[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-595429-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":81,"doc-detail-595429-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","guided-inquiry-and-social-collaboration-in-an-online-classroom","Guided Inquiry and Social Collaboration in an Online Classroom","","The topic of inquiry is explored in an online freshman-level introductory biology course for non-majors. The study ran in a distance learning program at a small community college in the southeastern United States. Students completed an extended guided inquiry at home and discussed their work via a class discussion board. Student work is analyzed qualitatively through research questions, hypotheses, and process skills, including how students judged scientific validity.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/guided-inquiry-and-social-collaboration-in-an-online-classroom/595429/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/guided-inquiry-and-social-collaboration-in-an-online-classroom/595429.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Blitz","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-08","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",10,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What learning context does the study focus on?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"The study examines inquiry in an online, freshman-level introductory biology course for non-majors delivered through distance learning.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"How do students complete the guided inquiry?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"Students conduct an extended guided inquiry at home and communicate findings through the class discussion board.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What aspects of student work are analyzed?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"The research analyzes student work qualitatively in terms of their research questions, hypotheses, and process skills, including how they evaluate the scientific validity of their own work.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},595429,1792166313,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,106,111,115,120,123,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":93,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":97,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":102,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":103,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":105},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":107,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":108,"show_sort_weight":109,"slug":110},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":112,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":114},8,30,"research-report",{"id":116,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":117,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":119},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":118,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":121,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":122},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":55,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":55,"slug":125},"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":129},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":131},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":112,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":55,"language":139,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":143,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},24464137899374,"https://us-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_3d24733baf745e90a7e4bdd5f77d97b2","Guided Inquiry and Social Collaboration in an Online  \nClassroom  \nEddie Lunsford  \nSouthwestern Community College, 301-D Balsam Building  \n447 College Drive, Sylva NC 28779  \nEmail: eddielun@dn[et.net](et.net)  \nAbstract: The topic of inquiry is explored in an online freshman level introductory biology course for non-majors. The research took place in a distance learning program at a small community college in the Southeast. Students in the course were required to complete an extended guided inquiry in their homes and to communicate about their work by way of the class discussion board. Extensive social collaboration among the members of the class is documented. The students’ work is analyzed qualitatively in terms of their research questions, hypotheses and process skills. A consideration of how the students evaluated the scientific validity of their own work is included.  \nKeywords: Online biology instruction, web-based teaching, inquiry, distance learning  \nIntroduction  \nAs a pedagogical practice inquiry science first came to prominence in American schools in the 1960s. The concept of teaching science by way of experimentation was certainly not a new one. Yet, the overall philosophy behind inquiry-based science instruction began to be systematically paid attention to in a way that was unrivaled at the time (Shymansky, Hedges & Woodworth, 1990; NRC, 2000) . The philosophy is quite simple. Students will have a deeper understanding of how science works and how scientists do their jobs if they engage in some of the same process skills as professional scientists (Roth, 1995; Enger & Yager, 1998; Martin, Jean-Sigur & Schmidt, 2005) . This, it has been widely argued, will foster a deeper level of scientific literacy at all levels of education (AAAS, 1993; NRC, 1996; NRC 2000; Sibert & McInthos, 2001) . For example, students may be better equipped to evaluate scientific claims that come to them through the popular media if they have had actual experiences with scientific inquiry. In other words, they may become a more critical consumer of scientific information.  \nInquiry based science instruction encompasses a wide range of levels. The experiences that most closely match the work of an actual scientist are known as open inquiry (Roth, 1995; NRC, 2000). There are those that argue that “it isn’t inquiry” unless it is entirely, or nearly entirely, student directed. Proponents of such open inquiry believe that, in order for a student to fully experience the process of doing science, they must decide their  \nown questions, methods, procedures, etc. This form of inquiry is certainly worthwhile and valuable. Yet, other forms of inquiry exist as well. Certainly even the staunchest of inquiry purists are not naive enough to believe that scientists always direct their own thinking. Many well paid, well respected professional scientists are often told by the people who sign their paychecks what they should research, and often how and when.  \nA lot of labels have been offered in the literature to describe those forms of inquiry that are not entirely open. In many cases, for example, a teacher may provide a research question to his students. Also, a set of materials may be provided and the question or direction of the research left to the discretion of students. Bell, Smetana & Binns (2005) have recently suggested that the widely used term structured inquiry should be reserved for situations in which students are provided with both a question and a method, while guided inquiry should be applied to those situations in which only a research question is supplied. Other writers use these same terms, as well as many additional ones, in slightly different ways.  \nIn adult science education, there is also an emphasis on inquiry and a call to help college science students develop an understanding of how science works (Sibert & McInthos, 2001) . As anyone who is involved in college level science instruction knows, there has also been an explosion in ","cbCaiugHAPsXrrWT","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiugHAPsXrrWT","pdf",235266,"English","# Introduction\n# Methods\n# Results\n# Discussion","[{\"question\":\"What learning context does the study focus on?\",\"answer\":\"The study examines inquiry in an online, freshman-level introductory biology course for non-majors delivered through distance learning.\"},{\"question\":\"How do students complete the guided inquiry?\",\"answer\":\"Students conduct an extended guided inquiry at home and communicate findings through the class discussion board.\"},{\"question\":\"What aspects of student work are analyzed?\",\"answer\":\"The research analyzes student work qualitatively in terms of their research questions, hypotheses, and process skills, including how they evaluate the scientific validity of their own work.\"}]","Guided Inquiry and Social Collaboration in an Online Classroom | PDF",1792081122,25]