Introduction

One important aspect of inquiry-based learning in general and student driven research projects in particular is the independence of the students and the form of support from the teacher, and how it changes over time. The teacher needs to ensure that there is a balance between the students’ capacity and the level of challenge they encounter. If the tasks are too difficult, the students will be frustrated and give up; if the tasks are too easy, the students will be bored and not develop. Instead of seeing these two ways of student independence as either or, Bonnstetter (1998) approached the question of independence rather as a continuum, and characterized different types of IBL by describing what important aspects were defined by the teacher and what were defined by the students.

Considerations and thoughts

Reflection questions

Key literature

Bonnstetter, R. J. (1998). Inquiry: Learning from the past with an eye on the future. Electronic Journal of Science Education, 3(1).

Hmelo-Silver, C. E. (2004). Problem-based learning: What and how do students learn?. Educational psychology review, 16(3), 235-266.

Lee, V. S. (2011). The power of inquiry as a way of learning. Innovative Higher Education, 36(3), 149-160.