STEM-based inquiry science e-book assisted by augmented reality to improve students’ science literacy

The decline in Indonesian students’ scientific literacy, as demonstrated by the results of the 2022 PISA (Philosophy of Science and Innovation), highlights the need for innovative learning media that can foster 21st-century competencies. This study aims to develop and test the effectiveness of a STEM-based science e-book integrated with Augmented Reality (AR) to improve the scientific literacy of junior high school students. This study adopted a 4D development model (Define, Design, Develop, Disseminate) with an experimental design involving two groups of 42 students each. The instruments used included a validated e-book and questions. The e-book underwent expert validation in terms of content, language, and construction, achieving an average score of 3.8 (“very valid”). Based on the practicality results, the AR-assisted STEM-based science e-book obtained an average score of 79.64, with practical criteria. This proves that the developed media is practical for use in science learning. The results showed that the AR-assisted e-book significantly improved students’ scientific literacy (N-Gain = 0.68, p < 0.05) compared to conventional learning. In addition, this study shows that there is no statistically significant difference in the scientific literacy abilities of male and female students based on the results of the independent sample t-test analysis (Sig 0.192 & 0.172). The integration of AR features provides dynamic visualization and interactive engagement that stimulates analytical and problem-solving skills. These findings suggest that AR-based e-books for STEM learning can serve as an effective pedagogical innovation to improve students’ scientific literacy in the context of science education.