Inquiry-based Learning Environment Research Articles

The Effectiveness of an Online Inquiry-Based Learning Environment towards Secondary School Students’ Behavioral Engagement and Performance in Science

The purpose of the current study is to examine the effectiveness of an online inquiry-based learning (IBL) environment on secondary school students’ behavioral engagement and performance in science. In this quasi-experimental design, 90 second year secondary school students from two classes in the Shandong Province region of China were recruited as participants. To gather the data, an online behavioral engagement questionnaire investigation and pre- and post-performance tests were administered to the experimental group (EG) and control group (CG) students. This study result shows that online IBL has a significant impact on secondary school students’ behavioral engagement and performance in science subjects.

The Effects of Inquiry-Based Learning Environment with Augmented Reality Integration on Spatial Reasoning for Topic of Space / Kesan Persekitaran Pembelajaran Berasaskan Inkuiri dengan Integrasi Realiti Terimbuh terhadap Penaakulan Spatial bagi Tajuk Ruang

Students' mastery of the topic of Space in the field of Geometry is also influenced by their spatial reasoning. The use of technology such as augmented reality applications is necessary in assisting students in develop these skills through its ability to display real objects virtually that can be manipulated freely. However, the effectiveness of integrating augmented reality applications requires the implementation of suitable teaching strategies. This is because learning involving difficult concepts requires students not only to receive information directly but also to actively engage in learning activities to generate knowledge and skills. Therefore, this study aims to design an inquiry-based learning environment with the integration of augmented reality and examine its effects on students' spatial reasoning for the topic of Space in Year Three Mathematics. This study used a pre-experimental quantitative research design involving 25 Year Three students. The purposive sampling method was used to select the school as the location of the study and convenience sampling was used to select students as the study respondents. Pre-tests and post-tests were used to measure students' spatial reasoning after the intervention. The results of the descriptive analysis show that there is an increase in the mean score of 6.16 for students' spatial reasoning. The results of the inferential analysis also prove that there is a significant difference in the mean score (Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) <0.001) between the pre-test and the post-test on students' spatial reasoning. Therefore, the results of this study have had a positive effect on students' spatial reasoning. In conclusion, this study is expected to encourage teachers to apply 21st-century learning strategies along with the integration of appropriate technology tools to design a learning environment of Mathematics learning among primary school students.

Constructing knowledge: the role of AI in medical learning.

The integration of large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT into medical education presents potential benefits and challenges. These technologies, aligned with constructivist learning theories, could potentially enhance critical thinking and problem-solving through inquiry-based learning environments. However, the actual impact on educational outcomes and the effectiveness of these tools in fostering learning require further empirical study. This technological shift necessitates a reevaluation of curriculum design and the development of new assessment methodologies to measure its effects accurately. Additionally, the use of LLMs introduces significant ethical concerns, particularly in addressing inherent AI biases to ensure equitable educational access. LLMs may also help reduce global disparities in medical education by providing broader access to contemporary medical knowledge and practices, though their deployment must be managed carefully to truly support the training of competent, ethical medical professionals.

Exploring the impact of web-based inquiry on elementary school students’ science identity development in a STEM learning unit

One of the primary objectives of science education is to cultivate students’ science identity, and evidence points to the efficacy of inquiry-based learning in advancing this objective. Nevertheless, recent concerns have emerged regarding the effectiveness of information technology in supporting scientific research and its impact on students’ science identity. This study explores this domain through a comparative experiment conducted with fifth-grade students at a Chinese elementary school. Utilizing the Web-based Inquiry Science Environment (WISE) and the “Solar Oven” STEM learning unit, it scrutinizes the effects of web-based inquiry and traditional inquiry on students’ science identity development. The findings indicate that web-based inquiry is equally effective as traditional inquiry in fostering students’ science identity, especially in the two dimensions of “recognition” and “performance”. Notably, web-based inquiry surpasses traditional inquiry by significantly improving seven out of eleven assessed indicators, while traditional inquiry improves only four indicators. This research provides valuable insights into how integrating information technology within an inquiry-based learning environment can support Chinese elementary school students in developing their science identity. These results have significant implications for science education by demonstrating that web-based inquiry is a valuable approach for fostering science identity among elementary school students.

