ABSTRACT
Higher education level has such contribution to develop students' understanding and attitude toward environment. In order to do so, a strategy or approach which is applied through an effective teaching model to develop students' awareness on environment is urgently required. Free inquiry Model and Mind Mapping try to create scientific thinking to students and help them develop critical, creative and innovative thinking in order to arise some ideas about the solution for environment problems. CAR is used as the design of the research with aims at finding out more creative and more innovative ways of learning, enhancing learning motivation, seeking the solution of environment problems and to relate the issue with real condition. The research conducted in Biology Study program, Faculty of Teachers Training and Educational Sciences, Pakuan University, 2013-2014 academic year involved the third semester students from class A. Two cycles were conducted during the research and two actions were dealt for each cycle. The findings show that there is an improvement in terms of enthusiasm from 73% in cycle 1 into 84 % in cycle 2. The average score regarding students' understanding about environment pollution is increasingly improved from 69,11 in cycle 1 to 76,56 in cycle 2. It also happens to the students' mastery learning which develops from 66,67% in cycle 1 into 83,33% in cycle 2. Students' ability in solving environment problems in cycle 1 which achieved 69,74 in terms ofd average score and 63,33 % in the area of mastery learning improves in cycle 2 becoming 77,69 and 86,67%.