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JPPIPA 8(3) (2022)
Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan IPA
Journal of Research in Science Education
http://jppipa.unram.ac.id/index.php/jppipa/index
___________
* Corresponding Author: Lindakusumawati26@gmail.com
Copyright © 2022, Author et al.
This open access article is distributed under a (CC-BY License)
Effectiveness of Learning using Web-Based Inquiry Based on
Socioscientific Issues to improve students' understanding of
Socioscientific Issues
Linda Kusumawati1*, Diana Rochintaniawati2, Riandi3
1 Master of Science Education Study Program, Graduate School of the Indonesian University of Education, Bandung, Indonesia
2 International Program on Science Education, Indonesian University of Education, Bandung, Indonesia
3 Department of Biology Education, Indonesian University of Education, Bandung, Indonesia
DOI: 10.29303/jppipa.v8i3.1734
Article Info
Received: June 8, 2022
Revised: July 1, 2022
Accepted: July 28, 2022
Published: July 31, 2022
Abstract: The era of 21st-century learning requires students to have various abilities to
overcome the complexities of society modern. This creates a breakthrough in learning by
implementing an inquiry approach using a web-based socio scientific issue. Learning supported
by the use of web-based inquiry can be accessed and implemented online and offline so that
learning can become blended learning. The socio scientific issue raised in this study because to
determine the level of students' knowledge of the problems in their environment. Samples that
were used in this study were 32 junior high school students who were selected by random
sampling technique in class. The research method used is a time series design where the pretest
and posttest are carried out twice on different materials, namely water pollution and air
pollution. Data analysis using normalized gain to determine the effectiveness of the use of web-
based inquiry based on socio scientific issues. Based on this research, the average value of the
first pretest is 17.53 and the posttest has increased to 26.78 so that the normalized gain value is
0.41 with the following criteria: currently. In the second pretest, the average score of students
is 19 with the post-test average being 39.94 so the normalized gain obtained is 0.57 with
moderate value criteria. The aspect of the value of socio scientific ability is also an issue
measured by the results. In the first pretest and posttest with the topic of water pollution, aspects
of evaluating information experienced an increase with a normalized gain value of 0.44 with
moderate criteria, and the pretest and posttest values of the aspects of making decisions also
increased with a normalized gain value of 0.39 with moderate criteria. On the pretest and the
second post-test with the topic of air pollution aspects of evaluating issues have increased with
a gain value Normalized value is 0.54 with moderate criteria, and for the aspect of making
decisions to increase the normalized gain is 0.59 with moderate criteria.
Keywords: Web-based; Inquiry; Socio scientific issue; Environmental pollution
Citation:
Kusumawati, L., Rochintaniawati, D., & Riandi, R. (2022). Effectiveness of Learning using Web-Based Inquiry Based
on Socioscientific Issues to improve students’ understanding of Socioscientific Issues. Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan
IPA, 8(3), 1569–1574. https://doi.org/10.29303/jppipa.v8i3.1734
Introduction
The 21st-century era makes developments in the
world of education occur quickly and complexly, to
prepare students to face the complex demands of
modern society (Pratiwi et al., 2019; Haug et al., 2021).
The challenge was responded to by presenting a new
paradigm in the world of education in Indonesia,
namely by providing a set of 21st-century skills
consisting of critical thinking skills, collaboration skills,
creativity, innovation, metacognition, information
literacy, ICT, and problem-solving (Haug et al., 2021; Lee
et al., 2017; Sumardi, 2020; Chan et al., 2020). In the 21st
century, students are increasingly relying on the internet
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as a source of information, but this does not guarantee
that students have the skills to conduct research or
obtain strategic, structured, and complete information
according to their needs. This happens because in the
internet world there is so much information available,
making it difficult for students to get the right
information. Therefore, students must be trained to
select relevant information so as not to spend hours
navigating between websites (Downes, 2007; Maveidis
et al, 2017).
One of the goals of learning science is that students
can build a perspective on nature and solve all problems
in the surrounding environment scientifically, so it is
very important to show students' closeness to the
environment in which they live (Yuzuak & Zahni, 2022).
One of the topics that are being intensively integrated
into science learning is the socio-scientific issue (SSI).
Socio science is a complex, contemporary science issue,
usually ill-structured, related to social aspects that are
often debated, and has no absolute solution (Christenson
& Gericke, 2016). This is due to the complex nature of
socio scientific issues and involves multiple perspectives
and values (H. Lee & Zeidler, 2014). socio-scientific
contexts can be adopted for science learning because
they are effective for learning science knowledge, and
skills and train students to find scientific evidence so
that the learning carried out is more meaningful because
the context discussed is associated with students' lives
(Gulacar et al., 2020; Anagün & Özden, 2010). This
socioscientific issue can facilitate students to actively
find alternative solutions to a problem circulating in the
community (Herawati et al., 2019).
