Evaluation of the Hypothesis Formation Process in Scientific Problem Solving by High School Students

Abstract

We developed an index to evaluate the arrival stage of hypothesis formation in the exploratory scientific problem solving of high school students. We set up a model of the hypothesis formation process to create an evaluation index, and we evaluated the actual exploratory scientific problem solving practiced by high school students. The results of our analysis confirmed the following in the learning group in which scientific skills and activities are progressing: (1) “Extraction of Elements” occurred through “Operation” on experimental materials; (2) Explaining the elements caused “Generation of Explanatory Hypothesis”; and (3) Deduction from an explanatory hypothesis resulted in “Generation of Working Hypothesis”. However, in the stagnant learning group, “Extraction of Elements” was repeated and did not proceed to “Generation of Explanatory Hypothesis” or transition to deductive exploration. These findings show the possibility that the indicators proposed in this study can be effectively utilized to evaluate the arrival stage of hypothesis formation.