EFFECT OF PROJECT METHOD AND CONCEPT MAPPING ON THE ACHIEVEMENT AND INTEREST OF STUDENTS IN SOME ENVIRONMENTAL CONCEPTS IN GEOGRAPHY

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the effect of project method and concept mapping on the achievement and interest of students in environmental concepts in geography. The study also investigated the influence of gender on student academic achievement and interest in environmental concepts in geography. The interaction effect of teaching strategies and gender on students’ achievement and interest were also investigated in this study. In order to achieve the purpose of this study, six (6) research questions were posed and five (5) null hypotheses were  formulated which were tested at  .05  level of significance. The  study utilised quasi experimental control group design. The population of the study comprised all the  1479 SSII Geography students. Two hundred (200) SSII Geography students constituted the sample of this study. Two instruments were used to collect data for this study, they were: Environmental Concept Achievement Test (ECAT) and Environmental Concept Interest Inventory (ECII). These two instruments were face-validated by experts in measurement and  evaluation,  and   geography  teachers.  The  reliability  of  ECAT  was determined using Kuder-Richason formula 20 (kR-20) and the reliability index of .90 was obtained. The reliability index of .815 was also obtained for ECII using Cronbach alpha method. The data obtained for the study were analyzed using mean and standard deviation in answering research questions while analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used in testing the hypotheses. The findings of the study were: project method and concept mapping strategies significantly enhanced students’ academic achievement in environmental concepts in geography when compared with the conventional lecture method, teaching  strategies  were   not   significant  factor   on  students’   interest   in geography,  gender influence students’ achievement in environmental concepts in geography, gender was not a significant factor on student’s interest in environmental concepts in geography, there was significant interaction effect of teaching strategies and gender on student’s achievement, and there was  no significant  interaction effect  of  teaching strategies and  gender  on student’s interest in environmental concepts in geography. Based on the above findings of the  study, recommendations were also  made  which include that  geography teachers should introduce project and concept mapping in their lessons in order to attract and motivate students to learn geography which will in turn enhance the students’ academic achievement and interest in the subject.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

In Nigeria, much emphasis is placed on education because of its effective contribution  to  the  nation’s  overall  development.  Consequently,  many  subjects  are studied  at various levels of education  in  Nigeria, towards  realization  of the goals of education as an instrument for national development.  At the senior secondary school level, one of the subjects being studied  is geography.  Geography is a subject whose practical and intellectual values are widely recognized in many spheres of life.   It has been acclaimed as a major pre-requisite for the attainment of national development goals (United Nations Environmental Programme, UNEP, 2003). According to UNEP (2003), geography is undisputedly an environmental science which studies all systems of air, land, water, energy and life that surround man. Geography is a science of synthesis which studies the earth as the home of man.  It seeks to understand a given area in terms of the total integration of the various phenomena which characterize it (Ofomata, 2001).

Geography  plays  a  major  role  among  the  sciences  and  social  sciences  as  a relevant subject for numerous careers in physical sciences and humanities.  According to Ofomata (2001), a study of geography and its concepts namely erosion, pollution, deforestation, waste disposal and land degradation is quite relevant. These concepts are considered for this study because they are the common environmental hazards in the area of  study,  Onitsha  Educational  Zone,  which  require  the  attention  of  Government, community and scholars.

The  knowledge  of  these  environmental  concepts  in  geography  can  lead  to increased   awareness   of  the   environment.   The   first   United   Nations   International Conference on human environment was held in Stockholm in 1972 to work out an action plan  for  Environmental  Education  (E.E).  In  1975,  an  International  Environmental Education Workshop was held in Belgrade – Yugoslavia to discuss the goals, objectives and guiding principles. Consequently in 1977, an Inter-governmental Conference held include Mosocow 1987, Brudland report 1988, Rio de Janeior Brazil 1992, Cairo-Egypt

1994, and Athens 1998 which eventually adopted the goals, objectives and guiding principles of E.E Curriculum universally. The last of these International Conferences was held in Rio de Januro Brazil, 2012 – termed Ecorevolution 2012.

