EFFECT OF SCIENCE-TECHNOLOGY-SOCIETY (STS) INSTRUCTION ON PERFORMANCE AND MAINTENANCE OF ECOLOGY CONCEPTS AMONG SLOW LEARNERS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS, KADUNA, STATE NIGERIA   

ABSTRACT

 

This study investigated the Impact of Science-Technology-Society (STS) Instruction on Performance and Retention of EcologyConcepts among Slow Learners in Secondary Schools inKaduna. The study employed apre-test, posttest, post posttest quasi experimental design. The population consisted of 190 SS2 science students consisting of 105 males and 85 females. Two schools were purposively selected and were randomly assigned control and experimental groups using a toss of a coin. The slow learners were selected using three years consecutive exam results of students who obtained below a score of 50 marks in biology (Ofonime, 2007). The subjects were taught for six weeks using STS Instruction and Lecture Method for the experimental and control groups respectively. The instrument used for thepre-test, posttest, and post posttest was the Biology Performance Test (BPT). The objectives of this study were to: (i) determine the effect of STS Instructional Strategy on students‘ academic performance in S.S.S biology; (ii) investigate if the use of STS Instructional Strategy enhanced retention of learned ecological concepts among senior secondary students (iii) assess if gender differences existed between performance scores of slow learners taught using STS Instructional Strategy.Three research questions were raised with corresponding hypotheses stated. The null hypotheses were tested using t-test statistics with level of significance at P ≤ 0.05.The major findings from the study indicated that slow learners exposed to STS Instructional Strategy in learning ecology concepts performed significantly betterthan those exposed to lecture method. Slow learners taught ecological concepts using STS Instruction retainedmore ecological concepts than those taught using lecture method. Lastly, there was no significant difference in the mean academic scores of male and female slow learners taught ecological concepts using STS Instruction. Based on the findings of the research it was recommended that STS Instruction is an alternative teaching strategy to attain the goal of learning and teaching of slow learners. It can therefore be used in teaching to help slow learners retain knowledge better. In conclusion this study yielded positive results using STS Instructional Strategy on the performance and retention of ecological concepts taught to slow learners in selected public Senior Secondary Schools in Kaduna,      Nigeria.

 

 

 

CHAPTER ONE

THE PROBLEM

1.1       Introduction

Education in science is a crucial factor in all round development of a nation. Science remains one of the most important subjects in the school curriculum. Science Education has been defined by many scholars, educators, educationists and philosophers in several ways; Atadoga (2008), defined science education as the field of study which emphasises the impart of science principles, ideas, laws and theories on individuals and communities that are taught through scientific approaches based on educational principles, sociology, psychology and evaluation viewing science as a human enterprise. Millar, (2004) defined science as referring to a product (a body of knowledge), a process (a way of conducting enquiry) and an enterprise (the institutionalized pursuit of knowledge of the material world.). Science remains one of the most important subjects in the school curriculum, but it has failedto excite students. Onwu (2009) gave two reasons why science does not appeal to many students.

1. Firstly he reported that science isfrequently taught poorly, often as rote memorization of complex facts and abstract data, ii. Secondly, science educators have failed in their social responsibility to provide students and the general public with an understanding of science as it is today.

Science is not about the things that humans construct, rather material explanations used for natural phenomena which ideally, must be objectively and empirically testable with universal outcomes.

 

Biology, a branch of science, is the study of living things and their vital processes.  It seeks to explain their nature, functions and place of living organisms including man in their environment. Biology is essential to human society because it gives an understanding of how life is formed and how it works, changes and responds to environmental influences. It influences human health, reproduction, quality of life, nutrition and almost every aspect of human‘s everyday life.An extremely broad subject, biology is divided into branches including ecology.

