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Asia-Pacific Forum on Science Learning and Teaching, Volume 17, Issue 2, Article 5 (Dec., 2016) |
The main purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of POGIL on 11th grade students’ misconceptions relating to electrochemistry. Results showed that POGIL resulted in a significantly better acquisition of scientific conceptions than did traditional chemistry teaching with regard to electrochemistry and in changing alternative conceptions. Based on analysis of the results for the first research question, it may be said that POGIL activities were effective in rectifying some of the students’ alternative conceptions relating to electrochemistry. In a review of the relevant literature we did not find many studies on POGIL activities that changed students’ alternative conceptions. The conclusion reached by Barthlow (2011) and Wozniak (2012) that the POGIL method was influential in changing students’ misconceptions at least partially, was parallel to the conclusion reached in this study. A review of in the literature relating to other studies conducted on POGIL showed that students’ achievement levels increased with the use of the POGIL method, and through it they attained permanent and in-depth learning (Brown, 2010; Farrell et al., 1999, Hanson & Wolfskill, 2000, Lewis & Lewis, 2005; Straumanis & Simons, 2008; Vacek, 2011; Vanags et al., 2013). Hein (2012) found that students taught using the POGIL method had better organic chemistry exam results than those who had been taught through traditional teaching methods. The researcher stated that there was a connection between students’ achievement and the method employed. The students in the experimental group said that the learning environment provided by POGIL was better than that provided by the traditional approach. In Campbell’s (2014) study it was found that laboratory activities combined by POGIL were more influential than traditional lab techniques in facilitating students’ concept learning in the biochemistry laboratory. Conversely, some studies in the literature have found that POGIL and traditional teaching raised students’ achievement levels equally (Judd, 2014; Murphy, Picione & Home, 2010). Nevertheless, methods in which the learners are passive usually contribute less to the development of students’ metacognition and critical thinking skills. Learning methods such as POGIL, in which learners are active, ensure that students build and structure their own knowledge and develop their higher order scientific thinking skills and conceptual understanding (Varma-Nelson & Coppola, 2005). Student-centred teaching methods increase students’ academic achievement and facilitate the development of their self-concept and positive attitudes towards a course (Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1998; Stevens & Slavin, 1995).
It is not an easy process for students having alternative conceptions to learn a new concept as adding new knowledge into the existing cognitive structure is. For students, learning with removing of alternative concepts means re-organizing their existing cognitive structure. Conceptual change is a difficult and long process. Therefore, teaching methods to be used should have the properties to eliminate students' alternative conceptions. Since their alternative conceptions were configured through their experiences, it is not usually easy to change those alternative conceptions, and even after formal education those alternative conceptions continue existing in students' cognitive structure. Therefore, teaching methods and techniques should be designed to enable students to focus on their pre-conceptions and to eliminate probable alternative conceptions.
The second purpose of this study was to determine the experimental and control group students’ levels of conceptual understanding in electrochemistry. It was found in this research that the students in the experimental group had fewer alternative conceptions than the students in the control group in terms of electrochemistry. On comparing the experimental and the control group students’ answers to the questions in the ECT post-test, it was found that experimental group students’ proportion of correct answers was higher in all questions (Figure 2). The reason for this is that POGIL ensures students’ in-class participation and thus supports their learning (Brown, 2010; Farrell et al., 1999; Minderhout & Loertscher, 2007; Straumanis & Simons, 2008; Vanags et al., 2013). It is also because POGIL is a method in which cooperative learning and inquiry learning are used in combination. Inquiry-based activities ensure that students structure their new knowledge and test their thoughts, and they also support the students’ formation of evidence-based thoughts and the critical questioning of these thoughts.
Cooperative learning as well as inquiry-based learning plays an important role in POGIL. Students learn more, understand more and remember more in cooperative learning environments. They have more positive opinions about their classmates as a result of working together and develop positive attitudes towards a course and a teacher. Students learning within a group acquire basic processing skills, such as communication, team work, problem solving, and analytical and critical thinking (Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1991). Group members’ knowledge, perceptions, ideas and differences in thought processes lead to disagreements between them. If these conflicts are managed in a constructive way, through social and cooperative skills, such as discussion and inquiry, students can begin to research in order to acquire more information, and consequently restructure their knowledge. At the end of the process, in addition to changing their alternative conceptions, more meaningful learning and knowledge retention will occur. Students will also use more critical thinking and a higher order of thinking skills in this process (Cooper, 2005; Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1991). Cullen and Pentecost (2011) suggest that discussions in small groups and the facilitating role of teachers in the classroom will increase students’ conceptual understanding. The researchers also indicated that students structured their knowledge and changed their misconceptions during their peer-group discussions. Consequently, POGIL yielded more fruitful results than with traditional teaching approaches in changing alternative conceptions. Taking these results into consideration, it may also be used in subjects other than electrochemistry and in courses other than chemistry.
Methods based on the student-centred constructivist approach should be used for students’ meaningful learning and in structuring their own knowledge. The POGIL method, which is used in this study, ensures an activity-based education that enables students to structure their own knowledge. Abraham (2015) states that the POGIL method encourages students to structure their own knowledge. The research also emphasises that guided inquiry activities support understanding based on learning cycles. The critical thinking questions included in POGIL activities help students to formulate the necessary concepts and guide them towards reaching an appropriate conclusion. The questions are simple at first, in order to increase the students’ self-confidence; however, they gradually become more difficult. Difficult questions require higher order thinking and the integration of concepts with more knowledge. At the end of each activity, students assess both the task and their progress (Hanson & Wolfskill, 2000). In this process, students structure their own knowledge and have in-group discussions, so as to rectify their alternative conceptions at the same time.
In the light of these findings, it could be concluded that POGIL has a positive effect on students’ alternative conceptions about electrochemistry. According to analysis of the students' ECT post-test answers, results showed that after the intervention, students in experimental groups had less misconceptions and had gained a more significant improvement than the students in the control group. Because, inquiry activities ensures the physical and mental participation of students in the learning process. Therefore, teachers should favour learning methods that are based on inquiry and for which they will assume responsibility for their students’ learning. A review of the literature demonstrates that there are few studies relating to the effects of POGIL on students’ alternative conceptions. For this reason, it is recommended that research is conducted into the effects of POGIL on changing students’ alternative conceptions about chemistry, as well as in other subjects. This current study was conducted with eleventh graders but the study group could be changed and the effects of POGIL can be analysed using other grade levels. One hundred and fifteen students were included in this study. The size of the sample could be increased and the probable results could be researched.
‡ This study is a part of PhD Thesis entitled "Investigation of Students' Conceptual Understanding of Electrochemistry and Self-Regulated Learning Skills in Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning Environment" (Şen, 2015) completed within Hacettepe University Graduate School of Educational Sciences. This study was supported by Research Fund of Hacettepe University. Project Number: SDK-2015-5443.
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