Collaboration and Structure: How a Professional Development School Promoted Inquiry as Stance Among Teacher Candidates

• In Event: Exploring Inquiry, Culturally Responsive Teaching Practices, and Discourse-Based Pedagogy in Professional Development Schools

Abstract

While the importance of PDS teacher candidates adopting an inquiry stance is widely cited, little is known about the practices within PDSs that contribute to the development of an inquiry stance. This study presents findings from a thematic analysis of interviews with six teacher candidates in an award-winning PDS. The analysis indicated that the PDS developed teacher candidates’ inquiry stances by promoting four approaches to inquiry collaboration (inquiring alone, providing input, building inquiry relationships, and inquiring together) and four levels of structure for inquiry (informal practices, loosely structured talk, purposefully structured talk, formalized practices). The study contributes empirical evidence of PDS practices that support inquiry stance and provides a warrant for further research on informal inquiry practices and inquiry talk.

Authors

• Logan Rutten, The Pennsylvania State University

• Rachel Wolkenhauer, The Pennsylvania State University