UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION, WINNEBA

FACULTY OF SCIENCE EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY EDUCATION

“USING ACTIVITY-BASED INSTRUCTIONS TO ENHANCE THE

PERFORMANCE OF S.H.S.2 SCIENCE STUDENTS IN CHEMICAL

KINETICS”. A CASE STUDY OF SHS2 SCIENCE STUDENTS IN APAM

SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, APAM

MAXWELL VIDZA

2018
 UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION, WINNEBA

FACULTY OF SCIENCE EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY EDUCATION

“USING ACTIVITY-BASED INSTRUCTIONS TO ENHANCE THE

PERFORMANCE OF S.H.S.2 SCIENCE STUDENTS IN CHEMICAL

KINETICS”. A CASE STUDY OF SHS2 SCIENCE STUDENTS IN APAM

SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, APAM

MAXWELL VIDZA

(5141590031)

A LONG ESSAY SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY

EDUCATION, FACULTY OF SCIENCE EDUCATION, UNIVERSITY OF

EDUCATION, WINNEBA, IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF A BACHELOR OF SCIENCE

DEGREE IN CHEMISTRY EDUCATION

AUGUST, 2018
 DECLARATION

I, Maxwell Vidza, declare that this research work, with the exception of quotations

and references contained in published works which have all been identified and duly

acknowledged, is entirely my own original work, and it has not been submitted, either

in part or whole, for another degree elsewhere.

…………………………………… ………………………………

Maxwell Vidza Date

Supervisor’s Declaration

I, L.H. Bobobee hereby declare that the preparation and presentation of this research

work was supervised in accordance with the guidelines on supervision of project as

laid down by the University of Education, Winneba.

……………………………… …..………………………

Mr. L.H. Bobobee Date

i
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to express my heartfelt appreciation to my supervisor, Mr. L.H Bobobee, a

Senior lecturer in the Department of Chemistry Education, University of Education,

Winneba, for his technical guidance and encouragement throughout this research

work.

Another special thanks goes to my mentor, Mr. Akompi, Felix for his technical input,

inspiration and encouragement throughout the course of this research work.

I also want to show appreciation to my father James Vidza, my uncle Godwin

Adelayita and my siblings

Finally, I would like to say thank you to Thomas Dope, Blagoza, Danso, Marfo,

Olivia and all my course mates.

ii
 DEDICATION

This work is dedicated to the Vidza and the Darrah families.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CONTENT PAGE

DECLARATION i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

DEDICATION iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS iv

LIST OF TABLES vii

LIST OF FIGURES viii

LIST OF APPENDICES ix

ABSTRACT x

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1

Overview 1

Background to the study 1

Statement of the Problem 3

Causes of the problem 3

Intervention strategy 5

Topic for the study 5

Aim of the study 5

Significance of the study 5

iii
Research Questions 6

Limitation 6

Delimitation 6

CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 7

Overview 7
Theoretical Framework 7
The Contributions of Behavioural Theories 7

The Contributions of Information-Processing Theories 8

The Information-Processing Theorists: The Mind as a Computer 8
Implications for Education 9

