Scaffolding Science Teachers in Open-Inquiry Teaching

Abstract

The present study deals with a school-based professional development trajectory (PDT) for secondary science teachers, aiming at scaffolding teachers in open-inquiry teaching for the topic of water quality. Its design was based on the leading principle of ‘guiding by scaffolding’. Seven experienced teachers participated in institutional meetings and teaching at school. The research focused on designing scaffolding tools, addressing these tools in the meetings, and implementing them in the classroom. The main research data were obtained from meetings, classroom discussions and observations. The results indicated that the PDT has promoted teachers’ learning of scaffolding students in open-inquiry, especially the ability to know when and how to give students a well-balanced combination of ’structure’ for open-inquiry learning and sufficient ‘space’ for that. The implications for science teacher education are discussed.