The impact of inquiry-based learning in a botanical garden on conceptual change in biology

ABSTRACT The results of many past studies indicate that inquiry-based learning has a considerable impact on the conceptual understanding of students. There are, however, a limited number of studies that have examined the long-term effects of inquiry-based learning on conceptual understanding among students. The purpose of this study is to determine whether an inquiry-based learning environment in botanical garden improves the conceptual understanding of biological concepts in students over the long term. Seventy-nine 9th graders participated in inquiry-based learning biology lessons in a botanical garden, while seventy-two 9th graders participated in traditional biology lessons at school. The results showed that inquiry-based learning in a botanical garden has a positive impact on the correct scientific knowledge compared to traditional teaching at school. In addition, the learning activities in a botanical garden help students to overcome the typical resistant misconceptions related to photosynthesis and respiration. Even though the number of the correct scientific answers from the students in the experimental group slightly decreased between the post-test and delayed post-test, they still outperformed the students in the regular classroom three months later. Eventually, specially designed interventions could help in the implementation of conceptual change and to alter previous misconceptions to scientifically correct concepts.

Paints of the Artist’s Palette in STEAM Teaching

This qualitative study was an emergent phenomenological study based in the tradition of portraiture, which shares many of its features with ethnography, case study, and narrative inquiry. The purpose of this study was to identify the most engaging cooperative learning methodologies for students to actively participate in home-school learning with parents during scientific inquiry investigations and supportive strategies for teachers to employ for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics (STEAM) education. The conditions identified motivated students and their parents to take ownership of the learning in which they became self-managed, self-responsible, and self-directed. Data indicated the increased success of students were the result of students participating in teacher-designed experiential, constructivist learning activities that utilized a facet of involvement strategies and provided students with authentic and socially constructive learning. Providing a guided inquiry-based learning environment also promoted student achievement and empowered students to assess their learning for developing self-responsibility, acquiring self-management skills, and raising student efficacy. As a result, students were empowered to develop scientific inquiry and literacy skills and were enabled to take control of the learning through cooperative learning that included interactive homework, collaborative inquiry-based activities, metacognitive questioning, self-assessments, and dialogue journaling.

The use of mobile technology in abductive inquiry-based teaching and learning of chemical bonding

Continuous enhancement of mobile devices such as smartphones offers new opportunities for using these technologies in inquiry-based learning environments. Inquiry-based learning has followed deductive and inductive forms of inquiry, while the abductive form of inquiry that targets the development of higher-order thinking skills such as critical thinking is less prevalent. This study investigated the use of mobile technology in abductive-inquiry based teaching and learning of chemical bonding for grade 11 physical sciences learners in two South African schools. The study employed an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design that entailed first collecting quantitative data and then qualitative data to help explain or elaborate on the quantitative results. Two grade 11 physical sciences classes were randomly designated as the experimental and control groups in each of the two different schools. The experimental group in each school experienced activities in a laboratory using mobile technology-enhanced abductive scientific inquiry through the ‘Molecular Workbench’ web-based simulation using a mobile device, while the control group in each school experienced activities in abductive scientific inquiry in a science laboratory without using mobile learning technology. The principal findings indicated that learners within the control group displayed a significant increase in their performance to create a scientifically accurate hypothesis that is the essence of abductive inquiry, whereas for the experimental group there was no significant improvement in their hypothesis generation capacity. However, participants within the experimental group felt that their use of mobile devices created a sense of learner agency amongst themselves, developed their communication skills, made them feel responsible for their own learning, and also made learning scientific concepts more fun as opposed to what they are normally exposed to.

Applying an Electronic Inquiry-Based Learning Environment to Promote Preparatory-Stage Students' EFL Fluency

Applying an Electronic Inquiry-Based Learning Environment to Promote Preparatory-Stage Students' EFL Fluency

Assessing student learning in a guided inquiry-based maker learning environment: knowledge representation from the expertise development perspective

Assessing student learning in a guided inquiry-based maker learning environment: knowledge representation from the expertise development perspective

The effect of computer simulations on students’ conceptual and procedural understanding of Newton’s second law of motion

