Effectiveness Of Constructivism Approach For Teaching Difficult Chemistry Concepts Among Senior Secondary School Students In Nigeria

Project and Seminar Material for Chemistry Education

Effectiveness Of Constructivism Approach For Teaching Difficult Chemistry Concepts Among Senior Secondary School Students In Nigeria

Abstract

This study examines the effect of constructivist-based learning strategies on student’s interest in junior secondary chemistry concepts in Nsukka education zone. A quasi-experimental research design was used. The population of this study consists of all the secondary co-education school students (4182) of Nsukka Education Zone of Enugu State. A sample of 260 students was drawn. The instruments developed for these studieswas chemistry concepts Interest Inventory (SSII). The data obtained were analyzed using means and standard deviation to answer the research questions. The hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance using analysis of covariate (ANCOVA). The reliability of SSII was determined using KR-20 reliability method. The internal consistency of SSII was ascertained using Cronbach alpha procedure. The result of the analyses indicated that the effect of treatment and gender was not a significant factor in students’ interest in chemistry concepts. Students taught using constructivist-based learning strategies performed significantly better than their counterparts who were taught using lecture method in SSII. Based on the findings above, it can be concluded that Constructivist Approach is an effective strategy to make students interested in studying chemistry concepts

Table of Content

  • Title Page
  • Certification
  • Dedication
  • Acknowledgement
  • Table of Content
  • List of Tables
  • Abstract

Chapter One:

Introduction

  • 1.1 Background of the Study
  • 1.2 Statement of the Problem
  • 1.3 Objective of the Study
  • 1.4 Research Questions
  • 1.5 Research Hypothesis
  • 1.6 Significance of the Study
  • 1.7 Scope of the Study
  • 1.8 Limitation of the Study
  • 1.9 Definition of Terms
  • 1.10 Organisations of the Study

Chapter Two:

Review of Literature

  • 2.1 Conceptual Framework
  • 2.2 Theoretical Framework
  • 2.3 Empirical Review

Chapter Three:

Research Methodology

  • 3.1 Research Design
  • 3.2 Population of the Study
  • 3.3 Sample Size Determination
  • 3.4 Sample Size Selection Technique and Procedure
  • 3.5 Research Instrument and Administration
  • 3.6 Method of Data Collection
  • 3.7 Method of Data Analysis
  • 3.8 Validity of the Study
  • 3.9 Reliability of the Study
  • 3.10 Ethical Consideration

Chapter Four:

Data Presentation and Analysis

  • 4.1 Data Presentation
  • 4.2 Analysis of Data
  • 4.3 Answering Research Questions
  • 4.4 Test of Hypotheses
  • 4.5 Discussion of Findings

Chapter Five:

Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation

  • 5.1 Summary
  • 5.2 Conclusion
  • 5.3 Recommendation
  • References
  • APPENDIX
  • QUESTIONNAIRE

Chapter One

Introduction

1.1 Background to the Study

Interest is as an individual’s predisposition in a particular context (Hidi & Renninger, 2006; Mitchell, 1993). That is, it provides the competence to carry out activities using one’s skill, which enables him/her to perform effectively. Interest has to do with what an individual has acquired from a specific study in a given instructional sequence. Interest level of learners is one personality characteristic that influences students’ academic achievement (Brookover, Thomas & Paterson cited in Nwoke 2004). According to Eze (1992), heterogeneity of this interest in the classroom is a common phenomenon.

The low academic interest in chemistry has been labeled on different reasons. Teachers are one of the key elements in schools and effective teaching is one of the key propellers for student improvement. Teaching effectiveness is dependent upon the interaction between the instruction, subject-matter, knowledge and teaching (pedagogical/methods) ability (Sean,Derek&Ritchard, 2002). This means for a proper learning to take place the teacher need to employ different method, strategies or techniques for smooth flow of learning. Different methods are used in teaching chemistry. According to Adetoro (1999) it ranges from lecture and demonstration methods are content driven and certainly not learner-centered. These methods are teacher centered which are based on behavioural learning theories and not learner centered they are based on cognitive psychological learning theories. These methods which are predominantly used in chemistry in the junior secondary schools according to Boyle, Duffy & Dunleavy (2003), emphasize knowledge transmission from the teacher to passive students and encourage rote memorization of facts. The consequence of the use of non-constructivist strategy in teaching chemistry in the junior secondary schools is that students are unable to retain their learning and apply it to new situation and may also account for poor performance of chemistry students in both internal and external examination and the high level of social problems in the society (Doolittle & Camp, 2000).

