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Guided Inquiry in the Scientific Method: A Revision of Laboratory Activities—A study on termites Dr. Jose Pacheco El Paso Community College, Northwest Campus

Author Note Dr. Jose Pacheco, Assistant Professor in Biology, El Paso Community College, Northwest Campus. I would like to sincerely thank Dr. Rebecca Escamilla for all of her support. Her help was invaluable to my research project. I would also like to thank my Faculty mentors, Mr. Gabriel Camacho from Phase I and Dr. Hilda Taylor from Phase II. A sincere thank you goes to the Pacheco Family for all of their support. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Jose Pacheco Ph.D., Department of Biology, El Paso Community College, Northwest Campus, P.O. Box 20500, El Paso, Texas 79998-0500. E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract An important Learning Outcome in Biology deals with not only understanding but applying the Scientific Method. Current laboratory activities may not provide a suitable platform for critical thinking and effective learning. I developed a ―Guided inquiry‖ laboratory to provide an environment for effective application and learning. Students will learn the intricacies of the scientific method by analyzing the behavior of termites. A pre and post test survey is utilized; sections include: Content Knowledge, Attitudinal Content Knowledge, Science Efficacy, Science Appreciation, Total Attitude. There was a significant difference in mean scores: Efficacy, Knowledge, and Total Attitude. Even though, the lesson did not improve student acquisition of content knowledge, it showed to improve the students‘ confidence in understanding the importance, the utility, and their ability in implementing the scientific method. Additional results are being analyzed for Fall 2012 and Spring 2013. Keywords: Guided Inquiry, Scientific method, Termites, Laboratory

Introduction Problem One of the classes I currently teach is the Major‘s Introductory Biology course (BIOL 1406). This course is viewed as a foundation class for Biology majors and grasping the content presented is fundamental for students pursuing careers in Biology. One of the most important Student Learning Outcomes deals with not only understanding but applying the Scientific Method. The current laboratory activities that deal with the Scientific method can be viewed as ―cookie cutter,‖ and I am uncertain of their effectiveness in providing a suitable platform for critical thinking and effective learning.

Solution I developed a ―Guided inquiry‖ laboratory in the hopes of providing a venue/ environment for effective application and learning of the Scientific method.

Materials and Methods Applied Solution The Student Learning Outcomes for this laboratory exercise are from Unit 1: The Study of Life (1406). Students will learn the intricacies of the scientific method by analyzing the behavior of termites (for protocol see Appendix A; Kaeb et al., 1982; http://www.carolina.com/; http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=6148 and see Figure 1). Students will learn how to effectively communicate their results and conclusions by writing a lab report as well as doing a presentation. Students will know the scientific method is an important component of science, will know the steps of the scientific method, will generate a research question and hypothesis, formulate a method

protocol to test the hypothesis, implement the protocol and collect data, analyze data, formulate a valid conclusion based on the data collected, and communicate their findings.

Survey Design Pre- and post- test surveys were utilized in this project (see Figure 2) to test the following 5 criteria: –Content Knowledge: Questions based on Student Learning Outcome (SLO) utilized in Biology, District Wide at EPCC (n=5) –Attitudinal Content Knowledge: Based on both content knowledge acquisition and students‘ confidence in their knowledge of the Scientific Method (n=7) –Science Efficacy: The ability to apply the scientific method competently (n=2) –Science Appreciation: Attitude in terms of appreciation of the utility and importance of the scientific method (n=1) –Total Attitudinal: Combined scores of attitudinal content knowledge, science efficacy, and science appreciation (n=10).

Data Analysis Content Knowledge. Scored by marking each answer as correct or incorrect. The percentage of correct answers was then calculated (Max 100%). Calculated mean overall scores and standard deviations of the pre- and post-tests scores for all students were recorded. Attitudinal Survey. The mean score was calculated for each category for each student by adding the scores for questions in each category and dividing by the total number of questions in each category. The mean overall scores and standard deviations were then calculated for each category. This process was done for the attitudinal portion

of the surveys that included Attitudinal Content Knowledge, Science Efficacy, Science Appreciation, and Total Attitudinal.

Comparing Pre- and Post-Test Scores The changes in mean scores were assessed using paired samples t-tests to determine if there was a significant difference in the means between the pre-test and post-test. Minitab version 16 was used to calculate and double-check the t-values.

Effect Size Effect sizes were calculated to better quantify the effectiveness of the lab. Effect sizes allow for a better understanding of ‗how well the lab worked‘, not just ‗were the mean scores significantly different‘? For this analysis, Cohen‘s effect size was implemented: D = ((mean of the post-test survey) - (mean of the pre-test survey))/pooled standard deviation. These effect sizes were categorized using Cohen‘s classification: small (d >= 0.20), medium (d >= 0.50), or large (d >= 0.80) (Cohen, 1992).

Results There was a significant difference in the pre- and post test survey scores in almost all categories, with evident increases in Science Efficacy (t-value = -3.74, p-value = 0.001, Science Content Knowledge (t-value = -3.17, p-value = 0.005), and Total Attitude (t-value = 3.31, p-value = 0.003) (see Figure 3). There was a large effect size seen with Science Efficacy (d = 0.96) and medium effect sizes with Content knowledge (d = 0.58) and Total Attitude (d = 0.62) (see Figure 4).

Overall Assessment Even though the lesson did not improve student acquisition of content knowledge, it showed to improve the students‘ confidence in understanding the importance, the utility, and their ability in implementing the scientific method. Based on the results, I infer that this new approach of guided inquiry for laboratory exercises created for this study and for a cohort of Biology 1406 students, was effective in student acquisition of science content knowledge and changing the attitude of the students towards learning the scientific method. It is important to note, however, that I had no control comparison group in this study.

Future Directions The original intent for the creation of this laboratory exercise was for assisting students taking Introductory Biology for Major‘s I (Biol 1406). However, this lab was presented to students enrolled in Organismal Biology for Major‘s II (Biol 1407), the second semester course of Biology. The termite lab exercise was presented as a review of the scientific method and an introduction to animal behavior using an invertebrate species (for protocol see Appendix B). A pre-and post survey was given to the students of two sections of Biol 1407 in Fall 2012 (results currently being analyzed) and will be given to two additional classes of Biol 1407 students in Spring 2013.

Additional Outcomes As a result of the effectiveness of this laboratory exercise, it was included in the creation of the new Biology 1407 Laboratory Manual custom edition for El Paso Community College (EPCC), currently utilized at the Mission del Paso, Northwest, Rio Grande, and Valle Verde campuses (Salas et al., 2012 and see Appendix B).

References Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychological Bulletin 112(1): 155-159. Kaeb, M., Bruinsma, O., and Leuthold, R.H. (1982). Trail-following in termites: Evidence for a multicomponent system. Journal of Chemical Ecology. 8 (9), 1193-1205. Salas, G., Villarreal, A., Escamilla, R. Pacheco, J., Ochoa, V., Amaya, C. and Lannutti, L. (2012) Biology 1407. General Biology II Lab Manual. El Paso Community College. Hayden-McNeil 2013. Plymouth, MI. Termites Catch the Scent. Carolina Biological Supply. (n.d.) Retrieved March 26, 2013, from http://www.carolina.com/ Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Title 19, Part II
Chapter 112. Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Science (n.d.) Retrieved March 26, 2013, from http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=6148