DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION IN INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING TO ASSESS SCIENCE PROCESS SKILLS

Abstract

Inquiry-based learning has been widely applied in science education to improve students' Science Process Skills (SPS). Since not all students learn at the same pace or in the same way, Differentiated Instruction (DI) is essential to ensure that all students can access and benefit from inquiry-based science education. Therefore, this paper presented an in-subject study that explores science process skills in a differentiated inquiry instruction setting. The study was conducted in an Indonesian secondary school for grade 10. Students were divided into three groups based on learning readiness. Students then studied electrolyte and non-electrolyte solutions with differentiated inquiry instructions. Data were collected through observations & worksheet assessment. The results showed that most of the students' SPS profiles were nearing mastery level, with the highest average SPS score achieved by the group with high learning readiness, while the lower learning readiness achieved the lowest average. This research contributes new knowledge to understand DI in inquiry-based learning better, resulting in meaningful implications on pedagogy and assessment in the field of SPS.