Inquiry-based science teaching involves supporting pupils to acquire scientific knowledge indirectly by conducting their own scientific experiments, rather than receiving scientific knowledge directly from teachers. This approach to instruction is widely used among science educators in many countries. However, researchers and policymakers have recently called the effectiveness of inquiry approaches into doubt. Using nationally-representative linked survey and administrative data we find little evidence that the frequency of inquiry-based instruction is positively associated with teenagers’ performance in science examinations. This finding is robust to the use of different measures of inquiry, different measures of attainment, across classrooms with varying levels of disciplinary standards and across gender and prior attainment subgroups.

探究式科学教学是支持学生通过自己的科学实验间接获得科学知识，而不是直接从教师那里接受科学知识。这种教学方法在许多国家的科学教育者中广泛使用。然而，研究人员和政策制定者最近质疑调查方法的有效性。使用具有全国代表性的相关调查和行政数据，我们发现很少有证据表明探究式教学的频率与青少年在科学考试中的表现呈正相关。这一发现对于使用不同的探究措施、不同的成就衡量标准、跨学科标准水平不同的教室以及跨性别和先前成就亚组的使用是稳健的。