The Art of Inquiry | Putting Curiosity into Action
Your curiosity is always on. We are always in a state of wondering and inquiry is taking notice. All that’s left is putting curiosity into action. My goal in creating this resource is to offer a step-by-step research process allowing you to take the lead in your own learning, whether it’s starting a business, beginning a photography hobby, learning the best skincare routine, or simply exploring the artistry in a Wes Anderson film. So start noticing: what have you been wondering?
Inquiry Based Learning is YOU based, or student centered, approach to education. It takes the focus away from the teacher and the content and places it instead on the student, their curiosity, and their reflection. As a high school teacher, my biggest key learning over the last 10+ years is that children, when they step into my 10th grade classroom, have lost their willingness to take risks and play. When in our childhood does this occur? It’s different for everyone, and the stories attached to these moments of doubt are deeply personal. Teens, and many adults, are terrified of getting it wrong and rife with anxiety that they will look foolish if they even try. As an educator, I ardently endeavor to undo this. For me, learning begins when we ask, “what happens when..”
To be clear, this approach to learning is not just for my students. It leads me in how I continue to learn in the years after formal schooling. My method, The Art of Inquiry, has given me the tools to pursue a rich education every day of my life. This learning theory is a lifestyle, folks, and it’s fun as hell. It takes a bit of mindset shift and some messy confidence to fully embrace this way of learning, but if you’re ready to get comfy being a little uncomfortable not knowing what will happen next; well, then we are ready to do the work, friend!
There are 3 types of inquiry based learning: self, personal, and professional. Self inquiry is asking yourself hard, self excavating questions to dig deep into your past stories. I have many stories that have written themselves into my heart and I have allowed them to define me. When I was in fifth grade a teacher gave me a big, fat, red F on a test. It wrecked me. The story I told myself for years wasn’t that I had failed a test. It was that I was a failure. The story I told myself, the lie I let define me, was that I wasn’t smart and I held onto that lie for the rest of my schooling. I was in my 30s (a successful educator with 2 Masters degrees) when I started to question the validity of the lie that had rooted itself so deeply in my way of being.
Can you imagine that? Can you relate? What stories are you telling yourself right now? Self inquiry is a hard journey of letting those narratives go and beginning a daily practice of healing. Yes, your experiences are real and valid. Yes, they happened! But they are not who you are. They do not define you. The best outcome of self inquiry is developing the mindset you must have to be an inquirer - open, honest, courageous, resilient. Self inquiry is the hardest and most rewarding work we can undertake.
Personal inquiry might be my fave because, gosh, anything goes! It’s super fun! For me, personal inquiry is defining a personal style, a skincare routine, or reading about color theory so I can pick paint for my home. Friends, personal inquiry is all about hobbies! And the beauty of having interests is that they can often lead you straight to passion and passion is what makes living so, so good! Personal inquiry, if you’re up for it, is all about trying something new and letting the process be about the pursuit of joy. It does require a little trial and error, and a little active reflection goes a long way. Ultimately though, it’s about inviting unapologetic playfulness back into your life.
Professional inquiry is, for me, pretty challenging. It requires research, action, and reflection that directly impacts my work and often demands that I get comfortable not knowing (no, this does not agree with my enneagram 5 personality). What do I consider my work? Education is clearly the most obvious career I’ve chosen for myself and I could easily place parenting and family life in personal or even self inquiry at times, but no. I put a ton of effort, time, and energy into my roles of mama, wife, and teacher! This is my work because it is how I spend most of my time each day.
When it comes to inquiry, your mindset is the foundation. Like I said, most of us are often curious. It’s easy for these questions to become fleeting thoughts. Or perhaps we simply google it and we are happy with the quick answer.
But perhaps we’re not? You, like me, want more. And if you, like me, crave meaningful change and growth - you want to really dig in. How?
Stay curious, stay connected (@erin.v.stewart), and let's keep learning together! Tell me in the comments - What kind of inquiry are you drawn to most and why: self, personal, or professional?
Xo, Erin