EFFECTS OF STUDENT IMPROVISED AND STANDARD INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN PHYSICS

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the effects of students’ improvised instructional materials on students’ achievement in physics. Five research questions and five null hypotheses guided the study. The study employed a non-equivalent quasi-experimental research design. The sample for the study comprised 149 SSII students in Obollo Afor Education Zone of Enugu State. The instrument for data collection in this study was Physics Achievement Test  (PAT).   The instrument for data collection was both face and content validated. The reliability of the instrument was determined using Kudder-Richardson 21, after trial testing it with 20 SSII secondary school physics students outside the geographical area. The scores obtained from the test were used to determine the reliability of the instrument and it yielded reliability index of 0.98. Four intact classes were used for the study (2 classes for treatment and two for control). Data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation and the Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The results of the study revealed that students taught physics using student’ improvised instructional materials performed better than students taught using conventional material; male students had higher mean achievement score than their female counterparts in physics; students in the urban area performed better than their counterparts in the rural area in physics. Results of the study showed that the interaction effect of instructional material and location on students mean achievement scores in physics was not statistically significant and that the interaction effect of instructional material and gender on students mean achievement scores in physics was statistically significant. Based on the findings and implications, it was recommended that teaching of physics in secondary school should be conducted in a manner that students will effectively understand and learn the concepts taught. It should be practical as the use of student’ improvised instructional materials play greater role in students’ achievement. Teachers should try to improvise instructional materials and encourage students to do the same. This will give students enough understanding of physics concepts as the child’s local environment will be used to source for the materials. There should be cordial relationship between policy makers and schools for the provision of the essential materials as resource materials and at the local education authority level, effort should be made from time to time to organize workshops for teachers on improvisation and the need for the use of instructional materials in teaching and learning. This is to compliment the efforts of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for re-training of Science teachers.

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Science is the foundation upon which the bulk of present day technological breakthrough is built.   Science is the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behaviour of physical and natural world. Nowadays, nations all over the world including Nigeria are striving hard to develop technologically and scientifically, since the world is turning scientific and all proper functioning of lives depend greatly on science. Owolabi (2004) defined science as an integral part of human society. Its impact is felt in every sphere of human life, so much that it is intricately linked with a nation’s development. Science as a field of study has done a lot for humanity. For instance, life has been made a lot easier for man because of the advancements in science. Through science, man has been able to better understand his environment and this has enabled him to manipulate the conditions of his environment to suit his own benefit. Science has also made it possible for man to acquire his desired needs easily. It has reduced human needs to the barest minimum. Ogunleye (2008) stated that science is a dynamic human activity concerned with understanding the workings of our world. This understanding helps man to know more about the universe. Without the applications of science, it would have been impossible for man to explore the other planets of the universe. Also, the awareness of the existence of other planets would not have been realized without science.

Physics on its own is a branch of science that deals with the nature and properties of energy and matter. Physics is a pure science subject with overwhelming impacts on this present globalized world.   Physics is a science of observation of the world around us (Gibbs

2002). It is a towering achievement of the human intellect in its quest to understand our world and ourselves (Young and Freedman, 2008). The Nigeria Federal Ministry of Education

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(FME, 2008) regards Physics as a crucial subject for effective living in the modern age of science  and  technology.  This  means  that  it  is  necessary that  every student  is  given an opportunity to acquire some physics concepts, theory, principles and skills. These concepts, theory, principles and skills are clearly explained in the objectives of physics education enshrined in the new Senior Secondary School Physics Curriculum (2008: ii).According to the National Policy on Education (Federal Government of Nigeria 2013), the Objectives of Physics education are to: provide basic literacy in physics for functional living in the society; acquire basic concepts and principles of physics as a preparation for further studies; acquire essential scientific skills and attitudes as a preparation for   technological application of physics; and stimulate and enhance creativity.

