This study examined the impact of integrating virtual science inquiry activities with Predict-Observe-Explain (POE) teaching strategies on 5th graders’ understanding of science concepts and epistemic beliefs in science. A cohort of 80 5th graders (mean age of 12 years old, 40 boys and 40 girls) from a public primary school in North China took part in the research. The data collected encompassed pre-test and post-test results on understanding of science concepts and epistemic beliefs, along with students’ behavioral data during virtual science inquiry. The findings demonstrated that integrating virtual science inquiry activities with POE strategies increased students’ understanding of science concepts and epistemic beliefs in science. Furthermore, notable differences were found in observation time and inquiry strategy between high and low achievers, while significant distinctions in page time allocation and page navigation behavior were evident between boys and girls. The results provided empirical support for enhancing the implementation of virtual science inquiry activities in primary school science learning.

本研究探讨了将虚拟科学探究活动与预测-观察-解释 (POE) 教学策略相结合对五年级学生对科学概念和科学认知信念的理解的影响。来自华北一所公立小学的 80 名五年级学生（平均年龄 12 岁，40 名男孩和 40 名女孩）参加了这项研究。收集的数据包括对科学概念和认知信念的理解的预测试和后测试结果，以及学生在虚拟科学探究过程中的行为数据。研究结果表明，将虚拟科学探究活动与 POE 策略相结合可以增强学生对科学概念和科学认知信念的理解。此外，高成就者和低成就者之间的观察时间和探究策略存在显着差异，而男孩和女孩之间的页面时间分配和页面导航行为也存在显着差异。研究结果为加强小学科学学习中虚拟科学探究活动的实施提供了实证支持。