Abstract
Collaborative-metacognitive use of science literature teaching approach (CMSLTA) refers to a researcher-made teaching approach from the Philippines that comprises four components, namely (a) formation of groups with three to four members who have varied reading comprehension ability and assigned rotating roles; (b) use of Scientific Method Learning Plan; (c) reading a science literature including a comic strip, song, parable, poem, infographic, and short story; and (d) answering collaborative-metacognitive prompts in the learning journal. There are separate research studies on the use of science literature and collaborative metacognition in instruction. However, there is a dearth of studies combining the two teaching approaches. In this light, this research examined the effects of CMSLTA on grade 2 students’ concept understanding of plants and animals. A two-group pretest–posttest quasi-experimental design was employed on 74 grade 2 students aged six to eight. One group was exposed to CMSLTA while the other group was exposed to the conventional teaching approach (CTA). Findings revealed that CMSLTA significantly improved students’ concept understanding. Remarkably, this research aids educators in providing students with early exposure to science and understanding science concepts through the combined use of science literature and collaborative metacognition as a teaching approach.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Akpan, B., & Kennedy, T. J. (2020). Science education in theory and practice. Springer Texts in Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43620-9.
Broström, S. (2015). Science in early childhood education. Journal of Education and Human Development, 42(1), 107–124. https://doi.org/10.15640/jehd.v4n2_1a12
Carpendale, J I M., & Lewis, C. (2004). Constructing an understanding of mind: The development of children’s social understanding within social interaction. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 27(01). https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X04000032
Cubillo, S., & Alcántara-Manzanares, J. (2017). Storytelling as a tool for science teaching in bilingual primary education. Enseñanza de las ciencias (10th International Congress on Research in Didactical Science), 5085–5090.
Dahlstrom, M. F. (2014). Using narratives and storytelling to communicate science with nonexpert audiences. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(4), 13614–13620. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1320645111
Department of Education. (2006). Revised policies on voluntary accreditation for elementary and secondary private schools in aid of quality and excellence for basic education. Retrieved August 22, 2021, from https://www.deped.gov.ph/2006/07/31/do-32-s-2006-revised-policies-on-voluntary-accreditation-for-elementary-and-secondary-private-schools-in-aid-of-quality-and-excellence-for-basic-education
Ediger, M. (2010). Children's literature and the science curriculum. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 37(2), 117. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A231807631/HRCA?u=anon~7fdcd5e2&sid=googleScholar&xid=f1554cde
Entwistle, N J., & Tait, H. (1993). Approaches to studying and preferences for teaching in higher education: Implications for student ratings [Paper Presentation]. AERA Annual Meeting, Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Retrieved November 10, 2021, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED359206.pdf
Erlingsson, C., & Brysiewicz, P. (2017). A hands-on guide to doing content analysis. African Journal of Emergency Medicine, 7(3), 93–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.afjem.2017.08.001
Gabel, D. (2003). Enhancing the conceptual understanding of science. Educational Horizons, 81(2), 70–76.
Geurten, M., & Willems, S. (2016). Metacognition in early childhood: Fertile ground to understand memory development? Child Development Perspectives, 10(4), 263–268. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12201
Good News Bible (Catholic Ed.). (1992). The parable of the sower. American Bible Society.
Harlen, W., & Qualter, A. (2018). The teaching of science in primary schools (7th ed.). David Fulton Publishers.
Harlen, W. (2005). Teaching, learning and assessing science 5 – 12 (4th ed.). Sage.
Havu-Nuutinen, S., Kewalramani, S., & Veresov, N. (2021). Understanding early childhood science education: Comparative analysis of Australian and Finnish curricula. Research in Science Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-020-09980-4
Heinimäki, O., Volet, S., & Vauras, M. (2020). Core and activity-specific functional participatory roles in collaborative science learning. Frontline Learning Research, 8(2), 65–89. https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v8i2.469
Hong, H., & Lin, P. (2019). Elementary students enhancing their understanding of energy-saving through idea-centered collaborative knowledge-building scaffolds and activities. Educational Technology Research and Development, 67(1), 63–83. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-018-9606-x
Jordan, R. (n.d.). Life of a plant. Retrieved March 13, 2018 from https://poetryfilesls.weebly.com/uploads/1/4/1/6/14161835/life_of_a_plant.pdf
Koutníková, M. (2017). The application of comics in science education. Acta Educationis Generalis, 7(3), 88–97. https://doi.org/10.1515/atd-2017-0026
Laal, M., & Ghodsi, S. M. (2012). Benefits of collaborative learning. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 31, 486–490. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.12.091
Lai, E. (2011). Metacognition: A literature review. Pearson. Retrieved August 18, 2021, from http://images.pearsonassessments.com/images/tmrs/metacognition_literature_review_final.pdf
Leow, C. (2015). Science bites lower block. Educational Publishing House.
