The 5E learning model is a five-stage instructional model developed within the framework of constructivist learning theory, aiming to deepen students' conceptual understanding and ensure their active participation in the learning process. This model was created by Roger Bybee in the 1970s as part of the Biological Science Curriculum Study (BSCS) project. At the core of the model is the idea that students discover new concepts, integrate them with their prior knowledge, and actively construct knowledge.

Academic studies conducted in Türkiye have shown that the 5E model has positive effects, especially on scientific process skills, students' attitudes towards learning, and their conceptual understanding. The model's effective structure enables students to be more active in the learning process, based on teacher guidance. The model is based on students activating their prior knowledge, discovering new information, explaining it, applying it, and evaluating the learning process. These stages, each named by the initial letters of their English equivalents, are defined as Engage (Entry), Explore (Discovery), Explain (Explanation), Elaborate (Deepening), and Evaluate (Evaluation), respectively.

Theoretical Foundations of the Model

The 5E model is based on the constructivist learning approach. According to this approach, the individual does not passively receive knowledge; they make sense of it and construct it through their own experiences, experiments, and mental processes. In this context, the teacher is not a direct transmitter of knowledge; rather, they are positioned as a guide who directs students' learning processes. Students, on the other hand, are at the center of the learning process; they question, research, discuss, hypothesize, and reach concepts through experiences. The theoretical basis of the model is functional, especially for the development of scientific process skills, and offers students opportunities for critical, creative, and analytical thinking.

Stages of the Model

Engage (Entry / Attracting Attention)

This initial stage aims to activate students' prior knowledge and gather their attention towards the subject. The teacher captures students' interest and initiates mental engagement using engaging materials such as a video, a picture, a question, a short text, or a poem. Thought-provoking questions related to the concepts to be learned are asked to students; thus, students are actively involved in the process. In this stage, the teacher does not provide direct information but instead encourages students to share their own thoughts and connect with prior knowledge.

Explore (Discovery)

In this stage, where students are most active, they are enabled to discover new information through their own efforts, via group work, experiments, observations, and research. Students generate their own questions, conduct research, and collaboratively build knowledge. The teacher acts as a guide in this process but refrains from being overly directive. Students reach concepts by connecting their prior knowledge with new observations. This process is the stage where constructivist learning is most intensely applied.

Explain (Explanation)

In this stage, students try to explain the concepts they have learned by interpreting the data and observations they have obtained. The teacher participates in the process with scientific explanations and helps students clarify their conceptual understandings. Additionally, the teacher identifies incomplete or incorrect understandings and provides corrective feedback. Students express their thoughts orally or in writing, and their levels of knowledge are deepened under the guidance of the teacher.

Elaborate (Deepening / Broadening)

This stage enables students to apply the concepts they have learned to new and different situations. Students generalize their knowledge by using it in other contexts, solve different problems, and establish complex relationships between concepts. The elaboration process is designed to develop students' higher-order cognitive skills (critical thinking, problem-solving, creative thinking). Students achieve permanent learning by transferring their previous learning to new situations.

Evaluate (Evaluation)

In the final stage of the model, students' learning process is evaluated in terms of both process and outcome. Evaluation is carried out not only by the teacher but also by the student. In this stage, students analyze their own learning levels by performing self-assessment.

The teacher, on the other hand, monitors students' development using various tools such as observation, open-ended questions, performance assessments, portfolios, and ru brics. This evaluation also aims to measure the retention of knowledge acquired in previous stages. Students typically prepare individual reports reflecting the process.

5E Model Applications in Türkiye

Scientific studies conducted in Türkiye on the 5E model show that the model is an effective instructional strategy. A meta-analysis study conducted between 2004 and 2014, covering 23 studies, found that the 5E model had a positive effect on students' attitudes towards lessons.^【1】   According to the meta-analysis, the general effect size of the model is 0.371 (SE = 0.105; 95% CI = 0.166–0.576), which, although small, is statistically significant.

In an experimental study conducted at the primary school level, it was observed that science instruction carried out according to the 5E model led to significant improvement in the scientific process skills of students in the experimental group, and this improvement persisted in retention tests three months later. It was stated that students significantly developed in sub-skills such as observing, hypothesizing, data collection, and interpretation.