ABSTRACT
This study was designed to investigate the effect of classroom interaction patterns on academic achievement and interest of secondary school chemistry students in Abia State, Nigeria. The study adopted pre-test, post-test quasi experimental design. Four research questions and four null hypotheses guided the study. The population of the study consisted of 3150 senior secondary SS1 chemistry students and the sample consisted of one hundred and thirty-six (136) students purposively drawn from a co-educational school. The sample comprised fifty (50) male students and eighty-six (86) female students. Three intact classes were assigned the different classroom interaction patterns (group classroom interaction patterns, whole classroom interaction patterns and individualistic classroom interaction patterns). The instruments used for data collection were Chemistry Achievement Test (CAT) and Chemistry Interest Inventory (CII). The instruments were validated by two chemistry experts and an expert in measurement and evaluation. Research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation while Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. Result showed that classroom interaction patterns were effective in enhancing students’ academic achievement when taught gas laws, however, students taught gas laws using individualistic classroom interaction pattern had higher achievement than those taught with group classroom interaction patterns and whole classroom interaction patterns. Furthermore, gender has no significant effect on students’ academic achievement and interest when taught gas laws using the three different classroom interaction patterns. Recommendations were made which include among others that chemistry teachers should consider implementing classroom interactions in teaching-learning of chemistry concepts in order to make learning student-centered. This will arouse students’ interest and solve the problem of poor academic achievement in chemistry.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page i
Declaration ii
Certification iii
Dedication iv
Acknowledgements v
Table of Contents vi
List of Tables viii
Abstract ix
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study 1
1.2 Statement of the Problem 8
1.3 Purpose of the Study 9
1.4 Research Questions 10
1.5 Hypotheses 11
1.6 Significance of the Study 11
1.7 Scope of the Study 13
CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Conceptual Framework 15
2.1.1 Chemistry as a secondary school science ` 15
2.1.2. Interaction patterns in teaching learning process 17
2.1.3 Interest in teaching and learning chemistry 21
2.1.4Academic achievement in learning chemistry 22
2.2 Theoretical Framework 24
2.2.1Cognitive development theory by jean piaget (1896-1980) 24
2.2.2 Social constructivism theory by Lev Vygotsky (1968) 25
2.2.3 Behaviourismtheory by J.B. Watson (1914-1918) 27
2.3 Related Empirical Studies 28
2.3.1 Studies on interaction patterns and students’ achievement in chemistry 28
2.3.2 Studies on interaction pattern and interest 32
2.3.3Studies on effect of classroom interaction patterns on male and female students achievement 35
2.3.4 Studies on gender and interest 37
2.4 Summary of the Review of Literature 40
CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY
3.1 Design of the Study 42
3.2 Area of Study 43
3.3 Population of the Study 44
3.4 Sample and Sampling Technique 45
3.5 Instrument for Data Collection 45
3.5.1 Chemistry achievement test 45
3.5.2 Chemistry Interest Inventory 46
3.6 Validation of Instrument 46
3.7 Reliability of the Instrument 47
3.8 Method of Data Collection 47
3.8.1 Experimental procedure 47
3.8.2 Control of extraneous variables 49
3.9 Method of Data Analysis 50
CHAPTER 4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Results 51
4.2 Major Findings of the Study 61
4.3 Discussion of Findings 62
CHAPER 5 SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
5.1 Summary of the Study 65
5.2 Conclusion 66
5.3 Educational implication of findings 67
5.4Recommendations 68
5.5 Limitations of the Study 69
5.6Suggestions for Further Studies 69
References 71
Appendices 76
LIST OF TABLES
4.1: The mean achievement scores of students taught gas laws using three different classroom interaction patterns 51
4.2: Analysis of covariance of the mean achievement scores of students taught gas laws using three different classroom interaction patterns 52
4.3: Scheffe Post Hoc analysis for students’ mean achievement scores 53
4.4: Mean and standard deviation of the effect of classroom interaction patterns on students’ interest in chemistry 54
4.5: Analysis of Covariance of the interest mean responses of students taught chemistry using three different classroom interaction patterns 56
4.6: Mean and standard deviation of achievement scores of male and female students taught gas laws using three different classroom interaction patterns 57
4.7: Analysis of covariance of male and female mean achievement scores taught gas laws using three different classroom interaction patterns 58
4.8: Mean and standard deviation of male and female interest due to classroom interaction patterns 59
4.9: Analysis of covariance of the interest mean responses of male and female students in chemistry due to interaction patterns. 60
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Senior secondary education is that form of education that is provided for children after the nine years Universal Basic Education (UBE) which prepares them for tertiary education. It is aimed at developing a child better than the primary schooling and the junior secondary level which made up the UBE; this is because it is obvious that UBE is insufficient for children to acquire literacy, numeracy and expected communication skills (Stacks, 2010). In the first year of senior secondary education, students tend to choose subjects related to the choice of discipline in the field of arts and sciences. However, in Nigeria the three major science subjects taught at the senior secondary school level are chemistry, physics and biology. These subjects equip young graduates to be prepared for science and science-based courses at the tertiary level.
