CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
This chapter consists of the background of the study, research questions, research hypothesis, significance of the study, delimitation of the study, limitation of the study and definition of terms.
1.1 Background of the Study
Science is a body of knowledge acquired through investigation to determine the truth of concepts through empirical procedure and it lays emphasis on reality instead of abstraction. It is also a way of explaining events and phenomena in nature. Biology as a branch of science and prerequisite subject for many fields of learning is facilitated by the right method of teaching it. It requires practical work to enhance clear understanding of the lesson content as this will bring about effective learning by the student. It also requires that the students should be actively involved in the learning process through adequate and meaningful hands-and-minds-on activities during every classroom instruction in science and this must be put in place in the nation’s secondary schools.
Activity based approach for teaching of science (Biology) is a technique adopted by a teacher to emphasize learning activities in which students participate rigorously and bring about efficient learning experiences thus resulting in the mastery of biological concept by students.There should be a comparison of the academic achievement of students who are taught through activity-based method compared with the achievement of students taught with other methods (e.g lecture). Abah (2006) showed how students acquire knowledge in short term when taught with lecture method but are likely to retain knowledge longer when taught with activity based method. Gallagher (2003) concluded in his study that activity based method is more effective than traditional instruction, that its result in better long-term retention than traditional strategies for teaching. In opposition to this, other studies have not found any significant differences in achievement between the activity based and lecture method.There should be emphasis on the aims, importance and benefits of using activity based approach to teach students.
Since Biology as a subject requires practical work to bring about understanding of theoretical content; research has shown that activity based approach enhance understanding of biological concept and increase the ability to acquire science process skills by the learner.Practical activity in biology provides opportunity for student to actively do science as opposed to learning about science. Nzewi (2008) asserted that practical activity can be regarded as a strategy that could be adopted to make a task of a teacher more real to the student as opposed to abstract or theoretical presentation of facts, principles and concepts of subject matters.The learners should be given an opportunity to reach a level of mastery when involved in an activity in or outside the classroom setting, as this will increase student learning. According to Bloom (1968) that students must attain 90% on a knowledge test in prerequisite knowledge before moving forward to learn subsequent information.