In particular, there are a lack of studies which assess changes to entire course
curricula, instead, they focus on changes to individual lab activities (Rissing & Cogan,
2009). This study attempts to add to that knowledge by (1) clearly defining the types of
inquiry-based activities developed for a non-science majors introductory biology laboratory
course, (2) measuring changes in science literacy, science process skills, and selfconfidence
in doing and writing about science exhibited by the students engaged in the
course, and (3) comparing skill acquisition and self-confidence of students taught using
the inquiry laboratories and those taught with a more traditional approach.