Page 20 - SREENARAYANAGURU OPEN UNIVERSITY

In contrast, informal inquiry is more open-ended, evolving,
and interpretive. An example is an auto-ethnographic
study where a researcher uses self-reflection and personal
experience to generate insights about a cultural context
or phenomenon. This draws on unstructured observation,
Informal participation, conversations, and introspection to gather
autoethnographic subjective lived-experiences as primary data. The inquiry
inquiry follows an inductive path of gradual sense-making to surface
themes and patterns. Findings remain tied to personal
narratives rather than pursuing broad generalisations. The
process often involves free-writing, journaling, and arts-
based methods that elucidate the researcher's internal
knowledge. The informal inquiry results in a descriptive
account of experiences that readers can relate to, not formal
propositions.

Another instance of informal inquiry is problem-solving
within professional practice. For example, a teacher observing
difficulties in her classroom may speak informally with
other teachers, read blogs relatable to her context, review
Informal notes on her students, and reflect on her own experiences to
professional understand the problem. She then tries out modified teaching
inquiry techniques and gauges student responses, without formally
measuring defined variables. By iteratively experimenting
and garnering feedback, she develops contextual solutions.
This form of inquiry is more conversational, flexible, and
aimed at addressing a specific practical problem rather than
producing generalised insights.

Compared to formal inquiry, informal inquiry is more
self-directed, dependent on interpersonal exchanges, and
evolves organically over time rather than following a linear
sequence. Findings often involve practitioner-generated
Contrasting formal theories, models, stories, and personal learning rather than
and informal empirical generalisations about populations. Assumptions
inquiry are rarely made explicit but get tested through practice.
Informal inquiry values lived experience, meaning-making,
and practical knowing-in-action over controlling variables,
precise measurement, and establishing causal relationships.
However, the two approaches can complement each other,
with informal inquiry feeding into systematic formal
investigation and vice versa.
Formal vs.
informal inquiry Thus, while formal inquiry emphasises hypothesis
paradigms testing, statistical analysis, and deductive logic to produce
generalisable knowledge, informal inquiry relies more on
intuition, qualitative interpretation, and inductive reasoning
to develop contextual insights through experiential learning.

14 SGOU - SLM - Foundational Skills for Research and Writing