At IST, we believe that today’s students will solve some of our world’s toughest problems.  In order to provide them with the tools and skills they need to lead in a world fully integrated with technology, as well as to make that world a better place, we have built the IST Inquiry Lab.

The Inquiry Lab is where IST students dive into learning about science, technology, engineering, and math.  Our students can be found in the Inquiry Lab learning information technology, typing, and responsible Internet habits.  They can be found there using virtual reality to take international field trips and excursions!  They can be found there creating hydro-powered turbines, building working conveyer belts, and learning coding with Dot and Dash, our age-appropriate, early learner robots.  They can even be found there working on solving problems for tomorrow, for instance, designing an all-terrain wheelchair.

The Inquiry Lab is a classroom, yes, but that’s not all.  It’s a true laboratory where experiments are encouraged; it’s a workshop where designs are drawn and prototypes are built; and it’s a creative space where all ideas are encouraged.  IST students learn that with research and teamwork, we can solve it, design it, build it, and test it.  And if it doesn’t work, we try again!

In fact, IST students learn that not only is failure an option in the Inquiry Lab, it’s required.  The Wright Brothers didn’t fly with their first plane!  Einstein certainly didn’t articulate the theory of relativity with his first equation.  Our students are learning that the path to solutions, and often, to greatness, is riddled with failures, mistakes, and more tries.  At IST, we believe in our students, we believe in the learning value of their mistakes, and we believe in the beauty of their success.