The persistent poor performance of students in biology, specifically in ecological concepts at Senior School Certificate Examination (WAEC, Chief Examiner report, 2007 – 2012) leaves one in doubt about the effectiveness of the teaching methods popularly used by the biology teachers for teaching the subject. The poor performance in ecology was traced to past ecology WAEC questions according to the Chief

Examiner‘s reports of 2007 – 2012; although educators have advocated the use of some of the innovative strategies which include cooperative learning, problem solving and constructivism (Nwosu and Nzewi 1998). Okeke (1995) and Oyegebu (1999) found out that teachers use the lecture method in teaching ecology which is found to be ineffective in teaching of science instruction.The most commonly used method in schools for teaching is the lecture method. This method involves the teacher telling the students information. The teaching is centered on the teacher and there is usually no opportunity for the students to interact, which is one of its many disadvantages.Severalresearches on the use of Lecture Method such as James (2000), Usman (2000) and Bichi (2002) pointed out that it only encourages rote learning and as such does not enhance academic performance and positive attitude towards science among both male and female students. It is not an interactive teaching method as it does not provide for feedback to students. For effective teaching and learning of science in general, and biology in particular, the use of a method which will enhance students understanding of taught concepts which will bring about meaningful learning is required.

One of the objectives of teaching and learning is to make the learners become more cognitively active in their own learning. (Atadoga & Onaolapo, 2008.) They further stated that it implies that learning activities are well selected, prepared, organised and presented in a way that the learners are afforded opportunities for cognitive engagement. This can be achieved when learners are engaged in learning activities that emphasise observation, thinking, discussion reading, writing and drawing (Atadoga &

Onaolapo, 2008).

 

One of the goals of secondary education in Nigeria by the Federal Ministry of Education in its National Policy on Education (FME, 2004) is ―inculcating in the child the spirit of enquiry and creativity through exploration of nature and the local environment‖. Also stated in the National Policy on Education is that ―education should aim at helping the child acquire appropriate skills, abilities and competencies both mental and physical as equipment for the individual to live in and contribute to the development of his society‖. Biology is a compulsory subject for all students in the sciences and some art students excluding technical students at the senior secondary school level; however numerous problems are associated with the teaching of the subject such as lack of material resources or improvised materials. Beli, (2008) in his paper on Developing mastery for effective instructional delivery in primary science pointed out that over population, lack of teachers knowledge on improvisation and inadequate use of teaching materials in schools are factors that affect proper teaching and learning of science in schools.

The last twenty years has seen a number of changes in science teaching, of which one of the most significant has been the development of a wide range of materials which use contexts and applications as a starting point for developing an understanding of scientific ideas. Such approaches are variously described as ‗context-based‘, ‗applications-led‘ or using ‗STS‘ (Science-Technology-Society) links.

Science-Technology-Society (STS) Instructional Strategy has been found to enhance learning and understanding of science concepts. This method involves students first hand experiences which provide real-world situations or contexts which in turn provide relevancy and a concrete point of reference (Yager, 1993).The method intended for this research involves student participation, active engagement in seeking out facts and finding solutions in relation to societal problems. Students find out things as they are in contact with what they are being taught which will make learning interesting and remembering easier for the student. Lack of student activities and participation in the learning process is assumed to be linked to the teaching method used by the teacher, which may be a factor contributing to the poor performance of students in the sciences. This makes for the need to change the teaching strategy that is capable of enhancing academic performance and retention of concepts learned.STS Instructional Strategy is activity oriented and student-centred teaching method capable of enhancing academic performance in science students.In respect to the mentioned reasons above, STS strategy will be used in this study using biology as the subject in teaching ecological concepts in these topics;

1. organisms and their habitats ii. decomposition in nature iii.    ecological management iv.         tolerance and adaptation
2. pollution

The distinctive characteristic of scientific knowledge is that it provides material explanations for the behaviour of the material world, that is, explanations in terms of the entities that make up the world and their properties. It seems natural, and rather obvious that learning science will involve acts of ‗showing‘ as well as of ‗telling‘ (Millar, 2004). Nworgu, (1999) noted that contrary to the spirit of science, science teachers still teach without the necessary activities needed for proper understanding of the concept. Sharma and Hyland, (1991) found out that students exposed to direct experience on concrete objects performed better than those exposed to verbal instruction. Gbamanja, (1991) stated that biology teaching involves exposing students to several opportunities to understand different types of concepts, principles and expose students to direct physical materials that will make some meaning to the cognitive framework.  Practical work according to Woolnough, (1994) provides students with valuable insights into scientific practice and can increase interest in science and motivation for its continued study. Practical work is necessary for developing students understanding of scientific concepts and explanations. Biology as a subject to be taught to students requires materials for cognitive development and meaningful learning.This is why the teaching of biology should be done using live objects which encourages deductive and inductive reasoning obtainable from the environment.

