Team-Based Inquiry Learning

About TBIL

What is TBIL?

Team-Based Inquiry Learning (TBIL) is an implementation of Team-Based Learning as Inquiry-Based Learning for mathematics. Team-Based Learning is popular in other disciplines such as health sciences, where it is most often implemented as Flipped Learning and/or Case-Based Learning. In mathematics, however, we view it as a way to more easily bring Inquiry-Based Learning into lower division courses such as Precalculus, Calculus, and Linear Algebra.

A typical day in a TBIL class involves students working teams through a series of scaffolded activities to learn the material. After spending time on an activity, each team simultaneously reports their answer to the class, after which the instructor facilitates a class-wide debrief to inquire into students' thinking. After bringing the class to a consensus, the instructor provides any needed exposition to prepare students for the next activity. For more details on the TBIL pedagogy, please see our PRIMUS paper.

To help instructors get started, we host a library of free and open-source educational resources aligned for use with TBIL.

Join the Community

If you're planning to use TBIL in your classroom, you can get a link to join our Slack community by completing this survey. Joining our Slack allows you to chat with other community members and TBIL experts.

Publications

• Lewis, D., Clontz, S., and Estis, J. (2021). Team-Based Inquiry Learning. PRIMUS 31 (2), 223-238. https://doi.org/10.1080/10511970.2019.1666440

  • Team-Based Learning (TBL) is a cooperative learning strategy blending elements of flipped learning, inquiry-based learning, and problem-based learning. Although used quite frequently in other disciplines, use of this strategy in mathematics has been limited. In this article, we describe how TBL can be implemented in math courses with adherence to essential elements of TBL and introduce modifications specific to mathematics instruction. In particular, we introduce a particular style of TBL, which we term Team-Based Inquiry Learning, that satisfies the defining pillars of inquiry-based learning.

• Lewis, D. and Estis, J. (2020). Improving Mathematics Content Mastery and Enhancing Flexible Problem Solving through Team-Based Inquiry Learning. Teaching & Learning Inquiry 8 (2), 165-183. https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.8.2.11

  • This article examines how student learning is affected by the use of team-based inquiry learning, a novel pedagogy in mathematics that uses team-based learning to implement inquiry-based learning. We conducted quasi-experimental and observational studies in intermediate level mathematics courses, finding that team-based inquiry learning led to increased content mastery and that students took a more flexible approach to solving problems. We also found that in the courses using this pedagogy, women (but not men) had a reduction in communication apprehension over the course of a semester. We conclude that team-based inquiry learning effectively enhances student learning and problem solving, preparing students for future academic success and fostering career readiness.

• Lewis, D., Clontz, S., Parrish, C., Estis, J., and Chaudhury, S.R. 2024. Supporting Instructors in Implementing Team-Based Inquiry Learning. Proceedings of the 26th Annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education, 1152-1157. http://sigmaa.maa.org/rume/crume2024/papers/117.pdf

  • Team-Based Inquiry Learning (TBIL) is a novel active learning pedagogy designed to facilitate the use of inquiry-based learning in lower division courses. This preliminary report examines supports provided by the TBIL project to instructors, as well as the fidelity of implementation of TBIL by participants of the project. Initial findings suggest that classroom-ready materials and ongoing support, both synchronous and asynchronous, were most helpful to faculty in their TBIL implementations.

Selected mentions in other literature

• Muhammad, R. A., & Saidi, R. (2024). Applications in Linear Algebra: Bridging Data Science with Mathematical Foundations. Scatterplot, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/29932955.2024.2370620

Presentations

• Kate Owens† has created these excellent slides overviewing TBIL and resources to implement it in your classroom.

• Drew Lewis presented a poster "Transforming Lower Division Mathematics Through Team-Based Inquiry Learning" at the IUSE Summit (June 2022)

• Drew Lewis gave a colloquium presentation on "Team-Based Inquiry Learning" at the University of Tennessee Department of Mathematics (October 2022)

• Kate Owens† & Abby Noble† presented "How we juggled all the things: SBG+TBIL+CheckIt+LMS" at the Fall 2023 Southeast Sectional Meeting of the American Mathematics Society

• Jordan Kostiuk† presented on "TBIL & Student Motivation" at the 2023 AAC&U STEM Conference

• Julie Estis presented a poster "Transforming Lower Division Mathematics Through Team-Based Inquiry Learning: A Model for Training Faculty, Developing Resources, and Measuring Impact" at the 2023 Team-Based Learning Collaborative Annual Conference

• Manoj Lamichhane† presented "Implementation of Team Based Inquiry Learning (TBIL) in Calculus Classes at Florida Polytechnic University" at the Third International Conference on Applications of Mathematics to Nonlinear Sciences (May 2023)

• Raj Chaudhury presented a poster "Actors, Scripts and Orchestration: a framework for understanding Team-Based Inquiry Learning" at the 2023 Physics Education Research Conference.

• Francesca Gandini† & Joe Hibdon† presented "Making Student Thinking Visible with Team-Based Inquiry Learning" at the 2024 Joint Mathematics Meeting

• Drew Lewis presented "Team-Based Inquiry Learning in Lower Division Mathematics Courses" at the 2024 Joint Mathematics Meeting

• Megan Chang-Lee† presented "Teaching with Team-Based Inquiry Learning: Joyful Teaching" at the 2024 Joint Mathematics Meeting

• Kate Owens† presented "A Quick-Start Guide on Team-Based Inquiry Learning" on February 16, 2024 for the Southeast IBL COMMIT

• Jared Bunn† and Manoj Lamichhane† presented a "Team-Based Inquiry Learning Workshop" at the 2024 joint meeting of the MAA-Florida Section and FTYCMA

• Drew Lewis presented "Supporting Instructors in Implementing Team-Based Inquiry Learning" at the 26th annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (February 2024)

• Joe Hibdon† presented "Using Team-Based Inquiry Learning in Mathematics Courses" at the April 2024 Chicago Symposium Series, Excellence in Teaching Mathematics and Science: Research and Practice

• Drew Lewis presented a workshop on "Team-Based Inquiry Learning" for the Brown University Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning (April 2024)

• Drew Lewis presented "Team-Based Inquiry Learning in Lower Division Mathematics Courses" at the 2024 IUSE Summit

• Drew Lewis presented "Implementations of Team-Based Inquiry Learning Across Instructional Contexts" at MathFest 2024

• Tonya DeGeorge†, Abby Noble†, and Kathy Pinzon† presented "Team-Based Inquiry Learning in College Algebra and Precalculus" at MathFest 2024

• Jordan Kostiuk† presented "Tailoring TBIL Resources Using Github" at MathFest 2024

• Sharona Krinsky† presented "Team-Based Inquiry Learning in Linear Algebra" at MathFest 2024

• Apoorva Mate† presented "Flipping the Script: Collaborative Learning Made Easy with Team-Based Inquiry" at the Fall 2024 New England COMMIT meeting

(† TBIL Fellows)