Webbing

Webbing is the search phase of this inquiry model. According to Callison, it relates to the exploration of the topic. He believes that questioning and exploration (wondering and webbing for the 8W's model) continuously interact. I agree that one redefines the other continuously throughout this process. I thought researching the history of chess would be a great starting point. With an initial search of Google, I found that there is a ton of information out there about the game of chess. Just searching for the keyword "chess" returned over 38 million hits! Wow! Where do I begin?

I chose to make my search words a little more specific. After searching the phrase "chess history", the results were significantly lower, down to 516,000. Though the revising of my keywords did reduce the amount of hits, that was still a lot of information to sift through.

Feeling overwhelmed, I turned to Britannica Online, accessed through the IUPUI library. I just love online encyclopedias. They are just so easy to use and very informative. The main contents of the entry outline the characteristics of the game and its history. It also gives information on theories and additional reading suggestions. This source seems much more manageable and a nice comfortable place to start.

Wondering:

The wondering phase of the 8 W's model relates to questioning. According to Daniel Callison, this part of inquiry involves the natural curiousity of humans. Common questions are the 5 w's: who, what, when, where and why and also how. Callison believes the why question is the most difficult question of all. I have many questions about the game of chess going around in my mind. I am curious about so many things such as:

• What are all the pieces and where do their names come from?
• What moves are allowed by each piece?
• What constitutes a good move or a bad move?
• Who invented this game?
• Is this game reflective of one culture or many?
• How large in the chess tournament circuit?
• Does it have many age groups?

If I am able to answer these questions effectively, I hope to be an effective sponsor for my chess club. I really want to be able to answer technical questions for the game and be able to teach the students strategies for the game.

Many of my projects for the SLIS program have been driven by my professional interests. I really thought about what Dr. Lamb suggested, about making this inquiry project about something I am truly interested in and want to know more about.

My personal approach to inquiry starts with the need to satisfy a curiosity. A curiosity so consuming that you just can't get it out of your head, you just have to find that one important piece to the puzzle. That is how it all starts for me, whether it be personally or professionally. When I have caught the bug, my first instinct is to go to the Internet. I have yet to be disappointed in the information a little surfing can uncover. Of course I also ask my friends, family and coworkers about the topic but I am inevitably drawn to the Internet.

Watching:

According to Dr. Lamb, the watching phase of the W's model relates to exploring the topic. I tried to think about what affects me and what has been on my mind lately. After racking my brain for a couple days, I decided that there was a subject that I really would like to dive into, the game of chess. I admit, this will also help he in my profession since I just started this year as the assistant chess club sponsor in the building where I teach. It is a little embarrassing being the chess club sponsor who doesn't actually know how to play chess. Chess is a game that has always baffled me.

I received a chess set from my in laws this Christmas as a motivational gift. I hope that by the time I am done with this project, I will be versed enough in the process of chess that I can successfully play a game with one of my students.