Third annual event featured BOCES-trained educators
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| Above, one of more than 40 local educators who shared their successful classroom projects at the October 8 forum on inquiry-based learning. |
More than 120 educators from three area BOCES attended the 3rd Annual Regional “Inquiry Forum” on October 8 at Hudson Valley Community College, and in the process shared 40+ successful classroom projects.
This year’s forum, "21st Century Skills Snapshots: Rx for Change," was a partnership of Capital Region BOCES, Questar III BOCES and Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex BOCES.
During the daylong event, more than 40 presenters in 14 teams took the stage to showcase inquiry-based research that resulted in projects featuring models and paintings, to PowerPoint, Photo Story and Animoto presentations. Inquiry-based learning is a style of teaching in which students ask questions to find out information, and educators facilitate students’ self-discovery.
The projects were extremely diverse, and included: a movie about the life cycle of chicks made by second graders; interpretations by English as a Second Language students of literature by Edgar Allan Poe; and a study completed by biology students of bioethics and the scientific framework used in making difficult decisions, based on their reading the book My Sister's Keeper.
At the heart of each research project were the schools’ library media specialists, all of whom have been trained in Information Inquiry Curriculum through their local BOCES School Library Systems. Working closely with teachers and students, they helped to develop essential questions, challenged students to focus on the best resources, helped teachers to "let go of the reins," and gave support and assurance at each hurdle.
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| Retired Shenendehowa librarian Mary Ratzer, who has trained staff locally and nationally in inquiry-based learning, introduced during the forum new concepts — in a fun way — for teaching at the elementary level. |
Capital Region BOCES Program Manager J'aimé Foust, who joined School Library Services earlier this month, was impressed with the program. "I took page after page of notes, excited by the great ideas I could bring back to schools I work with," she said. "Two things I was most impressed with: 1) Students truly learn and retain more when they are actively engaged in their own education and, 2) This is “differentiated learning” at its best. It was obvious from the final products that students really put their hearts into their research, in large part because they took ownership as a result of having a choice in their research topics."