Characteristics of Directed Instruction 10

Learning Theories Associated with Constructivism and implications to

activity-based instruction 11

Dewey’s Social Constructivism 12

Scaffolding 12

Bruner’s Relevance Principle 14

Merging the two Approaches 14

The Activity Method of Teaching and its Advantages 16

Chemistry and the activity method of teaching 18

Students’ Misconceptions (Alternative Concepts) on Chemical Kinetics 21

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 24

Study area 24

Design of the study 24

iv
Sample Size/ Population 25

Instrumentation 25

Data Analysis Procedure 29

Implementation of Intervention Strategy 29

CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 33

Overview 33

Research question 1 33

Research question 2 37

CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSIONS, SUGGESTIONS AND

RECOMMENDATIONS 44

Conclusion 44

Suggestions and Recommendation 45

REFERENCES 46

APPENDICES 52

v
 LIST OF TABLES

TABLES PAGES

Table 1: Responses to Interview given to Students 4

Table 2: Responses to Questionnaire given to Students 34

Table 3: Scores of Students on Pre-test 38

Table 4: Students’ Scores on Post-test 39

Table 5: Comparing Pre-test to Post-test scores 40

Table 6.0: frequency table showing the students’ performance in the

post-test 41

Table 7.0: A frequency table comparing the students’ scores on the pre-test

and post-test 41

vi
 LIST OF FIGURES

FIGURE PAGE

Figure 1: A bar chart showing Students’ Pre-test Scores 39

Figure 2: A bar Chart Showing Students’ Post-test scores 41

Figure 3: Graph of Pre-test and Post-test 42

LIST OF APPENDICES
vii
APPENDIX PAGE

APPENDIX A: Pre-test 52

APPENDIX B: Post-test 55

APPENDIX C: Questionnaire 58

ABSTRACT

viii
The main objective of this study was to improve upon the performance of form two

science students of Apam Senior High School in the concept of chemical kinetics. The

sample for the study was fifty-seven (57) second year Science students made up of

thirty-seven (37) males and twenty (20) females. This sample was purposefully

selected. The research design used was action research. The main instruments used to

collect data for the study were tests (pre-test and post-test), semi-structured interview

and questionnaire. The numerical data of the pre-test and post-test activities were

analysed by collating them into meaningful aggregate percentages in tabular forms

and graphical representations (bar graph) for better interpretation. The outcome of the

analysis revealed clearly that there has been tremendous improvement in the

performance of students after implementation of the intervention strategy. It was

concluded that, the use of activity based instructions had a positive effect on science

students’ performance and understanding of the concept of chemical kinetics at Apam

Senior High School, Apam. It was therefore recommended that, science teachers at

the Apam Senior High School, Apam, should adopt the use of activity based

instruction in teaching the concept “chemical kinetics” to students and always use the

appropriate teaching and learning material.

ix
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Overview

This chapter focuses on the background to the study, the statement of the problem, the

causes of the problem, intervention strategies, the topic for the study, the aim of the

project, the significance of the study, limitation of the study and the delimitation of the

study.

Background to the Study

Science is perceived to be one of the most difficult subjects because it involves

observations,

Experimentations and logical inferences to give meaning to some phenomena in our

world.

Science has numerous branches which include biology, chemistry, physics, etc.

Chemistry is an activity- based subject just like most science subjects. Therefore there is

the need for teachers and instructors as a matter of fact to engage learners in hands on

activities during the teaching and learning of chemistry to enhance students’

understanding and also to make lessons interesting. According to Dewey (1991), science

has been taught as an accumulation of already-made knowledge, of so much subject

matter of laws rather than effective method of enquiry into any subject matter. Different

activities in which students participate both inside and outside themselves, are among the

multiple situations that can have an effort on science achievement.

1
I had my internship at Apam Senior High School in the Central Region of Ghana. During

my stint at Apam SHS I realized through my interaction with the students that chemical

kinetics was one of the concepts in the chemistry syllabus that most students find difficult

to understand despite its enormous application in everyday life. For instance, students

observe during chemistry practical that if you combine an acid, for example vinegar or

lemon juice, with a base, example, baking soda or ammonia, you are performing an acid-

base reaction. Then again, students understand that cooking involves the use of heat to

cause chemical changes in food. Most of the students have been leaving their unripe

fruits like mango, pear etc. for some time to ripe before eating which constitutes rate of

chemical reactions. Because of its importance in everyday life, some aspect the concept

of chemical kinetics run through the JHS science syllabus as well as the integrated

science syllabus for SHS. Despite the enormous applications of chemical kinetics in real

life, SHS2 science students of Apam SHS have problems with the understanding of

chemical kinetics as evidenced from their performance in a pre-test conducted to know

their level of understanding on the said concept. This problem came to light during a

practical session organized by one of the chemistry teachers in the school who was my

mentor during my one term teaching internship in the school. During the practical, the

students were asked to differentiate between a chemical change and a physical change,

and also to write balanced chemical equations to represent chemical reactions and finally

to identify reactants and products of the reaction. Their immediate responses which were

revealing of their lack of understanding of the topic prompted me to consult my mentor to

embark on this exercise. The issue was then discussed with my mentor in order for a pre-

2
test to be administered and an intervention strategy to be implemented to help the

students.