Among the goals of Environmental Education   are:

i.          To  foster  awareness  of  and  concern  about  economic,  social,  political  and ecological interdependence in urban and rural areas.

ii.        To provide every person with the opportunities to acquire the knowledge, values, attitudes, commitment, and skills needed to protect and improve the environment and

iii.       To create new patterns of behaviour of individuals, groups and society as a whole toward the environment (UNESCO – UNEP, 1988).

In order to achieve these goals of Environmental Education at the secondary school level, Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC, 2007) designed its geography curriculum to reflect the present global changes, knowledge explosion and social needs of the people.  In order to cope with the recent challenges which confront man, there has been  a rapid change  in both the philosophical  orientation  and in  the

content of the training  programme  as seen  in the new Geography  Curriculum.   The national environmental education curriculum developed and published by the (NERDC,

1998) for all categories of learners has the following major objectives.

i.          Acquiring knowledge  and understanding of the environment and sensitivity to total environment and its allied problems and humanity’s responsible presence and role in it.

ii.        Developing skills in investigating and evaluating ecological, political, economic, social, aesthetic and educational factors for solving environmental problems.

iii.       Developing attitudes, values, and strong feelings of concern for the environment and the motivation for active participation in its protection and improvement.

The curriculum further stated teachers’ responsibilities  in order to achieve the objectives.  These include:

i.      Corroborating  Environmental  Education  objectives  and  strategies  into existing subject programme.

ii.      Developing students’ values and skills through values clarification and analysis, group dynamics and decision making.

iii.      Encouraging participation by involving students in first hand experience.

Based on the undisputable relevance of the subject, it is expected that the study of Geography and students’ performance in public examination would be on the increase. Unfortunately,  despite  the importance  and  relevance  of the subject,  indices  from  the examination  bodies,  such  as  the  West  African  Examination  Council  (WAEC)  and National Examination Council (NECO), have shown a consistent trend of low enrolment and  poor  achievement  of  students  in  geography  examinations.  For  instance,  Ifeakor

(2005) reviewed students’ achievement in geography from 1991 to 2000 in WAEC/SSCE O’ level examinations and reported a consistent trend of poor performance of students in the subject. A more recent research by Okonkwo (2011) reported that the analysis of students’ achievement in the science subjects at WAEC between (2000-2010) revealed that only 36.5% scored credit level, 22.3% scored pass level, (Grade 7 & 8) and the greater  percentage  of  41.3%  failed  i.e  (F9).  The  sum  of  the  percentage  failure  is enormous and the trend is continuous.

This unfortunate situation is giving major stakeholders in Geography education great concern.  To this effect, researchers have traced the cause of this consistent problem of failure in Geography and have attributed it to a number of factors. Some of these factors are lack of qualified personnel, lack of teaching materials and equipment, poor classroom management, lack of interest on the part of the students, students’ perception of difficulty in some Geography concepts   like map reading, inappropriate medium of instruction and use of ineffective teaching strategies (Udo & Eshiet, 2007; Longjohn,

2009). However, the researchers reported that inappropriate teaching strategies are the major factor responsible for the observed poor achievement of students in Geography.

Njoku (2009) reported that the ease with which learners make progress towards attaining a predetermined or a set of learning/teaching objectives depend on a number of factors namely:

1.         The methods/strategies and materials used for instruction/teaching,

2.         The relevance of the contents to the needs and aspirations of the learners in their socio-cultural and economic environment.

3.         The nature of the learning task or contents

4.         The background of the learner or entry behavior or previous experience of the learner.

A learning task may be easy or difficult for the learner and the level of complexity depends  on  the  nature  of the  task  and  learner’s  background  or previous  experience. These experiences which make for learner’s readiness include what they learnt at school as well as those learnt through their daily interactions in the socio-cultural and economic environment  (Njoku  2007).  This  is  because  the experiences  they gathered  make  the learning tasks to be relevant to their needs and aspirations. The more relevant the tasks are to the learners’ needs, the more learners are motivated and interested in mastering the contents and the skills, and also the easier the learning of the task will be to them. This implies that Geography teaching or instructions need to be done in a manner that will give the relevance and transferability of Environmental concepts in Geography the prominence they deserve.