One of the recommended learning approaches in
this decade is inquiry because it is an efficient approach
to foster student curiosity and motivation by connecting
science learning in the school environment and its
relation to life phenomena that students encounter every
day (Suarez et al., 2018). Inquiry is also able to help
students to master a certain skill in the cognitive process.
This happens because in inquiry learning students gain
knowledge personally and it settles in their minds and
thoughts (Farida, 2019). However, science learning
using inquiry can only be successful if the context
discussed in the learning is following the student's
capacity (Erman & Sari, 2019). Based on research
conducted by (Rahmawati et al, 2022) revealed that
inquiry learning without socios cientific discussion of
issues makes it difficult for students to maintain their
interest in learning, it is difficult for students to move
forward to do deep thinking, and makes learning not
run optimally.
Inquiry learning can be integrated with technology
because in online learning students can maximize
independently to conduct experiments, control
variables, and make plans to find scientific concepts
(Hong et al., 2019). Many studies have shown that
learning in an online environment assisted by
technology can increase activity, interest, and
motivation in students (Moreno & Bartolomo, 2021).
Inquiry learning often requires searching for
information through the internet such as collecting
background information, and further understanding a
topic, so that research via the internet can also be
understood as a practice using the world wide web, as a
way of collecting information (Muralidharan et al.,
2018).
The web has a function to minimize authentic direct
inquiry activities because not all students can carry out
relevant activities according to the instructions in
inquiry (Wolf et al., 2002). Learning using web-based
inquiry can be used as collaborative and effective
learning. This web-based also provides an advantage in
terms of implementation time which can provide space
for students to develop confidence and skills to learn
science (Raes et al., 2014). Based on research conducted
by Ulus & Oner (2020), shows that learning using a
collaborative web-based inquiry science environment
(CWISE) can effectively increase student inquiry
activities, as well as research conducted by Chen, and
Wang, (2020) shows that learning using a web-based
inquiry science environment (WISE) can increase
students' knowledge in inquiry.
To support learning to run well it needs to be
facilitated by instructional design, material content,
practical media based on socio scientific issues, and
good mastery of the material by the teacher. Developing
web-based content with a socio-scientific context of
issues will give a new color to learning using the web
because the prepared material has been adapted to
contextual problems. The current web has also been
easily designed and equipped with various additional
features such as the addition of e-books or virtual
laboratories to support learning. Based on this, the
purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness
of using web-based inquiry based on socio scientific
issues to increase students' understanding of students'
socio scientific.
Method
This research uses time series design research using
one experimental class group without using a
comparison group. The design of this study is divided
into time segmentation to know the progress of student
learning in the hope that there will be major changes
every time (Zhang et al., 2022). This was done to see an
increase in understanding related to socio scientific
issues with a focus on only one class. This research was
conducted in one of the junior high schools in
Purwodadi District, Pasuruan Regency, East Java
Province. The sample used was selected by the random
sampling method in the class, where in this technique all
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members of the population have the same opportunity
and are free to be selected as samples (Sukmadinata,
2013). This technique is done by choosing one class from
several 7th grades in the school without having to
choose students from each class as a sample because
each class has the same or homogeneous abilities. The
sample used was class 7C even semester with a total of
32 students.
In this study, students measure students'
understanding of socio scientific issues by using pretest
and posttest questions for two tests, on different topics.
The first pretest and posttest are related to the issue of
water pollution, while the second pretest and posttest
are related to the issue of air pollution. The instruments
used in this study had already gone through the content
and empirical validation stages as well as through
reliability testing. The purpose of the validity test is to
measure the accuracy of the instrument to be able to
measure what it should measure (Frankel & Wallen,
2012). Meanwhile, reliability aims to measure the
consistency or consistency of the instrument.
In the first research stage, the first step was to
measure the students' initial abilities by using the pretest
questions about water pollution. After that, students
carry out learning activities using an inquiry approach.
In inquiry learning students are given stimulus
information in the form of reading on a web-based
inquiry on eutrophication events due to agricultural
waste, then students are invited to formulate
hypotheses, design experiments, and analyze data to
make conclusions according to the stages of inquiry
learning. However, in the section making conclusions,
students need to examine more deeply the causes, and
effects and provide solutions to a socioscientific event on
the issue. After the learning phase is complete, students
are given a posttest according to the material discussed.
This applies to the next meeting on air pollution material
with the context of motor vehicle pollution in the
surrounding environment.