Chemistry is simply the study of matter and its composition. Odesina (2017) defined chemistry as the science that is concerned with the composition of matter, structure of matter and the forces that hold the structures together. It probes into the principles governing the changes that matter undergoes (Ababio, 2013). Gorokhov (2010) stated that learning chemistry is theoretically teaching students to have the ability of identifying chemical problems and making conclusion based on evidences for the sake of recognizing natural changes and the effect of human interaction to the nature. In this study, the researcher defines chemistry as science of matter which involves the study of composition of matter, physical and chemical changes and other transformation processes to improve quality of life for the benefit of humanity. Chemistry is made up of three main branches which includes; inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry and physical chemistry. Physical chemistry is the study of how matter behaves on a molecular and atomic level and how chemical reactions occur. Physical chemistry topics include; energy, thermodynamics, gas laws etc.
Chemistry tends to be an abstract subject for students possibly because of teaching strategies, instructional materials and inability to arouse students interest (Ugwu & Diovu, 2016). The achievement of chemistry students in external examination is not satisfactory as most students’ re-register yearly to credit the subject. Okwuduba and Okigbo (2018) reported that average of 70% of students in chemistry in the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE) May/June 2005-2014 failed chemistry. Salami, Mohammed, and Ogunlade (2012) reported that there has been anoutcry each year when WAEC or NECO releases their annual results as a result of students’ poor achievement, specially, in the science subjects. Students’ achievement at the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) conducted by WAEC and NECO has consistently remained poor with Chemistry having one of the worst and poorest results over the years (Ibe & Madusnum cited in Ojukwu, 2016).Baanu, Oyelekan and Olorundare (2016) also carried out a study which revealed that chemistry students in senior secondary schools in North-central Nigeria had a low level of academic achievement in the Joint Mock Chemistry Examination, as only 559 (48.61%) of the students passed at credit level.
Research works have revealed poor academic achievement of students in chemistry examinations on topics that require mathematical computations (Ogunleye, 2019). Such topics include gas laws, stoichiometry calculations, thermodynamics etc. WAEC chief examiner reports (2018) stated that students could not draw graphical illustration of Charles law correctly in WAEC examination. It is based on this report that the researcher is interested in investigating the effect of classroom interaction patterns on students’ achievement when taught gas laws.
However, the reported poor academic achievement in chemistry can be traced to ineffective teaching strategies, incompetent mode of lesson delivery, students’ attitude and interest, inadequate use of instructional materials etc. Amongst these challenges, there is an outcry that teaching strategy is a major factor that affect students’ academic achievement in chemistry. Some of the teaching strategies used by teachers make classroom teacher-centered, hence students become passive and cannot participate in learning activities (Okoye, 2011). Nevertheless, to solve the problem of poor academic achievement of students in chemistry examinations there is need for a teaching strategy that can ensure learners active participation during lesson delivery and this can possibly be achieved with good classroom interaction pattern.
