An Application of Information Technology to the Learning and Teaching of Economics in Secondary Schools
CHAPTER ONE
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The main objective of the study is to ascertain the impact of applying ICT to the teaching and learning of economics in secondary schools in Nigeria. But to aid the completion of the study, the researcher intends to achieve the following specific objectives;
- To ascertain the effect of ICT on the effective teachings of economics
- To ascertain the role of ICT in the learning process of economics in secondary schools
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Introduction
Assessment for educational purposes is a continuous process. Bardes & Denton (2006) affirming this opinion defined assessment as the process which provides data/information on students learning, analyses and uses this data to confirm and improve learning (formative assessment), produce evidence that students are learning the outcomes intended (summative assessment), guides the institution in taking educational decisions, evaluate whether changes made improves/impacts on students learning and documents the learning and the assessors efforts. Assessment is formative when the purpose of the assessment is to improve learning. It is summative when the purpose of the assessment is for placement, certification and other judgmental purposes. Assessment involves various processes. The six processes involved in assessment include: identifying objectives to assess, developing test instrument, collecting data, 12 analyzing data, reporting results and use of results. (James Madison University, 2014). Assessment could be norm or criterion referenced depending on objective of the assessor and the type of instrument with which the assessment is carried out. It is norm referenced when the assessor wants to find out the relative standing of the testees – (students/individuals taking a test) – taking the test compared to their mean score. It is criterion referenced when a student’s mastery of the ability assessed is confirmed if he attains the benchmark or target set for the assessment. Educational assessment usually measures either the cognitive, affective or the psychomotor domain of a student. Competencies which are specific functional abilities are assessed at the psychomotor domain and they are usually measured using criterion referenced tests. Assessment has many functions for education. These functions can be derived from the functions of measurement as given by Nworgu (2003), who identified the various functions for measurement to include: instructional functions, administrative functions, guidance functions, and research functions. To know whether progress is made in education, we need to assess. Hence, we need to assess in order to measure progress in education; attainment of the national objectives on education as an instrument for fostering national development can only be verified using assessment. However, for the purpose of this study, the interest group to assess their ICT competencies is secondary school Economics teachers in Enugu education zone.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research design
The researcher used descriptive research survey design in building up this project work the choice of this research design was considered appropriate because of its advantages of identifying attributes of a large population from a group of individuals. The design was suitable for the study as the study sought to examine the application of information technology to the learning and teaching of economics in Nigeria
Sources of data collection
Data were collected from two main sources namely:
Primary source and Secondary source
Primary source:
These are materials of statistical investigation which were collected by the research for a particular purpose. They can be obtained through a survey, observation questionnaire or as experiment; the researcher has adopted the questionnaire method for this study.
Secondary source:
These are data from textbook Journal handset etc. they arise as byproducts of the same other purposes. Example administration, various other unpublished works and write ups were also used.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was on an application of information technology to the learning and teaching of economics in Nigeria.
In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing the challenges of ICT in the teaching and learning of economics
Summary
This study attempted to justify the need of ICTs in the effective teaching of home economics in the secondary schools. The world has become technology driven and for any discipline to be relevant must of necessity move wit h ICT. This implies that all stakeholders in education must work together to make ICT accessible to teachers and students in the teaching and learning of all school subjects including home economics in secondary schools in Nigeria.
Conclusion
The finding of this study has shown that Nigeria secondary schools are lagging behind in the level of application of ICT in the teaching-learning process. The ICT facilities are lacking in schools, the capacity for using ICT by both teachers and students is also very low. Despite the perceived benefits in the use of ICT in school, there are a lot of factors inhibiting the successful application of ICT in secondary schools. In order to fit into the new scientific order, it is necessary for Nigerian institutions and individuals alike to develop a society and culture that places a high value on information and communication technology.
Recommendations
The following recommendations are therefore made. The government should increase funding for the entire educational sector with emphasis on ICT this will help improve the level of ICT facilities in the schools. There should also be continuous and periodic training of teachers on computer and ICT skills acquisition. This will help provide them with practical and functional knowledge of the computer, the internet and associated areas of ICT with the hope of integrating it with instructional methods of teaching and learning.
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