This study aims to assess the impact of computer simulations (CSs) within an inquiry-based learning (IBL) environment on grade 11 students’ performance in Newton’s second law of motion (NSLOM). The study sample consisted of 90 male and female students selected from a population of two public schools in Al Ain city in United Arab Emirates (UAE). The study employed a pre- and post-test quasi-experimental design involving four equally distributed grade 11 physics classes: two as experimental groups (EGs) (including 45 CS-bound students studying under scientific inquiry instructions) and the other two as control groups (including 45 CSs-free students studying under traditional face-to-face instructions). Newton’s second law of motion achievement test (NSLMAT) was used to evaluate students’ performance in NSLOM. Descriptive analysis was conducted using effect sizes and a paired-sample t-test. Overall, results suggested that, compared to face-to-face instruction, CSs were more successful in promoting students’ understanding of NSLOM topics.<b> </b>Moreover, EGs showed noticeable conceptual and procedural performance gains. The results indicated that CSs within an IBL environment helped female (d=2.10) and male (d=2.94) students better understand NSLOM conceptual topics. CSs within an IBL environment also helped male (d=0.88) and female (d=0.72) students better understand NSLOM. Finally, if properly designed, CSs within an IBL environment can significantly improve student learning of NSLOM. Therefore, the study recommends creating a supportive learning environment to encourage the use of CSs for purposes other than information presentation. Incorporating simulations into practical activities, problem-solving exercises, or group discussions could improve students’ critical thinking and problem-solving abilities. Allowing students to practice using the simulation before implementing it in actual learning activities is also crucial.

WinterLab: Developing a Low-Cost, Portable Experiment Platform to Encourage Engagement in the Clectronics Lab

Encouraging student engagement is a key aim in any educational setting, and allowing students the freedom to pursue their own methods of solving problems through independent experimentation has been shown to markedly improve this. In many contexts, however, allowing students this flexibility in their learning is hampered by constraints of the material itself, such as in the electronics laboratory, where expensive and bulky equipment confines the learning environment to the laboratory room. Finding ourselves in the position of teaching one such laboratory course at the undergraduate level, we sought to encourage students to learn through independent investigation and the pursuit of personal projects, by providing a more flexible and inquiry-based learning environment and allowing them to take their measurement equipment—and their learning—beyond the laboratory itself. We present this project as a case of design both for and by students, with the lead designer undertaking the project after attending the course in question, and pursuing its development as a foundational step in their graduate career. We discuss the challenges and opportunities we encountered over the course of the design and development process, and the eventual key output of the project: a portable, low-cost, integrated electronics experimentation platform called the WinterLab board.

The impact of an online inquiry-based learning environment addressing misconceptions on students' performance

This study sought to develop and evaluate an online module based on inquiry learning with digital laboratories, which was intended to address students’ misconceptions in a science domain. In a quasi-experimental design, 171 first-year students in a higher education introductory physics course on circular motion were as their existing groups assigned to an experimental (n = 100) or a control (n = 71) condition. The experimental condition was developed by arranging online inquiry activities that would encourage students to probe five identified misconceptions. The control condition required students to engage in online inquiry following the traditional syllabus outline. Students in both conditions used the same type of digital laboratory setup. The participants learned about the topic of circular motion and their knowledge was assessed. Results of the knowledge test revealed that the experimental condition geared towards addressing students’ misconceptions facilitated conceptual change more than the control condition.

Digital Transformation in Higher Education: Student Views on Inquiry-Based Blended Learning Environment

