An Inquiry Approach at SNIS

10 Nov An Inquiry Approach at SNIS

In the context of the PYP, the school is considered to be a community of learners where the knowledge base informs effective practice, particularly in the areas of brain research and cognition. Teachers are seen as lifelong learners and facilitators who acknowledge and constantly endeavour to meet the diverse needs of the student—physical, social, intellectual, aesthetic, cultural—PYP ensures that the learning is engaging, relevant, challenging and significant.

Teachers in PYP look at what the students are learning, how they are demonstrating that learning, and how to nurture students within the school community. They ensure that students are making connections between life in school, life at home and life in the world. By helping students make these connections and see that learning is connected to life, a strong foundation for future learning is established

The focus of teaching curriculum content constantly needs to change to enable teachers to make connections between learners’ existing knowledge and their individual learning styles in the context of new experiences. This challenge is addressed in the PYP by providing opportunities for students to build meaning and refine understanding, principally through structured inquiry. As students’ learning and their attempts to understand the world around them are essentially social acts of communication and collaboration, this inquiry may take many forms, with students working sometimes on their own, with partners, or in larger groups.

The PYP requires all teachers in the school to plan units of inquiry and lessons collaboratively around six important themes. The collaboration facilitates the development of skills, knowledge and attitudes, while the organizing themes provide both students and teachers with a rich and inviting learning environment in which they can explore. In brief, the six organizing themes are: Who we are; where we are we in place and time; How we express ourselves; How the world works; How we organize ourselves; and how we share the planet. The entire PYP curriculum revolves around these themes and subjects like Math, English, Science, Social studies etc are integrated into the Units of Inquiry.

In the PYP, students are taught to understand that learning is about asking questions and looking for answers, which in turn may generate new, and perhaps more complex questions in need of answers. This entire process is called the Inquiry Cycle. As students experience the different steps of inquiry, they understand what their relationship and responsibility is towards what they are learning and how they can Choose, Reflect and Act from this learning.

The IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) offered at Sharanya Narayani International School, one of the best international schools in Bangalore, is designed for students between the ages of 3 and 12 years. As one of the best boarding schools in Bangalore, SNIS aims to foster the students to become agents of change, not just in the classroom but also through other means of learning. Being not only an IB school but also an IGCSE school in Bangalore, the school focuses on the total growth of the developing child, touching hearts as well as minds and encompassing social, physical, emotional and cultural needs in addition to academic welfare.

Kapil Mehrotra
Head of Primary School
Sharanya Narayani International School
IGCSE and IBDP School in Bangalore