Process oriented guided inquiry learning (POGIL®) marginally effects student achievement measures but substantially increases the odds of passing a course

Abstract

While the inquiry approach to science teaching has been widely recommended as an epistemic mechanism to promote deep content understanding, there is also increased expectation that process and other transferable skills should be integral part of science pedagogy. To test the hypothesis that coupling process skills to content teaching impacts academic success measures, we meta-analyzed twenty-one studies (n = 21) involving 7876 students that compared Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL), a pedagogy that provides opportunities for improving process skills during content learning through guided-inquiry activities, to standard lecture conditions. Based on conventional measures of class performance, POGIL had a small effect on achievement outcomes (effect size = 0.29, [95% CI = 0.15–0.43]) but substantially improved the odds of passing a class (odds ratio = 2.02, [95% CI: 1.45–2.83]). That is, participants in the POGIL pedagogy had higher odds of passing a course and roughly performed 0.3 standard deviations higher on achievement measures than participants in standard lectures. In relative risk terms, POGIL reduced the risk of failing a course by 38%. These findings suggest providing opportunities to improve process skills during class instruction does not inhibit content learning but enhances conventional success measures. We compare these findings with those of recent large meta-analysis that examined the effects of global active learning methods on achievement outcomes and course failure rates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

Evaluating the evidence base for evidence‐based instructional practices in chemistry through meta‐analysis

“…Among PLTL, POGIL and Flipped classes in chemistry, the weighted mean effect size indicates that a positive small to medium effect has been realized. It is also worth noting that the weighted mean effect size for POGIL of 0.30 is comparable to the 0.22 results observed in a recent meta‐analysis on POGIL implementation across disciplines (Walker & Warfa, ). The studies with nonspecified cooperative learning features 33 studies and a larger weighted mean effect size of 0.71.…”

“…Each chemistry specific meta‐analysis investigates a single EBIP (e.g., Peer‐Led Team Learning) and as a result each analyses 25 or fewer studies; this number of studies is comparable to the number of chemistry specific studies analyzed in meta‐analyses on the broader fields of science or STEM education. Other meta‐analyses have been conducted on POGIL (Walker & Warfa, ) and blended learning, combining face‐to‐face instruction with computer mediated instruction (Vo, Zhu, & Diep, ), but these analyses were not subject specific. Thus, the current literature is unable to provide a thorough synthesis of research on effective instructional practices particular to chemistry or evaluate the effectiveness of a particular EBIP in chemistry relative to other widely used EBIPs.…”

Blended Module‐Based Teaching in Biostatistics and Research Methodology: A Retrospective Study with Postgraduate Dental Students

“…25,26 Studies have also found that POGIL transformed the classroom into an active learning zone with improved student performance in examinations and higher learning skills. 27,28 The academic caliber of the students in our study could have been a potential confounding factor in the results, but there was no statistically signiicant diference in the undergraduate marks of the two groups of students. Also, the end-of-year biostatistics and research methodology question paper may not be a confounding factor because the university has a well-organized question bank with structured key points that have been given to students at the beginning of their course; also, the questions were meticulously chosen according to the same diiculty level for both the groups of students.…”

The effectiveness of animal physiology practical book based on guided inquiry model

“…Guided inquiry model with starter experiment approach in teaching science process skills of the students is effective, because it gives students a complex thinking space (Wardani & Djukri, 2019). So that by using a guided inquiry-based practicum guide, it can train students to find and solve several problems with the skills they have and guided inquiry stages that are in the guide when in their small group (Walker & Warfa, 2017). Accordance with the opinion Students work in small groups in the classroom or in the laboratory in an instructional module that presents information or data, followed by questions that lead are designed to guide students towards the formulation of conclusions (Khasanah, Susilaningsih, & Nuswowati, 2017).…”