Statement of the Problem

In a pre-test conducted, only twenty-five (25) representing 43.86% of the fifty-seven

students obtained the pass mark whilst thirty-two (32) representing 56.14% of the

students scored below the pass mark. Some of the identified difficulties include the

writing of balanced chemical equations to represent a reaction, definition of what a

chemical reaction is, identification of what reactants and products amongst others.

Causes of the Problem

A semi-structured interview was conducted with all the 57 students to find out why some

of them performed poorly on the pre-test so that I could adopt a possible intervention to

improve their performance. It was also noted from the students’ responses that the

previous chemistry teacher did not use relevant TLMs and did not encourage the

students’ participation during the teaching of the said concept.

Below is a table of the students’ responses in the interview about the causes of their low

performance.

3
Table 1.0 Students’ Responses in the Interview

Responses Number of students

1. Teacher did not give us enough time 45

to ask questions

2. We did not regularly go to the 48

laboratory for experiments

3. The teacher did not use TLMs such 43

as the periodic table to enhance our

understanding during the balancing

of chemical equation

4. Teacher did not give us a lot of 35

exercises and he did not mark some

of the exercises given.

5. Students’ feared the chemistry 45

subject due to how they were taught

during their first year class

From the students’ responses in the interview conducted, it can be deduced that the

teacher who taught the concepts related to chemical kinetics in their previous classes did

not encourage students’ participation and did not use the relevant materials to teach and

thus the lecture method was the dominant teaching method used.

4
 Intervention Strategy

In order to remedy the situation and improve the students’ poor performance in the

concept of chemical kinetics which is largely attributed to the fact that their chemistry

teacher did not encourage students’ active participation, activity based instruction, with

much focus on student participation, was deemed to be possible a solution to the problem.

Also, the use of appropriate teaching and learning materials (TLMs) can be of great help

to enhance students’ understanding of the said topic.

Topic for the Study

The topic for this study is “using activity-based instructions to enhance the performance

of S.H.S.2 science students in chemical kinetics”. A case study of SHS2 science students

in Apam Senior High School, Apam.

Aim of the Study

The aim of this study is to use the activity method of teaching to enhance SHS 2 science

students’ performance in chemical kinetics.

Significance of the Study

This study will arouse the curiosity of chemistry students of Apam SHS and enhance

their interest in the study of chemistry. This study will also go a long way to improve the

performance of students in chemistry and science as a whole since the concept of

chemical kinetics is one of the key topics in chemistry. This will prompt science teachers

especially chemistry teachers to adopt appropriate teaching strategies to enhance

students’ performance. Furthermore, this study will also equip teachers with a strategy to

solve similar problems and finally, it will serve as a reference material for those who may

need it to solve similar problems.

5
 Research Questions

The following research questions were formulated:

I. What are the factors affecting students’ performance in the study of chemical

kinetics in Apam Senior High School, Apam.

II. What is the effect of activity based instruction on selected Apam Senior High

School students’ performance in chemical kinetics?

Limitations to the study

The target groups for this study were the form 2 General Science students of Apam SHS.

However due to time constraint only the science A students were used for this study.

Even though the study was to a larger extent to help in solving problems of the

participants, their willingness to participate was not encouraging during the

implementation of the intervention strategy as a cross section of the class were part of the

drama and cultural troupes as well as the sports teams, thus had divided attention during

the process, as sporting activities were being held at the school during the time of the

work.

Delimitation

This study was restricted to the use of activity based instruction in teaching of chemical

kinetics because activity based instructions helps improve students understanding of

concepts. It was also limited to the second-year science students only because they were

the students given to me to teach.

6
 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

Overview

The purpose of this study was to enhance student’s performance on the concept of

chemical kinetics by the use of activity-based instruction. This chapter reviewed literature

related to the problem. The review focused on theoretical and empirical research done in

the field of science education, specifically on chemical kinetics.

Theoretical Framework

The theoretical work done was based on constructivists and objectivist’s views on

learning whiles the empirical work done on the problem focused on the following: The

activity method of teaching and its advantages, chemistry and the activity method of

teaching, students’ misconceptions on chemical kinetics.

