Abstract
Learning chemistry has been widely reported to present numerous challenges for learners around the world due to the difficulty they experience in visualising phenomena that sometimes happen at a submicroscopic level. Educational policymakers around the world have openly advocated for the use of inquiry-based learning in science education. Inquiry-based science education has been shown to promote the use of instructional strategies aimed at enhancing learners’ problem solving, critical thinking and scientific process skills. However, some of the factors that constrain the implementation of inquiry-based learning in Physical Sciences is the lack of physical resources such as apparatus and chemicals, large classes, and the lack of classroom time. Computer simulations have been shown to provide a viable complement to traditional laboratory investigations, thereby mitigating against the aforementioned challenges to inquiry-based learning. However, the effective use of computer simulations depends on the learner supportive tools and scaffolding provided to learners throughout their learning experience in an inquiry learning environment. At the nexus of this research is the interaction between teacher scaffolding and simulation-embedded scaffolding within a simulated inquiry. In this study, the role and effectiveness of computer-based and teacher scaffolding are compared in promoting Grade 10 learners’ conceptual understanding of chemical and physical change in a simulated inquiry-based learning environment. An explanatory sequential mixed methods research design was adopted in this study and it entails the collection of quantitative and qualitative data. The research sites constituted two schools in Soweto, with each school having a single teacher and two learner participant groups, namely the experimental and control groups. The learners in the experimental group experienced simulated inquiry learning with both teacher and simulation-embedded scaffolding, while the control class learners experienced simulated inquiry with only simulation-embedded scaffolding. Both classes at each school were taught by the same teacher. The findings revealed that although both the experimental and control groups showed an improved conceptual understanding of chemical and physical change owing to the simulated inquiry, the experimental group who experienced both teacher scaffolding and simulation-embedded scaffolding exhibited a greater improvement. An analysis of classroom observation data for the experimental class teachers revealed that they were able to scaffold learners involved
in simulated inquiry by offering instructional support to guide learners through the interaction with the simulation interface. Furthermore, teachers used a variety of scaffolding strategies such as asking probing and clarifying questions to support learners’ conceptual understanding. They also facilitated class discussions on simulation experiences.
Key words: Computer simulation-embedded scaffolding; teacher scaffolding; inquiry- based learning; chemical and physical change; learner conceptual understanding