Literature review: the role of the teacher in inquiry-based education

Inquiry-based education receives much attention in educational
practice and theory, since it provides pupils with opportunities to
actively engage in answering questions. However, not only do many
teachers find this approach demanding, it also remains unclear what they
should do to foster this type of learning in their classrooms. Our
research question was: How can K-12 teachers promote inquiry-based
education in their classrooms?
After searching for empirical studies on this topic, we examined 186
studies investigating different ways in which teachers can promote
inquiry-based education. Results show that important themes in
metacognitive regulation are: focussing on thinking skills, developing a
culture of inquiry, supporting inquiry discourse, and promoting nature of
science; in conceptual regulation: providing information on the research
topic and focussing on conceptual understanding; and in social
regulation: bridging the gap between high and low achievers, organizing
student learning in groups and focussing on collaboration processes.