Enhancing Laboratory Performance and Scientific Attitudes of General Botany Students Through Inquiry-Oriented Laboratory Activities

Abstract

The study determined the General Botany students’ laboratory performance using inquiry-oriented laboratory activities and traditional laboratory activities in terms of acquired laboratory skills and scientific attitudes. It also determined the student factors (specifically gender, high school science rating, and laboratory-related personal traits) related to laboratory performance and selected scientific attitudes.

The study sample consisted of 36 General Botany students of the University of Nueva Caceres, divided into 18 students for the experimental group and 18 students for the control group. A pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was employed to determine the laboratory performance of the experimental and control groups. A laboratory manual on inquiry-oriented laboratory activities developed and used by the experimental group while the control group used the traditional laboratory activities. A 150 points practical test was administered before and after the treatment to assess 12 laboratory skills. A scientific attitudes inventory was constructed and administered to the two groups and before and after the treatment. A laboratory-related personal traits inventory was also constructed and administered to the two groups only before the treatment. Gender and high school science ratings of the respondents were also investigated if related to the laboratory performance and scientific attitudes of the respondents.