The guided inquiry technique is a teaching approach in which the main material of what must be learned is not offered to the students but must be discovered by them. Science teachers have been noted to play an essential role in the implementation of the guided inquiry technique, which faces numerous challenges, particularly during the implementation process. In a research with thermodynamics teachers, Cheung (2007) enumerated some of the problems commonly encountered during the application of the guided inquiry technique. They include: overcrowding, insufficient time, a scarcity of effective research materials, instructor beliefs, pedagogical issues, management issues, security concerns, a scarcity of teaching materials, fear of assessment, fear of pushing pupils to misunderstand, student complaints, and so on.
Furthermore, Cheung (2007) believes that directed inquiry is an approach to inquiry. On the other hand, the teacher offers students with illustrative materials to study independently. The teacher will then offer leading questions to encourage students to think and come to conclusions using scientific techniques.
The researcher hopes that activity-based science will allow students to explore the surroundings and learn about nature. It’s important to remember that as the teacher adopts the guided inquiry technique, students will be expected to engage in mental processes including observing, classifying, measuring, anticipating, inferring, and hypothesizing. According to Etuk, a lot of inquiry takes place in the laboratory, with the instructor functioning as an organizer, facilitator, and motivator, moving from one point to another to lead students’ learning and help them avoid problems (2004). As a result of this, the
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The instructor serves as a resource person, directing students to knowledge sources. The method’s most important aspect is that it allows both teachers and students to be researchers, idea propagators, and problem solvers. Furthermore, it has a good impact on students’ academic progress by encouraging them to take initiative, deepen their understanding, improve their research abilities, and comprehend the nature of science (Wallace and Kang, 2004, Blonder, Naaman & Hofstein, 2008).
Demonstration as a teaching approach is a link between explanation and practice in which the teacher performs an experimental activity in a working thermodynamics laboratory while the students observe (Blair, Schwartz, Biswas & Lealawong, 2007). The teacher illustrates a method, providing clarifications as needed, and the students then observe. When used correctly, demonstration approaches reveal to pupils their misconceptions and lead to conceptual change. This is consistent with Ryan, Reid, and Epstein’s findings (2006).
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