Enhancing Research Skills in Chemistry Education via Integrated Project- and Inquiry-Based Learning: A STEM-Focused Supplementary Assessment

The study hypothesized that integrating Project-Based Learning (PjBL) and Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) within a STEM-focused chemistry course would significantly enhance students’ research competencies, including their ability to formulate hypotheses, conduct experiments, analyze data, and communicate scientific results effectively.
The supplementary materials include both quantitative and qualitative tools used to assess students’ research skill development:
Supplementary Table 1: Contains the pre- and post-test questions administered via Google Forms. These questions were designed to measure baseline and post-intervention research competencies, including literature review skills, hypothesis formulation, experiment execution, data processing, report writing, and oral presentation abilities.
Supplementary Table 2: Provides the evaluation rubric used to assess student research projects. Each criterion is scored on a five-point scale, enabling detailed assessment of student performance across key research competencies.
Supplementary Figure 1: Illustrates an example of student research work on caffeine determination using UV spectrophotometry.
Figure 1a: Shows the absorbance spectrum of the caffeine standard solution in the UV range (190–340 nm), which was used to identify the peak wavelength for analysis.
Figure 1b: Displays the calibration curve for the caffeine standard solution recorded at 272 nm, enabling quantitative determination of caffeine content in samples.
Notable Findings and Interpretation:
The data demonstrate improvements in research skills after participating in the integrated PjBL + IBL module. Pre- and post-test comparisons reveal gains in experimental design, statistical analysis, and scientific reporting. The calibration curves and absorbance spectra illustrate students’ correct application of spectrophotometric methods and their ability to interpret experimental data. These supplementary materials can be used by other researchers or educators to:
Understand the assessment methods employed in the study.
Replicate the experiment and assessment process in similar STEM courses.
Interpret quantitative and qualitative results to evaluate the effectiveness of active learning strategies in chemistry education.