Inquiry-Based Teaching, Dissertation – Introduction Example

Statement of the Problem

While decades of research support the inclusion of inquiry-based teaching in science classrooms, there is still reluctance on the part of secondary science teachers to implement inquiry.  The importance and effectiveness of inquiry is widely accepted to science educators.  In the official position statement regarding scientific inquiry, the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) “recommends that all K–16 teachers embrace scientific inquiry and is committed to helping educators make it the centerpiece of the science classroom. The use of scientific inquiry will help ensure that students develop a deep understanding of science and scientific concepts, active communication and high level of engagement in scientific learning. Research has provided that in science classroom inquiry teaching and learning improves significantly learning outcomes. Studies by Rutherford, & Ahlgren, (1991) provide that inquiry instruction enabled thinking abilities of secondary science students. Students who continually used scientific inquiry approach in learning science demonstrated high anxieties on their classroom projects and performed better than students using traditional laboratories approach. Worth of mention also is that students who study science by using inquiry technique develop better attitudes to science. Despite the facts that inquiry based learning of science enhances students understanding of scientific concepts, majority of secondary school science teachers do not use this method properly during classroom learning. This can be attributed to the fact that teachers themselves did not learn using the method and therefore they face difficulties in using the method when teaching.

Currently national reforms puts emphasis on science for all students but unfortunately secondary school science teaches continue to teach science literally through lecture and text books instead of using explorations and experiments (Schneider, Krajcik, Marx,  & Soloway, 2002). Many seminars on inquiry- based learning of science subjects have been organized for the sake of equipping teachers with necessary techniques and approaches of teaching sciences in classroom.

For instance inter academy panel on international issues which represents over 100 national science academies has continually implemented global science education and has given guidelines to be followed in implementing and using inquiry-based science education in secondary schools (National Research Council, 1996).  But it remains a riddle why secondary school science teachers although aware of this proven successful teaching method and its promising results, are still having issues of incorporating it in their classrooms.

This research study attempts to investigate Secondary Science Teachers Knowledge of and Attitudes toward Inquiry based teaching. In this research teachers inability to the use of inquiry based science teaching will be explored. Interviews will be conducted on selected ten teachers teaching science in secondary schools. Responses will be recorded by field notes and tape-recording of the interviews and then analyzed to satisfy the research goals.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study is to explore secondary science teachers’ knowledge of and attitudes toward inquiry teaching.

Significance of Study

Despite the fact there is wider consensus and popularity for inquiry teaching technique most of the teachers are unable to cope with its implementation. Although many educational institutions emphasize inquiry learning, it is not being implemented well, especially at the secondary school level where it is needed the most. Consequently, a better understanding is needed as to why teachers are unable to switch over to this teaching technique from traditional teaching methodologies. While teachers recognize the value of an inquiry-based setting, they often lack the experience or knowledge of effective implementation (Stratford, & Finkel,1995). With such a great opportunity to impact students’ lives, teachers should consistently analyze their teaching perceptions and methods to ensure they coincide with the ever-evolving structure of education.  Identifying the cause of disconnects between recognizing the effectiveness of inquiry and the effective implementation of it provides a basis for understanding how to resolve it.

Research Questions

This project will answer the following research questions:

What are secondary Science teachers’ perceptions of inquiry teaching?

What are these teachers’ attitudes toward inquiry teaching?

How do these teachers implement inquiry teaching in their classroom?

Method

Primary research

This is a type of data collection from scratch. Primary research does not depend on any existing information. It involves collecting information from the relevant sources by making use of various forms like use of questionnaires, making telephone conversations, surveys and so on.  This research shall employ primary research methodology; using interviews to get the information and statistics for analysis from selected secondary school teachers who teach sciences because of its validity and accuracy (Creswell, 2003) this method is the most effective however it is time consuming.

Interviews

In this research, interviews will be the major source of gathering raw data from the subjects; probably ten secondary school teachers who teach sciences. Use of interviews will be the best method of understanding respondent characteristics and it shall entail the researcher guiding the respondents through a specific set of questions (Creswell, 2003). Both semi-structured unstructured and structured interview techniques will be used. The questions for the interview will be determined in advance. Interviews will be selected because they will allowed the researchers to collect non verbal data from the interviewee, the interviewer can assist the interviewee in understanding the questions and can ask follow up questions to evoke a more thorough response from the interviewee which ultimately lead to a more detailed data, an interview brings accessibility over a questionnaire and Finally Interviews have flexibility as compared to the questionnaires.

This quantitative study seeks to understand teacher perceptions and implementations of inquiry teaching.

Assumptions

The following assumptions apply to this study:

• Teachers will answer the interview questions honestly.

Limitations of the Study

The small sample size will require generalizations.

The teachers’ backgrounds, histories, and other aspects of their past that might influence their perceptions will not be considered.

Research Validity and Reliability

The current research is vey phenomenological in nature and all research questions are related to the core characteristics of the research phenomenon as discussed. The process of data collection and subsequent analysis shall therefore be accurate so as to ensure that highest levels of validity are realized. It is however important to note that there are several aspects of research validity which influence reliability of research findings.

References

Creswell, J. ( 2003). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, & Mixed Methods Approaches. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications.

National Research Council. (1996). National science education standards. Washington, D. C.: National Academy Press.

Rutherford, F.  & Ahlgren, A. (1991). Science for all Americans. New York: Oxford University Press.

Schneider, M., Krajcik, J., Marx, R.  & Soloway, E. (2002). Performance of students in project-based science classrooms on a national measure of science achievement. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 39(5), 410-422.

Stratford, J. & Finkel, E. (1995). The impact of science ware and foundations on students’ attitudes towards science and science classes. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching, San Francisco, CA.