The Impact of Utilizing Learning Resources on Junior Secondary School Students’ Performance in Basic Science
- October 25, 2021
- Posted by: rsispostadmin
- Categories: IJRISS, Social Science
International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue X, October 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186
Longinus, Nwala PhD
Department of Integrated Science, Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Abstract: This study investigated the impact of utilizing learning resources on junior secondary school students’ performance in Basic Science. The descriptive survey research design was adopted with a population and sample size of 16,077 and 385 students respectively. Simple random technique was used to select the sample. Learning Resources Utilization Questionnaire (LRUQ) and Basic Science Performance Test (BSPT) were the instruments validated and used for data collection. The reliability indices of LRUQ and BSPT obtained by test and re-test methods were 0.78 and 0.74 respectively. Data collected using the instruments were analyzed. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the three research questions while analysis of variance was used to test the two hypothesis formulated to guide the study. Findings of the study revealed that the extent of utilizing learning resources in teaching Basic Science was high. The difference between the performance of students taught Basic Science with and without learning resources was significant. However gender difference was not significant. The use of learning resources to teach Basic Science was highly recommended to enhance the performance of students’ in the subject.
Key words: Impact, utilizing, learning resources, performance, Basic Science
I.INTRODUCTION
Science is rapidly driving the socio-economic and technological development in most countries of the world today. Scientific development is now the yardstick for assessing national development. Purposeful science education is responsible for national development Ajayi, (2019), Enemarie, Ogbeba & Ajayi, (2019). In Nigeria, Basic Science is one of the compulsory subjects taught at the lower and upper basic education levels in recognition of the position of science in technological development (FRN, 2014). The inclusion of Basic Science in the basic education curriculum is to provide a strong scientific foundation for the Nigerian child. Having a solid foundation in Science entails making students have keen interest in Science, right from their basic level of education (Mba, 2013).
Science is the knowledge obtained through the scientific method of observation, hypothesizing and experimentation. Ajayi and Ogbeba (2017) defined Science as the knowledge obtained from the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical world, especially by observing, measuring and experimenting and the development of theories to describe the result of these activities. Nwala (2018) sees Science as knowledge or experience gained through practical activities which involves the sense organs: sight (eye), sound (ear), smell (nose), touch (hand), and taste (tongue) (s3t2) and for scientific work to be performed with the availability of the
