Causes of Student’s Difficulties in Learning Basic Science in Junior Secondary Schools
CHAPTER ONE
Objective of the Study
The main purpose of this study is to find out the causes of students’ difficulties in learning of basic science, specifically the students aim to:
- Find out the extent to which inadequate facilities impede the learning of basic science in junior secondary schools.
- Find out the extent to which lack of trained personnel impede the learning of basic science in junior secondary schools.
- Find out the extent to which financial constraints impede the learning of basic science in junior secondary schools.
- Find out the extent to which organizational constraints impede the learning of basic science in junior secondary schools.
- If lack of electricity or inadequate power supply hampers the effective learning of Basic science in junior secondary schools
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERARURE
This chapter reviews literature related to the study. It is organized under the following sub-headings:
- Conceptual Framework
- Concept of Basic science
- Importance of Basic science Curriculum for National Development
- History of the introduction of computer in the primary and secondary schools
- problems of basic science in schools
- Theoretical Framework
- Social Learning Theory
- Constructivist theory
- Review of Related Empirical Studies
- Factors that Impede the Learning of Basic science in Secondary Schools
- Summary of Literature Reviewed
Conceptual Framework
Importance of Basic science Curriculum for National Development
Basic science is of paramount importance to national development and it is on this premise that the Federal government of Nigeria sought to introduce basic science in the education system from primary through to secondary schools. Education systems around the world face formidable challenges that are taxing conventional strategies. Fresh approaches are needed to address persistent problems of the past and provide students with an education appropriate to the needs of a modern, information based-global economy. Now, after more than two decades of unfulfilled promises to revolutionize education, computer and communication technologies are finally able to offer opportunities to significantly improve teaching and learning.
In any educational system, the level of available resources places a restriction on the degree to which any new subject can be introduced into the school curriculum, especially where only the most basic facilities have so far been provided. But ICT is of such importance to the future industrial and commercial health of a country that investment in the equipment, teacher education, and support services necessary for the effective delivery of an ICT-based curriculum should rank high in any set of government priorities. The curriculum proposed takes account of these resource issues and specifies minimum requirements for effective delivery in different circumstances (UNESCO, 2012). Reasonable basic science are yet to start in Nigerian secondary schools, the computer-student ratio is small, funding by government has not been encouraging, computer education syllabus is unpopular among students and parents and thus hardly implemented, and teachers are inadequate to implement computer education (Jegede & Owolabi, 2013).
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This chapter describes the procedures adopted in conducting the research. It includes the description of the research design, area of study, population, sample and sampling techniques, instrument for data collection, validation of instrument, reliability of instrument, method of data collection and method of data analysis.
Design of the study
Survey research design was employed in the study because it helps in collecting and analyzing data on issues as they exist. Uzoagulu (2011) asserted that survey research design is considered the best design as it is interested in collecting original data for the purpose of describing conditions as they exist in their natural forms.
Population of the Study
The population of the study comprises all the secondary school students in Enugu South Local Government Area. Data showed that there are 8397 students in secondary school in the local government. This is made up of 3297 males and 5100 females.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA ANALYSIS AND DATA PRESENTATION
This chapter gives the results of the data collected from the study. It is presented according to the five research questions that guided the study. Mean and Standard Deviation were used to answer the research questions. A mean of 2.5 and above was agreed, while a mean less than 2.5 was disagreed. The chapter concludes the summary of the findings.
Table 1 above shows the responses of the students on whether inadequate facilities impede the effective learning of basic science in junior secondary schools.
The students disagreed to item 1, confirming that inadequate facilities in junior secondary schools within the area makes the students not to enjoy the teaching style of the teacher. In item 2, the students buttressed the inadequacy of facilities by affirming that the students lost interest in studying the subject. Their responses to item 5 also revealed that inadequate facilities makes the teachers not to use experimental teaching method. Items 3 and 4 were also agreed.
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary of the Study
Basic science constitutes a major instrument for manpower and technological development. The world as it is today has become computerized. That is to say that everything and almost all the activities of today are computerized. Going by this, it therefore becomes imperative that everybody should have the knowledge of computer, starting from the junior secondary or even primary school. This is very important for young children in order to be able to cope with any computer challenges that may arise. Due to the fact that computer education has failed to take off in the majority of schools in Nigeria, fears are that technological development may be a pipe dream for the country. Given by this scenario, this study looked at some factors militating against the effective learning of Basic science in junior secondary schools.
The study adopted survey research design. The area of the study was Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State. The population of the study is all junior secondary school students in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State. Simple random sampling technique was used to select ten junior secondary schools from the twenty-two junior secondary schools within the study area. From each of the ten junior secondary schools, fifty (50) junior secondary school students were selected across the three levels (JSS1, JSS2 and JSS3) using simple random sampling technique. In all, there were 500 students that composed the sample of the study.
Conclusion
From the study, it is apparent that Basic science constitutes a major instrument for manpower and technological development. This explains why it is of immense importance that such transformation be taken into the school system for immediate use in the larger society. However, it was discovered in this study that lack of trained personnels, inadequate facilities, organizational constraints and financial constraints are the major difficulties to effective learning of Basic science in junior secondary schools, using schools in Enugu South Local Government Area as reference point. Recommendations were made towards solving these problems for more effective learning of the subject. It is highly imperative to address the problems identified by this study so that learning of basic science in junior secondary schools will be easier, interesting and meaningful.
Educational Implications
The findings of this study have obvious educational implications for finding useful feedback on the factors militating against the effective learning of Basic science in junior secondary schools.
In general, the study identified several factors which militate against the effective learning of Basic science in junior secondary schools. These factors are lack of adequate facilities, financial constraint, lack of trained personnel and organizational constraints. These problems have contributed in no small measure to the low achievements of students in Basic science in junior secondary schools Adomi & Kpangban(2014). No meaningful learning can occur in Basic science with these problems present. Even very qualified and experienced teachers will find it very difficult to teach the subject when the right facilities are not present. These research work will expose the government to the causes of students’ difficulties in learning of basic science in various junior secondary schools, It will help the government to find solution to the listed problems that contribute to the difficulties confronting the learning of basic science in junior secondary schools, It will equally help the teachers to find a way of making the subject interesting and easy for the students.
Recommendations
The researchers are recommending the following;
- Adequate number of qualified teachers in the subject should be recruited. It was discovered that the subject teachers here deficient in one aspect or the other due to their inabilities in that field, so government should make effort to employ qualified specialist into the field.
- Adequate computer laboratory should be provided in the schools. This is to affect successful teaching and learning of basic science and to range the interest of the junior secondary school students in learning the subject. The state government should also strive to provide junior secondary schools with enough computers and other computer facilities for the purpose of learning
- Government should provided fund to the basic science teachers for research and update of their knowledge.
Limitations of the Study
The following limitations can be observed regarding this study:
- The study was carried out in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu. Most of the schools in the area are situated in the urban areas. To this end, the findings of the study may not be generalised to schools and students in rural regions.
- Due to finance and other related constraints, the researcher could not reach all twenty-two junior secondary schools in Enugu South LGA.
Suggestions for Further Studies
- Further studies of this nature should be conducted in other science subjects like Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and Geography.
- Further studies that would explore teachers’ experiences and limitations for the effective learning of Basic science in junior and senior secondary schools should be conducted.
- Further studies should be carried out to explore and identify other problems that impede the effective learning of Basic science in junior secondary schools.
- Studies of this nature should be carried out in different states on different levels of education.
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