How can disputants settle their differences in a constructive way? Two families in a Midwest town struggle to get along. Teams of students are asked to advise the members of the two families to end their hostility before problems escalate.
The spirit of inquiry infuses much of the English instruction at Community High School. Teachers invite students to attempt to answer complex questions at the core of the curriculum and central to the literature: What is equality? Must we tolerate all groups who are significantly differerent from us? What is a hero? What does it mean to be mature? What is the American Dream? What are the challenges to the American Dream? Students engage in thinking processes with their peers and with the teacher in an effort to derive answers and communicate them to others. In most cases, complex questions have many facets and invite many perspectives. Students work with each other and with a body of data, whether textual or testimonial, in order to formulate conclusions in the context of the many opinions and challenges posed by a community of thinkers. Some characteristics of Inquiry-Based Learning appear below:
Visit one of the following links to follow an inquiry process:
This activity invites students to put themselves in the place of characters in Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun. The participants in the activity seek the advice of several African-American thinkers before they advise a newcomer whether or not to seek membership in an exclusive country club.
Who should say what a school's mascot should be? Is upholding tradition more important than avoiding offense to outside observers? This activity asks participants to examine the artifacts and arguments related to a controversy that has affected schools and professional sports teams.
How can disputants settle their differences in a constructive way? Two families in a Midwest town struggle to get along. Teams of students are asked to advise the members of the two families to end their hostility before problems escalate.