Context and Rationale

With the results of the Philippines in global assessment such as the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), it is evident that Filipino students poorly understand science concepts. It is quite ironic since the country values education as one of the most important systems to be improved and developed. According to the report of Rappler last 2020, the Philippines ranked low in science with 357 points, against the 489 OECD average. On the other hand, Filipino students’ performance in TIMSS is ‘significantly lower’ in comparison to other countries which participated in grade 4 math and science assessments. Thus, this data compels science teachers and stakeholders to look after the curriculum and respond to the need of alleviating the status of our science learners.

Science is both a body of knowledge and a process of acquiring new knowledge done through scientific methods such as observing, hypothesizing, testing, and experimenting. This encompasses different fields of studies. Knowledge and process skills lay interdependent with one another as knowledge could be acquired through the questions being asked and how these are answered through the process and methods being used. Teaching science means more than just understanding the concepts but more so, the science processes of doing science which scientists use as what we call the science process skills. It is used by scientists to discover and construct knowledge to solve problems and formulate solutions (Herda, Johari, Maison, et.al 2020). These are skills that are absolutely important for students to learn in order to achieve global competence. When we teach and allow students to use these skills in science, we are actually teaching them the same skills which they can actualize in their everyday lives. Hence, students will be able to utilize their skills and apply their content knowledge to real world situations.

The science process skills lay the foundation of scientific method, which include: observation, communication, classification, measurement, inference, and prediction. Such skills are significant when it comes to carrying out scientific experiments as well as facing daily challenges. These skills are important individually, much as they are integrated together.

The six basic science process skills can be applied in a logical or increasing manner across all grade levels, depending on the formulated lesson objectives of the school curriculum. In the students’ early years in school, they apply science process skills such as observation and communication most of the time. As they progress on their grade levels, they use the skills of inference and prediction which help them develop their higher-order thinking skills. Meanwhile, classification and measurement are applied across all grade levels equally since science experiments tend to require such skills in almost all scientific procedures as well as there are various ways for students to classify, from simple to complex ways, and such that measuring systems and methods should be gradually introduced to the students. After observations have been conducted, there is another skill that needs to be taught, it is the ability of the students to make inferences and predict future events, which will be the focus of this undertaking.

A good prediction is a result of good observation and how students make meaning out of their past experiences. Students need to know how to evaluate and make an educated guess of the future events relative to what is observable in their environment in the present. This involves critical thinking in order to test whether their inferences and hypotheses are correct. It is intended that teachers train the students by doing experiential activities in their teaching and learning process (Herda, Johari, Maison, et.al 2020). Their active involvement will help them implement their scientific knowledge to actual scenarios occurring in their surroundings. The acquisition of science process skills should be one of the major goals of science education.

For students to acquire such science process skill, there is a need to apply new instructional strategies in the classroom. As such, educators should find methods and strategies which would aid the students to obtain clear and complete understanding of new science concepts as well as to help them develop their higher-order thinking skills. Hence, teachers should seek new learning approaches that would ground the students in active learning, such as the 5 E’s Instructional Model, which this study focuses on in testing its effectiveness to develop the students’ predicting skills.

According to Best (2019), the 5 E’s Instructional Model is a constructivist science learning method involving five key phases: engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, and evaluation. Lesley University argued that the 5E Model allows educators to create a unique learning experience for students. Teachers who can incorporate instructional models like the 5E Model into their classrooms help students build a strong foundation of knowledge through active participation.