1 What do we mean by inquiry?
The etymology of inquire (and the alternative spelling enquire) is from the old French word, meaning ‘seek’.
This association with seeking, looking into, having sight of and finding is significant in how the term inquiry is often considered alongside the term research. So, it is not a surprise that much literature on practitioner inquiry stems from Stenhouse’s notion of a research-informed teaching profession (Wall and Hall, 2017). This association between inquiry and research can result in a particular view of what inquiry involves, based on a particular view of what social sciences research involves.
Activity 1 What does the term inquiry mean to you?
Think about the terms inquiry and research and what they mean to you in your context. Draw a concept map with the two terms pushing outwards from the centre. Write down as many words or phrases as you can about your understanding of what inquiry and research are and what they involve. Where are the similarities and differences between the two terms and how they are understood in your context?
Comment
How you respond to the words inquiry and research will be shaped by your experiences of the terms being used. This might stem from how they are used in your context (e.g. the educational institution you work for), in other roles or experiences you have had (whether in jobs or study experiences), or how they are used in media and by society at large (e.g. in newspapers, social media). You might find that your responses to each are very similar, or that you see a difference in who does each, where each occur, and how each are conducted.
In practice, there are many different research approaches and methodologies, and so there are many different approaches to inquiry. Wall, Beck and Scott (2020) suggest inquiry is written about in two ways; as a stance and as a project.
Inquiry as a stance
Where inquiry is a ‘way of being’, a type of relationship with other people, ideas, materials. As a stance, inquiry is a constant alertness to what is being questioned, researched and revised as a result. In doing so, it involves acknowledging that everyone involved in an inquiry community are knowers, learners, researchers, and are constantly theorising and creating narratives about what is happening.
Inquiry as a project
This is how inquiry is more commonly conceived, where it is related to defined, time specific intervention or a series of activities that are planned in advance. Wall, Beck and Scott (2020) discuss this form of inquiry as ‘a strategic finding out’ through processes of ‘investigation that can be explained or defended’ (Mentor et al. in Wall, Beck and Scott, 2020). This is the form of inquiry that borrows language and processes from research (including assumptions about the nature of this).
Adopting an appreciative approach to inquiry arguably straddles both these definitions. We can adopt an appreciative stance towards our practices as a constant process of identifying opportunities to build from what is already working well. Alternatively, we might deliberately set out on a more defined project or intervention, using an appreciative approach. Whatever approach taken, it is important to consider how inquiry is discussed and enacted in educational contexts, which will be explored in the next section.