Attainment of these objectives is very important, and requires a teacher who uses learner centered teaching approaches since learning takes place when the learner is actively involved during teaching and learning interaction. Hence, the challenges before a teacher is how to bring about meaningful teaching that will engender meaningful learning (Novak,

2002).  In doing this task of teaching, the teacher should take into consideration the learner’s prior knowledge which will anchor the new knowledge (Limom, 2001).  Physics as a science subject is activity oriented and this suggests the need for more virile instructional materials for teaching  it  (National Teachers Institute NTI,  2010). This  suggestion shows that  the mastery of Physics concepts cannot be fully achieved without the use of instructional materials. Eze and Agbomma (2008) stressed that a professionally qualified science teacher no matter how well trained would be unable to put his ideas into practice if the school setting lacks the equipment and materials necessary for him or her to translate his competence into reality. A study by Owolabi (2004) revealed that the performance of Nigerian Students in ordinary level Physics was generally poor. So many factors were responsible for poor academic achievement of students in science.

Some of the factors responsible for student’s general poor academic achievement in science, includes poor laboratory facilities, inability of the Physics teachers to put across ideas clearly to the students and inadequate number of learning facilities in schools as against consistent increase in the number of students (Bassey, 2002). Bassey further opined that science is resource intensive, but most teachers fail to use these material based on so many factors which include lack of teachers’ commitment to duty, lack of adequate and relevant instructional materials,  lack of resourcefulness on the part of teachers and students etc. Researchers such as Ogunleye (2002) and Obioha (2006) reported that there are inadequate resources for the teaching of science subjects like physics in secondary schools in Nigeria. Obioha (2006) further stated that where there are little resources, they are not usually in good conditions, while the few that were in good conditions were not enough to go round those who needed them. In this regards Okebukola (2004) stated that the basic tools that science uses in the learning of science processes are the instructional materials. Studies have shown that the use of instructional materials have improved academic achievement of students in science  (Nwagbo,  2006;  George,  2008).  Instructional  materials  are  wide  varieties  of equipment and materials used for teaching and learning by teachers to stimulate self-activity on the part of the students.

The  teaching  of  physics  without  instructional  materials  certainly  result  to  poor academic achievement. Poor academic achievement in physics could also be attributed to so many other factors such as low interest of students in physics, inadequate motivation from teachers,  poor  incentives  to  physics  teachers,  lack  of  adequate  supply  of  instructional material,   lack  of  qualified  teachers,  use  of  teacher-centered  instructional  strategies, inadequate use of instructional materials and use of abstract standardized materials (Nwagbo

2006).

Among these factors, teachers use of improvised instructional strategy is considered as an important factor in this study. This implies that the mastery of physics concepts can not be fully achieved without the use of instructional resources that the students are abreast with. The teaching of physics without instructional materials certainly result in poor academic achievement of students  in the subject.  Folorunso (2009) observed that there  is  lack of adequate and appropriate instructional resources for effective teaching of physics in schools. For Ibitoye and Fape (2007), the poor academic achievement in physics was traced to poor usage of instructional resources for physics teaching and learning, poor state of infrastructural facilities, large class size, poor teaching, use of faulty assessment practice, and inadequacy of quality teachers. According to Okebukola (2004), the poor state of laboratory facilities and inadequate use of instructional materials has constituted a cog in the wheel of students’ achievement in the Senior Secondary School Examination. The verbal exposition does not promote skill acquisition, objectivity, and critical thinking abilities that will enable the child to function effectively in the society. This according to the researcher leads to poor achievement  of  students.  Okebukola  and  Jegede  (1992)  stressed    that  a  professionally qualified teacher no matter how well trained, would  be  unable to put his ideas into practice if the school setting lacks the equipment and  material resources  necessary for him or her to translate his competence into reality.