Bu çalışmanın amacı, araştırma-sorgulamaya dayalı harmanlanmış öğrenme ortamına ilişkin üniversite öğrencilerinin tutum ve görüşlerini araştırmaktır. Araştırmaya, 2019-2020 eğitim-öğretim yılının güz döneminde Munzur Üniversitesi Tunceli Meslek Yüksekokulu Laboratuvar Teknolojisi programında son sınıfta öğrenim gören 24 meslek yüksekokulu öğrencisi katılmıştır. Laboratuvar Teknolojisi programında güz döneminde işlenen zorunlu su analizleri, bitki analizleri, toprak analizleri ve proje yönetimi dersleri araştırma-sorgulamaya dayalı harmanlanmış öğrenme ortamına göre işlenmiştir. Bu öğrenme ortamı, literatürde bulunan birçok araştırma incelenip analiz edilerek tasarlanmış, yüz yüze ve çevrim içi öğrenme ortamlarının bütünleştirildiği bireysel/grupça araştırma-sorgulama dayalı öğrenme etkinlikleri temel alınarak yürütülmüştür. Araştırmada, nitel araştırma yöntemlerinden durum çalışması kullanılmıştır. Çalışmaya katılan öğrencilerin bu öğrenme ortamına yönelik tutum ve görüşleri, bireysel yarı-yapılandırılmış mülakat tekniğiyle belirlenmiş ve elde edilen nitel veriler içerik analizine göre değerlendirilmiştir. Bu çalışmada elde edilen bulgulara göre, araştırma-sorgulamaya dayalı harmanlanmış öğrenme ortamına ilişkin üniversite öğrencilerinin çoğunun tutum ve görüşlerinin olumlu yönde olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Bu araştırmanın sonuçları, yükseköğretim kurumlarında yürütülen eğitim-öğretim süreçlerinin araştırma-sorgulamaya dayalı harmanlanmış öğrenme ortamları çerçevesinde yeniden düzenlenmesi ve geliştirilmesinin önemini vurgulamaktadır.

Environment–attitude relationships: girls in inquiry-based mathematics classrooms in the United Arab Emirates

Girls’ attitudes towards mathematics can impact their achievement and career choices in STEM fields. Can the introduction of inquiry-based learning (IBL) in mathematics classes generate positive associations between girls’ perceptions of the learning environment and their attitudes towards mathematics? Based in the United Arab Emirates, this study provided important information about the relationships between learning environment factors central to an inquiry method and student engagement. Data collection involved administering two surveys to female mathematics students (N = 291) in four schools: one to assess students’ perceptions of the learning environment and another to assess students’ attitudes towards mathematics. Positive and statistically-significant (p < .01) associations emerged between learning environment factors important to an inquiry approach and students’ attitudes. These findings provide important information about how IBL might improve girls’ attitudes towards mathematics classes and whether IBL environments are related to their attitudes.

Fostering self-regulation and engaged exploration during the learner-content interaction process: the role of scaffolding in the online inquiry-based learning environment

PurposeThis study aims to present a scaffolding framework incorporating sophisticated technology that can inform instructional design to support student inquiry learning in the self-regulated online environment.Design/methodology/approachThe classic predict, observe and explain (POE) framework has been extended through the incorporation of an additional evaluate (E) phase into the model to enhance the self-regulated online learning environment. The extended POEE scaffolding approach, in this study, has been conceptualized as an implicit guide to support the process of guided inquiry for learning particular science concepts. Digital tools were sourced and integrated into this design framework to substitute for the support typically offered by teachers and peers in classrooms.FindingsThe findings suggest that the POEE pedagogical design facilitated the inquiry process through promoting self-regulation and engaged exploration. It also promoted positive emotions in students towards the scaffolded learning modules.Originality/valueIntegrating technologies that benefit students differentially in educational settings remains a considerable challenge. More specifically, in science education, an appropriate inquiry learning context that allows access to well informed pedagogical design is imperative. The application of this inquiry-based scaffolding framework can inform educators in the process of creating their own instructional designs and contexts to provide more effective guided learning.

Affecting Young Children’s Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors for Ultraviolet Radiation Protection through the Internet of Things: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Prolonged exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation is linked to skin cancer. Children are more vulnerable to UV harmful effects compared to adults. Children’s active involvement in using Internet of Things (IoT) devices to collect and analyze real-time UV radiation data is suggested to increase their awareness of UV protection. This quasi-experimental pre-test post-test control group study implemented light sensors in a STEM inquiry-based learning environment focusing on UV radiation and protection in primary education. This exploratory, small-scale study investigated the effect of a STEM environment implementing IoT devices on 6th graders’ knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors about UV radiation and protection. Participants were 31 primary school students. Experimental group participants (n = 15) attended four eighty-minute inquiry-based lessons on UV radiation and protection and used sensors to measure and analyze UV radiation in their school. Data sources included questionnaires on UV knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors administered pre- and post-intervention. Statistically significant learning gains were found only for the experimental group (t14 = −3.64, p = 0.003). A statistically significant positive behavioral change was reported for experimental group participants six weeks post-intervention. The study adds empirical evidence suggesting the value of real-time data-driven approaches implementing IoT devices to positively influence students’ knowledge and behaviors related to socio-scientific problems affecting their health.