The Contributions of Behavioural Theories

Skinner and others viewed the teacher’s job as modifying the behaviour of students by

setting up situations to reinforce students when they exhibited desired responses, teaching

them to exhibit the same response in all such situations. These behavioural principles

underlie two well-known trends in education: behaviour modification techniques in

classroom management and programmed instruction. Although current use of

programmed instruction is limited, its principles form much of the basis of effective drill

and practice and tutorial courseware.

7
 The Contributions of Information-Processing Theories

Many educational psychologists found the emphasis on observable outcomes of learning

unsatisfying. They did not agree with behaviourists’ views that stimulus-response

learning alone could form the basis of building higher level skills. As they focused on

capabilities such as rule learning and problem solving, they became more concerned with

the internal processes that went on during learning. With this knowledge, they hoped to

arrange appropriate instructional conditions to promote learning of these kinds of skills.

The Information-Processing Theories: The Mind as a Computer

Behaviourist like Skinner focused only on external, directly observable indicators of

human learning. During the 1950s and 1960s, a group of researchers known as the

cognitive learning theorists began to hypothesize a model that would help people

visualize what is impossible to observe directly (Eggen & Kauchak, 2001). Though some

constructivists disassociate themselves from them, the information-processing theorists

were among the first and most influential of the cognitive-learning theorists. They

hypothesized processes inside the brain that allow human beings to learn and remember.

Although no single, cohesive information-processing theory of learning summarizes the

field, the work of the information-processing theorists is based on a model of memory

and storage originally proposed by Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968). According to them, the

brain contains certain structures that process information much like a computer. This

model of the mind as a computer, hypothesizes that the human brain has three kinds of

memories or “stores” (Ormrod, 2001).

1. Sensory registers. The part of memory that receives all the information a

person senses.

8
 2. Short-term memory (STM). Also, known as working memory, is the part

of memory where new information is held temporarily until it is either lost

or placed into long-term memory.

3. Long-term memory (LTM). The part of memory that has an unlimited

capacity and can hold information indefinitely.

According to this model, learning occurs in the following way. First, information is

sensed through receptors: eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and/or hands. This information is held

in the sensory registers for a very short time (perhaps a second), after which it either

enters STM or is lost. Many information-processing theorists believe that information

can be sensed but lost before it gets to STM, if the person is not paying attention to it.

Anything people pay attention to goes into working memory, where it can stay for about

5 to 20 seconds (Ormrod, 2001). After this time, if the information is not processed or

practiced in a way that causes it to transfer to LTM, then it is lost. Information-

processing theorists believe that for new information to be transferred to LTM, it must be

linked in some way to prior knowledge already in LTM. Once information does enter

LTM, it is there essentially permanently, although some psychologists believe that even

information stored in LTM, can be lost if not used regularly (Ormrod, 2001).

Implications for Education

Information-processing views of learning have become the basis for many common

classroom practices. For example, teachers ask interesting questions and display eye-

catching materials to increase the likelihood that students will pay attention to a new

topic. While presenting information, they give instructions that point out important points

9
and characteristics in the new material and suggest methods of “encoding” or

remembering them by linking them to information students already know. Teachers also

give students practice exercises to help ensure the transfer of information from short- to

long-term memory.

Educational psychologists such as Gagné and Ausubel (1992), provided many

instructional guidelines designed to enhance the processes of attention, encoding, and

storage. Gagné proposed that teachers use a hierarchical “bottom-up approach,” making

sure that students learn lower order skills first and build on them. Ausubel, by contrast,

recommended a “top-down” approach; he proposed that teachers provide “advance

organizers” or overviews of the way information will be presented to help students’

developmental frameworks on which to “hang” new information.

Characteristics of Directed Instruction

Teaching methods, based primarily on behaviourist and information-processing learning

theories, usually are associated with more traditional, teacher-directed forms of

instruction. Robert Gagné (1992) is considered a leader in developing instructional

guidelines for directed instruction that combine the behavioural and information-

processing learning theories. He asserted that teachers must accomplish at least three

tasks to link these learning theories with teaching practices:

1. Ensure Prerequisite Skills are acquired.

Teachers must make sure that students have all the prerequisite skills they

need to learn a new skill. This may involve identifying component skills and

10
 the order in which they should be taught. Gagné referred to this group of skills

as a learning hierarchy.