The report of West African Examination Council (WAEC) on the Senior Secondary School Certificate  Examination SSCE  (2013) on  student  enrolment  and  performance  in Nigeria by subject, grade, and sex revealed low enrolment of girls for science subjects as well as low academic achievement in physics and other science subjects and the persistent poor achievement of students in physics at senior school certificate examination (WAEC Chief Examiner’s report 2010-2013). This leaves one in doubt about the effectiveness of instructional materials and teaching methods used by the physics  teachers for the teaching

and  learning. On this  note, instructional materials are seen as  materials  which help the teachers in teaching, for example, chalkboard, laboratory equipment, charts etc. In the classroom situation, instructional materials are devices which are used to facilitate teaching and learning. National Teachers Institute (2010) reported that materials in the classroom can be classified into two broad categories, those that appeal to the sense of sight which are classified as visual resources and those which appeal to the sense of hearing, classified as audio materials. There are also those which combine both features and are classified as audio- visual (A-V) materials. Isola (2010) referred to instructional materials as objects or devices, which help the teachers to make a lesson much clearer to the learner. Instructional materials are also described as concrete or physical objects which provide sound, visual or both to the sense organs during teaching (Agina-obu, 2010).

The teaching of physics cannot be effectively done without interaction between the teacher, students and the learning materials. The physics curriculum is planned to enable the teacher  use activity oriented, methods to  teach (Ezeife, 1996). However, evidence  from research has shown that instructional materials and equipment for science, especially physics are either in short supply or are completely lacking in schools to the extent that most teachers end up with verbal exposition of scientific principles, facts and concepts.   Bassey (2002) opined that  physics  is  resource intensive, and  in an era of poor funding or scarcity of resources, it may be very difficult to find some of the original materials and equipment for the teaching of Physics in schools adequately, a situation that is further compounded  by the galloping inflation in the country.

Many at times, some of the imported sophisticated materials and equipment  are found to be expensive; hence the need to produce materials locally. Researchers such as Ogunleye (2002) and Obioha (2006) reported that there were inadequate resources for teaching physics in  secondary  schools  in  Nigeria.  Obioha  (2006)  further  stated  that  some  available

instructional  materials  are  not  usually  in  good  conditions  in  most  cases,  because  most teachers do not know how to use them to achieve their instructional objectives. According to Abolade (2004) some of the factories which produce imported instructional materials have also been discovered to be based on foreign ideas and culture. It was against this background that it  became necessary to fashion out ways by which local resources can be used for developing instructional materials. There is the need therefore, for improvisation.

Improvisation is a technique of originating a totally new tool, instrument, materials, device or modifying existing ones for serving a particular purpose. Improvisation in the context of physics can be seen as the process of using alternative resources for enhancing physics teaching in the absence of the real instructional material. The production of the alternative resources is initiated by the teacher and done either by him or the local craftsmen for instance, carpenters, blacksmiths and students. The teacher uses the students for improvising some of the needed materials or equipment.

Improvisation of instructional materials in senior secondary schools for teaching/learning purposes cannot be over-emphasized. To be able to promote quality instruction in our school system, there  is the  need to  pay attention to  improvisation of instructional materials in the teaching/learning process. Esu (2004) however noted that improvisation demands adventure, creativity, curiosity and perseverance on the part of the teacher. Such skills are only realiable through well-planned training programme on improvisation. Fajola (2008) sees improvisation from the creativity involved. This creativity is substitution and construction. Substitution in improvisation simply implies the techniques whereby an already local materials is used in place of a piece of equipment that is not available whereas construction involves making of a new instrument to serve in place of the unavailable original one, where substitution is not possible. Esu (2004) however asserted that

improvisation  provides  connectivity  between  students  abstract  and  real  experience  of teaching and learning.

Generally, improvisation of instructional materials is an attempt to adapt and make use of local resources in the teaching/learning process when the ready- made (standardised) materials are not available or are in shortfall or not within the reach of the users. The improvised instructional materials were produced by the teacher and the students. The real materials, which are the standardized instructional materials, are imported or factory made laboratory equipment for teaching. Examples of standardized instructional materials are cone, meter rule, laboratory glassware, bunsen burner, tripod stand. However, if these standardized instructional materials are not available or are inadequate, they can be locally made using resources in the environment as alternative.  These locally made instructional materials may not be the same quality with the stnadardised one, but they serve the same purpose as the standardised instructional materials (Igwe, 2003). Students improvised instrcutioanl amterials requires a considerable development through imaginative planning and good knowledge. According to Ajayi (2008), students’ improvised instructional materials are the provision of alternatives to real materials by students in the absence of the standardised materials.

