Inquiry based Learning in Computer Science teaching in Higher Education

Abstract

This paper considers the role of inquiry based learning in connecting research with teaching in the Higher Education environment, in particular in the case of teaching Computer Science. The way in which technology can enhance and support inquiry based learning is briefly touched upon. Inquiry Based Learning is a topic which is identified with the so called "teaching research nexus", an issue which has been identified internationally and in particular within the U.K. as of growing importance. Pressures on H.E. education have brought the matter of how research interfaces with undergraduate teaching into the spotlight. Indeed, in 2007 one of the key issues identified by the U.K. Higher Education Academy is the research-teaching nexus. This topic is relevant to the H.E. sector in general, but the focus of this paper is on how inquiry based learning is relevant to and can impact on the teaching of computer science, a subject which is often perceived as focussed on practical and applied knowledge.

Full text

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Inquiry based Learning in Computer Science teaching
in Higher Education
Neil Gordon and Mike Brayshaw
Department of Computer Science, University of Hull
Abstract
This paper considers the role of inquiry based learning in connecting research
with teaching in the Higher Education environment, in particular in the case of
teaching Computer Science. The way in which technology can enhance and
support inquiry based learning is briefly touched upon. Inquiry Based Learning
is a topic which is identified with the so called “teaching research nexus”, an
issue which has been identified internationally and in particular within the U.K.
as of growing importance. Pressures on H.E. education have brought the
matter of how research interfaces with undergraduate teaching into the
spotlight. Indeed, in 2007 one of the key issues identified by the U.K. Higher
Education Academy is the research-teaching nexus. This topic is relevant to
the H.E. sector in general, but the focus of this paper is on how inquiry based
learning is relevant to and can impact on the teaching of computer science, a
subject which is often perceived as focussed on practical and applied
knowledge.
Keywords
Inquiry Based Learning; Pedagogy in the teaching of Computer Science;
Technology and teaching.
Introduction and context
The so called research-teaching nexus is a term with recognised usage, which
encompasses the growing interest and focus on how higher education
establishments provide an environment in which students can interface with

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research. Inquiry based learning has been identified (Jenkins, 2005) as one
way in which institutions can provide an explicit link between their research
activity and student education.
This paper begins with a consideration of the similar but distinct approaches
to learning, before a more in depth analysis of the role of inquiry based
learning within H.E. computing courses. Some examples of practice are also
described, along with the role of technology in supporting and delivering
inquiry based learning.
Considering the political and economic context of the relation between
research and teaching in H.E., there is a perception that the way to explicitly
link these is through inquiry (sometimes enquiry) based learning (Jenkins,
2005). Since the U.K. Government white paper (Clarke, 2003) some
commentators have characterised universities in the U.K. as being teaching-
only universities or research universities. The distinction between them is
blurred – as noted in (Nearey, 2007) with the idea of research-informed
education which can be implemented in a variety of ways, such as that
proposed by Boyer (Boyer, 1998). Whilst the notion of teaching only
universities seems to have become prevalent following the white paper, the
paper does not refer to refer to them, but did develop the idea of institutions
whose main focus was teaching. This has led to many focussing on how
research within universities informs and engages with teaching, and how this
can be promoted through inquiry based learning in particular. To consider this
in detail, the first question is what is inquiry based learning? Inquiry based
learning has been defined as (CILASS, 2007) “a process of self-directed
inquiry or research”. With that definition, it is hard to think of any U.K.
university or discipline which would not expect to use inquiry based learning
as the driver for undergraduate learning.
The distinction between inquiry based learning and other approaches to
learning - such as problem based learning or project based learning - is in

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some respects quite fine. This paper will consider the overlap and distinctions
between a number of teaching and learning approaches.
Approaches to learning
There are numerous approaches to learning, and many categories of them.
Restricting the consideration to those that seem closest to inquiry based
learning, the following summarises some of the typical learning approaches:
• Problem based learning (PBL): often perceived as a constructivist
approach to learning (Savery and Duffy, 1995) where the focus is on
students solving a problem. Here the learning is anchored around a
specific problem and context, and students work from that in identifying
what to learn and develop in order to solve the problem. Problem based
learning tends to be based around group activity – where the community of
learners provide a support during the learning process and can encourage
the critical analysis and develop effective problem solving skills which are
identified as appropriate learning outcomes.
• Project based learning: learning built around the concept of projects
(Thomas, 2000) is another similar concept, where students again work in
teams, to develop a project. This is similar to the problem-based approach
– indeed in carrying out the project, the students are likely to identify and
have to solve numerous problems; however, the focus is on completing the
project itself.
• Inquiry (enquiry) based learning shares many of the same characteristics
of the first two learning approaches, where students are typically
presented with a task to do and have to discover for themselves – with
tutor facilitation as appropriate – what knowledge gaps and deficiencies
they may have, along with skills they may need to develop. Indeed, in a
group context inquiry based learning may be considered as encompassing
either of the previous two learning approaches.
• Discovery Learning: the critical notion here is that people learn something
new in terms of their existing insight onto the world. The claim is that if
they discover a concept for themselves they will have better understanding

