One of the reasons that instructors tend to overemphasize "coverage" over "engaged thinking" is that they do not fully appreciate the role of questions in teaching content. Consequently, they assume that answers can be taught separate from questions.

Martin Nystrand (Ph.D., Northwestern University) is LOUISE DURHAM MEAD PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His research focuses on the dialogic organization of discourse in both writing and classroom discourse. His writing research examines how writing-reader interaction shapes the writer's writing process and development: The Structure of Written Communication: Studies in Reciprocity Between Writers and Readers (Academic Press, 1986).

Shared Inquiry™ is a discussion method, a teaching and learning environment, and a way for individuals to achieve a more thorough understanding of a text by discussing questions, responses, and insights with fellow readers. Shared Inquiry combines a sound theoretical base with proven strategies to engage all readers in higher-order thinking and collaborative problem solving.

Discovery learning and discovery teaching D. Hammer, Cognition and Instruction , 15 (4), p 485-529 (1997). Abstract: Teachers interested in promoting student inquiry often feel a tension between that agenda and the more traditional agenda of "covering the content."

What We Know Inquiry is often defined as a seeking of truth, information or knowledge. Inquiry-based learning is a complex process where students attempt to convert information into useful knowl