Inquiry in the Adult Classroom: An ESL Literacy Experience:

What is cancer? What are the symptoms? What are the steps to follow for the treatment? How can I help my sister cope with this disease? These are examples of the questions that the students pursued in our class. Because Federico's sister had been diagnosed with cancer, he wanted to learn more about the disease. As adults, we are constantly asking questions; inquiry is a human characteristic and a natural activity present in our daily lives. As illustrated in the example above, in inquiry cycles, students ask questions that are relevant to them, collect data to answer their questions, present their findings, and start a new cycle by formulating a new question derived from the original question. I conducted a qualitative research study (Larrotta, 2005) and collected data on the use of inquiry cycles as a pedagogic activity to provide students with opportunities to develop ESL (English as a second language) literacy. The purpose of this paper is to share my findings on implementing inquiry cycles in an ESL literacy class with 17 Hispanic adults who were enrolled in a cost-free adult literacy program in Central Texas. From experience working as a volunteer instructor in ESL literacy programs and as reported by the study participants, two main problems were identified: student engagement and transferability of lessons to students' lives. I interviewed students that had been enrolled in ESL literacy classes from one to three years. They said that they were used to being passive learners, doing drills and fill-in-the-blank exercises, and rarely having homework. I realized that in order for these students to become active learners, they needed to develop ownership of the curriculum and the curriculum conversation needed to become a two-way dialogue between the teacher and the students. Implementing inquiry cycles seemed to be the answer to these problems. Theoretical Framework My work on implementing inquiry cycles is based on Knowles' (1990) adult learning principles and Freire's (1970) dialogic approach to literacy. Adult learning principles (Knowles, 1990) include: adults need to know why they are learning something; they are self-directed and responsible for their own decisions; they have a wealth of life experiences and knowledge; they are ready to learn when there is a specific learning need; they are goal oriented and learn about what is relevant to them; and they are motivated to learn when they think that learning will improve their life conditions. Freire's (1970) dialogic approach to literacy implies a two-way conversation in which participants are willing to learn from each other and transcend their realities. True dialogue is continual and based on generative themes. Generative themes "contain the possibility of unfolding into again as many themes which, in turn, call for new tasks to be fulfilled" (Freire, 1970, p. 102). These are rich, complex topics that resonate with students' lives and reality. Adults have families and responsibilities that they put on hold while participating in ESL literacy programs. They expect to attend ESL classes where their learning needs are fulfilled and their time is well spent. Therefore, the focus of our ESL literacy lessons was on pursuing relevant (generative themes) inquiries. The students investigated questions that came from their own life experiences, interests, and learning needs. My role as the class instructor was to help them articulate their questions and guide them in the process of pursuing answers. Relevant Literature There is little research available on the use of inquiry cycles in the adult language classroom. Luke's (2004) dissertation and Schwarzer and Luke's (2001) paper are the most relevant and current sources on this topic. Luke implemented inquiry cycles at the college level with Anglo students learning Spanish as a foreign language. Schwarzer and Luke presented inquiry as a curricular framework and a holistic teaching method. …