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of the thing being learnt rather than having third party model foisted upon
them. Thus students (often children) develop/discover their own concepts
and build upon existing ones that they already have. This has been
extensively explored using the programming language LOGO (Papert,
1999). There has been debate about how open ended discovery learning
can be and whether it is a good idea simply to abandon users to the fate.
This has led to a proposal to have a mixed paradigm where the emphasis
is still on discovery but there is now a coach or guide who overseas the
learning process (Elsom-Cook, 1990) and ensures that the learning
process stay on course.
The characteristics of inquiry based learning may be summarised as learning
where
1. The task is based on an open problem – open in the sense that there are
numerous approaches to solution;
2. Initially, the student(s) are presented with the problem, and must discover
for themselves the nature of the problem, and in particular to identify what
knowledge and skills they will need to investigate and develop in order to
solve the problem;
3. Where students are required to demonstrate self analysis and critical
thinking in order to choose between a number of possible solutions and
approaches;
4. Where the teacher or lecturer acts as a facilitator in the process – but
avoids simply providing solutions or being prescriptive in approaches.
In a later section some examples of activities which fall into this category will
be described.
Inquiry based learning and research universities
There are implicit and explicit ways in which research and scholarship can be
seen to influence and link with teaching. The more important of the implicit
ways can be considered as the way that carrying out research and
scholarship as activities require that the practitioner engage in their own

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learning process and investigative processes. This can lead to empathy and
understanding with the student perspective, as well as letting the lecturer act
as an exemplar of how subject specialists work.
Examples of explicit links between research and teaching are usually where
actual content is based on innovations and developments within the
establishment’s research community, and where students can access
research facilities as part of their studies. In the culture of explicit learning
objectives and assessment grids, many courses will explicitly detail how the
research within a subject links with the teaching of that subject.
One of the drivers for the consideration of inquiry based learning is that it
appears to offer ways to explicitly link the research that is generally
considered fundamental to H.E. institutions, with the teaching that they
provide. Depending on the nature of the tasks that the students are asked to
perform – which may be part of a research project, or link with it in some way
– there are opportunities for students to engage in activities which directly
mirror or are actually part of the research processes that staff carry out.
One caveat is the perception of a growing gap between the education
possible by the end of an undergraduate degree, and the knowledge and
skills actually required to carry out research. As the knowledge and
specialisations within disciplines are growing, many disciplines – in particular
within the sciences – have identified this problem. One solution has been the
increasingly popular route of integrated masters programmes, which allow
students to be trained and developed to a level closer to that believed
necessary for research. Examples of these courses include MPhys (Master of
Physics), MMath (Master of Mathematics) and MEng (Master of Engineerig)
courses – the last one including a number of computing courses.
Another consideration is how well inquiry based learning, and other such
approaches work in practice. Considered in their purest form, there are
misgivings that unstructured learning can lead to no learning (Kirschner,

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2006). The proposition of Kirshner et al (Kirschner, 2006) was developed and
challenged in a number of subsequent articles - in particular the identification
of Inquiry Based Learning with Problem Based Learning (Hmelo, 2007) and
the question of what is taught rather than how it is taught (Kuhn, 2007). The
reply to these (Kirshner, 2007) reinforces the argument that direct instruction
is required to teach the type of information required in modern societies.
The opportunity for students to experience research environments, and the
importance of teaching staff who are themselves research aware is something
which is under consideration in a number of countries, where a tendency to
accumulate research funds and expertise has led to pressures on this specific
issue. As a way of characterising and classifying institutions, this becomes a
political issue where the nature of university education itself is fundamentally
questioned.
Inquiry based learning in a knowledge based and Internet aware
environment – the role of technology in supporting learning.
One feature of education – in particular as children progress through the
different stages of most education systems – is an apparent decline in the
desire and willingness to ask questions. A common complaint within H.E.
environments is that students refuse to engage with or enter a dialogue with
their teachers, except within structured seminars. However, the rise of the
Internet and the World Wide Web have altered the environment outside of the
educational world, where children and adults alike carry out inquiry on a
regular basis – as typified by the rise in search facilities and knowledge
resources such as Google and Wikipedia.
However, this is more of a skill development: how to use technology, how to
frame search terms etc. The higher level skills, something that would be
expected to be developed within formal studies, and in particular in the
context of a computing degree, are the analytical and critical skills to identify
reliable sources of information from poor ones, and to provide appropriate