Slow learners are children who are doing poorly in school, yet are not eligible for special education; their intelligence test scores are too high for consideration as a child with mental retardation‖ (Mercer, 1996) (MacMillan, Gresham, Bocian, &Lambros, 1998). Although slow learners may have special educational needs, they do not fit neatly into the special education system (MacMillan, Gresham, Bocian, &Lambros,

1998).

 

According to Verma, (2013),a slow learner can be described as a student who has the ability to learn necessary academic skills, but at a rate and depth below average when compared to their peers. In order to grasp new concepts, a slow learner needs more time, a number of repetitions, patience and often more resources from teachers to be successful. In children with this condition, reasoning skills are typically delayed, which makes new concepts difficult to learn and grasp. This study intended to seek the impact made on slow learners using STS Instruction on Performance and Retention among such students.

 

Retention according to Learning Theories Knowledgebase, (2010)is remembering what you paid attention to. It includes symbolic coding, mental images, cognitive organisation, symbolic rehearsal, motor rehearsal. Bichi, (2002) defined retention as the ability to retain and consequently remember things experienced or learned by an individual at a later time. When teaching is characterised by rote learning, and the facts thus learned are not long retained, nor do they seem to have much effect in changing behaviour (Akinbobalola and Folashade, 2009). However when it is organised and meaningful, in which students apply principles, solve problems and interpret experimental data, learning becomes effective and the facts thus learned are retained with the passage of time. In essence anything that affects learning should improve retention, while things that lead to confusion or interference among learned materials decrease the speed and efficiency of learning and accelerates forgetting. When a material is forgotten, it means it has not been retained and hence cannot be remembered at a later period. Using STS strategyto teach biology to students may increase the retention of concepts taught to students.STS instructional strategy has been found to enhance students understanding of science concepts and brings about meaningful learning.

 

Specific results of student accomplishments in science experienced through the STS approach have been extensively documented (Banerjee & Yager, 1992, 1995; Blunck,

Giles, & McArthur, 1993;Kellerman & Liu, 1996; Liu & Yager, 1996; Liu, Yager, Blunck, & Seo, 1995; McComas,1996; McShane & Yager, 1996; Myers,1996; Varrella, 1996; Yager, 1998). Collectively, these published reports of the use of STS indicate measurable improvements in student achievement with respect to mastery of science concepts and processes; the ability to apply science concepts and processes in new situations, particularly those in real-life settings; and understanding and use of the basic features of science (i.e., the nature of science). The reports also indicate significant increases in student curiosity about the natural and human-made world, significant improvement in student attitudes toward science and science related careers, and significant growth in students‘ creative abilities relevant to science (such as the quality and quantity of student generated questions, proposed explanations, and methods of testing the validity of those explanations).Hence, this study intends to find out what impact (whether positive or negative) that STS may have on the academic performance and retention of slow learners of senior secondary students in ecology.

 

The issue of gender is an important one in Science education especially with increasing emphasis on ways of boosting manpower for technological development as well as increasing the population of females in science and technological fields (Ogunkola & Bilesanmi-Awoderu,2000). In Nigeria, and perhaps the whole of Africa,gender bias is still very prevalent (Arigbabu & Mji, 2004). This is a view to which Onyeizugbo (2003) has also alluded in pointing out that ―sex roles are somewhat rigid in Africa particularly in Nigeria…gender differences are emphasised‖. It is common place to see gender stereotypes manifested in the day-to-day life of an average Nigerian.

In conclusion, this study is also aimed at finding if the impact of STS instruction on slow learners performance and retention of concepts taught in ecology is gender related or not.

