INQUIRY BASED RESEARCH PROCESS

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INQUIRY- BASED RESEARCH PROCESS

• A.K.A.
• THE BIG 6!

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What is Information Literacy Why Should I Care?

• Information Literacy
• Is an ability to recognize when information is
  needed, and have the ability to locate, evaluate,
  and use it effectively.
• Information Literacy skills are needed throughout
  your life.
• School research is a training ground for real
  life.
• We are always seeking information what car
  should I buy? Which college should I choose? How
  can I sell this idea to my boss?, etc.

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INFORMATION LITERACY CONTINUED

• INFORMATION HELPS US REACH CONCLUSIONS, MAKE OUR
  OWN CHOICES, AND COMMUNICATE MORE EFFECTIVELY.
  SO...
• WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE OUR SEARCHING AND
  EVALUATING SKILLS IN A CHANGING INFORMATION
  ENVIRONMENT.

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UNDERSTANDING INQUIRY- BASED RESEARCH

• INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING CAN BE DEFINED AS
• A PROCESS WHERE STUDENTS FORMULATE INVESTIGATIVE
  QUESTIONS,
• OBTAIN FACTUAL INFORMATION,
• THEN, BUILD KNOWLEDGE THAT ULTIMATELY REFLECTS
  ANSWERS TO THEIR QUESTIONS.

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The Big 6 Inquiry Process

• There are 6 steps that can make your life easier
  when searching for information!
• If you learn these 6 steps, you can apply them to
  any question or problem that you need to solve!

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REMEMBER-THINK BIG!
1.Task Definition




2. Information Seeking Strategies
3. Location Access
4. Use of Information
5. Synthesis
6. Evaluation
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• TASK DEFINITION- Define the problem and Identify
  the information needed.
• INFORMATION SEEKING STRATEGIES- Determine all
  possible sources, and select the best ones.
• LOCATION ACCESS- Locate selected sources, and
  find the information you need within them.
• USE OF INFORMATION- Read, hear, view, etc. the
  information, and extract relevant information.
• SYNTHESIS- Organize information from multiple
  sources, and present the result.
• EVALUATION- Judge the effectiveness of your
  product and judge the efficiency of your process.

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ESSENTIAL AND SUPPORTING QUESTIONS
The first step of the Big 6 Inquiry Process TASK
DEFINITION (defining the problem or task). It is
more beneficial to ask a question than to just
name a topic! THIS IS CALLED AN ESSENTIAL
QUESTION.
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ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS (EQs)...

• Point to the heart of a subject and often are
  controversial.
• Generate multiple answers, perspectives and lead
  to other questions.
• Lead to discovery and in-depth study.
• Answers to essential questions cannot be found
  they must be invented.
• The product of your research should reflect the
  answer(s) to your EQs.

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EQs Continued

• There can be 3 levels of questions
• Novice (simple)
• Developing
• Accomplished (complex)

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EXAMPLES OF EQs

• Why do we still drive cars powered by gasoline?
  (novice level question)
• Why do we create inventions?
• (developing level question)
• How does the media influence politics?
  (accomplished level of question)
• Why do Americans try so many fad diets?
• Why are we continuing to cut down rainforests?
• Why are there so many homeless in America?

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SUPPORTING QUESTIONS

• These are additional questions to provide
  background and guide the work you do to find the
  answer to your Essential Question.
• They are more topic specific.
• http//www.ih.k12.oh.us/mstechweb/decisions/resear
  ch_topics.htm

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EXAMPLES OF SUPPORTING QUESTIONS

• The EQ is
• Why do so many Americans try fad diets?
• Supporting Questions could be
• How many Americans diet each year?
• Do fad diets really work?
• Are fad diets popular in other countries?
• What effect do diets have on the body?

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CHOOSING A TOPIC
CHOOSE... ANY ITEM THAT INTERESTS YOU. TRY TO
DEVELOP AN INTERESTING ESSENTIAL
QUESTION. HINTS CHOOSE SOMETHING THAT HAS
STATISTICS THAT CAN BE GRAPHED IN EXCEL (CHART
WIZARD). YOU CAN USE AN ENCYCLOPEDIA TO GET AN
OVERVIEW OF THE TOPIC AND BREAK IT DOWN FOR YOU
TO DEVELOP YOUR SUPPORTING QUESTIONS. .
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LIBRARY RESOURCES

• Traditional Sources (examples)- Non-fiction books
  on your topic,
• Atlases, almanacs for statistics about your
  topic.
• Magazines- 1) hard copy, or 2) our magazine
  database.
• Videocassette Tapes- Use the library electronic
  catalog to find tapes on your topic.
• CDs- 1) Information, and 2) music CDs
• Public Library databases http//www.cincinnatilibr
  ary.org

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SUMMATION
INFORMATION LITERACY INQUIRY-BASED RESEARCH BIG
6 RESEARCH PROCESS ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS SUPPORTIN
G QUESTIONS
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WORKS CITED
BIG6 http//nb.wsd.wednet.edu/big6/big6_resources
.htmgeneral Essential Question
Examples http//www.ih.k12.oh.us/mstechweb/decisio
ns/research_topics.htm IH Tech
site http//www.ih.k12.oh.us/ihtech/ IHMS Ms.
Given website http//www.ih.k12.oh.us/inquiry Wh
at is Information Literacy? http//mciunix.mciu.k1
2.pa.us/spjvweb/infolit.html