Students’ improvisation is the art of providing and using alternative materials or resources  in the  absence  of the  real or  factory  made  one.  This  is  done  by  making  of substitutes by the students when the real equipment or material is not adequate or available (Okebukola, 2002). Oyediran (2010) also defines improvisation as the art of using materials or equipment obtained from local environment or produced by the teacher or students, and with the assistance of the local personnel to enhance instruction. Bassey (2002) stated that improvisation is  the  process of making  equipment  and  materials  by the  students or  by engaging the services of others in the absence of real or manufactured ones.

The use of improvised instructional materials and exposure of students to resources available in their immediate environment for instruction at this level brings students to real world of activities and help students gain scientific skills. The environment of the school as well as the homes of teachers provide rich sources of materials and a resourceful teacher  can on his/her    own or  with the  help  of the  students    and  other  members  of the  society, improvised these materials for teaching/learning   purpose. The use of students improvise instructional materials for physics instruction enhances students’ achievement in the subject since the students are involved in the production of the instructional materials.

Students improvised instructional materials enhance students development of creative abilities;  strengthen enquiry, discovery and  investigative  method  in sciences; provides a frame of reference on which students can key their attention during classroom activities and Omosewo and Onasanya (2010), affords students the opportunity of becoming familiar with resources in their environment. Students improvised instructional materials ensured the realization  of  lesson  objectives;  helps  in  solving  the  problem  of  lack  of equipment  in educational institutions; gives room for the students to demonstrate his creative skills and gives room for the use of cheap local materials as alternatives to the expensive foreign ones (Olumorin 2004).   Owolabi (2003) suggested that students should be given opportunity to discover and invent things; hence, the teachers should allow the students to acquire skills that will make them learn on their own, and this can be achieve through improvisation. It must be noted that learners achieved more when they are allowed to manipulate apparatus rather than being mere listeners.

The real materials which are the standardized instructional materials are imported or factory made laboratory equipment for teaching and learning. These original materials and equipment for the teaching of physics in schools adequately are referd to as standardized instructional materials. This is because they are factory made and have high precision and

expensive than the student’ improvised instructional materials. A standardized instructional materials is universally accepted material or equipment used for teaching and learning Examples of standardized instructional materials are cone, meter rule, laboratory glass ware, bunsen burner tripod stand and many others. However, if these standardized instructional materials are not available or are inadequate, they can be locally made by using resources in the environment as alternative. Bassey (2002) opinned that physics is resource intensive, and in an era of poor funding or scarcity of resources, it may be very difficult to find some of the original  materials  and  equipment  for  the  teaching  of  physics  in  schools  adequately. Improvised instructional materials may not be identical with the stadardized one; therefore teachers should be skilful in handling and using them (Igwe, 2003).   In a case, for instance where there is inadequate or total absence of a standardized or universally accepted materials or equipment for teaching, the students with the assistance of the teacher produce locally, a substitute of the standardized materials. This helps in teaching and learning of physics.  This process helps to develop creativity and the spirit of resourcefulness among the teachers and the students.   Most importantly, the teacher made   sure that these materials produced or substituted were able to serve the same purpose as the conventional equipment which this research was all about.

Physics  teachers  and  students  therefore  need  a  solid  understanding  of the  basic concepts and processes of science in order to construct meaningful physics activities that address all students’ diverse experience and learning styles. So for science learning to be efficient, it must be presented as a human enterprise and a continuing process for extending understanding instead of the ultimate, unalterable truth. Instructional materials should minimize rote learning and focus on in-depth understanding of the major concepts and topics. Activities or processes that facilitate this construction of knowledge during improvisation are categorized thus: Use of knowledge in describing, explaining, predicting, designing  and

analyzing; construction of new knowledge through asking questions, solving problems, interpreting result and constructing knowledge; reflection of knowledge by justifying, criticizing, describing limits, making connections, taking perspectives and describing interactions. These activities offer students the opportunity to dispel misconceptions as they construct new scientific knowledge during improvisation, and thereby help to improve the students’academic achievement.