Classroom interaction is the sum total of activities taking place in the classroom between the teacher, the learner and the learning materials during the teaching process (Mackey, 2013). The most important factors in a classroom situation are the interactions and exchanges initiated by teacher and students (Nurmasitah, 2010). Classroom Interaction Pattern (CIP) is a process where the teacher and student have reciprocal effects upon each other through what they say or do in the classroom to achieve instructional objectives (Okoye&Onwuachu, 2018).
Classroom interaction is a practice that enhances the development of the two very important language skills which are speaking and listening among the learners. Classroom interaction helps the learners to be competent enough to think critically and share their views among their peers (Ghosh, 2010). Through classroom interaction the learners will be able to get themselves involved with concepts, ideas and various other devices and products for language and culture learning. According to Bolarinwa and Okolocha (2016), good interactions in the classroom also help the students to identify their own learning methods, guide them to communicate with their peers easily, give them an exposure to learning and enhance their academic achievement in their subject.
Ogbu (2011) discussed four major classification of classroom interaction patterns which includes; Teacher-student interaction pattern, Students-students’ interaction pattern, Teacher-material interaction pattern and Students-material interaction pattern.
Teacher-student interaction pattern is an interaction between the teacher and individual students or group of students. Students-students’ interaction pattern is where students react to each other’s actions, attitudes and opinions during class session. It is further classified as co-operative, competitive and individualistic interaction pattern. Teacher-material interaction pattern involves the teacher manipulating instructional materials, machines and equipment for the purpose of skill learning or in other to stress a point or clarify some issues for the students. Students-material interaction pattern is when students look at instructional materials, machines and equipment, solve practical problems or experiment with specimen or models.
However, this present study focused on three kinds of classroom interaction patterns namely: Group interaction pattern, whole class interaction pattern and Individualistic interaction patterns.
Group interaction pattern: This classroom interaction pattern involves the students learning as a group Ghori (2016). An intact class is divided into 3- 5 groups, the students contribute idea to their groups and ask questions as a group. The teacher delivers the lesson to students in class and allow students do their classwork and other activities that involves interaction and decision making in their small groups. The teacher walks around listening to the students. All students in each group are mandated to contribute their best during classwork.
Whole class interaction pattern: This involves the learners interacting with the teacher, fellow students and instructional material as a whole. The intact class is taught and student can communicate with any member of the class. The teacher teaches the whole students, they debate on the topic or do a task as a class Ghori (2016). Chorus answer is expected from the class when the teacher asks questions during lesson delivery.
Individualistic interaction pattern: In individualistic interaction pattern, students focus on their task personally without collaborating with other members of the class. Whether an individual accomplishes his or her goal has no effect on whether other participants achieve their goals (Johnson & Johnson cited in Oloyede, Adebowale & Ojo 2012). Communication and interactions is strictly between the teacher and the student.
Okeke (2018) revealed that three interaction patterns, co-operative, competitive and individualistic adopted for the study enhanced achievement and interest of students in chemistry.
Fatokun and Omenesa (2015) in a study on the effect of prior knowledge and classroom interaction on students’ achievement in chemistry, observed that there is significant effect of treatment on students’ achievement in chemistry.
Though many research studies have been carried out on classroom interactions patterns as it relates students’ academic achievement and interest, the researcher observed little or no study has investigated the effect of group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern in Abia State, Nigeria. Furthermore, effective implementation of classroom interaction patterns is capable of creating learner-centered environment which is able to arouse students’ interest.
Interest is very paramount to the realization of the objectives of secondary education, which also help to take advantage of the numerous career opportunities offered by chemistry education. Interest as it applies in every aspect of human endeavour, remains a requisite for every meaningful and successive teaching-learning experience. Interest can be defined as the inner desire that propels students to actively participate in classroom activities. Interest could be seen as a psychological state of engagement, experienced in the moment, and also a predisposition to engage repeatedly in particular ideas, events, or objects over time (Paul, 2014). Lai (2010) defined interest in learning as personal preferences with regard to learning.
