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Journal of Education in Developing Areas (JED A) Vol. 19, No. 1.
TEACHING AND LEARNING OF SCIENCE IN NIGERIA: THE PRACTICAL AND
FRIENDLY APPROACHES
By
DR. (MRS) A. A. AROKOYU
DEPARTMENT OF CURRICULUM STUDIES AND EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGYFACULTY OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF PORT HARCOURTRIVERS STATE, NIGERIA.
Abstracts
Science as a human endeavor brings about national development when put into
practical use through technology. This paper delved into the various ways by which
science has been a mystery to many students generally and those at the secondary
school level in particular. Hence, practical approaches such as demonstration,
laboratory, scaffolding, discovery and inquiry were highlighted. Also, the principles of
good science teaching and learning were presented for effective, practical behavioral
and attitudinal changes in both the teachers and the learners.
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Introduction
Scientific breakthrough is one of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and
one of the late President of Nigeria, Alhaji Umaru Musa Yarduas seven point
agenda still being pursued by the present President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.
Nigeria as a developing nation in realization of the importance of science and
technology had included as one of the major goals of science education to
inculcate in the citizens scientific literacy (FME, 2003). Scientific literacy, simply
put is the ability of an individual to acquire scientific knowledge and use same in
solving personal and societal problems.
Poor academic achievements in science and unhealthy attitude towards
science have been reported in literature (Adeniyi 1995, Nwagbo 1997, Arokoyu and
Dike 2009). A number of factors such as teachers methods, lack of instructional
materials based on poor funding, lack of initiative and creativity amongst manyothers were reported for being responsible. Sequel to this, innovative approaches
such as demonstration, laboratory, scaffolding, inquiry and discovery; so also,
principles of science teaching and learning are presented in this paper.
Many students are often put off because of the brash, harsh, brutish and
unfriendly ways we (science teachers) present science to them. Students are
discouraged and scared when science teachers make statements such as:
-Science is not for everybody
-This subject is for selected few
-Science is not for idiots et cetera
We live in a world of science whether we are aware or not. Any human
endeavor, involving whatever activity a human being engages in, is science. Hence,
science is performed by everybody. This does not imply that we shall all specialize
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in science related professions but that we shall all have basic scientific literacy
which will culminate into national development.
Science teachers should bear it in mind that students like to play and that
they learn better while at play. Therefore, science students under the watchful eyes
of the teachers serving as facilitators should be allowed to play around mess
about and fool around safely in a science laboratory. These natural processes
lead to discovery of ideas and facts without much cramming or rote memory. To
Dewey (1966), the average child is by nature dynamic and not passive, inquisitive
rather than blindly imitative, seeks order rather than randomness, is outgoing and
playful rather than withdrawn, is alert rather than dull.
Numerous approaches are advocated for presenting science in a stimulating
and friendly way. However, no one method of teaching science can be termed as the
best or could be applied in all teaching situations and for all concepts. Teaching
methods, techniques, strategies and approaches are words that are often used
interchangeably. They vary and must be applied when appropriate. Even the
traditional lecture (chalk and talk) method that has been found inadequate for
teaching modern science cannot be completely avoided in teaching- learning
process. A combination of two or more methods has been found to be more
effective.
Demonstration Method
It is a method used mostly by the teacher to show parts of an object or the correct
use of some apparatus and equipment. Demonstration can be carried out either by
the teacher alone, teacher-student, student -student or by a guest demonstrator
invited by the school. It is the most direct and cheapest way of presenting concepts
in concrete and practical terms to learners. Students are encouraged to use the
following senses- sight, hearing, smell and touch when a demonstration is in
progress. This enables the students to relate events and concepts to those they
have observed while the demonstration was going on.
Guidelines for effective demonstration method
- It should be simple and straight to the point.- Ensure that the demonstration will succeed; otherwise students will not have
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confidence in you. This can be ensured by carrying out the demonstration
before the students come into the laboratory, that way, the teacher will know
if the chemical has expired or not and if an equipment or apparatus is in
good working condition or not.- Carrying every student along by making the demonstration interesting, so as
to avoid boredom and frustration.
- Make the demonstration visible to the entire learner. Note that ademonstration is supposed to be a visual and or an audio-visual display.