The poor academic achievement in physics as indicated by various empirical studies such as Wasagu (2000), Ogunleye 2002, Onasanya and Omosewo (2010); & WAEC Chief Examiner’s reports, (2010-2013) respectively, have attracted the  concern of all stakeholders including the researcher. Subsequently many factors have been identified and regarded as being responsible for the dwindling trend in the performance of students. These factors include school- teacher- related characteristics, poor instructional approaches and the use of abstract  instructional materials  (Duit  &  Treagust,  2003, Wasagu,  2011).  The  aforelisted factors have been taken into consideration and students excelled more in physics. There is an outcry on students’ poor performance in SSCE physics (Lee, 2000; Lin, 2007). So many efforts have been made to improve the academic achievement of students and this have yielded appreciative results. Physics has remained one of the most difficult subjects in the school  curriculum  (Nigerian  Educational  Research  and  Development  Council,  NERDC

2009).  The study by Owolabi (2004) revealed that the academic achievement of Nigerian students in ordinary level physics was generally poor. Based on the increased poor academic achievement of students in physics, this study have found out the effect of students’ improvised  and  standard  instructional  materials  on  senior  secondary  school  students’ academic achievement in physics. Also another variable of interest to this study which was gender and its influence on students’ academic achievement in physics has been determined.

The term “gender” refers to socially ascribed roles, responsibilities and opportunities associated with women and men, as well as the hidden power structures that govern relationships  between  them.  Gender  is  in  essence,  a  term  used  to  emphasize  that  sex inequality is not caused by the anatomic and physiological differences that characterize men and women, but rather by the unequal and inequitable treatment socially accorded to them (Igwe, 2003). In this sense, gender alludes to the cultural, social, economic and political conditions that are the basis of certain standards, values and behavioural patterns related to gender and their relationship . Gender is the different socio cultural stereotyped roles and responsibilities expected of men and women. The interaction effect between gender and treatment has received research attention in recent times in science education. For example, Baser  (2006)  found  that  gender  significantly  interacts  with  the  instructional  treatment. The interaction came from the gender difference in the group who utilized the cognitive conflict based instruction. However, Madu (2004), Agomuoh (2010) and Miriogu 2012 found no  interaction  effect  of    gender  and  instructional treatment.  In  view  of these  research inconsistencies, further studies on interaction effect of gender and cognitive based instructional materials was carried out. This study also have investigated the influence of school location on students’ mean academic achievement score in physics.

Location is the place or point that something is at. A school cannot usually change its  location,  yet  location conceivably have consequences for how well students  learn in school. The investigation of a rural gap in academic achievement has been recently explored in studies conducted in most parts of Nigeria. It has reasonably shown that rural disadvantage does exist in academic achievement of students in physics. Rural schools  disproportionately have  inadequate pool of qualified teachers and  insufficient funds to maintain up-to-date computers, instructional software, and laboratory facilities (Elechi 2010; Federal Ministry of Education, 2009). On other hand, rural schools also are advantaged in terms of instructional

materials due to the numerous untapped local materials that are   used as improvised instructional materials. This study have examined the influence of school location as one of the independent variables, on students’ academic achievement in physics.

Statement of the Problem

The high rate of students’ poor academic achievement in physics is alarming and disturbing.    Research  evidence  has  shown that  there  is  poor  acadamic  achievement  of students in both external and  internal examinations. The poor academic achievement of students in physics has been attributed to so many factors, which include lack of teachers’ motivation, lack of physics laboratory, lack of qualified physics teachers, lack of instructional materials and lack of skills needed for effective improvisation of instructional materials for effective instructional delivery. The rate of poor academic achievement of students in physics has left one in doubt about the nature of instructional materials being employed by teachers in teaching the subject. Physics is resource intensive, and in an era of poor funding of schools, it is very difficult to find some of the original materials and equipment for the teaching of physics in schools.  Hence, improvisation becomes the next option. Researchers have shown that when teachers and students are involved in the provision of instructional materials, it help them to understand the concept taught in the classroom. The problem of this study posed as a question is thus: what is the effect of students improvised and standardised instructional materials on senior secondary school students’ academic achievement in physics?

