CORRELATIONS BETWEEN TEACHING STRATEGIES IN BIOLOGY, LEARNING STYLES, AND STUDENT SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT: IMPLICATIONS FOR INQUIRY BASED TEACHING

Research studies aimed at finding a more efficient model of teaching biology are still sporadic and inconsistent in the contemporary literature. The main aim of the research was to examine the correlation between the application of teaching strategies in biology teaching and students' school achievements, depending on how much the teacher respects their learning styles. The method of theoretical analysis and descriptive method were applied in the research. The sample consisted of 151 third-grade students (39.7% male and 60.3% female) of upper-secondary school. Kolb's Inventory of Learning Styles and Questionnaire for Assessing the Teaching Strategies of Biology Teachers were used as data gathering tools. Independent t-test, χ2 - square test, and One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to analyze data. The results showed that there was a statistically significant correlation between teaching strategies, learning styles, and students' school achievement in biology learning. At the same time, students perceived the applied teaching strategies differently, and manifested different dimensions of learning styles. This was followed by the conclusion that students achieved better school achievements in biology teaching when they were taught in the ways that corresponded to their learning styles, which pointed to certain implications for inquiry-based teaching, as well as in education of future biology teachers.