Notably,  poor  achievements  of  students  have  been  observed  in  Geography national and international examinations. The syllabi of Geography contain concepts and processes ranging from local geography, physical geography, human geography, regional geography and map interpretation, including concept from other areas of study such as Environmental Education (EE) concepts. The EE concepts are examined alongside the other core  Geography  concepts  in  these  same examinations.  While  some  studies  for example, (Obeka 2005; Abu 2007; Okafor 2011) examined achievement in Geography, EE aspects of the Geography syllabus have not been examined for conceptual difficulties and/or poor achievement by students in the examinations. Currently environmental issues have been brought to the forefront by UNEP and other environmental agencies as a result

of certain  prevalent  environmental  problems  world over. Since  these necessitated  the infusions and teaching of environmental concepts/issues  in the Geography syllabus, it becomes necessary to investigate into students’ achievement and interest in the area of the EE concepts in Geography syllabus.

The environmental problems have arisen mainly due to enormous scientific and technological growth, which has embraced every field of human endeavor, with its devastating effect on the environment (Osuafor, 2001; Okechukwu, 2002). Like most other towns in Nigeria, Onitsha is growing in industrial as well as commercial activities. These industries generate waste of different types, which are not properly disposed. The increasing commercial activity has grossly attracted a large population in Onitsha, thus it now exhibits all the characteristics of an overpopulated environment.

The school environment – primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions are not left out.    They are equally littered with wastes such as pieces of paper, and food remnants among others (Osuafor, 2002; Olagunju, 2002). Their hostels and conveniences are the worst hit.   This  scenario  makes  one  wonder  if these  students  and  even  their school authorities  are aware of the inherent  risks, dangers  and  implication of environmental pollution. Of a greater worry is the fact that these students are the future leaders and policy makers of the nation and therefore should not be allowed to go on with these negative environmental attitudes and practices. The advent of “throw away” culture in the Nigerian society has contributed in no small measure to this malaise of indiscriminate dumping and accumulation of large quantities of complex waste material   and the end appears not to be in sight (Eboatu & Okonkwo, 1999). Consequently, wastes clog-up drains leading to flooding, the land surface is defaced and of a greater concern is the

enormous adverse effects of these unwholesome practices on the health of the citizens, aquatic life and also on the nation’s economy.

Various Nigerian governments have made deliberate efforts to create awareness for the need to protect the environment. These intervention measures/efforts include the creation of Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA) in 1988, the revision of existing school curriculum and infusion of environmental education topics at primary, secondary and adult education levels by Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), and lastly the annual organization of workshops and seminars to mark the World Environment  Day (Adara, 1993). These programs, unfortunately,  have not produced appreciable results because of inadequate education on the environment for the masses. Our cities and institutions are still defaced with litter. Practices producing the greenhouse  and  Ozone  depleting  gases  (e.g  combustion  of  fossil  fuels,  etc)  are  still ongoing. The nation’s land, air and water environments are still being stuffed with over- doses of all sorts of pollutants. The implication of economic and development objectives on the environment if left unchecked will lead to irreversible pollution, degradation of the environment and resource depletion, thus placing the basic life support systems of the earth at risk. This is rather worrisome and calls for an urgent evolution of a new consciousness in these environmental issues through the adoption of proper instructional strategies in teaching the EE concepts infused into different subjects in the school system.

As indicated earlier, Geography as an academic discipline in Nigerian secondary schools which is one of the subjects into which environmental issues/concepts for EE have been infused, is plagued with such problems as poor achievement of candidates in

public examination. The poor achievement may be attributed to lack of interest in the subject by the students.