Based on this method, the data will be analyzed
using normalized gain to determine the effectiveness of
the learning that has been carried out on students'
understanding of socioscientific issues.
Result and Discussion
Socio scientific issues are issues raised by inquiry
learning using web-based this time. The web-based
inquiry used in this study had previously gone through
the validation stage and a limited-scale trial with very
feasible results. The use of web-based inquiry is an effort
to create learning using interactive media that can
facilitate structured learning steps so that the objectives
of learning can be achieved and students can actively
interact with their friends and interact with digital
content independently (Mah et al, 2021).
In this research, the web-based inquiry used is one
of the learning facilities that can be integrated with
various types of contexts or materials, one example is the
socio-scientific issue of environmental pollution.
Learning steps on socio scientific issues according
to (Yuliastini et al., 2016) include (1) scientific
background (presenting issues related to scientific
knowledge); (2) evaluation of information (evaluating
the socio-science issues being studied); (3) local,
national, and global dimensions (assessing local,
national, and global impacts); and (4) decision making
(making decisions related to socio-science issues). Based
on these steps, the researcher took several learning steps
as an aspect of inquiry assessment, namely the aspect of
evaluating the issue being studied in this case students
were asked to find out the causes and impacts on the
occurrence of socio scientific issues. The second aspect is
making decisions related to socio scientific issues.
Socio scientific issues are problems that develop in
society and can be reviewed scientifically. In this study,
the socio-scientific issue raised was environmental
pollution because the problem of pollution is very close
to students' lives (Gulacar et al., 2020). In this activity,
there are two issues raised, namely about the
eutrophication event due to agricultural waste and the
second is air pollution due to motor vehicle pollution.
This study used a pretest and posttest with a total of
three essay questions that were valid and reliable before
being used as a research instrument.
Figure 1. Increase in the average value of socioscientific issues
On the data above the average score of students during
learning using SSI-based web-based inquiry increased in
each segmentation of the test time on different materials.
The average value of the first pretest was 17.53 and the
posttest increased to 26.78 so the normalized gain value
was 0.41 with moderate criteria. In the second pretest,
the average value of the students is 19 with the post-test
average of 39.94 so the normalized gain value obtained
is 0.57 with a moderate value criterion.
17.53
26.78
19
30.94
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Pretest Posttest Pretest Posttest
Water Polution Air Polution
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July 2022, Volume 8, Issue 3, 1569-1574
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Figure 2. Increasing the value of socioscientific aspects of
issues
Based on the above values, there is an average
increase in value Each aspect is divided into two aspects.
In the first pretest and post-test with the topic of water
pollution, the aspect of evaluating information has
increased with a normalized gain value of 0.44 with
moderate criteria, and the pretest and post-test values
for the aspect of making decisions also increased with a
normalized gain value of 0.39 with moderate criteria. In
the second pretest and posttest with the topic of air
pollution, the aspect of evaluating issues has increased
with the normalized gain value being 0.54 with
moderate criteria, and for the aspect of making
decisions, the normalized gain increase is 0.59 with
moderate criteria.
In the graph, it can also be seen that the pretest and
posttest scores on air pollution for both aspects are
higher than the first pretest and posttest on water
pollution. This happens because students are getting
used to learning using web-based inquiry based on socio
scientific issues so it makes student learning outcomes
increase. The habit of using web-based inquiry is an
effect or result of a treatment action that results in the
achievement of goals following the planned
instructional objectives (Lumban & Sitepu, 2020).
Learning using SSI-based web-based inquiry is also
one of the new media-assisted approaches that have
never been used by students so during learning students
become enthusiastic and actively participate in learning
because this learning involves group and independent
activities both in online and offline environments. This
kind of learning tends to be more attractive to students
because it makes students challenged to try new things
and discuss topics that are close to students' lives
(Bulkani et al., 2022).
The difference in the material raised in the study by
taking data twice aims to see the consistency of student
learning outcomes because a concept can be learned by
students if the student can maintain his learning
outcomes. These different topics are given with the aim
that students get used to constructing knowledge and
can see the effectiveness of web-based inquiry used
during learning on different topics (Elwijaya et al., 2022;
Lubiano & Magapenty, 2021).
Conclusion
This study concludes that learning using web-
based inquiry can improve student learning outcomes,
and increase student activity during learning. The
context of the socioscientific issue raised is
environmental pollution because of the degree to
students' problems in everyday life, this makes students
enthusiastic during learning and feels new things during
learning.
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments are addressed to the funder, namely
the Education Fund Management Institute (LPDP) from
the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of
Indonesia. Thank you to the supervisor of the research
and writing of this article.
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