Implementation of Inquiry-Based Science in the Classroom and Its Repercussion on the Motivation to Learn Chemistry

Abstract

The inquiry-based approach is a teaching strategy that facilitates students learning scientific concepts and about the nature of chemistry through experimental research, allowing them to participate in chemistry classes as researchers. The methodology employed in chemistry learning in Brazil is based on the traditional teaching approach, and little consideration is given to the way the inquiry-based approach can be used to meet students' individual psychological needs. The aim of this study was to implement the inquiry approach in the reality of Brazilian schools and to investigate how these activities contribute to increasing the intrinsic motivation to learn chemistry. The methodology was based on the application of inquiry-based activities (using chemistry kits, experiments were conducted with high school students from public and private schools). In this work, the chemistry teacher in the class himself is the researcher and the person who applies the activities. Data were collected from an adapted version of the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory applied to 224 Brazilian students aged 15−18 and interviews with 25 students. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics, inferential tests, and simple interview categorization, using the Self-Determination Theory as a theoretical framework. The results reveal that it is possible to implement inquiry activities in the reality of Brazilian public schools and that these activities increase the intrinsic motivation of students promoting interest, effort, recognition of the importance of the activity, and a low sense of pressure and tension. Several contributions in the area of chemistry teaching, in terms of methodological proposals, have been disseminated as alternatives to the traditional methods of teaching employed in schools. The implications of these findings for future research and practice in limited classroom environments are discussed.

Scaffolding of experimental design skills

“…The student worksheets included an introduction designed to arouse interest and curiosity. They also provided an important DCK, which, similarly to the study published by Ferreira et al (2022), was needed to solve the experimental design task and develop the EDS.…”

“…Abrahams and Millar (2008) found that teachers do not focus on developing students' understanding of scientific inquiry procedures. Ferreira et al (2022) claims that experimentation is generally not common in Brazilian schools, although students in private schools are given more opportunities to do so. Unfortunately, Brazil is not the only country where this happens.…”

“…Al-Ahmadi (2008), on the other hand, found strong evidence that scientific thinking can be developed between the ages of about 16 and 18. Ferreira et al (2022) add to the reasons listed above the resistance of students to carrying out inquiry-based activities, arguing that this may be because the activities require autonomy from learners that they are not used to. However, they also find that inquiry-based activities had a positive effect on students' motivation.…”

Chem’Sc@pe: an Organic Chemistry Learning Digital Escape Game

“…Among innovative pedagogical methods, gamification, or the incorporation of game mechanics in learning situations, provides strategies to increase students’ motivation and desire to study and to develop further their adaptability and responsiveness skills while enjoying themselves. , Many approaches in chemical education have been reported in the past decade, such as card games, , board games, and various in-person games, − digital games that can played on a smartphone, tablet or computer, − and escape games. − In France, escape rooms from which players get out by solving puzzles and finding hidden items in a limited amount of time are very popular and their number has increased 10-fold since 2013 . The use of thematic escape games in education has been shown to increase engagement and pleasure in the learning process, in a cooperative and collaborative fashion. ,− ,− ,− Several types of chemistry-based escape games have been reported in the literature.…”

Loopholed Scripts: A New Inquiry Approach for the Undergraduate Laboratory

“…Over the past decades, researchers published many studies regarding chemistry education, and such discussions remain pertinent to this date, particularly those related to the laboratory. − Chemists and curriculum developers discuss the scope and purpose of laboratory work while evaluating the learning processes in the laboratory environment. − The consensus is that traditional chemistry laboratory teaching does not fulfill the presupposed potentialities reported in the literature above. Abrahams and Millar state that chemistry teaching in the laboratory seems to work fine on the surface, but a deeper inspection promptly reveals that such a conclusion is untrue.…”