Implementing Inquiry-Based Science Education to Foster Emotional Engagement of Special-Needs Students - Affective Dimensions in Chemistry Education - page 107

According to Lynch, Kuipers, Pyke, and Szesze ( 2005 ), inquiry-based
approaches do not only contribute to avoid these emotional reactions but even
foster engagement of disadvantaged students including students with disabilities. In
their study “engagement

is a multilevel construct (basic and advanced) that

involves students use of [cognitive, affective, and behavioral] strategies for sus-

taining learning activity” (Lynch et al., 2005 , p. 924). For low achievers basic
engagement is viewed as a positive step, i.e., they actively participate in classroom
actions, follow instructions, and attend to the behavioral rules of an activity (ibid.).
In line with the focus of the present study, this description is enriched by the
definition of Fredricks, Blumenfeld, and Paris ( 2004 , p. 60, original emph.):
“ Emotional engagement encompasses positive and negative reactions to teachers,
classmates, academics, and school and is presumed to [

'

] influence willingness to
do the work.” Jang, Reeve, and Deci ( 2010 , p. 588) summarize engagement as “the
behavioral intensity and emotional quality of a student

...

s active involvement during
a learning activity.” The definition of basic engagement by Lynch et al. ( 2005 ) and
emotional engagement by Fredricks et al. ( 2004 ) is used in the present study to
observe changes in the affective behavior of the students.
Students with cognitive and emotional/behavior disorders hardly show engage-
ment as defined above due to the social and emotional challenges they undergo
every day. The level of engagement is dependent on the emotional form of the day
of each student, which can be influenced by cognitive and social stimuli and can
change abruptly (Bergsson, 2006 ). Accordingly, it is eminently important for the
emotional engagement of the students to provide learning opportunities that give
them a feeling of autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Deci & Ryan, 2000 ). The
authors state that the degree to which these three needs are satisfied determines the
level of active engagement in and maintenance with an activity (ibid.). For exam-
ple, autonomy-supportive teachers engage students in a learning activity “by taking
the students

'

needs, interests,
and preferences; providing optimal challenges; highlighting meaningful learning
goals; and presenting interesting, relevant, and enriched activities” (Jang et al.,
2010 , p. 589). Positive feedback by the teacher can satisfy the need of competence
giving the students the feeling that they are responsible for their learning pro-
gressions. Reliable relations provide a secure basis—“a needed backdrop”—for
students to sustain learning activities (Deci & Ryan, 2000 , p. 235). Especially
students with emotional disorders rarely experience secure and steady relationships
so that the satisfaction of the need “relatedness” in school is remarkably important.

' perspective; identifying and nurturing the students '

4 Framework of the Study

In special-needs education, it is first and foremost important to diagnose the
individual preconditions of students and their socioenvironment to differentiate
teaching accordingly (Watkins, 2007 ). Although it is state of the art to orient on the
strength of the students, I will also describe the preconditions of the students in a