Abstract
The aim of this study is to explore children’s inquiry skills. Twenty children from a selected preschool in Penang were involved in this study. This study adapted the qualitative research approach using videotape observation. In this study, children were asked to develop a solar cooker by using a pizza box and bake biscuits. All instruction was given by a facilitator and preschool teacher. The data were analysed by using a rubric – Skills Required for Success in Inquiry (SRSI): classroom behaviour skills, social skills and group co** skills. For the classroom behaviour, the findings showed that preschoolers were actively involved, listened carefully to the instruction and were very excited in handling the hands-on activity. They also completed the task at acceptable level. However, they did not follow the classroom rules, make noise and did not complete the task on time. For the social skills, findings showed that they interacted appropriately among them, had good skills in conversation and showed a friendly attitude. Unfortunately, they did not think before acting due to their high excitement to do the activity. While for the group co** skills, preschoolers worked cooperatively in a group, contributed to group work and negotiated and compromised. However, they did not listen to others, did not accept criticism and had difficulty in expressing their opinion. Those findings indicate that preschoolers still need guidance to develop their inquiry skills. Thus, teachers played an important role in integrating inquiry skills in the classroom.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
AGPA. (2012). Inquiry approach. Best teaching practice. P-16 Science education. University of Akron. http://apga.uakron.edu/p16
Northwest Regional Educational Lab (NWREL). (2003). Science inquiry model. http://www.theaps.org/education/
The Access Center. (2008). Improving outcome for all students K-8: Science inquiry: The link to assessing the general education curriculum. http://www.k8accesscenter.org/…/ScienceInquiry
Harlen, W. (2000). The teaching of science in primary schools (3rd ed.). London: David Fulton Publishers.
Bransford, J., & Donovan, M. S. (2005). Scientific inquiry and how people learn. In M. S. Donovan & J. Bransford (Eds.), How students learn: Science in the classroom (pp. 397–419). Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
Kishore, L. (2006).Inquiry skills. Internet teaching/learning. Resource Center for Education. http://www.itlrc.com.
Humprey, G. (1995, March/April 13). Inquiry based science: What does it look like? Connect Magazine, 8(58), http://www.exploratorium.edu/ifi/resources/
Community Resources for Science. (2008). Strategies to promote inquiry skills. http://www.crscience.org
Nayfeld, I., Brenneman, K., & Gelman, R. (2011). Science in the classroom: Finding a balance between autonomous exploration and teacher-led instruction in preschool settings. Early Education and Development, 22(6), 970–988.
Brenneman, K. (2010, July). Planned exploration and spontaneous discoveries: Supporting scientific inquiry preschool. Paper presented at DLM Summer Institution. http://nieer.org/publication/presentation/
McMahon, M. (1997, December). Social constructivism and the world wide web – A paradigm for learning. Paper presented at the ASCILITE conference, Perth.
Colburn, A. (2000). An inquiry primer. Science Scope, 23(6), 42–44.
Reyes, C. Y. (2011). What are co** skills? Part two: Social skills training and assertiveness. The Psycho-educational Teacher
Forman, S. G. (1993). Co** skills interventions for children and adolescents. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Maroney, S. A., Finson, K. D., Beaver, J. B., & Jensen, M. M. (2003, Sept/Oct). Prepared for successful inquiry in inclusive science classroom. Teaching Exceptional Children, 18–25.
Crosser, S. (2007). Enhancing the language development of young children. Early Childhood News. http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article
Santrock, J. W. (2004). Life-span development (9th ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill College.
Hashimah, M.Y., Nooraida Y., & Nor Hashimah, H. (2009). Science inquiry and language development for year 1 science. Pulau Pinang: Monograph, BERU Publication, USM.
Tu, T. H. (2006). Preschool science environment: What is available in a preschool classroom? Journal of Early Childhood Education, 33(4), 245–251.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore
About this paper
Cite this paper
Yunus, H.M., Yakob, N. (2014). Solar Cooking Activity for Preschoolers in Develo** Inquiry Skills. In: Kasim, A., Wan Omar, W., Abdul Razak, N., Wahidah Musa, N., Ab. Halim, R., Mohamed, S. (eds) Proceedings of the International Conference on Science, Technology and Social Sciences (ICSTSS) 2012. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-077-3_35
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-077-3_35
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-287-076-6
Online ISBN: 978-981-287-077-3
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawSocial Sciences (R0)