Inquiry – why it is important: • Increases students’ understanding, enjoyment and engagement with science • Develops essential life skills, including teamwork, gathering data,

communication, making decisions • Enables students to work like real scientists and use evidence to develop

models and laws via inquiry processes within a socially constructive environment

• Enthuses more students to enjoy and choose science at university • Helps students to be more effective scientists

An example of rubrics used. This is a work in progress and will be developed further with the aim of promoting student involvement and confidence in recognising quality and progression in inquiry skills. These rubrics are used as an aid to promote discussion between students and teacher to help structure next steps advice for students.

The Mission Going forward: • Embedding more inquiry based activities into KS3 and KS4 scheme of work, in harmony with

new KS3 syllabus • Developing colleagues confidence in working in an ‘inquiry’ based way. • Developing assessment strategies to include more formative assessment approaches such as

peer and self assessment. Group presentations and review. • Developing rubric criteria with the students so they understand what quality is all about and

understand where they are and how to move forward. • Ensuring descriptive statements within a rubric are written positively capturing what would be

demonstrated rather than what is not done. • Develop approaches for effective means to capture assessment outcomes as part of the

teaching and learning eg student self reporting.

Students’ feedback: • “We enjoyed thinking things through rather

than following instructions.” • “I liked working as a team – we developed

teamwork skills and got to evaluate ourselves.”

• “It was fun and engaging.” • “It was different!”

Impact of SAILS: 1) New strategies for incorporating inquiry practice into lessons and disseminated to colleagues 2) Increased awareness of students’ understanding of inquiry and hence how to help them

progress 3) Explored a variety of assessment tools and strategies for inquiry learning & using them 4) Noticed greater student independence and resilience - students could see how to improve & do it 5) Role is more of a facilitator and observer so can gather evidence of student learning as part of the teaching process rather than as a separate summative assessment activity

How my inquiry practices developed: 1) First time Anxiety from students! Needed lots of reassurance. Reluctant to take the lead in case they got it wrong. Did not understand how to use the rubric effectively. My time management was ineffective and their inexperience meant self- and peer- assessment not done. Tendency to over managing process to complete the practical.

2) Second time Students knew what to do and more happy to be proactive. Listened well. Worked as a team. Peer assessment and feedback was developing. Student engagement good. Anxiety gone. Time management effective. Time observe to assess and tease out their thinking and reasoning.

3) Further occasions More precise self- and peer- assessment and feedback. Increased student engagement, independence and resilience. Reduction in teacher direction meant I could “stand back” more to observe and assess inquiry skills.

Other teachers’ feedback: • I found that the inquiry activities engaged

students’ interest. • Students could see how to move onto to

the next stage. • Peer and self assessment would be the next

step to effective assessment.

Teacher’s assessment is formed after observation during sessions and discussion with student. Focussing on different students over time ensures deep understanding about every students achievement. Written work from students contributes to process.

Emergent

Developing

Confident

Expert

Planning Change an independent

variable and measure a

dependent variable.

Identify one control

variable.

Identify all relevant control

variables. The importance of

controlling variables is understood.

Control variables are set to suitable

values to allow a good set of results.

Observation Makes observations as

instructed by teacher.

Chooses which

observations to make.

Chooses which observations to

make and how to make them

(equipment required).

Suggests other methods/equipment to

make improved observations.

Recording Results Writes down results. Writes down results in

teacher’s table.

Write results in your table with

units.

Draws a table correctly with headed

columns and enters results with units

only written once in headings.

Graph- drawing Plot points on pre-

drawn axes.

Selects correct graph,

draws and labels axes, plots

points accurately.

Selects correct graph, draws and

labels (with units) appropriate

axes, plots points accurately.

Selects correct graph, draws and labels

(with units) appropriate axes, plots

points accurately and draws a correct

line or curve of best fit.

Conclusion Finds a pattern in the

results with help.

Finds a pattern between

the independent and

dependent variable.

Explains pattern and uses one

piece of data to provide evidence.

Explains pattern and uses multiple

pieces of data to provide evidence for

the pattern.

Risk Assessment Identify hazards. Identify hazards and some

safety precautions.

Identify all hazards and all safety

precautions to take.

Give the level of risk for the hazards

(low, medium, high) and the all the

safety precautions to take.

Teamwork Takes part in one task in

the practical.

Takes part in two tasks in

the practical.

Takes a role in the team, carries

out a number of tasks and

observes others doing their part.

Discusses with others in the group who

should do what, willingly takes on their

role and observes others doing their

part.

By focussing on just three or four inquiry skills within a session the students are then able to review where they are currently in terms of these skills and start to understand the necessary steps needed to improve. They were then better able to apply the next steps in the current activity. The same rubric is used on a number of occasion.

Examples of inquiry activities undertaken during my first year of SAILS project. Activity Inquiry focus Factors affecting bounciness of a squash ball planning, observations and overcoming errors, teamwork, evaluating Reactivity of metals with acid planning, recording results, risk assessment, drawing conclusions Vitamin C tablets – speed of dissolving planning, teamwork, choosing observations, recording results Cookie mining – how to get the chocolate chips from the cookie teamwork, planning, recording results, evaluation Bacterial growth on different surfaces planning, recording results, evaluation, using apparatus safely and carefully Importance of Jenner and Pasteur’s work discussion, evaluating, teamwork, peer-assessing and feedback

Student’s self-assessment is evolving using a rubric. Currently a tick sheet. Teacher draws on this to make own judgment.

The Bouncing Squash Ball inquiry: Students quickly recognised difficulties in gathering relevant accurate data, e.g., measuring bounce height. Their self evaluations led them to amend and improve their inquiry approach and use slow-motion video footage via their phones.

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For further information about this poster contact Ramla Ali, email: rali@gordons.surrey.sch.uk

Example of peer assessment & feedback showing the dynamic nature of this aspect of formative assessment