The effect of station technique-supported instruction on motivation, academic achievement, and retention in the topic of global climate change

This study aimed to investigate the effects of the "Station Technique" learning approach on eighth-grade middle school students' academic achievement, motivation, and retention of learning in the context of teaching the topic "Global Climate Change," which is part of the "Matter Cycles and Environmental Problems" unit in the science curriculum. The study sample consisted of 48 eighth-grade students enrolled in a middle school located in Tosya, Kastamonu, during the spring semester of the 2024–2025 academic year. In this context, data collection tools that had previously undergone validity and reliability analyses in the literature were utilized. First, to determine students' academic achievement, the "Climate and Climate Change Achievement Test" developed by Arslan and Görgülü-Arı (2023) for middle school students was employed. Then, to assess the students' motivation levels toward the science course, the "Science Motivation Scale" developed by Kaplan, Bektaş, and Karaca (2021) was used. The study was conducted using a quasi-experimental design with a pre-test–post-test control group structure and activities based on the Station Technique learning approach. The research was carried out over six weeks, during which pre-tests and post-tests were administered to both the experimental and control groups. Additionally, in order to measure retention of learning, a follow-up post-test was administered to the experimental group four weeks after the intervention. The collected data were analyzed using the SPSS software package. Dependent and independent samples t-tests were used to analyze the data. According to the pre-test results, all students demonstrated insufficient levels of academic achievement and motivation regarding the topic of global climate change. The findings of the post-test results for the experimental and control groups indicated no significant improvement in students' academic achievement; however, there was a noticeable increase in their motivation and retention of learning. When comparing the groups in terms of motivation and retention outcomes, a statistically significant difference in favor of the experimental group was found. Therefore, it was concluded that the Station Technique had a positive effect on students' motivation and retention of learning, whereas it did not have a significant impact on their academic achievement.