An old adage states: "Tell me and I forget, show me and I remember, involve me and I understand."
The last part of this statement is the essence of inquiry-based learning. Traditionally students learn not to ask too many questions, but instead, to memorize the expected answers. Effective inquiry teaches individuals to convert information and data into useful knowledge. Inquiry learning involves several factors: a context for questions, a framework for questions, a focus for questions, and different levels of questions.
Memorizing facts and information is not the most important skill in today's world. Facts change, and information is readily available -- what's needed is an understanding of how to get and make sense of the mass of data. Inquiry is not so much seeking the right answer -- because often there is none -- but rather seeking appropriate resolutions to questions and issues.