1.1.1 Theoretical framework

The theoretical framework of this study is based on Blooms Mastery Learning Theory (MLT).Mastery learning is an instructional method that presumes all learners can learn if they are provided with the appropriate learning conditions. Specifically, mastery learning is a method whereby students are not advanced to a subsequent learning objective until they demonstrate proficiency with the current one (Mastery learning,

2009). Benjamin Bloom‘s Mastery learning was derived from John B. Carrols model of school learning in 1963. Bloom transformed this model into an effective working model for mastery learning.  According to Bloom (1968) mastery learning is an instructional methodthat presumes that all individuals can learn if they are provided with appropriate learning conditions. To Bloom, given a supportive instructional system, 95 percentof all learners can learn and achieve lesson objectives at near the same mastery level, the responsibility of the educator is to plan remedial instruction and include their use in classroom situation before proceeding to the next unit. According to Bloom (1971), mastery learning suggests procedure whereby a learner‘s instruction can be so managed in a group based classroom instruction so as to enhance his fullest development. This as a result generates positive interest and attitude towards the subject learned than usual

classroom                methods.                 Learning                is                an                active

process. Facets of the process include selection and transformation of information, decis ion making, generating hypotheses, and making meaning from information and experience.It takes individual learners different time to learn a task. Bloom (1968) pointed out that centrality of group instruction is effective for some learners but ineffective for others. For example, instruction provided to a group of twenty to seventy learners is likely to be very effective for some learners and relatively ineffective for other learners. Bloom condemns a situation where it is expected by teachers that some students will be successful and some will not. Mastery learning proposes that all or almost all students can master what they are taught. It suggests procedures whereby a learner‘s instruction can be managed so as to promote its fullest development.

 

According to Bloom (1971) this aspect of teaching and learning is likely to be replete with errors which are compounded overtime and unless there are ways of identifying and correcting the flaws in both the teaching and learning, the education system is likely to produce individual differences in learning which continue and are exaggerated over time. Bloom further emphasized that much individual differences in learning may be regarded as man -made and accidental rather than as fixed in the individual at the time of conception.Bloom (1976) argued that many individual differences in school learning are man-made and accidental rather than fixed in the individual at the time of conception. To him, individual differences in learning can be overcome by allowing each learner adequate time and using good quality instruction. His major argument is that what any person in the world can learn, almost all persons can learn, if provided with appropriate conditions of learning.To Bloom, the basic task in education is to find strategies which will take individual differences into consideration but which will do so in such a way as to promote the fullest development of an individual learner.

 

When the learner prepares visuals such as text, graphics, web sites, or activitiesin which another can participate, or endeavours to explain material to other students, or works in a group context, learning is especially powerful.(Sunny,2009) This is also seen in STS being an activity based instructional strategy where learners are engaged in the applications of science through the use of their critical thinking skills and content knowledge. This study therefore intends to find out how much impact has STS on the academic performance and retention of slow learners of senior secondary school in ecology.

A comment from Bobbi DePorter’s ‘Quantum Learning’ (1999, 2004) is that we learn:

1. 10% of what we read ii. 20% of what we hear iii. 30% of what we see iv. 50% of what we see and hear
2. 70% of what we say vi. 90% of what we say and do

Blooms mastery learning theory is a group based method. It differs from conventional classroom instruction in that:

1. It emphasizes mastery of all objectives in each learning unit.
2. It uses diagnostic progress test (formative test) to identify each learner‘s errors

• It uses systematic feedback i.e. correctives for helping learners overcome learning difficulties and finally,

1. It provides additional time for those learners who need it, allows variation in learning-time and emphasizes high level of achievement for all learners. Traditional instruction holds time constant and allows mastery to vary while mastery learning holds mastery constant and allows time to vary (Robinson, 1992).

