A Study of the Utilisation of Science Mobile Laboratories: A Case of Kitwe District

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue X, October 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186

A Study of the Utilisation of Science Mobile Laboratories: A Case of Kitwe District

Banda John*, Simpemba P.

Department of Physics Education, School Post Graduate Studies, The Copperbelt University, Zambia
*Corresponding author

Abstract: – The purpose of this study was to explore the utilisation levels of science mobile laboratories when teaching science practical lessons and to assess the teachers’ competencies in using the mobile laboratories and the challenges they face in this practice. A survey research design was used. It target science teachers from the three zones of Kitwe District of the Copperbelt Province. Purposive sampling was used to pick the participants of the study. Questionnaires, interview schedules and observation checklist were used to collect data. The findings from the study revealed that the quality of apparatus in these laboratories are good but they are in small quantities per unit compared to the class size and this negatively affects the teaching and learning process of practical lessons. The teachers’ qualification has an impact on their ability to use the laboratory units. It was established that schools had financial challenges to acquire consumables for the practical lessons. Generally the teachers find the mobile laboratory units useful.

Keywords: Science Mobile Laboratories, Apparatus, Practical Lessons, Teachers’ Competences

I. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Context of the study

Through the Ministry of Education, the Government of the Republic of Zambia recognises the potential for science education in promoting technological development. It is for this reason that the Mobile Laboratories were introduced at both primary and secondary school levels as a way of assisting science teachers in delivering practical lessons in science to the learners effectively.
There has been an observation that the learners encounter a number of challenges in terms of the number of these mobile laboratories which are far much less than the number of learners. According to CDC (2010), a significant number of secondary schools do not have conventional laboratories to support practical aspects of teaching and learning. Therefore, this study sought to explore the challenges which teachers encounter in the use of mobile laboratories when teaching physics practical lessons in secondary schools.

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