From the perspective of the development of FOSIL, an important Chapter for Global Action for School Libraries: Models of Inquiry (IFLA Publications 182), titled FOSIL: Developing and Extending the Stripling Model of Inquiry.

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Abstract

FOSIL (Framework Of Skills for Inquiry Learning) is a model of the inquiry learning process developed in the UK that is based on the work of Barbara Stripling as reflected in the Empire State Information Fluency Continuum (ESIFC). Because the ESIFC emerged from a stance and is underpinned by skills, FOSIL is likewise a mind set, a skill set and a tool set for use with a framework and a model. FOSIL is also a pre-kindergarten through year 12 (PK-12) programme for students 4-18 years-old, and it comprises skills that need to be developed systematically and progressively. FOSIL is a collaborative endeavour into the nature and practice of inquiry learning, and it has a growing international community of users.

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The book includes The Stripling Model of Inquiry, by Barbara Stripling, and Deep Collaboration by Teacher and Librarian to Develop an Inquiry Mindset (FOSIL), by Joseph Sanders and Jenny Toerien.

Abstract (The Stripling Model of Inquiry)

The Stripling Model of Inquiry encourages students’ active participation in their own learning and encompasses a six-phase reflective and recursive inquiry process: connect, wonder, investigate, construct, express and reflect; together with a pre-kindergarten to grade 12 (PK-12) continuum of literacy, inquiry, technology, and personal growth skills. The Model leads to the development of an inquiry stance that prepares and motivates students to pursue lifelong learning. The Model is founded on educational theories of John Dewey, authentic learning and assessment, constructivism, digital inquiry, deep reading, and social-emotional growth. The Stripling Model of Inquiry places learners at the core of the library program and situates librarians as instructional leaders, collaborators, and teachers of essential skills in the school. This chapter tracks the author’s personal journey into the development of new ways of thinking about learning and tells the story of the development of the Model of Inquiry.

Abstract (Deep Collaboration by Teacher and Librarian to Develop an Inquiry Mindset)

This case-study of a four-year collaboration between a school librarian and an A-level Politics teacher focuses on the development of a three-week Pressure Groups inquiry unit in the context of broader shifts towards inquiry-based learning within the Politics course at Oakham School in the UK. The collaboration was based on the Framework of Skills for Inquiry Learning (FOSIL) instructional model. It not only achieved its target of improving both student knowledge retention, and analysis and evaluation skills for the unit itself and within the Politics course more broadly, but also had a wider impact on teaching and learning in a range of subjects across the school.