Interest is often thought of as a process that contributes to learning and achievement. Essien, Akpan and Obot (2015)carried out a study on the effect of interest on academic achievement in social science, and revealed that there is a strong positive relationship between interest and academic achievement. Nja, Ukpepi, Edoho and Neji (2019) in a study on enhancing students’ academic achievement in Chemistry by using kitchen resources in Ikom, Calabar, discovered that students' academic achievement was dependent on their interest in Chemistry. In other words, when students’ interest is captured, their academic achievement will improve.
Academic achievement is the learning outcome and the overall output in the teaching and learning experiences of the child. According to Aniaku (2012) achievement is the quantity and quality of knowledge and skill an individual or groups acquired about a specific area of course and how that knowledge can be made use of in solving societal problems. It is however, the accomplishment of academic goals, the educational outcomes of students, the extent a student, a teacher or an instructor has achieved the stated objectives (Aniaku, 2012). Academic achievement refers to the observed and measured aspect of a student’s mastery of skills and subject contents as measured with valid and reliable tests (Joe, Kpolovie, Osonwa & Iderima, 2014). The researcher defines academic achievement as the quantitative outcome gained by students as a result of effort invested to learn the concept.
Academic achievement at secondary level is of paramount importance as it is a major factor for further studies (Kpolovie, Joe & Okoto, 2014). In Nigeria, academic achievement at secondary school level determines who proceeds to higher institution. Ezike (2018) stated that many prospective graduands of secondary education have been frustrated out of further education for the simple reason of not being able to acquire the much needed grades to qualify them for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, (UTME). Ojukwu (2016) carried out a study which revealed that out of 105,453 chemistry students who sat for SSCE in 2010 only 26,680 credited Chemistry in Abia state. This shows a gap in the academic achievement of chemistry students. WAEC results statistics of Abia state students’ academic achievement revealed that 18,484 male students and 20,572 female students had 5 credits and above including mathematics and English language. Students’ gender is another important variable in students’ academic achievement.
Gender can be defined as the social behavior of male or female. According to World Health Organization (WHO), gender refers to the socially constructed characteristics of boys and girls, men and women which includes behaviours, norms and roles associated with being male or female. Gender also varies from society to society and can change over time. Ajayi and Ogbeba (2017) stated that studies on gender differences in chemistry achievement continue to yield inconsistent results. In their study, Ajayi and Ogbeba (2017) examined the effect of gender on students’ achievement in stoichiometry using hands-on activities and the study revealed that there is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught stoichiometry using hands-on activities.
Ezeudu and Obi (2013) study on the effect of gender and location on students’ achievement in chemistry in secondary schools in Nsukka local government area of Enugu State, Nigeria, showed that male students achieved significantly better than the female students in both urban and rural schools. Aniodoh and Egbo (2013) researched on effect of gender on students’ achievement in chemistry using inquiry role instructional model and found that the female students performed better than their male counterparts when taught chemistry using inquiry role instructional model. Based on the inconsistency of the results, the researcher included gender as a variable in this work.
It is based on this backdrop that the researcher investigated the effects of group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern on students’ academic achievement and interest in chemistry.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Chemistry is a major branch of science with huge relevance across various facet of life. Despite its crucial importance and need in the society, there has been poor academic achievement of students in chemistry both in internal and external examinations. A number of factors have been identified as being responsible for the poor academic achievement in chemistry such as teaching strategies, students attitude and interest towards learning, availability and usability of instructional materials etc. The teaching strategies utilized by most teachers are teacher-centered such as lecture method which gives students little or no opportunities to express their ideas on concepts being taught and thus making students passive in the teaching-learning process, this in turn reduces students interest in learning and hence students achieve poorly in chemistry.
However, to reverse the observed situation, there is need to employ a more innovative teaching strategy that is learner-centered and capable of arousing students’ interest and curiosity to learn more chemistry concepts. Innovative teaching strategies includes; Classroom interaction patterns, inquiry role instructional model, concept mapping, project-based learning, personalized learning etc. This study focused on classroom interaction patterns: whole classroom interaction patterns, group classroom interaction patterns and individualistic classroom interaction patterns because classroom interaction is learner-centered which ensures active students’ participation in learning chemistry.
