The Effect of Employing the 5E Inquiry Learning Model on the Learning of Acid and Alkali among Year 3 Malaysian Students

Abstract

This paper aims to gauge the extent to which the 5E Inquiry Learning Model as opposed to the
traditional method is effective in boosting the achievement in science among Year 3 students using the
learning context of acid and alkali. This research utilized the non-randomized pre-post quasi-experimental
intervention design. A total of 65 students -- 33 and 32 in the experimental and control groups respectively -
- from two intact classes of Year 3 in a national school at Kuala Lumpur participated in this study. The
intervention for the experimental group involved the use of the 5E Inquiry Learning Model while the control
group, by contrast, followed through the teacher-centered traditional method. The science achievement for
acid and alkali was gauged using a test that comprises 20 multiple-choice items and 34 structured items that
require only filling in the blanks which are scored dichotomously. The test is suitable for research purposes
as it has sufficient content validity and KR-20 reliability of 0.86. Initial screening of the pretest data shows a
non-significant difference [t(63) = 0.54, p =.59 > .05] between the experimental and control pretest means.
Hence, an independent samples t-test could be used to analyze the posttest means. The finding shows a
significant difference between the experimental and control posttest means [t(63) = 7.86, p =.00 < .001].
This empirical study clearly shows the positive effect of using the 5E Inquiry Learning Model.