2. Supply Instructional Conditions.

Teachers must arrange for appropriate instructional conditions to support the

internal processes involved in learning; that is, they must supply sequences of

carefully structured presentations and activities that help students understand

(process), remember (encode and store), and transfer (retrieve) information

and skills.

3. Determine the type of learning.

Finally, teachers must vary these conditions for several different kinds of

learning.

Learning Theories Associated with Constructivism and implications to

Activity-based Instruction

Constructivist strategies are based on principles of learning derived from branches of

cognitive science. This area focused specifically on students’ motivation to learn and

ability to use what they learn outside the school culture. Constructivist strategies try to

respond to perceived deficiencies in behaviourist and information-processing theories and

the teaching methods based on them. In addition, constructivists try to inspire students to

see the relevance of what they learn and to prevent what Cognition and Technology

Group of Vanderbilt, (CTGV), (1990) calls inert knowledge, or student failure to transfer

what is already known to the learning of other skills that require prior knowledge.

11
These theories are based on the ideas of educational philosophers, psychologists, and

practitioners such as John Dewey, Lev Vygotsky, Jerome Bruner, Jean Piaget, and

Howard Gardner.

Dewey’s Social Constructivism

Dewey’s ideas support constructivist models of teaching and learning. Among these ideas

is the need to center student instruction around relevant, meaningful activities. Dewey

asserted that, any instruction that did not center on problems already within the child’s

experience is worse than useless. Dewey emphasized that learning should be hands-on

and experience based, rather than abstract (Prawat 1993). Based on these assertions of

Dewey, this research work is based on games which are fun and activity based learning.

These ideas are supported by Smith & Smith (1994) who objected to commonly used

teaching methods that used a “one-way channel of communication – from teacher to

student through direct drill and memorization . . .” Dewey believed that meaningful

learning resulted from students working cooperatively on tasks that were directly related

to their interests, which is a major characteristic of an activity-based teaching.

Scaffolding

“Vygotsky’s twin concepts” of scaffolding and the zone of proximal development are

important for constructivists. Prawat (1993) observed that “Vygotsky emphasized the

importance of social relations in all forms of complex mental activity” likewise,

constructivists feel that teachers can most effectively provide scaffolding or help in

acquiring new knowledge through collaboration with others.

12
Vygotsky felt that cognitive development was directly related to and based on social

development (Gage & Berliner, 1988; Ormrod, 2000). What children learn and how they

think are derived directly from the culture around them: “. . . children begin learning from

the world around them, their social world, which is the source of all their concepts, ideas,

facts, skills, and attitudes. . . . Our personal psychological processes begin as social

processes, patterned by our culture” (Gage & Berliner, 1988). An adult perceives things

much differently than a child does, but this difference decreases as children gradually

translate their social views into personal and psychological ones (Davydov, 1995).

Vygotsky referred to the difference between these two levels of cognitive functioning

(adult/expert and child/novice) as the zone of proximal development. He felt that teachers

could provide good instruction by finding out where each child was in his or her

development and building on the child’s experiences. He called this building process

“scaffolding.” Ormrod (2001) said that teachers promote students’ cognitive development

by presenting some classroom tasks that “they can complete only with assistance, that is,

within each student’s zone of proximal development”. Gage and Berliner (1988) felt that

problems occur when the teacher leaves too much for the child to do independently, thus

slowing the child’s intellectual growth. “In the zone of proximal development, social

knowledge – knowledge acquired through social interaction – becomes individual

knowledge and individual knowledge grows and becomes more complex” (Gage &

Berliner, 1988). This implies that, as learners interact with each other through games,

major scientific concepts behind the games are acquired and then finally become personal

knowledge.

13
 Bruner’s Relevance Principle

Some of the principles associated with the educational theorist, Jerome Bruner, seem to

coincide with those of Vygotsky and Piaget, providing further theoretical support for the

constructivist theory. Like Piaget, Bruner believed children go through various stages of

intellectual development. But unlike Piaget, Bruner supported intervention. He was

primarily concerned with making education more relevant to students need(s) at each

stage, and believed that teachers could accomplish this by encouraging the students’

active participation in the learning process. Active participation, he felt, was best

achieved by providing discovery learning environments that would let children explore

alternatives and recognize relationships between ideas (Bruner, 1973).

