Thesis Abstract

<p>&nbsp;                 <b>ABSTARCT&nbsp;</b></p><p>The main objective of the study was to implement an action research strategy to improve the teaching and learning of biology in senior secondary schools in Nigeria. Specifically the following research questions were raised-</p><p>&nbsp;• What are the levels of intellectual challenge included in the activities used for classroom and laboratory instructions?&nbsp;</p><p>• What are the levels of intellectual challenge included in the redesigned course materials for classroom and laboratory instructions.&nbsp;</p><p>• Will there be an increase in learning when a revised course material is used for classroom / laboratory instruction. • Is there any relationship between activities enjoyed by students and those that enhance their learning?</p><p>&nbsp;• Is there any relationship between effective learning and perceived students enjoyment of an activity?&nbsp;</p><p>Purposive sampling was used to select four senior secondary schools from urban and rural location of Lagos State. In each of the participating school two intact classes were used to act as experimental and control group. Altogether 267 students and their four biology teachers participated in the study. The redesigned course material was used to teach biology to the experimental class and the traditional course material was used for the control group for the second term of the 2014/2015 academic year. The major findings were • The result of the analysis of the review of the activities and exercises in the recommended Biology textbook in use in Lagos State schools showed that all the exercises and activities were predominantly at the lower cognitive levels of Blooms Taxonomy of educational objectives.</p><p>&nbsp;• The result also showed that the mean achievement score of the students taught with the redesigned course materials was significantly higher than the mean achievement score of those taught using the traditional course materials.&nbsp;</p><p>• There was no significant correlation between activities enjoyed by students and those that enhanced their learning. Educational implications of the findings for the improvement of instructional practices were discussed.&nbsp;</p><p><b><i>Keywords Biology Teaching, Biology Learning, Action Research Secondary School. </i></b> <br></p>

Thesis Overview

<p> <b>1.0 INTRODUCTION</b></p><p><b>1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY</b></p><p>Our world is profoundly shaped by science and technology. Preserving the environment, reducing poverty and improving health; each of these challenges and many more require scientists capable of developing effective and feasible responses and citizens who can engage in active debate on them. In order to achieve this, the 1999 Budapest declaration underscored the importance of science education for all. Science education is a field of study concerned with producing a scientifically literate society. It also lays the foundation for future work in science and science related fields by acquainting the students with certain basic knowledge, skills and attitudes. Science education is the bedrock upon which scientific and technological development depends. Indeed, science and mathematics education that is relevant and of sound quality can develop critical and creative thinking, help learners to understand and participate in public policy discussions, encourage behavioural changes that put the world on a more sustainable path and stimulate socio-economic development. Science and mathematics education can therefore make a critical contribution to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) adopted by the world’s leaders in 2000 and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. <br></p><p> Over the last two decades science education has received an exceptional attention from both education and politics stakeholders as a field of significant potential impact on a nation’s success. Many efforts have been made to improve science teaching and learning in non-customary ways. Science education reform initiatives in the USA have targeted scientific literacy through inquiry experiences and skills “for all” (AAAS, 1990, 2005; NRC, 1996). Many other countries around the globe directly or indirectly have shared the notion of educating all of their citizens and teaching science as inquiring as a major part of their educational reforms (Abd – EL – Khalick et al 2004). Likewise in Nigeria, main objectives of the most recent curriculum reform initiatives involved infusing constructivist principles to the teaching and learning of the sciences. (Obioma 2009). An inquiry approach to teaching and learning is considered to best reflect a quality science education, and thus is largely promoted in various reform documents. Inquiry teaching and constructivism are approaches that share a philosophical base structured around students’ construction of knowledge and their active and responsible participation in learning. With this said, as the US National Science Education Standards (NSES) authors preferred the word inquiry over constructivism, inquiry has become the most ubiquitously used term (Anderson, 2002). <br></p><p> In an attempt to find an operational definition for inquiry based science teaching Kahveci (2010) contrasted it with textbook – based approaches to teaching science. A textbook – based approach means teaching by largely depending on and following textbook content in contrast with an inquiring approach. Settlage (2007) highlights that inquiry “has long been promoted as the antidote for teaching science directly from a textbook” and Von Secker (2002) indicates