The science curriculum has changed recently, moving away from memorizing content and more towards building skills or competencies. Though this change is reflected within the science curriculum of B.C. it is also being more widely appreciated within other subject areas as well as in school in general. This competency based learning approach matches nicely with an inquiry based approach to learning which was the topic discussed by Jeff Hopkins. Listening to Jeff speak about the Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry I was able to listen and hear how an inquiry based approach can be implemented school wide. Jeff’s story is that of a teacher who knew he could do better but wasn’t able to do so in his current environment, rather drastically, he started PSII because he knew he could do better. I was most interested not in hearing how inquiry was utilized in the subject areas that tend to lead themselves more naturally towards inquiry, e.g. social studies, but how his school tackled more difficult subjects like Chemistry. Hearing about the open classroom layout and how many lessons were structured, which were optional, gave me a better understanding of how it might be possible to run a course based on inquiry. I think my takeaway from the lecture/Q&A with Jeff, was the emphasis on doing what is best for the students, and having a student lead approach as a teacher. This was so evident in his teaching practice that he incurred a lot of risk both career and fiscally, because he felt he wasn’t able to put the students first in a traditionally set up school. While I don’t think I will try and run a science or chemistry classroom solely based on inquiry, I am far more open to introducing an inquiry project or two when lesson planning. The question isn’t if inquiry is a better approach to teaching, but rather, what are my students needing that could be best addressed through inquiry? I think a lot of the benefits from learning about science, for myself, has come through the increased science literacy I have attained. Teaching science literacy I suspect would be well addressed through an inquiry based project or two. Taking the theory beyond the classroom and seeing how you can apply what you’ve just learned to figure out a completely new question is a great way to assess science literacy but also increase it. Learning how to do good research is a life long skill that I hope to cultivate within my classroom. Through listening to Jeff, and hearing other teachers alike, when students are given time to research their own questions they seem to be so much more involved which would give them the best chance in becoming scientifically literate. I am excited to see how the practice of inquiry within education grows and changes and it will be my job to keep my ear to the ground and see if this approach leads my students to their best outcomes.