2 A problem based approach to inquiry
Many models of inquiry start with a process of identifying the problem or question, often making a direct link between critical reflection and this identification process. This link can be seen in the case study you’ve just read in Section 1.2, where Nell has critically reflected on an issue within her teaching that she then bases the idea of an inquiry around. This notion of there being a ‘problem to solve’ is then further articulated by Lucy, linking it to a perceived problem in her own department.
In this problem focused view of inquiry, success is perceived as being able to identify the problem or deficiencies, understand the problem (why it occurs, what factors intersect with it) and then to find possible solutions to it, developing a plan of action as a result (Cooperrider, Whitney and Stavros, 2008). Of course, there are some situations in which this is exactly the type of approach needed. But, appreciative inquiry literature argues that this problem based approach to inquiry creates a deficit model, whereby the focus is always on what skills, knowledge or understanding is lacking or needs to be corrected (Scott and Armstrong, 2019). At the core of such approaches to inquiry is a view that organisations, and therefore the practices of educators within the organisation, are problems to be solved (Cooperrider, Whitney and Stavros, 2008). This can lead to feelings of vulnerability, stress or negativity, where we always have something lacking in ourselves and our practices that needs ‘fixing’, and where the solutions are all there, we are just not taking the time to find them.
Appreciative inquiry challenges this problem-solving, deficit view of inquiry. Instead of asking us to identify what is missing or what is inadequate, it asks us to focus on practices that are positive, life-affirming, successful and full of opportunity for building, for growth, for pushing forwards. This is a significantly different stance towards professional inquiry.
The next section will outline the key features of an appreciative approach to inquiry.