From this, it can be seen that full engagement of seeing and doing collectively have the highest percentage involving active participation of the individual which is relative of STS strategies. Active learning engages the whole person, not just the intellectual mind.According to Erinosho, (2008) learning is an active process. When people try to do things and fail or succeed, emotions are triggered, and these have a significant effect on how we remember. The advantage of active learning over passive learning is based on constructivist theory as well as outcomes of studies conducted in this domain. Philosophy and rationale of mastery learning

 

One component of mastery learning is its educational philosophy — its set of beliefsabout learning and teaching. These beliefs are what shape the methods of mastery learning and the attitudes of the teachers who use the mastery approach. This section is devoted to explaining these beliefs. The other component of mastery learning is its method of instruction. Mastery learning involves a set of clear steps for selecting content, teaching, and determining students’ progress. None of these steps is new in itself, but as a package they are extremely effective in enabling most students to learn well. These various steps will be enumerated later in the manual.

The belief system of mastery learning starts from two basic assumptions:

• Virtually all students can learn all important academic content to a level of

excellence.

• The primary function of schools is to define learning objectives, and to help all students to achieve them.

According to Bloom, what looks like a difference among students in rate of learning is usually really a difference in proportion of time spent on task. In a typical 45 minute period,”good” students might spend 90% of the time really learning, while “slow” students might be spending only 33%. Again, then, these differences can be made to vanish if educators can find teaching approaches which increase the “slow” learners’ time on task.

This study on the impactof using STS Instructionon the performance and retention of ecological concepts learnt among slow learners is therefore hinged on this theory.

1.2       Statement of the Problem

Biology is one of the core subjects in Nigerian secondary school curriculum, as a result of its importance, more students enrolled for biology in the Senior Secondary Certificate

Examination (SSCE) than for physics and chemistry (West African Examination Council, 2011).Examination results released in 2011 by WAEC revealed that only 31% of the 1,540,250 candidates that sat for the WASSCE May/June passed the examinations.West African Examination Council (WAEC) Chief Examiners Report of (2005),(2006), (2007), and (2008) stressed candidate‘s poor performance in Biology, and it was reported to be largely due to lack or shortage of resource materials.

Table 1.1: Statistics of Biology results in May/June SSCE (2007-2012)

Year	Total    no.      of candidates that sat for the exam      %	Number & percentag Credit (1-6)   %	e of different grades Pass (7-8)  %	Fail (9)      %
2007	609,026(92.7)	96,202(15.79)	142,044(23.32)	370,800(34.62)
2008	841,868(95.46)	36,348(31.29)	286,909(34.08)	291,475(34.62)
2009	1036,520(97.17)	322,310(31.39)	365,140(35.57)	339,070(33.03)
2010	1203,028(99.41)	466,155(38.75)	354,108(29.43)	319,060(26.52)
2011	1347,050(96.34)	492,422(36.52)	409,584(30.41)	362,238(26.89)
2012	5135,283(97.63)	488,302(31.81)	478,840(31.19)	509,849(33.21)

Source: WAEC Annual Report 2007-2012

Table 1 shows the percentage of students that passed biology at Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) conducted by the West African Examination Council

(WAEC). As the table shows, the number of students that passed biology at credit level (A1-C6) was consistently less than 50% for the period of six years (2007-2012) in Nigeria(West African Examination Council, 2012).

McPherson, (2001) and Isah, (2011) observed that many science students experience difficulty in science courses due to lack of understanding of the methods and processes of science.Other reasons were attributed to teachers‘ persistence in adhering to traditional method of teaching (Yager, 1993). Traditional method of teaching results in poor mastery and retention of concepts(Muhammad, 2009). Okebukola (2009) and Gyuse (2009) revealed that teachers‘ use of lecture method in teaching ecology has contributed to poor performance in biology.

 

Ecology as a concept in biology has to do with the environment around us. Therefore there is the need for active participation of learners in the study of ecology using activity based teaching strategy. A slow learner can be described as a student who has the ability to learn necessary academic skills, but at a rate and depth below average when compared to their peers. In order to grasp new concepts, a slow learner needs more time, a number of repetitions, patience and often more resources from teachers to be successful. Another reason why traditional mode of teaching cannot suffice slow learners is that it is not activity based; slow learners need hands–on minds-on methods to learn well. Furthermore, studies conducted on academic performance have shown that poor performance by students are based on the fact that teaching methodologies employed by teachers are mostly not learner friendly which according to Lakpini, (2006), is most often inadequate.