Interest can be said to be a feeling that accompanies or causes special attention to an object or class of objects.   It is the feeling that gingers somebody to act towards or against  something  in  the  environment.  Interest  is  an  important  variable  in  learning because when one becomes interested in an activity, one is likely to be more deeply involved in that activity and is therefore likely to achieve higher in that subject.  Harbor- Peters  (2001)  defined  interest  as  a subjective  feeling  of intentness  or  curiosity over something. It is preference for particular types of activities, that is, the tendencies to seek out and participate in certain activities in preference to others (Njoku, 1997). Interest can be expressed through simple statements made by individuals of their likes and dislikes. It can  also  be  through  overt  actions  or  activities  being  performed  by  the individuals/students.

This study is to investigate if the use of concept mapping and project method instructional   strategies   will   increase   students’   interest   and   achievement   in   the environmental concepts in Geography. However achievement in environmental concepts in Geography may also be influenced by gender.

Gender is a socio-culturally ascribed attribute which differentiates feminine from masculine (Imoko, 2004).  Gender is used to describe certain characteristics of men and women which are culturally and socially determined, while those that are biologically determined are regarded as sex (Oakley, 1970).   Gender is one of the factors affecting with achievement in Geography and other sciences (Ayodele, 2002).  However, studies on how it actually influences achievement have, till now, reported conflicting results,

implying contradicting evidences in academic achievement of students due to gender. Some  researchers  like  Jahun  and  Mmoh  (2001),  Mari  (2002),  and  Ifeakor  (2005), reported  that  male  students  have  a higher  achievement  and  interest  in  science  than females. Some of the factors identified to have accounted for the observed differences in the achievement of male and female students in Geography are sex-role stereotyping, masculine image of science and female socialization process.

Contrary to the finding, Ekwueme and Umoinyang (2005) reported that gender influenced achievement in the favour of females. The other hand, Aiyedum (2000), and Danmole  and  Adeoye  (2004);  found  no  significant  difference  in  the  achievement  of students due to gender.  Instead, they opined that achievement of both males and females can be affected by teaching and learning styles. There is need for teaching strategies that will enhance achievement in environmental concepts in Geography for both males and females; hence, this study will investigate the effects of concept mapping and project method in enhancing male and female students’ achievement. Achievement of students in environmental concept in geography may also be influenced by instructional strategies irrespective of gender.

Poor and ineffective instructional strategies have also been reported as a major factor responsible for the recorded poor achievement of students in Geography (Udo & Eshiet, 2007; Ahove, 2001). Literature also revealed that the traditional lecture method which does not promote cognitive and meta-cognitive development is the predominantly used  teaching  method  (Akinsola  &  Igwe  2002).  The  traditional  lecture  method  is  a method of teaching in which the teacher delivers the lesson to students with little or no active participation of students. It is a teacher – centered approach involving largely a

one-way  form  of communication  from  the teacher to the students.   Resultantly,  it is termed didactic approach because most of the talking is done by the teacher while the students   remain   passive   listeners.   Unfortunately,   this   method   of   instruction   is predominantly used by teachers in teaching most of the school subjects.

The desire to enhance students’ academic achievement in these areas demands a shift from the perception of what the teacher does to what the learner does in the teaching and learning process through more effective student centered activity and problem based strategies.   Learners should be seen as active participants in the process of knowledge acquisition and not as passive recipients of information from the teacher. Ahove (2001) and Asiyai (2005) advised teachers to adopt instructional methods that can bring about attitudinal change and acquisition of skills by the learner to enable him or her solve environmental problems in the course of their interaction with the environment. They described  such  methods  as  methods  of  activity,  enquiry  and  discovery,  which  are affective  and psychomotor-based  strategies. They suggested  the use  of the  following methods  in  teaching environmental  issues: enquiry method, project method, dramatization, field trips, simulation-game,  problem solving, concept mapping, use of resource persons and analogies.

