Reading Versus Doing: The Relative Effects of Textbook-Based and Inquiry-Oriented Approaches to Science Learning in Special Education Classrooms

Students with learning disabilities in four special education classrooms studied two science units (magnetism and electricity, and rocks and minerals) via either an activity-based, inquiry-oriented approach or a textbook approach. The investigation was conducted over a 2-week period and employed a counterbalanced, withinsubjects design, in which all students received both treatments. Students performed significantly higher on immediate and delayed unit tests when they had learned by the inquiry-oriented approach, although vocabulary acquisition was limited in both conditions. Additionally, students reported overwhelming preference for activity-based learning over textbook approaches. Implications for special education are discussed.