Van Andel Education Institute Launches NexGen Inquiry, a cloud-based science investigation platform

Innovative New Product for Teachers Promises Better Student Communication, Stronger Professional Development and an Interactive Support and Resource Community.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (April 21, 2015) – Van Andel Education Institute (VAEI), the science education division of Van Andel Institute, today announced the launch of NexGen Inquiry, an innovative cloud-based science investigation platform that fosters better teacher and student communication, expands teacher professional development and provides an interactive support and resource community.

Designed by teachers for teachers, NexGen Inquiry provides a virtual classroom to guide the delivery of current curriculum using Web-based student lab journals via an inquiry-based instructional model.

“My late parents, Jay and Betty Van Andel, understood the importance of science education in America’s continued success and created the Institute as a laboratory for innovation,” said David Van Andel, chairman and chief executive officer of Van Andel Institute. “NexGen Inquiry is the next evolution of their vision. We are giving teachers and students the resources they need to revolutionize science education from the ground up.”

According to a 2014 survey conducted by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, 98 percent of  science teachers report they lack the effective digital instructional tools they need in the classroom.

“NexGen Inquiry helps teachers empower their students to think and act like scientists,” says Jim Nicolette, associate director of VAEI’s Science Academy. “With NexGen Inquiry, teachers now can save time leveraging their curriculum with a digital solution for student-centered, inquiry-based learning.”

Based on Van Andel Education Institute’s proven inquiry-based model of QPOE₂ (Question, Prediction, Observation, Explanation and Evaluation), NexGen Inquiry is the latest answer to the growing need for enhanced science education to build the nation’s science, technology, engineering and math capacity and meet the demands of an increasingly complex and technical world.

“The beauty of NexGen Inquiry is that while being student-centered, teachers are also immersed in an instructional model designed to enhance the nation’s capacity to fill S.T.E.M. jobs that remain vacant in an increasingly complex and technical workforce,” said Nicolette.

Visit www.nexgeninquiry.org for more information and a free trial.