Today we visited the Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry located in downtown Victoria. My cohort and I got the opportunity to sit down with the founder and principal of the school, Jeff Hopkins, as well as interact with students and take a tour of the school. PSII focuses on teaching high school students (grades 9-12) the curriculum using an inquiry-based learning style. Students choose their own path for educational projects that speak to their interests while completing the curricular competencies set out by the BC Government. While this is an alternative school, graduates still receive the same diploma as traditional high school students. The school is home to 95 students and five teachers, where teachers have a more subtle role in guiding students if/when they hit a road block. PSII’s approach to education allows students who don’t conform to a traditional educational environment an alternative way to get a proper and meaningful education. The logic here is if students have a choice to pick what they are interested in and several different ways to achieve that goal, they will in fact succeed. Jeff showed us the varying technological platforms teachers use to track student progress- such as Trello and Google Calendar. I am new to the whole ‘inquiry based learning’ because before this semester I have never been asked to come up with an inquiry question. My high school, like most others throughout the province, is stiff and traditional in their teaching processes; followed by evaluation through standard testing. I would have loved the chance to incorporate inquiry based learning into my education as a way to familiarize myself with different ways to show my understanding towards a topic. Even now I find myself confused about what inquiry is because no teacher or professor is explicitly telling me what to do. Having the freedom to pick what I want seems daunting, thus introducing it early on and incorporating it as an educational tool is wise. Furthermore, the next step in education should be to introduce inquiry as a part of the BC curriculum as a way to make students better equipped for future educational opportunities.