skip to main contentskip to navigation
 IB MYP

Role of Inquiry

Inquiry and Seeking to Build Knowledge ~ Guiding Questions

 
The Use of Guiding Questions prompts students to consider the big conceptual ideas, or "enduring understandings" of their subject and shows them how their lessons are relevant pieces of a bigger picture.  Effective Guiding Questions are generative, meaning they generate multiple avenues of inquiry and investigation.  They suggest various connections among subjects and invite students to think deeply through a global context or Area of Interaction. 
 
Examples of Guiding Questions (with primary Area of Interaction) include:
  • How do communities work together to solve problems?  (Community & Service focus)
  • Why do human beings create?  (Human Ingenuity focus)
  • How does the natural environment impact human progress?  (Environments focus)
  • How can knowing myself help me to be successful?  (Approaches to Learning focus)
  • Why are relationships important for personal well-being?  (Health & Social Education focus)


Active questioning keeps the brain engaged: an inquiring mind is absorbing information and constructing meaning.  Deliberate and thoughtful questioning instigates higher order thinking skills (H.O.T.S.), depth of knowledge (D.O.K.), and authentic and practical applications, and transference of learning....all crucial ingredients for the 21st century, according to both educational and business researchers.  The IBMYP builds on the significance of INQUIRY in the Primary Years Program to continue to push student thinking forward and outward.

ADA Compliance Errors0
Need help fixing these errors? Contact us!