Therefore, the study investigated the effects of classroom interaction patterns: whole classroom interaction patterns, group classroom interaction patterns and individualistic classroom interaction patterns on academic achievement and interest of secondary school chemistry students in Abia State.
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of classroom interaction patterns on academic achievement and interest of secondary school chemistry students. Specifically, the following objectives guided the study:
1. determine the mean achievement scores of students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern.
2. determine the mean interest responses of students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern.
3. determine the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern.
4. determine the mean interest responses of male and female students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern.
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. What are the mean achievement scores of students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern?
2. What are the mean interest responses of students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern?
3. What are the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern?
4. To what extent does the mean interest responses of male students differ from that of their female counterparts when taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern?
1.5 HYPOTHESES
HO1: There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern.
HO2: The mean interest responses of students taught gas laws using three different classroom interaction patterns do not differ significantly.
HO3: There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern.
HO4: There is no significant difference in the mean interest responses of male and female students taught gas laws using three classroom interaction patterns; group classroom interaction pattern, whole classroom interaction pattern and individualistic classroom interaction pattern.
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The result of this study will provide guidance to students, teachers, government, curriculum planners, parents and researchers.
The study is expected to be of great benefit to students: the findings of this research if published will encourage interaction patterns in the classroom and will make students to be actively involved in the teaching-learning process. This study will help to promote students’ participation, improve students’ ability to solve chemistry problems as well as instilling confidence to ask questions and contribute in class discussion. The students are provided with time to interact with each other about concept they are learning, hence create room for exchange of ideas and knowledge and students academic achievement is improved as well as making chemistry subject interesting.
The findings of this study will help teachers become aware or more conscious of some vital interaction patterns they ought to employ during chemistry lessons to arouse students interest. This will make the classroom student centered rather than the conventional teacher-centered classroom which may contribute little in the academic achievement of students in chemistry. It will also help teachers listen to students more and skillfully manage students’ discussion. The joy of every teacher is to see student achieve the best results in both internal and external examination, thus, the result of this research is capable of motivating teachers to do more.
The findings will spur up the mind of the government to organize in service training, seminar and workshops for teachers at secondary school level. This will serve as an avenue to train teachers on how to manage diverse classroom interaction patterns. Also, the findings will make curriculum planners take cognizance of classroom interaction pattern while planning the secondary school curriculum.
The findings of this study will be of great help to parents as the joy of every parent or guardian is to see their children/wards perform excellently in examination. The improved academic achievement of students will serve as a compensation for the financial sacrifices of parents and guardians.
Finally, the findings of this research will serve as a road map for researchers in related field as it will provide researchers with relevant reference materials for future research. The findings and recommendation of this present work will add to the existing body of knowledge in this area and guide the researcher to discover more gaps that need to be studied.
1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
This study was delimited to the effect of classroom interaction patterns (group interaction, whole classroom interaction and individualistic interaction) on academic achievement and interest of secondary school 1 chemistry students in Abia State. The study focused on physical chemistry topic “Gas laws” which comprised sub-topics such as: Boyle’s law, Charles’ law, Ideal gas law and Gay lussac’s law. The choice of ‘Gas law” is as a result of WAEC chief examiner’s report, which stated that “Candidates could not draw the graphical illustration of Charles’ law correctly” (WEAC, 2018). Teaching students’ good classroom interaction pattern help to lay strong foundation which enable students understand and appreciate chemistry subject, since SS1 is a foundation class and students have not covered much of the senior secondary curriculum neither would they be preparing for external examination soon, unlike the SS2 and SS3 students.
The study was restricted to male and female senior secondary one (SS1) students. The target population is chosen because it is the foundation class for the learning chemistry in senior secondary schools. This study was conducted in Umuahia Educational Zone because of proximity to the researcher’s institution.
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