- Prepare leading questions that will lead to discovery.- Respect and appreciate questions and answers from your students. Relate
with them maturely and sincerely.
Laboratory Method
It provides the ideal setting for skill development, discovery learning, inquiry and
problem solving activities. The laboratory method has a two way approach namely;
experimental and exercise approach. The experimental approach enables the
students to seek information using scientific approaches such as observation,
questioning, investigating, interpretation of data and confronting the unknown.
Whereas the exercise approach offers a programmed, preplanned and guided
routines thus assuring a predetermined answer. Constant use of the laboratorybrings about skills which are acquisitive, organizational, creative and manipulative.
All of these in turn bring about process skills.
It is important to know that laboratory activities are not restricted to a
classroom called laboratory alone. An environment outside the classroom that
provides practical work to give first hand experiences to the learner could be
regarded as a laboratory. Therefore, a laboratory can be a building, a room or a
place equipped and set apart for experimental studies. It can be sophisticated and
well equipped or simple and poorly equipped with even locally made and improvised
materials by creative and innovative science teachers.
Abdullahi (1986) remarked that science is not science unless it is
accompanied by laboratory work. Laboratory work is experimentation or
practicalisation of theories. This implies that for science to make its maximum
contribution to education and the well being of the students and the society, theteacher must make it a practical process in which the students at every stage are
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participants instead of being passive recipients of verbal instructions only.
Students hear when they are taught, see when the teacher demonstrates but they
understand when they practicalise. Active involvement of learners in head-on,
heart-on and hands-on experiences is the hallmark of science teaching in this
millennium.
Guidelines to laboratory method
Prevention of accidents in the laboratory is the duty of all; the teacher, the learners
and the laboratory workers. Essentially, the teacher bears the consequences of
whatever accident that occurs. To prevent or reduce accidents, the teacher should
-Teach (by demonstration) students to handle materials (perishable and non-perishable objects) safely.
-Get students acquainted with instructions for dealing with emergencies.
-Paste the list of laboratory dos and donts in conspicuous places on the laboratorywalls for all to see.
-Ensure that the laboratory allows free movement by stacking and storing things intheir appropriate places.
-Take precautions against fire outbreaks.
#Scaffolding as a teaching strategy
Scaffold is a temporary erection for men at work on a building. Scaffolding is used
when building structures which are high; for instance, storey buildings. Scaffolds
are pillars for support to both the builders and the building. As it affects the
teaching and learning of science in education, the builder is the teacher, science is
the big structure (storey building) while the fast learners serve as the scaffolds to
the slow learners. In a science classroom, the teacher who is the builder or
facilitator of learning can use the gifted and the highly talented learners as
scaffolds to aid or boost the understanding of the slow learners. The fast learners,
having understood the teacher fast, lend support (as in scaffolds) to the slow
learners through interactions after the class when the teacher is out of sight. Pupils
learn better and faster from each other when they interact in their natural setting,
communicating probably in their local expression or language. Hence, students
learn better when engaged in collaborative and co-operative learning that are
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similar strategies for learning science.
Guidelines for using scaffolding as a strategy
The teacher should:
(i) Be careful not to tag a name to a particular set of students fast or slowlearners. That a particular concept or topic is hard or difficult for a
student to comprehend or understand fast does not make him or her
slow learner permanently.
(ii) Ensure that the concept is truly well understood by the supposed fastlearners. Otherwise, a wrong idea may be conveyed to the slow
learners when the teacher is no more in the classroom.
(iii) Revise the previous work and ask relevant questions.(iv) Break down tasks into simple and manageable bits.(v) Give instructions and clues to tasks using simple terms in your
expressions.
Inquiry and Discovery methods
These methods are rooted in heuristic (Eureka) teaching which serve, lead or
encourage the desire to find out depending on assumptions based on past
experiences consisting of guided trial and error. These two methods are student
centered as they are activity and problem solving based, which are the major
ingredients of modern science.
Inquiry is a teaching strategy whereby the teacher asks the students to formulate
the problems, state the purpose, predict the results, identify the procedures,
perform the investigations (experiments) and learn from the activities. While in the
discovery method, the teacher sets the students to solve the problem. The students
then predict the results, make observations and relate the investigation to previous
work. That is, ability to infer or make inferences (Dienye and Gbamanja, 1990).
