Enhancing biology conceptual understanding through guided inquiry laboratory activities

Abstract

The study investigated the impact of guided inquiry-based laboratory experiments enriched instructional (GIBLEI) approach on conceptual understanding of tenth grade students in biology. The study included two purposively chosen schools and used a quasi-experimental design with non-equivalent groups. A class was randomly assigned as the experimental group (EG) and the other as the control group (CG). Over an eight-week period, the EG received instruction through the GIBLEI approach, while the CG followed traditional laboratory experiments. Statistical analyses, including Welch’s t-test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), showed a significant improvement in post-test scores for the EG, demonstrating the effectiveness of GIBLEI. Furthermore, the Wilcoxon signed-rank test indicated a notable increase in understanding between the pre-test and post-test in the EG. The results of an independent samples t-test also showed no significant difference in performance between male and female students in the EG. This suggests that the instructional approach used in the study is equally effective for both genders, promoting an inclusive learning environment. These findings suggest that GIBLEI can significantly improve students’ understanding of biology concepts. Therefore, incorporating this approach into biology curricula may help enhance overall learning outcomes.