Reply To: “Investigate”

[Darryl Toerien Keymaster]

Hello, Vittoria.

I won’t answer for Elizabeth, but happen to be at my computer.

The basic difference is between a question that is simple to answer, where the emphasis is on finding the ‘right’ information, and a complex question, where the emphasis is on building (constructing) knowledge and understanding from information drawn from different sources.

For example, from an earlier iteration of our Year 9 Inquiry Skills Project, “How accurate is the Doomsday Clock?” rather than “What is the Doomsday Clock?”. The latter question leads almost certainly to information on Wikipedia about the Doomsday Clock directly via Google, which is not necessarily a problem, but is a poor inquiry question because it requires no thought and/ or understanding. The former question requires both thought and understanding, which the inquiry needs to support, both in terms of process and resources, and which, crucially, is what the inquiry is aimed at and needs to assess.

This is deeply linked with the question that you asked about inquiry and constructivism, which requires a fuller response, and which I am working on.

I hope that this helps to clarify.

Darryl