D035: Educational Inquiry

Educational Inquiry builds the practical action-research skills that power the program's capstone — turning scholarly literature and systematic investigation into real school improvement.

What D035 covers

The course focuses on practical problem solving, teaching candidates to use scholarly literature to inform their own practice. It also teaches candidates to engage in their own action research processes, empowering educators to recognize opportunities for improvement and to systematically implement and evaluate changes.

This course prepares candidates to conduct research for the capstone.

The D035 performance assessment

Expect a performance assessment requiring you to design an action research proposal for a school-based problem, grounded in scholarly literature.

Key topics in D035

• Using scholarly literature to inform practice
• Action research processes
• Systematic implementation and evaluation of change

Writing tips for D035

Follow the task instructions and rubric line by line

WGU performance assessments for D035 are graded against a fixed rubric — every rubric line has to be visibly addressed, usually with a labeled heading that mirrors the rubric language. Skipping a rubric point because it seems minor is the single most common reason a competent submission comes back "Not Yet Competent" for revision.

Ground leadership recommendations in a specific school context, not leadership theory alone

Educational Leadership courses like D035 typically hand you a school scenario (enrollment size, demographics, specific challenges) and expect your recommendations to genuinely fit that context, not just cite leadership theory in the abstract. Evaluators check whether your reasoning is grounded in the specific school situation given.

Because WGU is self-paced, don't let "no deadline pressure" become no submission

There's no weekly due date forcing progress, which means procrastination costs more at WGU than at a traditional term-based school — a stalled task can quietly eat weeks of a term. Treat your own target date for each D035 assessment as a real deadline.

Why students seek help with D035

Candidates sometimes propose a research plan without genuinely grounding it in relevant scholarly literature — the rubric typically wants that literature connection explicit, not a self-contained plan.

How GradeEssays helps with D035

Share your research problem and rubric, and your writer will build an action research proposal genuinely grounded in relevant scholarly literature.

Prerequisites and program context

D035 requires Data Literacy and Evidence-Based Practices (D019) as a prerequisite and prepares candidates for the capstone.

• Master of Science, Educational Leadership

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