Demonstration Method and Academic Performance of Students in Biology

DEMONSTRATION METHOD AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN BIOLOGY IN ONNA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA

 

ABSTRACT

The study was designed to investigate the effect of using demonstration method of teaching on student academic performance in Biology in Onna Local Government Are-a. Two hypotheses were formulated and tested. One hundred senior secondary two (SS2) students were randomly selected from four secondary schools in Onna Local Government Area for the study. A quasi-experimental research design was adopted using Biology performance TEST (BIOPET) was used as instrument for data collection.

Data analysis was done using independent t-test findings showed that students’ academic performance in Biology when taught using demonstration method is significantly higher than those taught using conventional method and that there was no significant difference in academic performance between male and female students when taught Biology using demonstration method of teaching. Based on these findings, it is recommended that there should be sanitization of teachers toward the use of demonstration method for effective teaching and learning of Biology in order to eradicate poor performance among Biology students in the area irrespective of their gender.      

 

Demonstration Method and Academic Performance of Students in Biology

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1  Background to the Study

The teaching of biology in Nigerian secondary schools needs to be properly handled. The strategies methods and materials used by teachers to teach and drive home their subject matter at the secondary school level of our education system is in controvertibly a paramour important issue in practical classroom interaction and successful transfer of knowledge from the teacher to the learners.

According to Ekanem (2014) a method is a way of doing something, it is an approach or a stand which a students or a student. The Nigeria certificate in education distance learning system defines a teaching method as a process of selecting, directing, controlling and evaluating the experiences of the child to achieve desirable outcome

Biology as the largest diversity of science has prompted the acquisition of specialized skills and knowledge, enhance some special career opportunities and enable one to live a meaningful life (Coley and Cradler, 2010). Considering its fundamental characteristics and importance, biology is today a standard subject of instruction at all levels of our educational system. It is the only core subject at secondary school certificate examination (S. S. C. E) whose study is very relevant to man’s successful living.

Akindele and Araoye (2019) opined that exposure to biology education offers the learners wide range of relevance to all aspects of life. As an academic subject, biology is quite popular to all level of Nigerian education; it has a larger student’s environment than any other science subject. Biology as a subject must be credited by students before gaining admission into any tertiary instruction to study relevant course like biology/education, medical sciences etc.

Consequently debates about whether demonstration or lecture is the preferred method of teaching is a common feature in academic circles and are divided along disciplinary lines. Students in the applied science generally learn more when demonstration format is used while those in the humanities and some areas of the social science rely more on lecturer method.

Lowman (2017) says that demonstration method is especially stimulating or increases attention and motivation that ultimately enhance high academic performance. Increased arousal and motivation are the essential ingredients for learning and are often more important for retention than intelligence. Based on the method teaching used, learning can be learner centered in order for them to be motivated. This fact is supported by Macarley (2018) who asserted that good instructional method makes lesson come alive and help students to learn better. It is against this background that this study attempts to examine the extent to which demonstration method of teaching could influence secondary school students’ performance in biology.

 

1.2  Statement of the Problem

The act of teaching is fundamentally concerned with passing ideas, skills and attitudes from the teachers to the learner experience has shown that spoken words alone in the communication of ideas are grossly ineffective and inefficient in producing desired learning outcome.

The mass failure recorded by west African examination certificate (W. A. E. C) 2012 in biology which according to the chief examiners report that out of 1,104,13 students who registered for the examination only 571,006 obtained credit pass in Biology. (Ekong 2014) the reason for this could be ascribed for the fact that there are topics in biology that pose serious problems of comprehension to students these topics cannot be taught effectively without relevant instructional method. On the forgoing, scholars like Meitei and Matora (2014) have utilization on teaching of biology. According to them, we learn and remember 10% of what we hear 40% of what we discuss with others and as high as 80% of what we experiences directly or practices.

This motivated the researcher to carryout this study in order to investigate whether there is any effect of using demonstration method on student’ academic performance in biology in secondary schools in Onna Local government Area.

 

1.3  Purpose of the Study

The study sought to investigate the effect of using demonstration method on students’ academic performance in Biology in secondary schools in Onna Local government area. Specifically, the study sought to:

1. Compare the academic performance of students taught Biology using demonstration method of teaching and those taught using conventional method of teaching in secondary school.
2. Investigate whether there is any significant difference in male and female students when taught Biology using demonstration method of teaching.

 

1.4  Significance of the Study

              This study will be significant in the following ways:

i. Curriculum designers in developing curricular for Nigerian Science teachers of tomorrow will be equipped with knowledge on what type of method to include for instruction.

ii.     It will enhance innovative thinking, creativity and resource fullness among Biology teachers as they will have to think of selecting relevant instructional technique for their lesson.

iii.     Future researchers will use the outcome of the research as reference materials on related topics.

Demonstration Method and Academic Performance of Students in Biology

1.5  Research Hypothesis

The following null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study:

1. There is no significant difference in the academic performance of students taught Biology using demonstration method of teaching and those taught using conventional method of teaching
2. There is no significant difference in the academic performance between male and female students when taught Biology using demonstration method of teaching

 

1.6  Delimitation of the Study

Due to constraint of time, the study was delimited to the effect of demonstration on students’ academic performance in Biology in selected secondary schools in Onna Local Government Area. Only senior secondary two (SS2) students offering Biology were used for the study. 

1.7  operational definition of term

Demonstration Method: The instruction method which involves showing the learners correct use of apparatus illustrating a technique, performing an experiment which is either dangerous, risky or expensive for individual learner’s use.

Academic Performance: Is the students examination scores in the schools

Biology:  A natural science concerned with the study of plants and animals.