Influence of In-service Teacher Training on their Opinions about IBSE

Abstract

The new Polish science curriculum was launched in 2008 and is currently being implemented in upper secondary schools. The new general objectives of education, and students’ key competences that should be developed during science classes were defined in this document. The presented competences are in line with those that might be developed by Inquiry Based Science Education (IBSE). IBSE is currently a popular instructional method in many countries and it is being strongly promoted by the European Union. Unfortunately, most of the European Union member countries don’t have national strategies in place to support the teachers responsible for implementing IBSE. In the article, a programme of science teacher training course which outline the basics of IBSE techniques was introduced. These course have been developed for polish science teachers basing on the Teachers Education Programme developed within the ESTABLISH project. The effect of the training on the attitude of Polish teachers to IBSE and the impact of training on the perception of selected aspects of IBSE was studied. The research was based on a survey questionnaire conducted among participants of the course before and after the training. The results show current position and degree of implementation of IBSE in Polish schools and the positive and negative factors affecting introduction IBSE into school practice.