Investigating the multilevel effects of several variables on Turkish students' science achievements on TIMSS

Abstract

Two-level hierarchical linear modelling was used to analyse data obtained from TIMSS 1999 database to examine the effect of inquiry-based learning on science achievement of eighthgrade students in Turkey. The influence of teachers' emphasis on scientific reasoning and problem solving and availability of school resources for science instruction on inquiry-based learning and science achievement slopes were also examined. At the student-level, overall plausible values were used as the outcome variable whereas gender, availability of home educational resources, attitude toward science, and inquiry-based learning were predictor variables. At the school level, there were two predictor variables: teachers' emphasis on scientific reasoning and problem solving and availability of school resources for science instruction. While statistically significant and negative relationship was found between inquiry-based learning and within-school science achievement, there were nonsignificant effects of school-level predictors on inquiry-based learning and science achievement slopes.