According to Skinner (1974), Mills (2000) and Watson (1930), the constructivists and

behaviourists theories, if merged, will greatly promote learning but they are hardly seen

in a single method of instruction.

Merging the two Approaches

As Molenda (1991) observed, an “either-or stand” seems to gain us little. Rather, both

sides need to find a way to merge the two approaches in a way that will benefit learners

and teachers. A link between the ‘two planets’ must be forged so that students may travel

freely from one to the other, depending on the characteristics of the topics at hand and

individual learning needs. Sfard (1998) agreed that “one metaphor is not enough” to

explain how all learning takes place or to address all problems inherent in learning.

Bereiter (1990) initially supported directed instruction methods and later shifted towards

constructivist principles. He suggested that, much of what educators want students to

14
achieve is sufficiently complex that none of the existing learning theories can account for

how it is actually learned, let alone the conditions that should be arranged to facilitate the

learning. He points out the futility of theory and research that attempts to:

(1) Identify relevant social, environmental, or individual influences on learning such as

prior experiences, types of reinforcement, and learning styles;

(2) Quantify their comparative contribution to what he calls difficult learning, that is,

higher order thinking and problem solving.

Bereiter (1990) again observed that each of these contributing factors tends to interact

with others, thus changing their relative importance. He quoted Cronbach’s vivid

metaphor: “Once we attend to interactions [between these relevant factors], we enter a

hall of mirrors that extends to infinity”. Practicing teachers could encounter endless

variations of explanations about how people learn or fail to learn. Escaping from this hall

of mirrors will require, Bereiter maintains, a more all-inclusive learning theory than those

currently available. In light of Bereiter’s observations, the debate between directed and

constructivist proponents seems likely to inspire different methods primarily because they

focus on different kinds of problems (or different aspects of the same problems)

confronting teachers and students in today’s schools. Like the blind men trying to

describe the elephant, each focuses on a different part of the problem, and each is correct

in limited observations.

It is the combination of the two proponents of teaching that guided this research.

Proficient activity-based teachers must learn to combine directed instruction and

constructivist approaches. To implement each of these strategies, teachers should select

15
activities and integration methods that are best suited to their specific needs hence the

need to select activity based instructions to enhance learning of chemical kinetics.

The Activity Method of Teaching and its Advantages

Teaching has generally been perceived to be the transmission of knowledge from one

person to another. This transmission of knowledge followed a linear pattern where

teachers dominate the class and transfer knowledge to students. This method of teaching

generally recognized students as passive listeners rather than active participants of the

teaching-learning process. But I believe teaching must have a different dimension, a

dimension which places students at the center of the teaching and learning process, a

dimension that allows students to be active participants and a dimension that gives

students the opportunity to construct their own knowledge from their past or current

experiences. What then will be the best teaching method?

There is no globally accepted method of teaching and there are varied teaching methods

adopted by teachers all over the world (Carin 1993). Farant (1980), indicated that there

are a lot of teaching methodologies that teachers can employ during their teaching.

However, Farant (1980), Carin (1993) and Gabel (1984) stipulated that the activity

method of teaching has received global recognition over the past decade as one of the

best teaching models for science. Brunner (1960) also indicated that the activity method,

unlike the lecture method of teaching in which the flow of information follows a linear

pattern, encourages students’ participation in the lesson. To Brunner, the definition of

teaching as the transmission of knowledge from one person to another seems limited in

some respect in that it treats the students as being ‘empty vessels’. To him teaching must

16
be viewed as the process of guiding students to acquire relevant knowledge and skills as

well as building positive attitudes, towards the achievement of lesson objectives.

According to Cain (1990), a teacher’s duty is to guide the students to construct their own

knowledge by giving them the necessary fundamentals. This is in line with the

constructivists’ theory of learning which argues that knowledge cannot be transmitted

directly from one knower to another, but learners have to actively construct their own

knowledge rather than receive preformed information transmitted by others (Driver et al

1994). Under constructivism, teaching becomes a matter of creating situations in which

students can actively participate in activities that enable them to make their own

individual constructions (Tobin and Tippins, 1993).

