Can an inquiry approach impact high school students commitment to science?
Shirk, Jennifer*,1, Krasny, Marianne1, Trautmann, Nancy1, Avery, Leanne1, 1 Cornell University, Ithaca, New York ABSTRACT- Whereas national science education standards call for more inquiry learning in K-12 classrooms, definitions of inquiry vary widely and a need exists to evaluate various methods for engaging students in this style of learning. One inquiry approach engages students in conducting authentic research. We undertook a study to determine whether students offered the opportunity to define their own authentic research questions would be more committed to their research project than students presented with a question to investigate. Additionally, we were interested in whether resulting levels of commitment would affect how students approached project data collection and associated schoolwork, as well as the students’ attitude towards science. This study was conducted in two alternative high school settings, where students undertook research projects with the guidance of their