Nevertheless, Ogunsola (1997) and Okebukola (1997) reported that it is difficult to point to one teaching strategy that could lead to the realization of all learning outcomes about the natural world. They however suggested some meta-cognitive  strategies like concept mapping which helps students to organize concepts into meaningful, as opposed to, loosely connected entities.   Secondly, concept mapping, field trips, project method, simulation-game/role  play  are  some  of  the  strategies  described  by  UNESCO/UNEP

(1986) as being of high potential value to the science teacher and quite essential to the teaching  of  science  for  EE.  Their  perceived  effectiveness  may  have  informed  their inclusion in the secondary education curriculum among methods that should be used by teachers.  Unfortunately,  Eguabor  (2005)  reported  that  secondary  school  Geography teachers hardly ever use these methods because they do not have adequate knowledge of what concept mapping is and how to use it, neither do they know much about other problem based methods of instruction like the project method.

The  project  method  is  a  form  of  teaching  that  gives  more  importance  and recognition to the group activity. According to Rawart (2002), the project method is a problematic action which is carried out to completion in its natural and immediate setting. Sood (2001) is of the view that a project is a whole hearted activity which is done with a specific purpose in a social environment. This mainly focuses on the purposeful activity and problem solving capacity of the students based on their needs, interest, attitudes and abilities.  It is activity oriented  and  experience centered  and  advocates  that education should be related to the life situation. The main focus of this strategy is socializing the child  and developing  the problem solving  ability. This  was influenced by the John’s pragmatism principle.

Concept mapping is a model of instructional strategy developed by Novak and his associates at Cornell University in the early 70s (Kola-Olusanya, 1998; Ahove, 2001). It is a meta-learning technique for assisting learners to organize information about concepts in a meaningful manner in order to facilitate meaningful learning. Ahove (2001) stated that concept mapping strategy is hinged on the fact that concepts do not exist in isolation, but  rather  are  inter-related  with  others  to  make  meaning.  The  organization  of  new

concepts, information or learning tasks in a manner that show how these concepts are interrelated may help the learner to make mental connections between these ideas. This teaching strategy was developed from Ausubel’s Assimilation Theory of Cognitive Learning, which states that new concepts are acquired through assimilation into existing concept  propositional  framework  (Ahove 2001).  Ausubel  (1963) stated that the most important single factor influencing learning is what the learner already knows, ascertain it and teach accordingly. Ausubel’s idea of hierarchical presentation of concepts was later described as cognitive maps or concept maps (Ezeudu, 1995).

Concept  mapping  and  project method  are problem-based  and  activity-oriented approaches to learning, which may offer learners the opportunity to participate and be actively involved in the whole process of teaching and learning.  However, while concept mapping is a graphical or diagrammatical representation indicating interrelated concept, project  method  is  a  form  of  learning  which  focuses  on  socializing  the  child  and developing the problem solving ability in the environment.

The choice of project method for teaching environmental concepts is based on the findings of Akinsola (2007), who reported that the strategy may be effective for teaching complex  and real  world  situations  which change  as  the students  are involved  in  the activity. And for concept mapping, it may facilitate meaningful and purposeful environmental education  which appears to have eluded  the national education system (Asiyal, 2005). Concept mapping and project method strategies may facilitate the interconnections of the environmental concepts and the environment on the other hand. These strategies, it is hoped, will sufficiently motivate and enhance the students’ interest to get actively involved in working towards the resolution of environmental problems.

This is because genuine innovation does not happen unless a personal commitment to ensuring success is infused or built into the individual. The natural interest of the students is very important in achieving this innovation. These observations underscore the need to further explore the effectiveness of concept mapping and project method on students’ achievement and interest in the selected environmental concepts in Geography. This was the main focus of the study.