Pine (1989) defined the activity method of teaching as the conscious or planned strategy

in which teachers engage their students in the teaching and learning process. Pine

continued to reiterate that the students’ involvement in the lesson must be seen as

important, in that, it is one way of capturing the students’ interest I n whatever they are

taught and makes teaching and learning practically based. Brown and Brown (1982) also

in dicated that a teacher can involve the students in his or her lesson in the following

ways;

i. demonstrations

ii. group and whole class discussions

iii. project work

iv. peer teaching

v. hands-on activities

17
Carin (1993) on the other hand, gave some advantages of the activity method of teaching

and which are outlined below:

a. It builds the students’ self-confidence and makes them self-reliant in the

pursuance of knowledge.

b. It gives reality for learning and makes learning more practical rather than being

abstract

c. It enhances the creative aspect of experience.

d. It provides a means of capturing the students’ attention as well as reinforcing their

interest.

e. It helps the teacher to probe the students’ understanding as well as identifying

their alternative concepts for rectification.

All these citations justify the fact that the activity model of teaching remains one of the

best and globally accepted teaching methods that a teacher can employ in his or her

teaching to ensure that the students grasp the concepts they are taught to improve their

understanding.

Chemistry and the Activity Method of Teaching

Chemistry is an activity- based subject just like most science subjects. Therefore there is

the need for teachers and instructors as a matter of fact, to engage learners in hands- on

activities during the teaching and learning of chemistry to enhance students’

understanding and also to make lessons interesting. According to Dewey (1991), science

has been taught as an accumulation of already- made knowledge, of so much subject

matter of laws rather than effective method of enquiry into any subject matter. Different

18
activities in which students participate both inside and outside, are among the multiple

situations that can have an effort on science achievement of learning. The learning

environment will not be conducive for students unless a teacher devised a good strategy

of teaching. This approach places emphasis on the direct participation of the students in

the learning process, the students getting the right concept while engaging themselves in

different activities.

The constructivists’ theory of learning is the bedrock principle that underpins this study.

The theory does not view a teacher as a knowledge giver but rather a facilitator in the

teaching and learning process. Thus students are encouraged to construct their own

knowledge, based on their prior knowledge (Markman 1999). As already stated in chapter

one of this study, chemistry, like the other sciences, is an activity oriented subject and

thus students must be involved in some activities during its teaching.

Several research reports, such as; Camacho and Good (1989), Forson (2010) and Boo

(1998) indicated that the activity model of teaching is one of the best teaching models

that a teacher can use during the teaching of chemistry. Forson indicated that chemistry is

full of observations, experimentations as well as drawing conclusions to a given

phenomenon and thus students must be given the opportunity to develop their own ways

of constructing knowledge from their prior experiences. Thus, Forson (2010) and Shehen

(2015) in their studies, used the activity method of teaching to enhance students’

understanding of the mole concept through hands-on activites. The concept of chemical

bonding seems to be abstract to many teachers and students, however, in studies

conducted by Jenkins (2000), Boo (1998), Frailich, Kesner and Hoftein (2009), Attahiru

(2016) and Sproul (2005) they used the activity method of teaching to enhance students’

19
understanding of chemical bonding through the use of demonstration, whole class

discussion and asking of thought provoking questions which challenges students’ ability

to relate theoretical concepts into practical perspective.

In the pursuit of science including chemistry as a branch, we must be concerned with the

empirical aspects of the world and these aspects are the things that can directly be

observed (Head 1985). Researchers in Chemistry Education have suggested that learning

chemistry is enhanced and the understanding level is improved when the learners are

engaged in chemistry practical and experiments (Hodson, 1993 and Dahar and Faize

2011). Practical work stimulates the learners’ interest in the science subjects they are

studying when they are personally made to engage in useful scientific activities and

experimentation and as such Cakmak and Leach (2005) used practical activities which

encourages students’ participation to stimulate secondary and undergraduate students of

Turkey understanding of the effects of temperature on reaction rates.

