AN  EXAMINATION OF THE IMPACT OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS ON COMPUTER TEACHING AND LEARNING IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

             Education has had a good impact on the survival of society as a whole; for this reason, improvements in the educational field are essential in order to encourage and facilitate teaching and learning while also keeping up with the current changes and trends. Education in the past focused on few or no instructional resources in order to effect knowledge in learners; their ideas were that knowledge could be pushed on students independent of individual differences in the classroom. (Obanya2013).

Importantly, attaining any teaching and learning objectives necessitates the use of both human resources and material resources and factors, namely the instructor as the enforcer of subject content and the availability of both conventional and improvised materials, also known as instructional materials. A teacher, in the true meaning, is someone who integrates materials and interprets concepts in order to achieve the desired change or outcome in the learners. A teacher's duty is frequently formal and ongoing, carried out through occupation or profession at school or other formal contexts. These variables must be in place to ensure that educational objectives are met. Instructional materials are defined as all items required in the classroom for use by the instructor in the pursuit of supporting teaching and learning.

According to Benson (2011), instructional materials are materials or instruments that are either locally produced or imported and have the potential to make a significant impact if used wisely. Most learners struggle to understand particular concepts as a result of their cognitive operation and ability; thus, the need for teachers to adopt resources and approaches that will help students' understanding of the concepts, like in the case of computer studies, is recognized. Against this backdrop, (Nwuba2016) quoted Jean Piaget, who proposed that humans are divided into sensory motor, pre-operational, concrete, and abstract cognitive levels. In Kay’s idea (2008), instructional materials increase students' willingness to study and aid in the learning process by making assimilation and memorization of the learnt topic simple for pupils. Agun (2008) refers to them as learning materials, the right application of which aids learners in learning faster and better. Offering computer studies, the computer itself serves as an educational resource because the subject is more of a concrete item that both the teacher and learners can see and touch (Ituma, 2010).

Since computer centers are a current moving trend in society, the topic computer studies was added into the secondary school curriculum to develop and instill in learners the necessary knowledge and abilities regarding computers, as well as to empower the youth through entrepreneurship (Adebayo, 2013). According to Abu (2004), the importance of computer devices in modern culture cannot be overstated, which is why teaching computer studies should not be taken lightly and should be addressed with appropriate instructional resources. The pace of teaching and learning in the classroom is heavily influenced by the instructional material. Okereke (2009) emphasized that many schools at the state level lack instructional resources and contends that every government should make education a top priority in order to help enhance educational standards by providing instructional materials. Teaching and learning are aided by instructional material. It aids in moving learning away from verbalization and toward the actual aspects of teaching and learning. Instructional resources make teaching and learning more fascinating, simple, and enjoyable. They improve the effectiveness of learning.

According to Otu (2007), computer studies are a "tool"; they are genuine and should be regarded as such; the inability to provide the appropriate teaching instructional materials poses a significant threat to students' academic achievements and performance in the subject. Because the topic presents a degree of abstract notions that need to be visualized by students in order to stimulate their understanding and to repair the issue of individual differences, there must be a computer device for computer studies to be learnt properly. As a result, for effective understanding of the subject matter in computer studies and for students to achieve better results in computer studies, there is a great need to investigate the effects of instructional materials on computer teaching and learning with the goal of stimulating students' interest.

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

            In spite of the desire for technological development, couple with the fact that  Computer Science is a very vital subject for technological development, there has been a dire need for effective teaching and learning of computer science in Junior secondary school. According to the national policy on education (NPOE 2004), the junior secondary school is the first part of the secondary school level of education, which means that proper attention is required to ensure that students perform well academically, which may not be possible without the use of instructional materials in the classroom. Thus this level of ingenuity, innovation, and imagination displayed by instructors is credited with the attainment of educational quality. These are based on how well the teacher perceives, creates, and applies vital information that can improve and encourage effective teaching and learning activities.

Conversely, instructional materials are significant determining variables that influence the rate of learning. It is concerned with the establishment of an environment in which students can realize their full potential and lead productive lives in accordance with the demands of their interests, either as individuals or as groups within society. The Nigerian government has placed enormous emphasis on instructional materials in shaping efforts as strategies aimed at improving students' standard of learning in the country over the years, but both theoretical and empirical literature have failed to capture the real factors as to why the standard of education in the country remains very low. As a result, the research question is: what are the impact of instructional materials on computer science teaching and learning in the Abia  State  junior secondary school system.

1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The broad objective of this study is to examine the impact of instructional material on effective teaching and learning of computer science in junior secondary schools in Abia State. Specifically, the study seeks:

i.          To examine the kinds of instructional materials required for effective teaching of computer science in secondary schools in Ukwa Local Government Area Abia State

ii.        To determine the extent of availability of instructional materials at secondary schools in  Ukwa Local Government Area Abia State.

iii.      To ascertain if  computer science teachers improvise teaching aids in the absence instructional materials

iv.      To investigate whether availability and utilization of instructional material facilitates effective teaching and learning of computer science.

1.4       Research Question

The research will be guided  by the following question:

i.          What are the different kinds of instructional materials required for effective teaching of computer science in secondary schools in  Ukwa Local Government Area Abia State?

ii.         What is the extent of availability of instructional materials at secondary schools in  Ukwa Local Government Area Abia State?

iii.      Do computer science teachers improvise teaching aids in the absence instructional materials?

iv.      Does the availability and utilization of instructional material facilitates effective teaching and learning of computer science?

1.5       Significance of the study

This study will be useful to classroom teachers, curriculum planners, students, researchers and parents. For teachers they will be better informed on how to help and guide their students on better way of producing instructional materials.The findings of this study, if discussed in workshops and seminars will guide the choice of   instructional materials used in the teaching/learning process in Computer Science and other subject areas. The findings of this study will equally help to alleviate the problem of the scarcity of instructional materials for biology teaching/learning. . Parents will be better informed on how to encourage and help their wards to produce improvised materials. This may be in form of sourcing local materials and providing fund for those that cannot be found in their environment.finally, the study will contribute to the body of knowledge and serve as a reference material to both student and scholars who wishes to conduct further studies in related field.

1.6 Scope of the study

The scope of this study bothers on the availability of instructional materials for effective teaching and learning of computer science in secondary schools. The study examines the kinds of instructional materials required for effective teaching of computer science determine the extent of availability of instructional materials. It will ascertain if computer science teachers improvise teaching aids in the absence instructional materials and investigate if the  availability and utilization of instructional material facilitates. The study is however delimited to at secondary schools in  Ukwa Local Government Area Abia State.

1.7 Limitation of the study

Like in every human endeavour, the researchers encountered slight constraints while carrying out the study. The significant constraint was the scanty literature on the subject owing that it is a new discourse thus the researcher incurred more financial expenses and much time was required in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature, or information and in the process of data collection, which is why the researcher resorted to a limited choice of sample size covering only  secondary schools in Ukwa Local Government Area Abia State. Thus findings of this study cannot be generalized for other  secondary schools in other states within Nigeria. Additionally, the researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. Despite the constraint  encountered during the  research, all factors were downplayed in other to give the best and make the research successful.

1.8 Definition of Terms

Instruction material: instructional materials, also known as teaching/learning materials, are any collection of materials including animate and inanimate objects and human and non-human resources that a teacher may use in teaching and learning situations to help achieve desired learning objectives.

Learning Outcome: A Student Learning Objectives is an assessment tool that allows a teacher to quantify their impact on student achievement as measured within the parameters of a particular academic or elective standard. 

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