Statement of the Problem

Geography as an academic discipline in Nigerian secondary schools is one of the subjects in which environmental issues/concept has been infused. But Geography, despite its  importance  in  relation  to  vocational  and  allied  disciplines,  is  plagued  with  such problems as poor achievement of students in public examinations, decline in popularity amongst students and low enrolment. Literature is replete with evidences portraying a consistent  trend  of  poor  achievement  of  students  in  Geography  in  national  and international  examinations  (Ifeakor,  2005).  One  major  challenge  facing  Geography teachers is to explore and adopt teaching strategies that will be able to reverse this trend of poor achievement in Geography.

Researchers  like  Agbi  (2006)  and  Okeke  (2010)  have  indicated  that  activity oriented and problem-based strategies, which involve the active participation of the students, motivate them to learn and achieve higher results in their study of Geography than the conventional discussion and lecture methods currently dominating Geography class instructions. Concept mapping and project method may enhance achievement and interest of students in geography generally, and particularly the infused environmental education concepts, than the conventional methods.

Environmental Education, which has been adopted as a major educational strategy for teaching the environmental problems arising has not been vigorously implemented (Osuafor, 2001). It has also been reported that the environmental concepts infused into Geography  have   not  been   properly  taught   in   schools   (Ahove   &  Mabo,  2001). Consequently, the infusion of EE concepts into Geography seems not to be achieving the desired objectives. Since the environment is a very important determinant of the quality of life of a people, there is need, therefore, to intensify efforts towards educating the children in environmental problems through the school system.

Many  studies  have  investigated  the  influence  of  gender  on  achievement  and interest of students  and the reports  are conflicting.  While some studies  reported  that gender has no significant influence on achievement and interest, others reported males’ superiority over females in terms of achievement and interest of students. However, few studies reported female superiority over males in achievement and interest. These contradictory evidences necessitate  a further investigation  on  the effect of gender on students’ achievement and interest in Geography. Furthermore, the interaction effect of teaching strategies and gender on achievement and interest needs to be established in order to ascertain if the recorded differences in achievement due to gender is as a result of the teaching strategies adopted by the teachers.

Therefore, the problem of this study put in question form is: What will be the effects of teaching strategies (concept mapping and project method) and gender on the achievement   and   interest   of  students   in   the  infused   environmental   concepts   in Geography?

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study was to determine the individual and interactive effects of teaching strategy (concept-mapping and project method) and gender on achievement and interest of students in environmental concepts in geography.  Specifically, the study sought to:

1.       Determine whether there is any significant difference in the achievement mean scores  of students  taught environmental  concepts  using  concept  mapping  and those taught using the project method.

2.         Determine whether there is any significant difference in the interest mean scores of students taught the environmental concepts using concept-mapping and those taught using project method.

3.       Determine if there is any significant difference in the achievement mean scores of male and female students in environmental concepts in Geography

4.         Determine if there is any significant difference in the interest mean scores of male and female students in environmental concepts in Geography.

5.         Determine the interaction effect of teaching strategies and gender on students’

achievement in the environmental concepts in Geography.

6.         Determine the interaction effect of teaching strategies and gender on students’

interest in the environmental concepts in Geography.

Significance of the Study

This  study  will  explore  the  effects  of  concept  mapping  and  project  method teaching strategies on students’ achievement and interest in Geography. The findings of the  study  will  provide  valid  empirical  evidence  with  respect  to  the  effectiveness  of

concept mapping and project method in promoting meaningful teaching for meaningful learning of Geography for Geography teachers. The findings of his study will hopefully be beneficial  to  teachers, students, educational administrators/government,  curriculum designers and teacher training institutions.

Many research reports have evaluated what goes on in most of our Geography classrooms and overwhelmingly concluded that teachers’ mode of presentation of various Geography  concepts  in  the  class  affects  performance,  achievement  and  interest  of students in Geography. Students’ persistent poor achievement in Geography has been linked to poor and ineffective teaching methods employed by teachers. The findings of this study will reveal the significance and relative effectiveness of project method and concept mapping teaching strategies in enhancing achievement and interest of students in Geography. The teacher can use the instruments developed for this study as a guide and useful  working  base  for  developing  a  variety  of classroom  activities  that  will  make teaching and learning of Geography interesting and by doing so, achievement will be enhanced. Furthermore, since this study explores the influences of gender as a factor in achievement and interest, the findings of this study will be of help to teachers in deciding the particular gender in which to adopt concept mapping or project method.

