Preschool Children’s Science Learning: Instructional Approaches and Individual Differences

ABSTRACT

Research Findings: Early science skills predict later science achievement, and persistent achievement gaps in science appear as early as preschool. The current study compared the effectiveness of different instructional approaches for teaching preschoolers about sinking and floating and examined individual differences in learning. Typically developing 4–5-year-olds (N = 93; 47% female) were randomly assigned to an Explicit Instruction, Discovery Learning, or No-Instruction Control condition. A pre-posttest design was used to measure change in children’s knowledge of sinking and floating using an assessment created for the current study. Participants also completed measures of executive function and non-verbal and verbal IQ. Children in the Explicit Instruction condition learned more than children in the other two groups. Additionally, individual differences in age, socioeconomic status, IQ, and executive function predicted learning, although only age and SES were uniquely predictive when all variables were included in the model. Lastly, children’s sinking and floating pretest scores significantly interacted with instructional condition to predict learning. Among children in the Discovery Learning condition, those with more prior knowledge gained more after instruction than children with less prior knowledge. Practice or Policy: These findings highlight the importance of considering how learner characteristics might influence the effectiveness of different instructional approaches.

Acknowledgments

We thank all the families who participated, community partners, and undergraduate research assistants, including Kerry Houlihan, Katie Magnan, Krista Garrett, Samuel Kroening, Julia Cai, Audrey Kirschling, Theodore Anderson, and Katlyn McCarty.

Disclosure Statement

The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Stephanie M. Carlson is a Co-founder and holds equity in Reflection Sciences, Inc., which has licensed the Minnesota Executive Function Scale (MEFS) from the University of Minnesota. These interests have been reviewed and managed by the University of Minnesota in accordance with its Conflict of Interest policies.

Supplemental data

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2024.2360884

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a Graduate Student Grant from the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota awarded to Amanda Grenell. Amanda Grenell was also partially supported by a training grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number [T32HD007475]. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.