Cross-Cultural Inquiry in Science

PBI Global is way more interactive. It's a group, and we're all working together to achieve one main goal." These were the words of Damian, one of several high school students from Raleigh, North Carolina, who collaborated with students in Suzhou, China, to answer compelling questions about water ecology. For Damian, the experience was transformative because he learned how to communicate, collaborate, and create with peers in another country. Through an investigation of water ecology, his teammates developed cross-cultural understandings of one another and of a complex global issue.

As university researchers, we work with administrators, teachers, and students to facilitate cross-cultural inquiry projects. We use a specific framework for project-based learning called Project-Based Inquiry (PBI) Global. This inquiry framework connects students internationally through interdisciplinary projects. The PBI Global approach consists of five phases: ask a compelling question; gather and analyze sources; creatively synthesize claims and evidences; critically evaluate and revise; and share, publish, and act on the answer to the question.