that the science education reform calls for pedagogical shift from a teacher – centered, textbook – based instructional paradigm to a student – centered, inquiry – based model. While textbook – based teaching has been associated with direct instruction, inquiry – based teaching has been suggested to depend largely on students’ hands – on investigations with various curriculum materials used as guides (Pine et al, 2006). Although these distinctions have often been made on an ‘either/or’ basis, textbooks are still being widely used in classrooms and continue to be an essential part of the curriculum (Kahveci, 2010). As various scholars indicate, science textbooks have played a dominant role in the teaching of science and have been mostly the science curriculum (Chiappetta &amp; Fillaman 2007; Pizzim, Shepardson &amp; Abell 1992). Confirming this to be true in Nigerian classrooms, Udeani (2013) draw attention to the power textbook might have in supporting effective teaching and that textbooks are used as the primary organizer of subject matter at all levels of schooling and given that they are a prominent component of curriculum should reflect inquiry oriented teaching in both its subject matter and activities. <br></p><p> With this study we want to focus on the instructional activities used in daily classroom practice and also on the questions inherent in the textbook prescribed for instruction in biology at the senior secondary school level. We argue that student learning is especially directed by questions included in textbooks which students and teachers work with daily. In concurrence with Kahveci (2010) we believe that textbook questions are primary activators for students to focus on the content offered in textbooks and to engage in learning in a particular way. To gain insight into the level of intellectual challenge in the learning activities and questions offered to students in the textbook we analysed the textbooks using Bloom Taxonomy of educational objectives. Some students are more successful than others in learning science. This may be due to differences in the way students learn – whether it is meaningful or rote learning (Ausubel 1968). Meaningful learning requires relevant prior knowledge, meaningful learning tasks, and a meaningful learning set. (Novak 1988) In contrast, rote learning is arbitrary, verbatim, and not related to experience with events or objects, and lacks affective commitment on the part of the learner to relate new and prior knowledge. The nature of students’ learning – that is, meaningful or rote – is related to the construct “approaches to learning” (Chin &amp; Brown 2000). Approaches to learning or learning approaches refer to the “ways in which students go about their academic tasks, thereby affecting the nature of the learning outcome” (Biggs 1994). Research on approaches to learning derives much from the seminal work of Marton and Saljo (1976) on reading from test using phenomenographic methods, were learning is studied from the perspective of the learner. These authors distinguished between deep and surface approaches to learning and this distinction “appears to be a powerful form of categorization for differences in learning strategies” (Entwistle &amp; Ramsden, 1983). The general framework and defining features of the deep and surface approaches were described by Biggs (1987) and Marton (1983). <br></p><p> In essence, the deep approach is associated with intrinsic motivation and interest in the content of the task, a focus on understanding the meaning of the learning material, an attempt to relate parts to each other, new ideas to previous knowledge, and concepts to everyday experiences. There is an internal emphasis where the learner personalizes that task, making it meaningful to his or her own experience and to the real world. In contrast, the surface approach is based on extrinsic or instrumental motivation. The learner who uses a surface approach perceives the task as a demand to be met, tends to memorize discrete facts, reproduces terms and procedures through rote learning, and views a particular task in isolation from other tasks and from real life as a whole. Teaching which is assisting students to cultivate a deep understanding of what is being taught can be achieved through a number of thought provoking exercises (Levin &amp; Nolan, 2000) such as making students explain concepts in their own words, making predictions, drawings, finding exemplars in new contexts and applying concepts to new situations (Bandt 1992). Increasing the intellectual challenges of the tasks requested in student assignments and activities encourages students to achieve a deeper understanding of course materials. This deep approach correlates to Bloom’s taxonomy in that moving task beyond a knowledge level to application, comprehension, analysis and synthesis will encourage learners to move beyond the surface approach. Teaching strategies correlates with student learning, with students adopting deep approaches in classrooms that are more student – centered (Prosser &amp; Trigwell 1999). <br></p><p> To achieve these effects, teachers must move away from lecture – based teaching to more participative approaches that include real – life applications of learning, such as the increased involvement of students in experimental designs and activities. Hence, the focus of this research was to look into issues relating to students effective learning and understanding in biology classes by applying the action research approach to teaching. The study attempted to address issues relating to shortage of students who are available to enroll for courses in the sciences