The Federal Government of Nigeria have tried in different ways so as to reduce the rate of social problems in our society for proper attainment of the objectives of chemistry in Nigeria through the introduction of chemistry into the educational curriculum so as deal with some of those sensitive issues (examples are kidnapping, examination malpractices, raping etc.) and also the introduction of Information Communication Technology as a strategy of teaching thereby making the teachers going for training and retraining so as to adapt to the new strategy. In this vain, Egwu (2009) stressed out the main reason for the introduction of chemistry is to strengthen the Federal Governments’ effort toward reinforcing democracy and democratic culture in Nigeria. According to the National council for chemistry (NCSS) (1992) identified that the introduction of chemistry by the federal Government would help in inculcating in the citizens the right attitude towards doing things. All these reasons given above for the re-introduction of civic are parts of the aims chemistry is trying to achieve. Based on these foregoing, due to the efforts made by the Federal Government, chemistry teachers and also researchers in chemistry in realizing the goals of chemistry instead, those objectives still remains mostly unachieved and the social problems keep on increasing in our society.

Based on these foregoing, introducing chemistry in the curriculum seems not to be the best approach in solving all these issues because the main problem of chemistry is the poor implementation of the contents. Seweje (2000) confirmed that the methods adopted by teachers in most cases include the talk and chalk (lecture) with very little concern for practical activities. Seweje (2000) explained further that a teacher is expected to be a facilitator whose main function is to help learners to become active participants in their learning and thereby making meaningful connection between prior knowledge, new knowledge and the process involved in learning. That is why the researcher is introducing a constructivist based strategy which may be a way out of these problems for proper and meaningful learning of chemistry concepts that are seen or pose as difficult topics hence, influencing the students’ achievements and interest in the subject matter.

The constructivist model therefore consists of teaching methods that foster learner’s active participation during teaching and learning episode.Nwafor (2007) described constructivism as a theory that rests on the inmate human drive to make sense of the world. Also Wikipedia (2009) explained that the learner actively constructs knowledge by integrating new information and experience into what they have previously come to understand. Giving credence to the above, Oforma (2009) posits that learner should not be spoon fed, instead, the learner should be left to discover solutions by him/herself. Oforma (2009) further asserts that the message becomes effective when teaching rules and procedures involve that active participation of learners, stimulate their imagination, provoke and guide their thinking.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Each society is constantly aspiring to develop itself technologically by utilizing the available resources. Chemistry knowledge has a direct impact on an individual’s life at all levels. Chemistry knowledge can be used to accelerate industrial development and also to promote positive environmental and health practices. Despite its contribution, the students’ performance of chemistry in National Examinations in Nigeria has been deteriorating. This means, few students are able to pursue Chemistry and Chemistry related courses at colleges and universities hence the country may not achieve the 2020 industrial expectation and vision 2030. The teaching approach used by a teacher may affect the students’ performance in the subject. The constructivist teaching approach may help improve students’ performance in Chemistry, but its usefulness is not known. Therefore, this study sort to investigate the effects of constructivist teaching approach on students’ achievement and attitude in the learning of Chemistry.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The general objectives of this study was to find out the effectiveness of constructivism approach for teaching difficult chemistry concepts among senior secondary school students in nigeria using Nsukka Education Zone as case study. Specifically, the objectives of this study are to;

  1. Ascertain the mean interest scores of students taught chemistry concepts using constructivism approach and those taught using lecture method?
  2. Find out the interest scores of male and female students taught chemistry concepts with constructivism approach.
  3. Determine the interaction effect between the instructional treatment and gender in students’ interest in chemistry concepts.

1.4 Research Questions

The following research questions guided the study

  1. What are the mean interest scores of students taught chemistry concepts using constructivism approach and those taught using lecture method?
  2. What are the interest scores of male and female students taught chemistry concepts with constructivism approach?
  3. What is the interaction effect between the instructional treatment and gender in students’ interest in chemistry concepts?

1.5 Hypotheses of the Study

The following null hypotheses were formulated for the study. They were tested at a 0.05 level of significance.

H01: There is no significant difference in the mean interest scores of students taught chemistry concepts using constructivism approach and those taught using lecture method.

H02: There is no significant difference in the interest scores of male and female students taught chemistry concepts with constructivism approach.

H03: There is no significant difference in the interaction effect between the instructional treatment and gender in students’ interest in chemistry concepts.

1.6 Significance of the Study

The study investigated students’ achievement on “Structure and Bonding topic” in chemistry. This topic is important in the learning of chemistry because students have difficulties in understanding most of the concepts in chemistry and hold misconceptions which prevent meaningful learning (Staver & Lumpe, 1995). In chemistry, chemical bonding is one of the basic topics; the substances in nature and the changes they undergo can be explained by chemical bonding. Understanding chemical bonding concepts is important in chemistry in order to comprehend the nature of the chemical reactions and some physical properties such as boiling point and melting point. Chemical bonding is an abstract concept that cannot be applied to everyday life directly and many students face many difficulties in comprehending the concept. They cannot relate microscopic world to macroscopic changes (Coll & Treagust, 2003; Harrison & Treagust 2000, Nicoll, 2001). Kempa and Dude (1974) reported that pupils’ interest in science is associated with the achievement in science. Adesokan (2000) and Onwu (1981) asserted that despite of the recognition given to chemistry among the science subjects, it is evident that students still show negative attitude towards the subject thereby leading to poor performance and low enrolment. Attitude is an important component in science education and proper attitude in chemistry is very necessary to enhance students’ participation, achievement and success in chemistry and related careers.