To the students, if students’ achievement and interest are enhanced, they would achieve higher in national and international examination like WAEC, NECO and JAMB. Therefore, the findings of the study could reveal whether concept mapping and project method enhance or inhibit students’ achievement and interest in Geography, while on the other hand, give an insight into the comparative efficacies of the two strategies.  Based on the finding of the study may be significant in deciding whether to adopt concept mapping

and/or project  method  as  a strategy  for instruction  in  the environmental  concepts  in geography in secondary schools for students.  In addition, the study may also confirm the need for the introduction of additional innovative teaching strategies to the pedagogy of geography for teachers.

The  findings  of  the  study  may  provide  information  with  which  curriculum planners, educational administrators, government in conjunction with professional associations could organize workshops, seminars, conferences and in-service training for teachers to acquaint them with the philosophy and techniques involved in this innovative, activity oriented teaching strategies.  Meanwhile, Udeani (2000) reported that curriculum planners have not made adequate provision for the use of these innovative strategies in the existing curriculum, while Osuafor (2001) informed that teachers were unfamiliar with the philosophy and techniques involved in these modern innovative strategies. This may be responsible for the teachers’ tendency to avoid their use in teaching. The findings of this  study  may  form  the  basis  for  further  investigation  of the  effects  of concept mapping and project method either singly or comparatively in other units in geography and also in other subject areas.

This research is therefore significant in the sense that its findings may provide theoretical evidence to the cognitive field learning theory, Ausubel’s assimilation theory. Secondly it may help improve students’ academic achievement and interest in environmental concepts in geography.  It may also provide information necessary for the improvement of teacher effectiveness, which is a major factor affecting students’ achievement and interest in Geography.

Scope of the Study

The study was carried out using Senior Secondary II students offering Geography in Onitsha Education Zone (ONZ) of Anambra State. The choice of SS II was based on the fact that the environmental concepts are being found in the SS II scheme.

The study investigated  the effects of concept mapping and project method on students’ achievement and interest in environmental concepts in Geography. The environmental concepts studied were: erosion, deforestation pollution and waste management. The concepts were selected because they are the infused environmental concepts  in  Geography  which  are listed  as neglected  by researchers  (Osuafor,  2001; Ahove & Mabo, 2001), and therefore have not been investigated for conceptual difficulty and/or poor achievement by students in examinations.

Research Questions

The following research questions guided the conduct of the study:

1.         What is the effect of teaching strategy (project method and concept mapping) on students’ achievement mean scores in environmental concepts in Geography?

2.         What  is  the  effect  of  teaching  strategy  on  students’  interest  mean  scores  in environmental concepts in Geography?

3.         What  is  the  influence  of  gender  on  students’  achievement  in  environmental concepts Geography?

4.         What is the influence of gender on students’ interest in environmental concepts in

Geography?

5.         What  is  the  interaction  effect  of  teaching  strategy  and  gender  on  students’

achievement in environmental concepts in Geography?

6.         What is the interaction effect of teaching strategy and gender on students’ interest in environmental concepts in Geography?

Research Hypotheses

The following hypotheses were formulated and were tested at .05 level of significance.

1.         There is no significant difference  in the achievement mean scores of students taught using concept-mapping and those taught using the project method.

2.         There is no significant difference in the interest mean scores of students taught using the project method and those taught using concept mapping.

3.         There is no significant difference in the achievement mean score of male and female students taught using project method and concept mapping respectively.

4.         There  is  no  significant  interaction  effect  of teaching  strategy  and  gender  on students’ achievement in environmental concepts in Geography.

5.         There  is  no  significant  interaction  effect  of  teaching  strategy  and  gender  on students’ interest in environmental concepts in Geography.

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