Sarah Bihis

17976077
EDUC 450B: Inquiry Draft Proposal
Inquiry Question Development
When developing my inquiry question, I chose to take a more reflective stance. Growing up, I
had trouble expressing my opinion to my class and my shyness and nervousness hindered my
pedagogical growth. I was an introvert and the idea of others listening to what I had to say in a public
setting scared me. I was very knowledgeable of this educational disadvantage. The path I chose to take
in my career was influenced by this. In order to break out of this mold I set for myself, I forced myself
into uncomfortable situations where I had to speak up. To name a few: I joined student council at UBCs
Arts Undergraduate Society and I was involved in being an advisor in a Youth Leadership Development
Program at the YMCA. My inquiry question stems my personal reflective stance.

How can we as educators foster a positive classroom dynamic that encourages inclusion and
participation among shy, self-conscious learners?

Separating myself and my own personal experience with being a shy individual, I think it is
important to take notice of whether or not these students even think of themselves as shy or
introverted and if they do think of themselves as this, is it even something they would even want to
change? In my case, I felt obliged to my learning process to break free of my intrinsic limitations.
However, I believe this is sometimes not the case for students and they are happy to be in the state that
they are currently in.
Significance
Classroom engagement has always been a topic of perpetual research and on-going critical
analysis. Our goal as educators is to make sure each individual in the classroom is able to participate to

the best of their abilities. In this way, each voice is heard and every opinion is addressed. In Murbergs
article: The Role of Personal Attributes and Social Support Factors on Passive Behaviour in Classroom
among Secondary Students: A Prospective Study the author states that, for those who display an
inhibited and/or passive behaviour, it can be difficult to attain full potential academic achievement and
to make use of social opportunities that are available (p. 511) It is our duty as educators to ensure that
the material we are teaching reaches all students in the classroom. Consequently, it is important to be
conscious of every students individual needs and recognize the diversity of the classroom. There are a
lot of different types of learners, therefore it is important to develop various strategies in order to
communicate and engage effectively to every individual.
I believe that all students whether outgoing or shy, can benefit from this type of research.
Encouraging more participation and engagement from all types of students is important to fostering a
lively classroom environment. Any research that is done that involves creating more engaging lesson
plans, or sparking passionate ideas can be beneficial to all students in the classroom.
Plans of Action
The role I want to take with my research on this inquiry question is to look more on actual
concrete activities that I could implement that focus on strategies to encourage shy students to
participate more. By running through activities that encourage class-wide participation in my long
practicum, I believe I will be able to critically analyze the effects of participation among shy students. At
the beginning of my teaching, I will acknowledge who the shy students are and then at the end of my
time teaching, I will notice if these students have changed at all in their levels of participation. Some of
the activities I wish to implement are outlined in the following sentences:
Brophys article comes up with more tactile approaches and suggests that a positive way to
engage shy learners is to create more peer to peer activities. (Brophy, 1996) An example of peer

activities could be ones that involve leadership and mentorship of some kind. A lack of self-esteem also
seems to take a big role and contributes to shy, self-conscious students. (Murberg, p. 512) Therefore,
situations and activities that involve an older, more introverted student teaching and mentoring a
younger student could increase self-esteem and thus, bring more confident behavior to the shy student.
Another strategy for making shy students in the class participate is simply having engaging
material. When a student is passionate about a subject matter, enthusiasm and engagement are often
the traits naturally emerge.
Lastly, creating relationships with your students and encouraging a positive classroom
environment can be extremely helpful with having students feel comfortable enough to voice their own
opinions. If a student feels he or she will be negatively criticized or judged for having an opinion, the last
thing the student would want to do is make their presence known. Safe environments have a lot to do
with how your students feel about you and their relationship with you as the head of the classroom.
Therefore making an effort to develop a proper teacher/student relationship can be beneficial to
creating the best and most capable learners. What I would like to do is have 10 minute sessions with
every student where I just talk with them one-on-one and simply learn more about them. Scheduling
time where it is not simply about academia can be important to letting students know that I am keen on
getting to know them as individuals. In order to encourage students to voice their opinion, they need to
feel comfortable doing so.
For means of further research, I believe that it will be beneficial to look further into research
that is not only done with school and shy students, but to also look at shy, introverted people in general.

Conclusion
I can forsee some limitations with my inquiry question. It can be difficult for shy students to come out of
their shell, and it can be quite a long process that lasts more than just a few months. While the activities
I do may be beneficial to these students, visible change may not be visible. Secondly, if a student does
not wish to come out of their shell and is perfectly content in the way they are, then it could be difficult
encouraging discussion and participation.
Overall, through the reflection of my own self-confidence and the continual growth I pursue as
an educator, I would encourage every voice to be heard to ensure equal opportunities to all the
students I interact with. The inquiry research can be a key proponent in idea of no student ever going
unnoticed.

References
Brophy, J., & ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education, U. L. (1996).
Working with Shy or Withdrawn Students. ERIC Digest
Lacina-Gifford, L.J., Kher, N., & Besant, K. (2002). Preservice Teachers Knowledge of Effective
Classroom Management Strategies: Shy or Withdrawn Students.
Morris, J. C. (1994). Introverts. Young Children, 49(2), 32-33.
Murberg, T.A. (2010). The Role of Personal Attributes and Social Support Factors on Passive
Behaviour in Classroom among Secondary School Students: A Prospective Study. Social Psychology Of
Education: An International Journal, 13(4), 511-522.
Offir, B., Bezalel, R., & Barth, I. (2007). Introverts, Extroverts, and Achievement in a Distance
Learning Environment. American Journal Of Distance Education, 21(1), 3-19.
Schmeck, R. R., & Lockhart, D. (1983). Introverts and Extraverts Require Different Learning
Environments. Educational Leadership, 40(5), 54-55.
Suda, W., & Fouts, G. (1980). Effects of Peer Presence on Helping in Introverted and Extroverted
Children. Child Development, 51(4), 1272-75.