Action research through the
trial of appropriate POGIL
activities with selected
secondary science classes.
Terry Wales, St Bede’s College,
Christchurch, New Zealand
(email:twales@stbedes.school.nz)
Abstract
How important is the way science is taught?
Many good students give up or just do not reach
their potential.
It seems often the more the teacher does the less
the students do.
Students do not always develop the understanding
and skills they need to progress.
Are we taking advantage of recent findings in “How
People Learn” and “How the Brain Works”?
Introduction
Teaching science is becoming
more complex
• Science is changing.
• The world is changing.
• We know more about how learning
takes place.
The world is changing.
• From a text-based society to an imagebased society.
• New tools lead to changes in the
curriculum.
• Schools are changing.
• Students are changing.
We know more about how
students learn.
• Individual differences:
– Learning styles
– Cognitive styles
• Student misconceptions &
preconceptions
• Importance of active learning
School Science
(situation at present)
• Students:
– Solve “problems” for which the answers are
already known.
– Report laboratory work by filling in blanks.
– Memorise information.
• School science is not ‘authentic’ science.
• However, inquiry activities are authentic
science.
Criteria for inquiry
• Students must:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
be actively involved in the activity or simulation
formulate questions
make and check predictions
design/carry out investigations
collect, analyze, and explain data
manipulate variables
report results and compare them with accepted
facts
– develop scientific reasoning skills
– be stimulated to learn more
In inquiry learning students
formulate questions.
The Research Literature Shows.
• Good lectures can be an effective means
of instruction for teaching theory and
concepts.
• Problem-solving skills are taught more
effectively in small cooperative groups.
• Practical skills are taught more effectively
in a hands-on laboratory setting.
• Active involvement promotes learning.
Using POGIL
The integration of POGIL strategies into my
science teaching is an attempt to:
• engage students more in their own learning
• make the material more interesting
• help overcome various misconceptions
• take some of the burden off the teacher
POGIL
Process-Oriented Guided
Inquiry Learning
(The active involvement strategy used in this study.)
What is POGIL?
Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning
is a combination of…
Process Oriented
cooperative learning
Conscious commitment to
development of important
process skills
What is POGIL?
Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning
is a combination of…
Process Oriented
Guided Inquiry
cooperative learning
constructivism







Information Processing
Critical Thinking
Problem Solving
Communication
Teamwork
Management
Assessment
Learning Cycle
Activities
What is POGIL?
Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning
is a combination of…
Process Oriented
Guided Inquiry
cooperative learning
constructivism







Information Processing
Critical Thinking
Problem Solving
Communication
Teamwork
Management
Assessment
1
Exploration
2
Concept Invention
3
Application
Information Processing Model
Events
Observations
Instructions
Instructor
P
e
r
c
e
p
t
i
o
n
F
i
l
t
e
r
X
Working
Memory
previous knowledge
preferences
misconceptions
Storing
Long
Term
Retrieving Memory
Students
biases
likes
dislikes
A. H. Johnstone, J. Chem. Educ. 1997, 74, 262.
Gazzaniga et al. Cognitive Neuroscience, 1998.
Guided Inquiry Approach
•
•
•
•
Students work in groups
Students construct knowledge
Activities use Learning Cycle paradigm
Students teach/discuss/learn from
students
• Instructors facilitate learning
Typical POGIL activity (Y12)
http://www.pogil.org
CHARACTERISTICS OF
POGIL MATERIALS
• Designed for use with self-managed teams that
employ the instructor as a facilitator of learning rather
than as a source of information
• Guide students through an exploration to construct
understanding
• Use discipline content to facilitate the development of
higher order thinking skills
N.B.
• Due to the earthquakes in Christchurch over
2010/2011, the number of Pogil Lessons that
were trialed was less than had originally been
planned.
• The amount of feedback and subsequent analysis
was also less, due to time constraints.
• However, sufficient lessons were still trialed at
different Year levels, to get a good idea of their
effectiveness in the New Zealand classroom.
POGIL Students
• Are actively engaged and thinking in
class.
• Learn how science is done by analyzing
data and drawing conclusions.
• Work together in self-managed teams to
understand concepts and solve
problems.
Analysis of Student Outcomes
What is “success”?
Measures of success include:
• Increased student satisfaction.
• Fewer misconceptions.
• More students continuing in the course sequences.
• More M and E grades (for exam classes).
• Fewer N grades and withdrawals (for exam classes).
• Less voids in examinations.
How did my students react to
the active working groups?
• Did students believe that cooperative
groups helped them learn? (1 – 5)
• Did students prefer group work or
lectures alone? (1 – 5)
(N = 98)
Group work helped me to
understand science better.
Groups helped me develop
problem-solving strategies.
I would pick a class with group
work over one without.
POGIL activities used
• Year 10: Classification of Matter pdf
• Year 11: Chemical Formulas and Names of Ionic Compounds pdf
• Year 12: Inside the Atom pdf
Types of Solid pdf
Empirical Formula and Molecular Formula
Molarity pdf
• Year 13: Electron Configurations pdf
Trends in the Periodic Table pdf
Intermolecular Forces and Strengths pdf
Bond Enthalpies pdf
pdf
POGIL activity survey
2010 - 2011
• Was it a good inquiry-based activity?
• Was content learned from the activity?
• Was it an enjoyable activity?
Was it a good inquiry-based activity? (1-10)
Was content learned from the activity? (1-10)
Some student comments about
the materials
• I thought it was interesting learning science
this way because it is not something I have
done in any other science class.
• In all of my other science classes we only
talked about the concepts, so here I learned
what else was going on when the concept
took place.
• It was somewhat interesting, but I liked the
hands-on activities a lot more and learned a
lot more.
My comments on one activity:
Structure of an atom
• I used this activity with my Year 12 class. The students were highly
engaged with the topic. I always use the role cards, but I used two
readers instead of one since the technician role wasn’t needed.
• I reminded them that every student had to record their answers
(Teenagers can do a lot with any down time!). To reinforce this I let
the groups understand that only one set of answers was to be
graded and the same grade awarded to each group member. I also
made it clear this was going to be a random choice.
• The students were challenged by the ion material. This was a good
thing because it really made them inspect details closely. Next time,
I may save the ion section for the next session.
• I did provide them with periodic tables and that worked well.
Where to from here?
• The activities need to be revisited and modified in the
light of the findings. Also, they will be given more of a
New Zealand flavour.
• These activities will be made available to other
teachers and other schools.
• Other suitable activities will be trialed by myself and
other teachers at the school and added to this
resource.
• The results for examination classes will be compared
to historical values to see if there is improvement.
• The report/resource must be submitted
electronically to:
teacher.studyawards@minedu.govt.nz
• It is preferable that the report is also added
to the recipient school’s website and a link
be submitted to the teacher study awards
administrator.