum of moving from good to great. Effective teachers inquire in order to adapt or improve their instruction- moving from good instruction to great instruction. Inquiry should begin to be practiced at the beginning of teacher education in order to make it a habit of it in the real work place.

Inquiry is an eye opening process that empowers teachers, administrators and principals across the globe. When teachers have wonderings, they ask questions and do research in order to answer their questions or wonderings. With empowerment comes huge changes to instruction. When teachers begin to understand why something is happening, they can then begin to alter their instruction to best fit the needs of their students.

Inquiry is a process that happens over a period of time. Teachers develop different wonderings at different times; however, despite the timeline of which they occur, teachers should support one another in their endeavors of answering their wonderings. Wonderings come from a variety of classroom problems and background knowledge. Some wonderings, on the other hand, may occur simultaneously. When this happens, teachers may try to answer their questions in a parallel fashion.

Teacher education programs should teach the cycle of inquiry. The cycle of inquiry is like a science fair project- both have a process for answering questions. At the beginning of the inquiry process, teachers should frame their key ideas and questions that they wish to be answered. After, teachers should investigate through literature and field experiences. Once the investigation process is over, teacher should develop their action plan and carry out strategies. At the end, teachers should analyze their data and revise their action plan to fit the needs of their data.

All teachers should inquire in order better develop their instruction and curriculum. Inquiry is a vital process in the movement of good to great. Not all teachers inquire and not all teacher education programs teach the cycle of inquiry. Inquiry cannot be a habit in the classroom if pre-service teacher candidates are not practicing the process in their education programs. If all schools required their teachers to inquire and conduct research based off of their wonderings, huge changes to the education system would occur.