5:15 PM - 6:45 PM
[MZZ46-P05] quiry-based learning activities in geoparks and their effects 2 -Case Study of the Yuza Junior Highschool, Yuza Town in Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Island Geopark -
Keywords:Inquiry-based learning activities, Mt.Chokai and Tobishima Island Geopark, Yuza Junior High School
Schools within the Geopark area are actively carrying out local learning activities that utilize Geopark’s sites, and the number of cases in which their educational effects are being verified is gradually increasing. Last year, I presented an example of an inquiry learning activity conducted at Yuza Junior High School in Yuza Town, which is located within the constituent municipalities of Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Island Geopark, and the results of verifying its effectiveness (JpGU2023 Geopark Session). In this presentation, I will introduce the results of the inquiry learning that was carried out at Yuza Junior Highschool following last year, as well as discuss how to carry out more effective inquiry learning activities through comparison with last year's implementation.
In 2023, Yuza Junior High School spent almost every “integrated study'' on the inquiry learning activities of Geopark’s sites from April to December. From April to May, a chief researcher and learning support staff from the Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Island Geopark Promotion Council and geopark’s guides provided some lectures for students about the Geopark sites. During fieldwork conducted on June 1st and 2nd, learning support staff and geopark guides explained the highlights of the sites to students on site. Based on the information obtained through classroom lectures and fieldwork, the students formed groups in July and began selecting sites and themes for their exploration activities. In September, the students thought of ways to prove their hypothesis, and at the end of October they went on a second fieldwork. As a result of the presentation event at the school, three teams were selected. These groups presented the results of their inquiry learning to the public and elementary school students from other areas at a “Learning Research Presentation'' hosted by the Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Island Geopark Promotion Council in December 2023.
In order to verify the effects and influence that inquiry learning activities had on students, we administered the same questionnaire (Fujioka et al., 2023) to students before and after the inquiry learning activities began, and compared them.
Preliminary results showed an increase in the number of students who answered, “I am interested in learning about the Geopark”, “I can (somehow) explain what the Geopark program is”, ” I am satisfied with learning about the Geopark”, and “I enjoy learning about the Geopark”. In particular, the percentage of students who answered that learning about geoparks was “worthwhile” increased significantly. On the other hand, the number of students who felt that “learning about geoparks is difficult” increased, and the number of students who were interested in Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Geopark itself also decreased. These trends were the same last year.
The results of this survey show that through inquiry learning, students deepened their understanding of the region and that the importance of learning the value of local heritage was reinforced. However, it is too difficult for first-year junior high school students to find a problem on their own and come up with a hypothesis to solve that problem. In the future, I am considering a procedure in which students learn how to find research themes and formulate hypotheses through multiple rounds of problem-solving learning, and then engage in full-fledged inquiry learning.
In 2023, Yuza Junior High School spent almost every “integrated study'' on the inquiry learning activities of Geopark’s sites from April to December. From April to May, a chief researcher and learning support staff from the Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Island Geopark Promotion Council and geopark’s guides provided some lectures for students about the Geopark sites. During fieldwork conducted on June 1st and 2nd, learning support staff and geopark guides explained the highlights of the sites to students on site. Based on the information obtained through classroom lectures and fieldwork, the students formed groups in July and began selecting sites and themes for their exploration activities. In September, the students thought of ways to prove their hypothesis, and at the end of October they went on a second fieldwork. As a result of the presentation event at the school, three teams were selected. These groups presented the results of their inquiry learning to the public and elementary school students from other areas at a “Learning Research Presentation'' hosted by the Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Island Geopark Promotion Council in December 2023.
In order to verify the effects and influence that inquiry learning activities had on students, we administered the same questionnaire (Fujioka et al., 2023) to students before and after the inquiry learning activities began, and compared them.
Preliminary results showed an increase in the number of students who answered, “I am interested in learning about the Geopark”, “I can (somehow) explain what the Geopark program is”, ” I am satisfied with learning about the Geopark”, and “I enjoy learning about the Geopark”. In particular, the percentage of students who answered that learning about geoparks was “worthwhile” increased significantly. On the other hand, the number of students who felt that “learning about geoparks is difficult” increased, and the number of students who were interested in Mt. Chokai and Tobishima Geopark itself also decreased. These trends were the same last year.
The results of this survey show that through inquiry learning, students deepened their understanding of the region and that the importance of learning the value of local heritage was reinforced. However, it is too difficult for first-year junior high school students to find a problem on their own and come up with a hypothesis to solve that problem. In the future, I am considering a procedure in which students learn how to find research themes and formulate hypotheses through multiple rounds of problem-solving learning, and then engage in full-fledged inquiry learning.