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referencing and consideration of the validity and robustness of the information
and its meaning.
Technology as a catalyst and platform with which to encourage learning is
well acknowledged (Rubin, 1996). Indeed, few schools, colleges or
universities would not provide some form of computer resource for students to
use. Furthermore, within the IT and computing sciences this provision is
essential and the skills to make effective use of this resource is a required
skill.
As technologies have developed, students already make common use of
social networking sites, online communities along with the information
repositories and sources already referred to. As tools for inquiry based
learning in particular, other resources can assist students in both identifying
and developing knowledge and skills – such as the numerous computer based
learning and (self) assessment facilities and other support mechanisms.
Allowing students to essentially build their own learning packages in new and
more flexible ways offers particular opportunities – both within the context of
Inquiry Based Learning, and along other learning styles.
Inquiry based learning and computing
Whilst typical of Project and Problem based learning, focus on the students
starting with a project or problem and working forward from that, and similarly
with Inquiry Based Learning, in practice there is a much wider context within
which the learner is working. This mirrors the reality of research workers,
where again the context is usually defined through a prolonged period of
education and research on the field of enquiry, to enable the researcher to
have a good grounding and be informed on where to start as they investigate
and research a topic or problem.
This leads in to the issue of how and when to introduce Inquiry Based
Learning within a course. Inquiry based learning is not something unique to

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research universities, nor to university education. Indeed, as an approach to
teaching it has gained favour within schools and colleges and within many
assessment regimes (Kantor D, 2006).
Considered in the context of the previous section, one area where computing
courses can expect a majority of students to be prepared for inquiry type skills
is with regards to investigation and some elements of research using the
Internet. With this in mind, the authors’ own experience is that first year
computing students can usually start to explore answers to simple problems
immediately, where the nature of the problems are mainly knowledge based –
and includes finding, and understanding answers to what can appear quite
simple questions. By providing a framework within which to investigate,
reflect, judge and then have feedback students can begin to develop their
critical analysis skills and to begin to consider where assumptions and lack of
context can lead to possibly incorrect results. A simple example would be
something like:
“What are the possible answers to 11+11” where students may answer 22
(without any requirement for investigation.
Placing more context around the question “In what way could 11+11=100 and
what are other possible answers to 11+11” then the students are required to
demonstrate understanding of binary, and in producing an argument to
investigate more general number systems. Explaining other possible answers
are 22 (for number systems with bases higher than 2), or even 4 (if the
symbols are interpreted as Roman numerals 1V).
Moreover, the nature of Computer Science education is such that it is
common to include some form of problem or inquiry based learning i.e.
present the students with a problem, and a set of tools (applications, code,
etc) with which to solve it.
Within the framework of a degree programme, numerous opportunities to
allow inquiry and problem type learning – both individual and group – are
common, and the lack of identification of particular learning styles may be

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more of a consequence of practitioners focus on what they deliver, rather than
the pedagogy of that delivery.
Examples of inquiry styles of learning vary from modules with problem solving
style coursework – within the context of a modules material, but where
frequently students are required to identify and explore outside of the
delivered materials. The extent to which they are expected to extend their
research outside of the module may partly differentiate inquiry based learning
from views of more traditional teaching, but this is a sliding scale and the
overlap is extensive. Modules can include examples of project, problem and
inquiry learning with all of the benefits that these learning approaches give.
Project based learning is common at level 6 (3rd year of a typical
undergraduate course): indeed QAA and accreditation requirements typically
expect such content to be included.
Where students are required or expected to carry out a complete research
exercise, usually under the supervision of an academic who would be able to
act as the mentor within the research and learning process. This exposure to
research is something which does distinguish university education from
training and other learning environments.
Subject based research provides an excellent opportunity for students to
experience their subject beyond the standard techniques and knowledge, and
to begin to become aware and familiar with the true subject philosophy, where
the paradigms and concepts become more explicit and the critical, analytical
and other skills particular to different subjects can be developed in context.
Whilst some view explicit involvement of inquiry into the pedagogy of a subject
as outside the notion of inquiry based learning, this seems to limit the scope of
such learning. Pedagogy within a discipline – such as computing – focuses on
the way that practitioners develop that subject and thus is something that

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some students at least should engage with, and which can provide a suitable
subject based context within which to use inquiry based learning.
Conclusions
This paper has considered how Inquiry Based Learning compares with other –
somewhat similar - learning approaches, and some of the context which has
led to widespread interest in this particular learning model.
The paper has also dealt with some of the other contextual issues around this
learning approach – in particular the impact of the Internet as a facilitator of
inquiry style activities within general society, and in particular for education.
With regard to computing, some of the specific features that make Inquiry
Based Learning both appealing and relevant have been identified and
appraised.
Inquiry Based Learning seems a natural form of teaching within Higher
Education. However, identifying to what extent students are being led – by
learning context or explicit tuition – and so are really using this learning style
as opposed to others is not an objective decision. Moreover, Inquiry Based
Learning is not the only way in which research can – and should – feed into
the learning environment for students.
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