Inquiry Based Science Education

PSF has been assigned two major responsibilities: research funding and the promotion and popularization of science across the country. To fulfill this mandate, a variety of initiatives have been launched to foster a scientific culture nationwide. Under the National Science Policy 1984 and the STI Policy 2012, the Government has emphasized strengthening and expanding PSF’s programs to promote science at the grassroots level. These initiatives, conducted outside the formal education system, are particularly aimed at motivating students toward science education. PSF also works to collaborate with international scientific organizations to enhance these efforts.

To expand the outreach of its activities, PSF launched the Inquiry-Based Science Education (IBSE) Programme and signed an MoU with the Académie des Sciences, France, aimed at improving science teaching and learning at the primary and secondary levels through an inquiry-based approach. This initiative ensures the promotion of inquiry-based teaching at primary and elementary levels. The MoU was signed in Paris on December 15, 2010, by Mr. Jean Salençon, President of the Académie des Sciences, France, and Dr. Manzoor Hussain Soomro, Chairman of PSF, on behalf of their respective organizations.

The MoU aims to promote the dissemination of Inquiry-Based Science Education at primary and elementary levels, enhancing both countries’ capacities to develop skills and essential knowledge for a deeper understanding of nature and reality. It also seeks to provide research support and popularize science to raise awareness at the grassroots level.

This program emphasizes teaching science in primary schools to cultivate a questioning attitude in children through hands-on experiments. Its primary goal is to enhance society’s understanding of science. The Inquiry-Based Science Education program, La main à la pâte (hands-on), was launched in 1996 by the French Academy of Sciences with support from the National Institute for Pedagogical Research, the École Normale Supérieure (Paris), and the French Ministry of Education. Beyond France, the program has attracted significant international interest. The experience and expertise of La main à la pâte have been shared with over 35 countries, including China, Brazil, Argentina, Belgium, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Germany, Morocco, Senegal, Serbia, Slovakia, and Vietnam. More recently, the inquiry-based learning approach has also been introduced in Afghanistan, Iran, Mexico, Peru, Spain, Switzerland, Togo, and the United States.

According to the National Education Policy 1998, Pakistan has 145,960 primary schools and 24,590 high/higher secondary schools in the public sector. Unfortunately, none of these schools fully meet the standards of a modern educational institution, either in terms of teaching methods or curriculum. To address these challenges, the La main à la pâte (hands-on) approach can be adopted and implemented in Pakistani schools. Several PSF officers have had the opportunity to attend training programs on La main à la pâte and visit its pilot centers in Paris.