CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Mathematics is defined as the science that deals with the logic of shape, quality and arrangement (Dover, 2013) Mathematics is seen today as the mother of all subjects (Anderson, 2014). It is an important subject that is applicable to all facets of life. Everyone in the society makes use of Mathematics on daily basis including market men and women. The role played by Mathematics in all areas of development in live cannot be overemphasized. It serves as a backbone to all technological advancement in the world. There can be no meaningful development in this modern world of technological era without adequate and sufficient knowledge of Mathematics. The study of Mathematics enhances one’s understanding of the world through the use of symbols and abstract representation of phenomena (Burton, 2012).
Many things have changed in the twenty-first century as a result of the advent of new developing technologies, including the techniques and methods of teaching and learning in the classroom. With the development of new technologies, there is a paradigm shift from traditional methods of teaching and learning to a technologically oriented pattern that encourages collaboration and student-centred learning. Technology not only engages students, assists teachers in differentiating their education, and fosters connections that would otherwise be unattainable, but it also prepares them to adapt to a rapidly changing technologically oriented society(Makanya, 2015). Not to mention the fact that technology aids in organization, lesson planning, and classroom management.
The invention of technology has been a blessing in present times in teaching and learning. Technologies like cell phones, overhead slides, wireless internet access, interactive whiteboard, graphing calculators, laptop computers, tablets, and other evolving technologies have been deployed by teachers in one way or the other to teach chemistry concepts. As such, teachers may use technology to boost their productivity, incorporate valuable digital tools to extend students' learning opportunities and increase student support and involvement. It also allows teachers to improve their teaching techniques and customize learning(Ode, 2014).
An Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) is an instructional technology for computer graphics which projected onto a board with the help of digital projector ((Murcia, 2014). The instructor can manipulate the objects on the board using the mouse directly on the screen while utilizing IWB. Similarly, items can be dragged, clicked, and copied, and the instructor can handwrite notes, which can then be converted to text format and saved.
The interactive whiteboard has become more relevant in several areas of the academic environment, serving as a veritable instrument for learning (Betcher & Lee, 2019). In some classrooms, interactive whiteboards have taken the place of traditional whiteboards or flipcharts, as well as video/media devices such as DVD players and TV (Reardon, 2012). Even in situations where traditional boards are employed, the IWB is frequently used to enhance them by linking to a school network digital video distribution system. In other circumstances, IWBs connect with online collaborative annotation and drawing environments, such as interactive vector-based graphical webpages.
Regardless of the numerous educational technologies that have the potential to improve science teaching and learning, the quality of science teaching and learning in Nigeria is a source of concern for everybody (Gillen et al., 2018). Science education at all levels continues to take the traditional conservative approach, with the teacher serving as the purveyor of knowledge and the students as the passive recipients. Students' involvement is limited in a traditional demonstration-based teaching environment because teachers typically use teaching methods that focus on information delivery and knowledge acquisition rather than encouraging the building of knowledge within the social context.
Most of the time, the traditional demonstration is delivered in a one-way communication format, with few possibilities for class debate and active student participation. In a typical Nigerian science classroom setting, where expository and unproductive teaching methods are frequently observed studies confirmed that traditional science teaching still heavily relies on lectures, reading, and teacher demonstrations (Agogo & Onda, 2014), these teaching strategies are likely to be inadequate and inappropriate to achieve Mathematics learning. As a result, the prevalent use of teacher centred teaching methods may make understanding the concept challenging, particularly when the topic taught is not only complex but also abstract and dynamic.
Academic performance is the extent to which a student has attained their short or long-term educational goals. The observed students’ poor performance and weaknesses in Mathematics in Nigeria are as a result several factors among inadequate teaching methods seen to be the most prominent in determining students’ success have piqued the interest of academic researchers from a variety of disciplines (Agogo, 2013). They attempted to establish which variables have a favourable and negative impact on student performance. The significance of students' performance is obvious not only to the students but also to the school, as it is a measure of the success of their educational process. The teaching of Mathematics is not left out in the use of digital pedagogy.
Despite the importance of Mathematics, students may have difficulty studying the subject (Uwadiae, 2010), this may be due to the abstract approach employed in teaching the subject. Thus, this study anticipates that the implementation of an interactive whiteboard will be a game changer in terms of improving students' academic performance in Mathematics. On this premise, this study investigates the effect of Interactive White Board on the academic performance of senior secondary school Mathematics students in Abua/Odual Local Government Area, Rivers State.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The study of Mathematics in secondary schools in Nigeria appears to many students as a nightmare, because the only reason why they learn the subject is its being compulsory for students intending to pursue science-related careers. Subsequently, the perception about Mathematics is reflected in the fluctuating statistics of students’ performance reported by the West Africa Examination Council for 2007-2020.
