Issues in Inquiry-Based Science Education Seen Through Dewey's Theory of Inquiry

摘要

To understand the issues of inquiry-based education, I adopted John Dewey’s theory of inquiry as the analytical framework to examine science learning activities, students’ interactions, and education standards. Educators have tried to engage students in meaningful learning, but the analysis revealed that the meaning of inquiry was diverse: interesting hands-on materials to teach scientific knowledge; collaborative group work for independence and democratic attitudes; and dynamic problem solving to change the community and the students’ identities. Efforts to connect students’ experiences with school learning aimed at different learning outcomes and consequently met with a different set of dilemmas in drawing students’ participation and supporting their learning. The interaction among the educational goals, the learning outcomes, and the difficulties shows that we need to evaluate carefully the meanings of inquiry-based education and its learning goals in order to find better ways to ensure students’ growth to its fullest.