at the university and take up careers in science and technology. The lack of understanding of students in a number of concepts in the sciences have deprived students from taking up careers in fields such as engineering, medicine, pharmacy, agriculture, biotechnology etc. Nigeria in a bid to tune into the global technology drive has set up some innovative hubs in science and technology. The scarcity of well trained personnel has continued to plague these initiatives. To ameliorate these problem proper and effective strategies for the delivery of course materials in classroom and laboratory sessions would have to be developed at both the school, state and national levels. Although the New National Curriculum in the sciences packaged sufficient information to achieve the national goal in science education, inadequate preparation and delivery of the course materials will continue to be the bane of the implementation of the curriculum to achieve meaningful learning on the part of the students. <br></p><p> <b>1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM</b></p><p>The development of course materials and the method of delivery in the classrooms and laboratories, as observed with the current syllabuses in the sciences in Nigeria, are not sufficient to enhance the students learning and prepare them adequately for the challenges of higher education. Although, the syllabuses in the sciences provides for adequate learning to prepare the student for taking up careers in science and engineering, the development of course materials and the type of activities required to achieve the desired outcome would have to be addressed early and adequately. Activities in the teaching of biology include lectures, laboratory practical and demonstrations, observations of preserved specimens, and dissections of plants and preserved animals. These activities do not consistently include higher levels of intellectual challenge. Assessment of learning is typically by performance on written examinations and reports of practical laboratory exercises, usually at the end of the term or year, during which students normally reproduce memorized materials rather than applying, analyzing and synthesizing the materials learned. For cognitive ability to be developed by the students, a progressive learning pattern has to be followed in a hierarchical manner according to Bloom’s taxonomy, from simple understanding to application and synthesis of the knowledge, and performance tasks undertaken by students should reflect the range of cognitive skills (Reed &amp; Bergemann, 2011). Activities of higher order intellectual levels thus need to be consistently included in the course material to facilitate such higher goals. The lack of intellectual challenges in the course materials and the method of delivery in both classroom lessons and the laboratory practical sessions constitute the basis for this research project. <br></p><p><b>1.3 PURPOSE OF STUDY</b><br></p><p>The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of teaching and learning biology concepts by applying the action research approach. This was be done by:&nbsp;</p><p>1. Review study materials (recommended textbook, lesson notes and laboratory guides) in secondary school biology with a view to identifying the levels of intellectual challenges included in the activities used for classroom / laboratory instructions.</p><p>&nbsp;2. Revise the course materials by including adequate higher intellectual challenge activities using Bloom’s taxonomy. 3. Use action research procedures to apply the revised course materials in classroom and laboratory sessions to determine whether more learning will take place.&nbsp;</p><p>4. Determine whether activities enjoyed by students also constitute those that enhance their learning.&nbsp;</p><p>5. Determine whether there is any correlation between effective learning and perceived students enjoyment of an activity. <br></p><p> <b>1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION</b></p><p>1. What are the levels of intellectual challenge included in the activities used for classroom and laboratory instructions?&nbsp;</p><p>2. What are the levels of intellectual challenge included in the redesigned course materials for classroom and laboratory instructions.&nbsp;</p><p>3. Will there be an increase in learning when a revised course material is used for classroom / laboratory instruction.</p><p>&nbsp;4. Is there any relationship between activities enjoyed by students and those that enhance their learning?</p><p>&nbsp;5. Is there any relationship between effective learning and perceived students enjoyment of an activity?&nbsp;</p><p><b>1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES</b>&nbsp;</p><p>1. There will be no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of students taught with the redesigned course materials and those taught with the traditional course materials.</p><p>&nbsp;2. There will be no significant correlation between activities enjoyed by the students and those that enhance their learning.&nbsp;</p><p>3. There will be no significant correlation between effective learning and perceived student enjoyment of an activity. <br></p><p> <b>1.6 SCOPE OF STUDY</b></p><p>The study was carried out in four co-educational schools in an urban and rural environment in Lagos State. The study analyzed the recommended biology textbook – Ramalingam, S.T. (2012) Modern Biology for Senior Secondary Schools. Onitsha: Africana First Publishers Ltd. The study used action research methodology to teach a redesigned course material to see its effect on improving learning at the higher cognitive levels. <br></p>