ENHANCING SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY SKILLS THROUGH GUIDED INQUIRY USING THE 7E MODEL IN GRADE 7 SCIENCE

Guided inquiry using the 7E model plays an important role of improving the scientific inquiry skills of students by promoting active participation, critical thinking, and reflective learning. This study employed complete enumeration as the sampling method among 100 Grade 7 Science students respondents from Jesus J. Soriano National High School. The findings revealed a very strong positive correlation with an r-value of 0.891 and p-value of 0.000 between guided inquiry and scientific inquiry skills, indicating that increased exposure to guided inquiry strategies significantly increases the abilities of students to investigate, conceptualize, and draw scientific conclusions. However, the moderate development of discussion skills highlighted the need to strengthen the capacity of students to articulate and reflect on their findings. This study was anchored on the Experiential Learning Theory of Dewey (1938), this study confirms that learning is most meaningful when grounded in experience, action, and reflection. Strengthening inquiry-based instructional strategies may further support the development of scientific inquiry competencies and enhanced the quality of science education.