Marulis, L., Baker, S., & Whitebread, D. (2020). Integrating metacognition and executive function to enhance young children’s perception of and agency in their learning. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 50(2), 46–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.12.017
Matamit, H. N., Roslan, R., Shahrill, M., & Said, H. M. (2020). Teaching challenges on the use of storytelling in elementary science lessons. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education (IJERE), 9(3), 716. https://doi.org/10.11591/ijere.v9i3.20596
McLean, K., Jones, M., & Schaper, C. (2015). Children’s literature as an invitation to science inquiry in early childhood education. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 40(4), 49–56. https://doi.org/10.1177/183693911504000407
Musa, A., Shaheen, S., Elmardi, A., & Ahmed, A. (2018). Item difficulty and item discrimination as quality indicators of physiology MCQ examinations at the faculty of medicine Khartoum University. Khartoum Medical Journal, 11(2), 1477–1486.
Mutonyi, H. (2015). Stories, proverbs, and anecdotes as scaffolds for learning science concepts. Journal of Research in Science Teaching (pp. 1–29). https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21255
National Research Council. (2007). Taking science to school: Learning and teaching science in grades K-8. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/11625
Nokes-Malach, T. J., Richey, J. E., & Gadgil, S. (2015). When is it better to learn together? Insights from research on collaborative learning. Educational Psychology Review, 27, 645–656. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-015-9312-8
OECD. (2018). Results from PISA 2018. Retrieved August 22, 2021, from https://www.oecd.org/pisa/publications/PISA2018_CN_PHL.pdf
Parker, D.H., & Scannell, G. (1995). SRA Reading Laboratory 1b Starter Booklet. Science Research Associates, Inc.
Pritchard, A., & Woollard, J. (2010). Psychology for the classroom: Constructivism and social learning. Taylor & Francis Group.
Reichardt, C. (2019). Quasi-experimentation: A guide to design and analysis. The Guilford Press.
Rillero, P. (2016). Deep conceptual learning in science and mathematics: Perspectives of teachers and administrators. Electronic Journal of Science Education, 20(2), 14–31.
Rowe, D. W. (1989). Preschoolers’ use of metacognitive knowledge and strategies in self-selected literacy events [Conference Paper]. National Reading Conference Yearbook, 38, 65–76 (1989). Retrieved October 28, 2021, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED313664.pdf#page=80
Sackes, M., Trundle, K. C., & Flevares, L. M. (2009). Using children’s literature to teach standard-based science concepts in early years. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36, 415–422. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-009-0304-5
Schneider, W., & Löffler, E. (2016). The development of metacognitive knowledge in children and adolescents. Oxford University Press.
Simpson, A. (2020). On the misinterpretation of effect size. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 103, 125–133. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-019-09924-4
Smith, L. K., & Gess-Newsome, J. (2004). Elementary science methods courses and the national science education standards: Are we adequately preparing teachers? Journal of Science Teacher Education, 15(2), 91–110. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JSTE.0000044867.21773.7c
Tanner, K. (2017). Promoting student metacognition. Life Sciences. Education, 11(2), 113–120. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.12-03-0033
Thomas, G. (2016). Metacognition in science education: Considering cultural and contextual orientations. Alberta Science Education Journal, 44(2), 4–15.
TIMSS. (2019). International results in mathematics and science. Retrieved August 22, 2021, from https://timssandpirls.bc.edu/timss2019/international-results/
Trilling, B., & Fadel, C. (2009). 21st century skills: Learning for life in our times. John Wiley & Sons.
Wilson, D., & Conyers, M. (2016). Teaching students to drive their brains: Metacognitive strategies, activities, and lesson ideas. Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development.
Zhang, L., & Van Reet, J. (2021). How is “knowledge” constructed during science activities? Detaching instructional effects of “playing” and “telling” to optimize integration of scientific investigations. Research in Science Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-021-09990-w
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Daloos, M.A.S., Paderna, E.E.S. Enhancing Students’ Concept Understanding Through Collaborative-Metacognitive Use of Science Literature. Res Sci Educ 53, 81–97 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-022-10049-7
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-022-10049-7