Inquiry-based environments for bio-signal processing training in engineering education

Active student engagement, teaching via experience in real-life settings and learning by doing, are pedagogical strategies appropriate to improve student-reasoning skills. By building models, performing investigations, examining and explaining experimental results, using theoretical and computational thinking, constructing representations, undergraduates can acquire a deeper understanding of fundamental disciplinary concepts while reinforcing transversal abilities. In this framework, Engineering courses should be designed with the final objective to develop practical skills, focusing on hands-on activities. This contribution presents two different inquiry-based learning environments recently experienced at the University of Palermo in the context of bioelectronic and biomedical Engineering. The first study describes a laboratory activity about digital ophthalmologic signal classification; the second laboratory focuses on the analysis of the prefrontal cortex activation during a memory task using functional Near InfraRed Spectroscopy (fNIRS). We introduce and discuss the learning workshops, with the research objective of improving current instruction and training in Engineering courses. Indeed, this contribution aims to suggest a conceptual framework in the form of a structured elective suite of modules tailored to meet the needs of Engineering graduates. The outcomes of both studies seem to highlight that self-directed learning activities could enhance students’ enthusiasm to learn and engagement in engineering investigations, contributing to improve the achievements of students and acquire a more effective learning approach.

Engineering design in dual language: How teachers leveraged biliteracy practices to add engineering disciplinary literacy practices

ABSTRACT In this two-year ethnographic study, we explored engineering teaching and learning in fourth-grade, dual language (DL) classrooms. We discuss the biliterate disciplinary practices in these classrooms, examining data (field notes, interviews, artifacts, audio, and video recordings) gathered at a school on the US-Mexico border. Our purpose is to highlight how DL teachers collaborated to create an inquiry-based learning environment that fostered biliteracy as a resource for adding new disciplinary literacy practices. They designed experiences where their emergent bilingual students were able to leverage their existing biliterate repertoires to engage in and learn engineering design. The environment teachers promoted the development of engineering disciplinary literacies in two languages.

Instructional improv to analyze inquiry-based science teaching: Zed\u2019s dead and the missing flower

In inquiry-based science lessons teachers face the challenge of adhering to curricular goals while simultaneously following students’ intuitive understandings. Improvisation (improv) provides a useful frame for understanding teaching in these inquiry-based contexts. This paper builds from prior work that uses improv as a metaphor for teaching to present a translated model for analysis of teaching in an inquiry-based, elementary school science lesson context. We call our model instructional improv, which shows how a teacher spontaneously synthesizes rules of improv with teaching practices to support student learning, engagement, and agency. We illustrate instructional improv through case study analysis of video recorded classroom interactions with one teacher and 26 first and second grade students learning about the complex system of honey bee pollination in a mixed reality environment. Our model includes the following defining features to describe how teaching happens in this context: the teacher 1) tells a story; 2) reframes mistakes as opportunities; 3) agrees; 4) yes ands; 5) makes statements (or asks questions that elicit statements); and 6) puts the needs of the classroom ensemble over individuals. Overall, we show how instructional improv helps explain how teachers can support science discourse and collective storytelling as a teacher (a) shifts power and agency to students; (b) balances learning and agency; and (c) makes purposeful instructional decisions. Findings have immediate implications for researchers analyzing interactions in inquiry-based learning environments and potential future implications for teachers to support inquiry learning.

On the Trail of Authentic Collaboration Over Extended Time in Inquiry Classrooms: Following the Footprints of Role Diversification as Indicators that Inquiry Occurred

ABSTRACT Role diversification, the different roles participants adopt within collaborative or inquiry-based teaching and learning environments, is insufficiently understood. We observed two inquiry classroom groups, two teachers and eight students, in weekly visits over three months. Qualitative analysis of audiorecorded interactions, interviews, journals, and fieldnotes generated frequencies, nature, and adaptability of student and teacher roles across the extended instructional units, and contextual variables including classroom context, teacher and student differences, and group-work dynamics. Just one role of the many was shared between teachers and students in the situations examined. Role diversification was supported as an indicator of collaborative-inquiry engagement having occurred.