The foregoing statistics do not only reveal the abysmal performance of students in Mathematics nationwide in terms of the fluctuating statistics, but it also reveals inconsistency in the trend of performance, a condition which may be attributed to the persistent use of traditional teaching methods in teaching Mathematics in schools in some states of the Federation including Rivers State.
Could the integration of interactive whiteboards among others into the teaching of Mathematics improve students’ performance in Mathematics? Consequent to the foregoing, this study investigates the effect of Interactive White Board on the academic performance of secondary school Mathematics students in Abua/Odual Local Government Area, Rivers State.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
This study determined the effect of Interactive White Board on the academic performance of senior secondary school Mathematics students in Abua/Odual Local Government Area, Rivers State. The specific objectives of the study are to:
1. Determine if secondary school students improved upon their performance in Mathematics due to the use of Interactive White Board.
2. establish if mean performance differ between male and female secondary school students taught Mathematics due to the use of Interactive White Board
1.4 Research Questions
The following research questions will guide this study.
1. What are the mean performance scores of students taught Mathematics with interactive whiteboards and those taught without interactive whiteboards?
2. What are the mean performance scores of male and female students taught Mathematics with interactive whiteboards and those taught without interactive whiteboards?
1.5 Hypotheses
The following research hypotheses formulated were tested at 0.05 level of significance.
1. There is no significant difference in the performance scores of students taught Mathematics with interactive whiteboards and those taught withoutinteractive whiteboards.
2. There is no significant difference in the performance scores of students taught Mathematics with interactive whiteboards and those taught without interactive whiteboards.
1.6 Significance of the Study
The outcome of this study will have a great impact and significance to the following groups of persons or individuals; students, teachers, government, parents, members of society, and curriculum developers.
To the students, the study will help them appreciate the impact created through the use of interactive whiteboards in terms of retention and performance in the area of the subject chemistry.
To the teachers, it will enlighten them on the importance of this technology in terms of teaching aid. The 21st-century teachers must improve the academic performance and retention of their students by inculcating in them the spirit of collaboration, creativity, critical thinking and effective communication in the teaching-process which can be achieved through the use of interactive whiteboard technology. It will introduce the concept of the interactive whiteboard to teachers who are not aware of this technological tool. It will expose the teachers to creative ways of teaching Mathematics to encourage creativity, collaboration, communication and critical thinking in their various classrooms. It will also help in enlightening teachers on the relevance of the technological tool towards students’ academic performance.
To the government, the study will help enlighten the government on the importance of using interactive whiteboard technology as a teaching aid. It will encourage the government to introduce this technology into the teaching of science subjects like Mathematics and also motivate them to train teachers on how to use this technology.
To the parents, the improvement of students in terms of retention and implementation as a result of the full implementation of the use of interactive whiteboards will make parents happy and willing to spend more money on their children's educational pursuits.
Finally, to Curriculum developers, the study is expected to enrich the available literature on the variables being studied as well as provide useful information that can be used to make recommendations to curriculum developers in Nigeria for formulating educational policies that will promote and positively influence students’ learning of Mathematics.
1.7 Scope of the Study
This study was concerned with interactive whiteboards in teaching Mathematics to Senior Secondary School One (SSS 1) students in Abua/Odual Local Government Area of Rivers State. The study covered topics in Mathematics as contained in Senior Secondary School Mathematics curriculum. The topics that were treated include: Construction and Mensuration. Specifically, it covers perimeter of sectors and segments.
The study was also concerned with gender disparity. Students used for the study were both male and female students. The use of these topics was borne out of the fact that they fell within the broad topics construction and mensuration in Senior Secondary One scheme of work that was used for this study. These topics are also considered to be the foundation for students to be able to construct their own cognitive models for abstract mathematics ideas and processes. The choice of Abua/Odual Local Government Area of Rivers State was as a result of the fact that such study has not been carried out in the area, also, because it is a national curriculum and the area uses the same syllabus.
1.8 Operational Definition of Terms
The following terms are defined on how they were used in this study.
Interactive Whiteboards: The Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) is a large, touch-sensitive board, connected to a computer and to a projector which offers an attractive environment, enabled manipulation texts by deleting and saving them during the teaching.
Performance: How well the students score in their tests.
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