From the foregoing, it is apparent that these two methods have common
characteristics, hence they are used interchangeably.
Guidelines on effective use of inquiry and discovery methods
Science teachers should consider the following hints as they apply inquiry and
discovery methods in their teaching.
(i) Motivate the students to engage in inquiry by presenting them with a
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puzzle or discrepancy that stimulates curiosity.
(ii) Use the language or terms of inquiry and discovery by using theappropriate and the actual terminologies.
(iii)Distribute students into similar groups for maximum participation by
each student and effective supervision by the teacher.
(iv) Intimate the learners on the objectives of the activities throughinteractions with them. This gives them a clearer picture of the task(s)
at hand.
Principles of Teaching and Learning in Science
Teaching is an art and a craft; and as a result, it is guided by principles which
trained teachers must apply in the course of their profession. That is, effective and
efficient teaching and learning are usually guided by certain principles. These
principles are numerous and were derived from the characteristics of the learners,
teachers and the learning situation or environment.
Principles of Good Science Teaching
(i) Preparedness: plan and get things (instructional materials) ready foryour class. This includes writing of lesson notes ahead of time.
(ii) Methodology: use varied and stimulating methods. Variety is the spiceof life which removes boredom, rigidity and stereotype.
(iii) Discussion: discuss with the students the objectives for doing variousexperiments or any other scientific activities using clear and audible
voice.
(iv) Group work: students learn from each other. Organize students intogroups especially when equipment and materials are inadequate.
(v) Resourcefulness/ creativity: a modern science teacher should beinnovative by sourcing for locally made, cheap and improvised
materials when the sophisticated, expensive and imported ones are not
available.
(vi) Holistic examination of learners: in order to bring out the total personin the learners, they must be tested using the multi-talent approach
whereby the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains of talents
are developed.
(vii) Curriculum implementation: the teacher being the implementer of thecontent of the curriculum should not be a slave to it. That is, the
teacher is at liberty to overhaul and re-arrange the curriculum content.
This is attained by breaking the curriculum into syllabus, scheme of
work, lesson plan and lesson notes.
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Principles of Science Learning
Learning is a continuous process whereby knowledge and skills are gained. We
learn everyday is a common expression. To be a good learner of life experiences in
and out of the classroom, one should be guided by the following principles.
(i) Learning is better achieved if one is actively involved; hence the expressionexperience is the best teacher.
(ii) Learning takes place better if concepts, ideas or points are arranged in asequence. This can be aided by the use of mnemonics or acronyms.
(iii) Effective learning takes place if the material is relevant and meaningful.
(iv)Varied and stimulating environment promotes learning.(v)Timely, positive reinforcement, reward or compliments encourage
learners to do better.
(vi)Transfer of learning or application of knowledge is possible if the learneris given the opportunity.
Conclusion
Science is the bedrock of national development. The future looks bleak for Nigeria
because of the poor performance of her secondary school students in science
subjects. Though, a number of factors are responsible but much is blamed on the
ways and manners in which science subjects are introduced to learners. This is a
challenge and a call for self-examination on the part of the science teachers.
References
Abdullahi, A. (1986) Science Teaching in Nigeria. Ilorin Atotto Press Limited. 68-74
Adeniyi, E.O (1995) Science as a way of knowing: The NSSSP Experience
Proceedings of the 26th Annual Conference of the Science Teachers
Association of Nigeria, 101-111.
Arokoyu, A.A. and Dike, J.W. (2009): Poor Science, Technology and Mathematics
(S. T. M.) Achievement in 2000-2004 SSCE amongst Secondary School
Students in Nigeria. Nigerian Educational Researchers, 10(14). 31-39.
Dewey, J. (1966): Democracy and Education. New York, Free Press. 181-187.
Dienye, N. E and Gbamanja, S. P. T. (1990): Science Education: Theory and
Practice. Totan Publishers Limited, Nigeria. 44- 51.
Federal Ministry of Education (2003): National Policy on Education. Lagos: FederalGovernment Press.
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Nwagbo, C.R. (1997) Level of Scientific Literacy of Secondary School Science
Students: Implications for Sustainable Development in Nigeria. Proceedings
of the 43rd Annual Conference of the Science Teachers Association of Nigeria,
73-77.
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