 

The use of STS has been found to enhance students understanding of subject matter learnt as reported by (Yager, 2000).Dambana, 2011 also found that STS instructional strategy enhanced meaningful learning of genetics concepts amongst students in colleges of education. STS is student- centred, encourages critical thinking and also a multi-sensory stimulation strategy in enhancing the academic performance of students.

This studytherefore sought to find outthe impact of Science-Technology-Society (STS) Instruction on the performance and retention of ecology among slow learners. Also the study sought to find out whether STS is gender friendly or otherwise.

1.3       Objectives of the Study

The objectives of this study are to:

1. determine the effect of STS Instructional Strategy on students‘ academic performance in S.S.S. biology; ii. investigate if the use of STS Instructional Strategy enhances retention of learned ecological concepts among senior secondary students.

iii. assess if gender differences exist betweenperformance scores of slow learners  taught using STSInstructional Strategy.

1.4       Research Questions

From the problem stated in the study, the following questions were formulated for answering.

1. What is the difference between the academic performance mean scores of slow learners taught ecological concepts using STS Instructional Strategyand those taught with lecture method?
2. What is the difference between the mean scores of slow learners taught ecological concepts using STS Instructional Strategy and those taught using lecture method on theretention ability of ecological concepts taught?

• What is the difference between the academic performance mean scores of male and female slow learnerstaught ecological concepts using STS

Instructional Strategy?

1.5       Null Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses were formulated for testing at P≤ 0.05 level of significance;

HO₁There is no significant difference between the mean academic scores of slow learners taught ecological concepts using STS Instructional Strategy and those taught using Lecture method.

HO₂There is no significant difference between the retention ability of slow learners taught ecologicalconcepts usingSTS Instructional Strategy and those taught using Lecture Method.

HO₃There is no significant difference between the mean academic scores of male  and female slow learners taughtecologicalconcepts usingSTS Instructional  Strategy.

1.6       Significance of the Study

The findings of this study would hopefully be of benefit to science educators in the following ways;

1. Encourage teachers to use the environment in teaching as a first hand

resource in lesson activities,  ii. Give students a better opportunity for understanding of the subject as they interact with their environment, and enhance the ability to retain concepts learnt  in their natural state, iii. If this strategy is found to be successful, curriculum planners would be able to incorporate the use of STS instructional strategy as part of the curriculum in the syllabus of the natural sciences for teaching purposes,

1. Text book publishers would draw attention to the use of the STS

instructional strategyalong with  other practical activities that relate to its use in certain areas/ topics in the biology text books that are published,

1. Sensitize the ministry of education to see to the establishment of STS instructional strategy in academic planning in educationfor all schools, vi. Stimulate further researches in this subject area for better science education teachers in the field of STS instructional strategy in biology.

vii. Professional bodies such as STAN and NERDC would benefit from this study in the improvement of science instruction in Senior Secondary Schools in Nigeria.

1.7       Scope of the Study

This study is delimited to senior secondary school II students (SS2) of selected public schools in Kaduna Education Zone of Kaduna State. The reason for selecting SS2 students is that they have more time andhave acquired some basic knowledge in biology more than the new intakes in SS1, and their counter parts in SS3 are too busy preparing for their final examination in WAEC, NECO and UTME.

Ecologyconcepts were taught to students under the topics; the organism and its habitat, decomposition in nature, ecological management, tolerance, adaptation and pollution using STS Instructional Strategyand Lecture Method. The reason for choosing Ecological concepts is due to its use of natural resources within the environment; also it covers a large part in the syllabus of biology from SSI-III and poor performance by students in this area.

 

 

1.8       Basic Assumptions

The basic assumptions for this study are:

1. All the SSII students in the study sample have adequate introduction to ecology.
2. The teachers teaching biology are qualified to teach the subject s recommended by the National Policy on Education (FME, 2013).

• The schools under study run the same academic calendar and use the same syllabus.

EFFECT OF SCIENCE-TECHNOLOGY-SOCIETY (STS) INSTRUCTION ON PERFORMANCE AND MAINTENANCE OF ECOLOGY CONCEPTS AMONG SLOW LEARNERS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS, KADUNA, STATE NIGERIA   

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