STEM-BASED INQUIRY MODEL FOR TEACHING THE CONCEPT OF PRESSURE

Source abstract

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a STEM-based inquiry model (STEM-P Inquiry Model) in teaching the “Pressure” unit in 7th-grade physics. The aim of the research is to determine the impact of the proposed model on students’ conceptual understanding of pressure, academic achievement, learning motivation, and inquiry skills. The novelty of the study lies in the development of a structured pedagogical model that integrates STEM and inquiry-based learning approaches specifically for teaching a targeted physical concept, and its experimental validation. The research was conducted using a quasi-experimental design involving 44 students, divided into an experimental group (n = 20) and a control group (n = 24). The experimental group was taught using the STEM-P model, while the control group received traditional instruction. The results showed that the experimental group demonstrated significantly higher academic achievement compared to the control group (p < 0.05), with a large effect size (d = 0.82). In addition, students’ conceptual understanding improved, misconceptions decreased significantly, and both learning motivation and inquiry skills showed notable development. The proportion of misconceptions in the experimental group decreased from 35% to 10%, and 78% of students reached an independent level in performing inquiry tasks. The findings confirm that the STEM-P model is an effective pedagogical tool for teaching complex concepts in physics and can be successfully implemented in school practice to enhance students’ scientific understanding and inquiry competencies. Keywords: physics education, pressure concept, STEM learning, inquiry learning, STEM-P model, learning motivation, inquiry skills.