Developing Critical Thinking through Inquiry-Based Learning: A Review of Pedagogical Mechanisms, Curricular Integration, and Evaluative Metrics

Abstract

Developing critical thinking skills represents a fundamental mandate ofmodern educational frameworks, transitioning away from rote memorizationtoward the cultivation of analytical, evaluative, and metacognitive capabilities. Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) stands out as a highly effective pedagogical strategy to fulfill this objective, using student-led investigations, problem formulation, and evidence-driven synthesis. This review paper provides a systematic synthesis of global literature on the operationalization of IBL within diverse educational settings, tracing its cognitive foundations from constructivist theories. The analysis investigates the implementation ofstructured, guided, and open inquiry models, mapping their specificcontributions to student critical thinking performance. The review highlightsmajor structural barriers, including rigid curriculum delivery timelines, high-stakes assessment pressures, and gaps in professional capacity, which hinder the wide-scale adoption of inquiry methodologies. The findings demonstrate that structured scaffolding is critical to prevent cognitive overload, particularly for novice learners. Finally, this paper identifies research gaps regarding digital inquiry tools and proposes an integrated framework to cultivate sustainable higher-order thinking skills.  KEYWORDS: Critical Thinking, Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL), Constructivism, Scaffolding, Cognitive Overload, Curricular Innovation.