The findings of this study may assist teachers to evaluate their teaching methods in relation to students’ understanding and attitudes in chemistry so as to improve their performance in the subject. This will enable students to pursue chemistry and science related causes in universities and colleges enabling the country to industrialize and achieve vision 2030. The findings may also be used by curriculum developers to make appropriate amendments on the selection of content, objectives and evaluation approaches. Finally it is hoped that the findings may stimulate further research on the appropriate methodologies in the teaching- learning of chemistry.

1.7 Scope of the Study

The study will analyze the effectiveness of constructivism approach for teaching difficult chemistry concepts among senior secondary school students in Nigeria using Nsukka Education Zone, in Enugu State. The study is limited to some selected Secondary Schools in the area. Hence, the respondents for this study will be obtained from and among secondary school students in the study area.

1.8 Limitation of the Study

In the course of carrying out this study, the researcher experienced some constraints, which included time constraints, financial constraints, language barriers, and the attitude of the respondents. However, the researcher were able to manage these just to ensure the success of this study.

1.9 Definition of Terms

Achievement

Ability to perform in the area of recall, comprehension, application and higher order skills (Grondlund, 1981) as a result of instruction. This ability was measured using Chemistry Achievement Test.

Conception

Form an idea, a plan of something in the mind. It also refers to achievement. In this study, it refers to the understanding of the concepts in “structure and bonding” topic.

Constructivist Teaching Approach

This view of learning is based on the believe that knowledge is not a thing given by the teacher at the front of the class to students in their desks. Rather knowledge is constructed by the learners through their active constructions.

Conventional Teaching Approach

Also refers to as regular or conventional method. This refers to an instructional method in which the amount of verbal interaction between the teacher and student is maximum (Mbuthia, 1996).

Students’ Attitude

Refers to students’ acquired internal state of feelings influencing their choices towards learning (Wittrock, 1986). In this study, the term will refer to students’ disposition towards chemistry as a result of instructional approach adopted by the teacher.

1.10 Organization of the Study

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows.

  1. Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), historical background, statement of problem, objectives of the study, research hypotheses, significance of the study, scope and limitation of the study, definition of terms and historical background of the study.
  2. Chapter two highlights the theoretical framework on which the study is based, thus the review of related literature.
  3. Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study.
  4. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.
  5. Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study.

Chapter Five

Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations:

5.1 Introduction

This chapter summarizes the findings on the effectiveness of constructivism approach for teaching difficult chemistry concepts among senior secondary school students in Nigeria, Enugu State as case study. The chapter consists of summary of the study, conclusions, and recommendations.

5.2 Summary of the Study

In this study, our focus was on the impact of accounting on organization effectiveness using federal pay office, Enugu State as case study. The study is was specifically focused on ascertaining the mean interest scores of students taught chemistry concepts using constructivism approach and those taught using lecture method; finding out the interest scores of male and female students taught chemistry concepts with constructivism approach and determining the interaction effect between the instructional treatment and gender in students’ interest in chemistry concepts.

The study adopted the survey research design and randomly enrolled participants in the study. A total of 260 responses were validated from the enrolled participants where all respondent are staff and students of selected secondary schoolsin Enugu State.

5.3 Conclusions

With respect to the analysis and the findings of this study, the following conclusions emerged;

The findings showed that students who were exposed to constructivist-based learning strategies in chemistry concepts class gained positive over those students who were taught using the conventional (lecture) method. These results suggest that such constructivist-based learning strategies may be useful for enhancing learning. Therefore, bringing constructivism into the classroom is an effective way to add vigor and interest to the class. By blending lectures and having students question and respond to primary source documents, an instructor can address the demands of covering material at the same time he encourages problem solving skills in the students.

5.4 Recommendation

Based on the findings the researcher recommends that;

  1. The findings of this study can only be generalized to students in enugu. For it to be generalized to all the schools in the district, more research should be done in other district.
  2. For more generalization the research should be extended to in District, Provincial and National schools in the whole Country.
  3. Constructivist teaching approach should be extended to other topics in Chemistry not only “Structure and Bonding”.
  4. More research involving the constructivist teaching approach should be done on Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics so that more knowledge on the approach can be generated.

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