THE EFFECT OF UTILIZING BIOLOGY TEACHING AIDS  ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS PERFORMANCE

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1   BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Science has made several contributions to the realization and growth of the modern world, and it has been credited with laying the groundwork for technological breakthroughs. As a result, it is unsurprising to see the Nigerian government putting out every effort to advance science and technology. Science is a dynamic human endeavor aimed at comprehending the workings of the world in which we live. This knowledge aids man in learning more about the cosmos. Without the application of science to his daily tasks, man would have struggled to investigate his local environment. Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Agriculture, and Biology are examples of basic science disciplines.

Biology is a natural science field that studies living and non-living creatures. It's about how a person reacts to his immediate surroundings (Umar, 2011). It is a required subject in secondary school and a requirement for several fields of study, most notably in the faculty of science and some departments at Nigeria's postsecondary institutions. Medicines, pharmacy, nursing, agriculture, forestry, biotechnology, nanotechnology, and a variety of other fields are included (Ahmed & Abimbola, 2011). Biology is one of the required topics in the secondary school curriculum in Nigeria. Biology attracted more students than physics and chemistry in the senior secondary school certificate examination (SSCE) because of its relevance (West African Examination Council, 2011). Secondary school science education is oriented on producing future scientists, technicians, engineers, and related professionals (Kareem, 2003).

However, it has been observed over the years in many Nigerian schools that a lack of instructional materials has resulted in a significant drop in the academic performance of senior secondary school students, particularly in science subjects such as Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics, as well as vocational and technical subjects such as Home Economics. Teaching aids or resources used to demonstrate the teaching process and make education more comprehensible to the student are referred to as instructional materials. Teaching and learning processes, as well as the achievement of the lesson's goals and objectives, are aided by instructional materials. This, however, is contingent on material availability. Teachers should choose the instructional resources they will utilize with caution. Oral reports, according to Brunner (1961) and Mustapha (2002), require visual assistance and improvisation. Improvisation is the skill of supplying a substitute or close substitute for the genuine thing when it is unavailable or difficult to obtain. As a result, it is critical for Biology teachers to employ instructional aids or innovate in order to make learning effective, interesting, simple, and long-lasting. As a result, social studies instructors who want to be excellent at their jobs must be able to employ all available teaching resources as well as innovate where they are not easily available. People recall individuals they have seen, touched, and even played with, which is a clear fact. The basic goal of teaching is to help students learn and understand the topic materials more effectively.

Bizarrely,  Nigeria suffers from a labor deficit in scientific and technology-related subjects as a result of its poor educational performance. Nigeria's goal of becoming one of the world's twenty most industrialized countries by 2020 may be jeopardized as a result of this. One of the key causes leading to students' low performance in biology has been recognized as inadequate teaching methods used by instructors at the senior secondary school level in Nigeria. Secondary school instructors often use a classroom-based teaching technique that consists of lectures and direct guidance to student. This is known as the teacher-centered technique, which places a strong focus on learning while under the supervision of a teacher at all times. Students are required to pay attention to lectures and take notes. Students become passive rather than active learners as a result of their continued usage of this strategy. It does not encourage in–depth learning and long–term memory of some complex biological notions (Ahmed, 2008; Ahmed & Abimbola, 2011; Kareem, 2003; Umar, 2011). Today, biology education appears to be failing.

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

There has been significant interest in poor performance in Biology by secondary school students and this point to the fact that the most desired technological, scientific and economic application of Biology cannot be sustained. This necessitates the development of a Biology teaching method aimed at boosting student knowledge and performance. According to Srinivasa (1978) and Ogunkunle (2000), one of the primary reasons contributing to low biology success by secondary school students is a lack of biology laboratory and biology teachers' non-use of teaching technique in teaching biology.  

Despite the relevance and attractiveness of biology among Nigerian students, senior secondary school student  have performed poorly (Ahmed, 2008). This has compelled scholars to suggest the importance of teaching aid during classroom instruction. Thus the use of audio visual aids will make teaching and learning more efficient and effective and result oriented by providing avenue for sharing idea and information. Unfortunately,  in developing countries like Nigeria, there is frequently a availability of instructional materials  and teachers unwillingness to utilize teaching aids nor inability to improvise. This rapid changes that have taken place all over the world pose a challenge to the academic achievement of student and at large the educational sector. Therefore is against this backdrop that this study seeks to examine the effect of utilizing biology teaching aids  on secondary school students performance.

1.3  Objectives of the Study

The main objective of this study is to examine the effect of utilizing biology teaching aids  on secondary school students performance. However, the specific objectives of the study are:

i.          To examine the importance of instructional materials for effective teaching and learning of Biology in secondary schools.

ii.        To ascertain the extent at which teachers utilize teaching aids during biology instruction

iii.      To investigate whether the level at which teachers are willing to improvise in the absence of instructional material

iv.      To determine whether  instructional materials have a significant effect on student academic performance in biology.

1.4   RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

The research hypotheses to be tested include:

HO1: Instructional materials has no impact on  effective teaching and learning of Biology in secondary schools.

HO2: Instructional materials has no significant effect on student academic performance in biology.

1.5   SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study investigates the Biology instructional materials in empowering Secondary School students. Therefore, it will be of immense benefits to students, teachers, school authorities, curriculum planner, educational stakeholders and Ministries of Education at different level of government. The finding from this study will be of immense benefit because it will enhance the learning processes of the students and thereby improve on their overall academic performance, since it will increase the motivation of the students, add clarity to the topics taught and make learning more interesting. Also, the result from this study will help to re-emphasis the need for Biology teachers of secondary schools on importance of making the use of instructional materials a factor to be considered in promoting teaching and learning of Biology. And this in no small measure provides a basis that compliments and supports the use of teaching skills and enhances effectiveness. Findings from this study will further help to reveal and create awareness among the school authorities of the importance or otherwise of the impact of instructional materials in teaching and learning of Biology in secondary schools. Furthermore, finding from this study will have much significance on the ministries of education at all government level in Nigeria. This is because it will serve as a source of information to the government that the non-provision of instructional materials to teaching and learning of Biology is one of the problems leading to poor academic performance in the subject.

1.6   SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study investigates the effect of utilizing biology teaching aids  on secondary school students performance.  Therefore the respondents to be covered will be senior secondary school students from some selected schools within Onna Local Government Area of Akwaibom State, Nigeria.

1.7  LIMITATIONS 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  selected secondary school in Onna Local Government Area of Akwaibom State. Thus,  findings of this study cannot be used for generalization for other ministry in other States within Nigeria. Additionally, the researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work will impede maximum devotion to the research. Howbeit, despite the constraint  encountered during the  research, all factors were downplayed in other to give the best and make the research successful.

1.8   DEFINITIONS OF TERMS

The following terms were used in the course of this study:

Academic performance: is defined as successful completion, through effort, of the acquisition of academic content and skills mostly determined by the grades or scores that the student gets in a test.

Biology: it is concerned with the study of living and non-living things

Effective learning: is learning which develops understanding of learning in the changing world. Effective learning involves individuals moving beyond making connections of new ideas to old ones into restructuring their thinking radically by changing the connections among the things they already know or even discard some long-held beliefs about the world.

Learning: is the act of acquiring new, or modifying and reinforcing, existing knowledge, behaviours, skills, values or preferences and may involve synthesizing different types of information.

Teaching: teaching is the concerted sharing of knowledge and experience, which is usually organized within a discipline and more generally, the provision of stimulus to the psychological and intellectual growth of students by teachers.

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