Teachers’ training about biology drawings can increase primary girls’ interest in science

Discovery learning or similar active approaches to science instruction can be effective but also challenging for school students without the knowledge to manage the choices in these approaches. Research in cognitive load theory generally demonstrates that the most effective strategy is to start with explicit guidance by the teacher, and gradually incorporate inquiry elements for students to conduct. Teachers with more experience in this type of guided inquiry can be more effective in teaching under this approach. Here, we compare teacher effectiveness between experienced and inexperienced teachers in one guided inquiry method. To investigate the effectiveness of the guided inquiry strategy in the biology classroom, we selected a challenging topic, namely, the skeletal system. In a quasi-experiment involving 128 fourth-grade students, we investigated the effects of five sessions on drawing quality, achievement test scores, and interest in science. We also compared female students versus male students. Results showed that the learning sessions could increase students’ drawing quality in anatomy for both genders. Although this effect was not observed on the achievement test, it influenced female students’ interest in science. Thus, the intervention shows some potential, particularly for female students, to increase their biology drawings and their interest in science.