The Influence of Instructional Materials in the Teaching of Biology in Secondary Schools

THE INFLUENCE OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS IN THE TEACHING OF BIOLOGY IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Biology, as a study of life and living things, must be taught not just conceptually but also practically in order for it to be useful and to build the groundwork for scientific and technological advancement. Erickson (2005) stated that in order for scientific teaching and learning to be effective, each student must have the chance to handle and experience science objects. Biology is the study of life and living things, and hence a resourceful teacher has no need to teach biology. Asiabaka (2010) argues that education is critical for national development because it equips man with the intellectual capacity necessary to improve human and material resources for scientific and technical improvement.

To ensure that senior secondary education meets its objectives, the teaching and learning processes must be well-organized. Thus, curriculum is seeded at various levels of the educational system by various individuals. The curriculum of any school is designed to influence students’ behavior. It is an integral aspect of the academic program that the school offers pupils in response to social demands. According to onyedikachi (2011), it is hard to educate without tools in an educational context. We include innovative tools to enliven the teaching and learning process and enable students to teach themselves. This is why, according to Ezekoka (2008), instructional materials are a critical component of the teaching and learning environment. She saw them as the means by which messages or information are sent from a transmitting source (teacher) to a receiver (learner).

Because the objectives of any biology class dictate the content, topics, and supplies required to accomplish those objectives. The materials used to increase instructional effectiveness are a subset of the media used to accomplish educational goals. Recent emphasis on teaching and learning methods has been on those that require learners to participate actively. Learners’ active engagement increases motivation and also reduces the amount of abstraction connected with learning. As a result, greater learning opportunities (Afokloi & Adeleke, 2010). This may be accomplished by utilizing educational materials and tools that reduce the amount of abstraction involved with learning. Effective teaching requires the use of suitable and relevant instructional resources.

To this purpose, Onasanwa & Omosewo (2011) defined instructional materials as system components that may be employed as part of the instructional process and that are used to transmit information, messages, and ideas, or that facilitate communicative ability throughout the teaching process.

Teaching aids play a critical role in the social reengineering and transformation of learners. Without instructional materials or teaching aids, the role of instructional materials or teaching aids in enhancing teaching for intended social and behavioral changes cannot be completely realized. In today’s teaching and learning environment, the use of instructional materials has grown in popularity because several experts and scholars believe that teaching will be improved if teaching aids or audio-visual aids are used and that students will learn more effectively if they are exposed to using teaching materials, regardless of how prototype they are (Onasanwa & Omosewo 2011).

In light of this, the researcher determined that it was important to evaluate the effect of employing instructional materials to teach biology in Yola, Adamawa State’s senior secondary schools.

 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Any instructional activity’s ultimate purpose is to support effective teaching and meaningful learning, and the teacher is accountable for the translation and implementation of educational policies, curriculum, instructional materials, and evaluation of a school outcome (Penn, 2014). When a curriculum is produced without proper support from suitable and sufficient resources and information technology, a waste occurs, as does when instructors are insufficiently prepared to comprehend the curriculum and generate and use learning materials (Amoo, 2002). Public schools frequently lack basic educational facilities; in certain circumstances, students are required to purchase chalk and other instructional materials for the teaching and learning process. As a result, students’ academic performance has been low over the years, as evidenced by public tests and other assessments. In our senior secondary schools, important instructional resources for biological courses are not made available to instructors and, if necessary, to students at a cheap price, depriving both teachers and students of the necessary exposure to such materials (Amoo, 2002). The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of employing instructional materials to teach biology in a senior high schools in Yola, Adamawa State.

 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The main objective of this study is to examine the influence of instructional materials in the teaching of biology in secondary schools. Specifically, this study seeks to:

i.          To determine the extent of use of instructional materials in biology in secondary schools.

ii.        Ascertain the extent to which instructional materials help to facilitate effective teaching and learning and understanding concepts.

iii.      To determine whether the use of instructional materials affects academic performance of students in Biology.

iv.      To identify the barriers that prevent teachers from effectively utilizing instructional resources in the teaching and learning process.

 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following research questions will be answered in this study:

i.          To what extent are instructional materials used in biology in secondary schools?

ii.        To what extent has instructional materials helped to facilitate effective teaching and learning and understanding concepts?

iii.      Does the use of instructional materials affect academic performance of students in Biology?

iv.      What are the barriers that prevent teachers from effectively utilizing instructional resources in the teaching and learning process?

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study is relevant in a number of ways because it will benefit educational administrators, policymakers, instructors, and students in the following ways:

It will enable educational administrators, state governments, and the federal government to arrange seminars and workshops for secondary school teachers in order to improve the quality of secondary school education. The research will provide feedback to the education sector, particularly the departments of teacher development and training, curriculum development, and assessment.

If the findings of this study are addressed at seminars and workshops in the region covered by this study, instructors will have a better understanding of how to use instructional materials effectively and also learn how to take suitable measures to improve the situation.

The study will benefit students if proper teaching materials are offered; it will assist them in effectively learning and comprehending classroom curriculum.

Finally, the outcomes of this study will benefit scholars and researchers since they will serve as reference materials on relevant themes and will also provide effective strategies for boosting students’ academic performance and learning.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study will be focused on examining the influence of instructional materials in the teaching of biology in secondary schools. Specifically, this study will focus on determining the extent of use of instructional materials in biology in secondary schools, ascertaining the extent to which instructional materials help to facilitate effective teaching and learning and understanding concepts, determining whether the use of instructional materials affects academic performance of students in Biology and identifying the barriers that prevent teachers from effectively utilizing instructional resources in the teaching and learning process.

Biology teachers and students of selected secondary schools in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State will form the population of this study.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study will be limited to examining the influence of instructional materials in the teaching of biology in secondary schools. Specifically, this study will be limited to determining the extent of use of instructional materials in biology in secondary schools, ascertaining the extent to which instructional materials help to facilitate effective teaching and learning and understanding concepts, determining whether the use of instructional materials affects academic performance of students in Biology and identifying the barriers that prevent teachers from effectively utilizing instructional resources in the teaching and learning process.

Biology teachers and students of selected secondary schools in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State will form the population of this study, thus the sample size was limited because only a few respondents were chosen to answer the research instrument, therefore the results cannot be generalized to other secondary schools outside the state.

 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Influence: The capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behaviour of someone or something, or the effect itself.

Instructional materials: This can be refered to as print and non-print items that are designed to impart information to pupils in the educational process. Instructional materials include items such as kits, textbooks, magazines, newspaper, pictures, recording, slides, transparencies, video, video discs, work books and electronic media including but not limited to music, movies, radio software, CD-ROMS, and on-line services.

Teaching: This is an act of imparting knowledge/skill to a person/learner about a subject.

Biology: Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary information encoded in genes, which can be transmitted to future generations.