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of student improvised instructional  materials  on  senior  secondary  school  students’  academic  achievement  in physics. Specifically this study determined;

1.    The effect of students improvised and standardised instructional materials on senior secondary school students’ academic achievement in physics.

2.  The influence of school location on students’ academic achievement in physics.

3.  The influence of gender on students’ academic achievement in physics.

4.  The interactive effect of type of instructional materials and gender on students’. academic achievement in physics.

5.  The interactive effect of type of instructional materials and school location on students’

academic achievement in physics.

Significance of the Study

The theoretical significance of this study is anchored on the cognitive development theory of Jean Piaget. According to Piaget, children develop knowledge by inventing or constructing reality out of experience and thus mix their observation with their ideas about how the world works. Piaget’s theory of intellectual development holds that cognitive development takes place from active interaction of the child with his environment. This means that the basis of learning is the child’s own ability as he interacts with his physical and social environment. Piaget is of the opinion that a child must act on the objects in his environment for him to learn. This means that they should be actively involved with the manipulation of instructional materials. The active involvement of the child is  in form of direct  manipulation, visual observation or through mental construction of knowledge which could  be  facilitated by improvised materials. This study have determine the extent students’ improvised instructional materials will facilitate learning compared to standard materials.

The  findings of this study is useful to classroom teachers, curriculum planners, students, researchers and parents. For teachers they are better informed and guided on how to develop and use improvised instructional materials in teaching where the standardised materials are unavailable or inadequate. The teachers engaged the students to do some of the illustrations during physics   instructions. These studies have  helped to develop problem solving skills in students and have also helped students to be more resourceful during lessons.

This study is beneficial to curriculum planners who would design functional curriculum by taking into considerations students-teachers improvised instructional materials.

The findings of this study, if discussed in workshops and seminars would  guide the choice of improvised instructional materials used in the teaching/learning of physics. The findings of this study would equally help to alleviate the problem of the scarcity of instructional materials for physics teaching/learning. The results of the study would provide information to researchers interested in working on student-teachers generated improvised materials in other subject areas. This would help them to get more information on the efficacy of improvisation, especially researchers in the area of science and technology. The results also have guided parents on how best to advise their children/ward on the need to embrace science subjects especially physics.

Scope of the Study.

The study was on the effects of students improvised and standardised instructional materials on students’academic achievement in physics. This study was carried out in public co-educational Senior Secondary Schools in Obollo-Afor Educational zone of Enugu State. The study was restricted to SS 11 physics students. In terms of the content coverage, this study covered Equilibrium of Forces under interaction of matter, space and time in the Senior Secondary School Physics Curriculum for SS2.   The choice of SS2 class was because the above topics fall in their scheme of work and the students’ are already in their penultimate year where they  have had their subject preference and  have covered some of the topics in their SSI. In addition, studies have shown that students have difficulties in the chosen topic. Also the choice of rural and urban school and co-educational schools is because gender and school location are moderating variables in the study.

Research Questions

The following research questions guided this study:

1.         What  is  the  mean  achievement  score  of  students  taught  physics  using  students improvised instructional materials and those taught physics using standardised instructional materials?

2.        What is the influence of school location on students’ mean achievement scores in physics?

3.       What is the influence of gender on students’ mean achievement scores in physics?

4.         What  is  the  interaction  effect  of  type  of  instructional  materials  and  gender  on students’ means achievement score in physics?

5.        What is the interaction effect of type of instructional materials and school location on students’ means achievement scores in physics?

Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses were formulated to guide this study and is tested at alpha level of 0.05.

Ho1:       There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of student taught physics using students’ improvised and instructional materials and those taught using standardised instructional materials.

Ho2:       There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of rural and urban students taught physics using student’s improvised instructional materials and those taught using standardized instructional materials.

Ho3:    There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught physics using students’ improvised instructional materials and those taught physics using conventional instructional materials.

Ho4:     There is no significant interactive effect of type of instructional materials and school location on students’ mean achievement scores in physics.

Ho5:     There is no significant interactive effect of type of instructional materials and gender on students’mean achievement scores in physics.

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