The impact of Visual Aids and Academic Achievement of Pupils in Basic Science
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Teaching and learning processes are very crucial at all levels of educational development. If well planned and directed, they are the keys to success and progress of individual. Therefore, best methods have to be used in order to enhance effective teaching and learning.
Visual aid is defined as any device which by sight and sound increase the individuals’ experience. They are those instructional devices which are used in the classroom to encourage learning and make it easier and interesting. These include; books, charts, motion pictures, posters, diagrams models and photographs. Visual aids arouse the interest of learners and help the teachers to explain the concepts easily. Undoubtedly, visual aids are those instructional aids which are used in the classroom to encourage teaching learning process. The use of visual aids in education has been found to be an effective way of communicating ideas and concepts to pupils. It is also established that visual-aided instruction has greatly improved the performance of pupils in science especially those with special needs and slow learners abilities
With respect to instruction, pupils’ achievement and attitude towards learning, has not only proven the efficacy of technology related materials but has also found the results to be overwhelmingly positive (Dabbagh, 2011). Teaching and learning with visual resources play an important role in the teaching-learning process. Pupils often benefit from the visual/sound appeal of visual material because it tends to focus their attention on the topic. When teachers present materials in various manners such as providing pupils with both a summary statement and a chart on a given topic, the visual material enhances the written materials. King (2009) indicated that visual resources, wisely selected and intelligently used, arouse and develop intense and beneficial interest and so motivate pupils to learn; and properly motivated learning means improved attitudes, permanency of impression, rich experience and ultimately more wholesome living.
Visual aids do not only increase the motivation of the teachers and academic achievement of learners; they add clarity to the topic taught and make learning more interesting and permanent. Permanent learning according to Njoku(2014) is the goal of education in that the learners should be able to retain what is taught. Visual aids make learning more permanent since they appeal to more than one sense.
Ode and Omokaro (2012) revealed that learners retain most of what they hear, see and feel than what they merely hear. This concept bears credence to the old chine’s adage which says ‘what I hear I forget, what I see I remember and what I do I know Arnett (2010) in Claiborne and Drewery (2013). A visual instruction encourages the use of visual aids to make abstract ideas more concrete to the learners. Therefore, the teacher’s duty is to make learning live, not just something to remember but part of living experience. This can be done effectively by employing the use of visual aids in teaching and learning of basic science as a mean of imparting knowledge to learners.
The impact of Visual Aids and Academic Achievement of Pupils in Basic Science
The crux of this modern education is to awaken the hidden curiosity and interest of the learner, nourishing his or her behaviours, attitudes and believes in order to develop basic and essential skills of lifelong learning and ability to think critically and beneficial manner. Pupils should be given confidence to ask, inquire, explore and be creative and initiators. In fact an inquisitive mind is the beginning to lifelong learning that surely leads to success. But in recent year the superiority is shifted towards students. Visual aids make a lesson or lecture more interesting and a memorable experience not only for pupils but for teachers as well as they play a vibrant role in focusing the attention of individual pupil towards the teacher or the topic. They appeal to the senses especially hearing and looking. It is not wrong to say that human senses are doorways to acquire knowledge, therefore, when something appeals to senses curiosity increases which lead to clear and concrete understanding of the concept .It was on the basis of the above observation that the study was carried out to determine the influence of visual aids on academic achievement of pupils in Basic science primary schools in Etinan local Government Area.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
As a result of advancement and development of modern technology, varieties of instructional materials can be used to make learning more vivid and effective. This means that pupils can perform better whenever they are taught with these materials particularly visual aids as their comprehension, demonstration and co-operation are expected to enhance tremendously in teaching-learning process. Unfortunately, most of the primary school teachers neglect the use of visual aids in teaching the subject probably, due to non-availability of the materials or lack of techniques for using them. The utilization of visual learning aids make pupils to participate effectively in the teaching and learning process, hence ending with quality education that enable them to suit in the current society in relation to technological changes.
So generally, it is agreed that visual learning aids assist in the learning process and pupils find it easy to understand materials learn in classroom when visual learning aids are used. However, use or non-use of learning aids was not only problem in public primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area; material shortages, motivational inadequacy and poor learning environment were some of the problems. However, the relationship between usage and non-usage of visual learning aids and academic achievement in schools have had not so far been established, despite other problems. It is against this backdrop that this study is aimed at finding out influence of application of visual aids on academic achievement of pupils in Basic Science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area.
The impact of Visual Aids and Academic Achievement of Pupils in Basic Science
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The main purpose of the study was to examine the influence visual aids and academic achievement of pupils in Basic Science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area. Specifically, the study intends to;
- examine the influence of charts on pupils’ academic achievement in Basic Science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area
- assess the influence of real objects on pupils’ academic achievement in Basic Science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area
1.4 Significance of the Study
This study which is concerned with investigating the impact of the visual aids and pupils’ academic performance in Basic science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area is bound to be of immense benefits to following people in the following ways;
- The study will be of immense benefit to the pupils because it will enhance the learning processes of the pupils and thereby improve on their overall academic achievement, since it will increase the motivation of the pupils, add clarity to the topics taught and make learning more interesting.
- Findings from the study will help to sensitize teachers and staff of primary schools who teach and Basic science of their important roles in promoting the use of visual aids in teaching and learning.
- The study will help to reveals and create awareness among the school authorities of the importance of use or non-usage of visual aids in teaching and learning. This is because the findings from this study may require in taking a decision in the primary school learning curriculum
- The study will help to create awareness for ministry of education as policy makers in primary schools will see the need to infuse the use of visual aids as a core instructional material in the curricula of primary schools and impress upon them to provide explicit strategy for enforcing the use of visual materials in teaching and learning.
1.5 Research Questions
The study was guided by the following research questions:
- What is the relationship between charts and pupils’ academic performance in basic science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area?
- What is the relationship between real objects and pupils’ academic performance in basic science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area?
1.6 Research Hypotheses
The study was guided by the following null hypotheses;
- There is no significant relationship between charts and pupils’ academic performance in basic science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area
- There is no significant relationship between real objects and pupils’ academic performance in basic science in primary schools in Etinan Local Government Area?