Loosely speaking, in the Moore method and in the more recent “inquiry-based learning,” students learn mathematics by tackling a carefully chosen sequence of problems provided by the instructor. They then teach each other the content by presenting their solutions to each other. Details vary (e.g., in some cases learning is individual while in others it is collaborative; in some cases lectures on the content are also available; in some cases the instructor meets with students in small groups to guide inquiry).
Resources for the Moore method and modified Moore method
- The Moore Method: A Pathway to Learner-Centered Instruction, by Charles A. Coppin et al.
“Four practitioners of the Moore Method offer a practical overview of the technique.” MAA Notes #75. - Jones, F. Burton, 1977, “The Moore method,” American Mathematical Monthly 84: 273-77.
- Cohen, David W., 1982, “A modified Moore method for teaching undergraduate mathematics“, American Mathematical Monthly 89(7): 473-474,487-490.
- Chalice, Donald R., “How to teach a class by the Modified Moore Method.” American Mathematical Monthly 102, no. 4 (1995), 317-321.
- “Conjecturing,” by R. E. Buck, PRIMUS, Vol 16, No 2, 2006, pp. 97-104.
- The website The Legacy of R.L. Moore
Resources for inquiry-based learning
- “Inquiry Based Learning” by Hanna Bennett, from the Early Career Section of Notices of the American Mathematical Society, August, 2019.
- The Journal of Inquiry-Based Learning in Mathematics (JIBLM) publishes university-level course notes that are freely downloadable, professionally refereed, and classroom-tested.”
- The Academy of Inquiry-Based Learning provides videos, workshops, mentoring, small grants, etc.
