Secondary Social Studies Teachers' Experiences Planning and Implementing Inquiry Using the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Inquiry Arc

• In Event: 52.083 - Roundtable Session 19
  In Roundtable Session: 52.083-5 - Frameworks and Assessments: Effects on the Social Studies

Abstract

While the use of inquiry-based instruction has been encouraged for many years, it continues to be the exception rather than the norm. The publication of the C3 Framework, and the Inquiry Design Model (IDM) that provides structure for its implementation, offers support for teachers to use inquiry in their social studies classrooms. This phenomenological study used semi-structured interview, classroom observation, and document analysis to explore three secondary social studies teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) as they planned and implemented inquiries. Findings indicate that the IDM was a useful tool, and that approaches to planning and implementing inquiries varied within individual contexts and given personal pedagogical stances. There is no one-size-fits-all inquiry, even when teachers used the same support tool.

Authors

• Emma Sowards Thacker, James Madison University

• John K. Lee, North Carolina State University

• Paul G. Fitchett, University of North Carolina - Charlotte

• Wayne Journell, University of North Carolina - Greensboro