Hofstein (2004), Colangelo et al (2009) and Karamustofaoglu and Mamlok (2015) also

used the activity method to enhance secondary school students’ understanding of

electrochemistry by means of demonstration and hands-on activities. According to them,

teacher-student and student-student interactions during laboratory activities, contribute to

developing learning experiences and promote long- term memory than theory alone.

The ultimate goal in teaching and learning is what learners are able to learn and not just

what teachers are required to teach (NCCE, 2011). Kankia (2008) revealed that learners

remember one-fifth (1/5) of what they hear, half (1/2) of what they see and three-quarters

(3/4) of what they do with their own hands. Therefore, learning by doing and not by

20
seeing or hearing should be given more emphasis so that proper transfer of information

takes place.

The teaching and learning of chemistry should not be pursued in an abstract manner but

should be full of activities and experimentations, so as to enhance students’

understanding of nature. The above citations justify the fact that, the activity method of

teaching cannot be underrated when it comes to the teaching and learning of chemistry.

Students’ Misconceptions (Alternative Concepts) on Chemical Kinetics

Several research papers, articles and reports such as Cakmakci (2005), Leach & Donnely

(2006), Bozkoyun (2004) and Van Driel (2002) have brought to light some students’

misconceptions with regards to chemical kinetics. The motive of this sub-heading of the

literature review is to highlight some of these alternative concepts of students with

reference to chemical kinetics. Students’ conceptions which are different from those

generally accepted by the scientific community have been called misconceptions,

preconceptions, alternative frameworks or alternative conceptions (Osborne & Cosgrove

et al 1983). The word misconception as used in this context refers to students’ naïve ideas

or knowledge with regards to chemical kinetics. In a review of research on student

misconceptions of chemical bonding, Ozmen (2004) noted that these misconceptions

become a hindrance in acquiring the correct body of knowledge. In a case study of one

student, Taber (1995) demonstrated that the student’s alternatives framework about

charges acted as a block to learning about chemical bonding. Some studies have

suggested that such “blocks” or “obstacles” to learning need to be weakened or even

abandoned before new concepts can be developed. For the sake of brevity and

21
cohesiveness, this aspect of the literature review has been categorized and explained into

three sub-headings as follows:

1. Defining and Explaining of the Rate of Reaction.

Many renowned scientists and writers of the chemistry has defined rate of

chemical reaction in various ways. Amongst them Zumdahl (1986) defined rate of

chemical reaction as ‘the change in concentration of a reactant or product per

time’. Petrucci, Harwood, Herring & Madura (1993) also described rate of

chemical reaction as ‘how fast the concentration of a reactant or product changes

with time’. In a similar study carried out by, Cakmakci (2005) about student’s

misconceptions on the subject, the following misconceptions about the definition

of rate of reaction were observed.

a. Rate is the collision of A and B in a given time.

b. The rate of reaction is the transformation of mass in a given time.

c. The period of time needed for new elements to undergo a reaction.

d. The amount of matter that undergoes a change in a reaction.

e. It shows how long the reaction took place.

f. The period of time when at least two reactants undergo a reaction to when

a product is formed.

2. Explaining how the Rate of Reaction Changes from Start to Finish.

According to a study carried out by Kolomuc & Tekin (2011) students were

required to draw and explain the rate of the reaction-time graphs. The graphs

showed that most of the students could not draw the rate of reaction-time graph of

22
 reactants and products. Some of the students drew the graph by assuming the rate

of reaction to be fixed and stated that the rate of reaction could change with only

temperature and a catalyst. Some of the explanations made indicated

misconceptions: ‘the rate of reaction did not remain stable because there were no

substances affecting the reaction’, “some chemical reactions proceed at an

increasing rate, and some at decreasing rate”, “the rate of the reaction is not

affected by the concentration of the reactant that take part in the reaction”.

3. Explaining the Reaction rate-Time Graphs.

Johnstone (1991) opined that student’s misconceptions in this aspect of chemical

kinetics stemmed from the fact that the students had an insufficient command of

comprehending graphs. Similar studies carried out by Kozma (2003) and Costu

(2007), brought out student’s alternative concepts about the topic under

discussion which included:

a. The substances lose their characteristics since the concentrations decrease

over time.

b. The reaction is realized and the rate of reaction gets faster and faster.

c. The rate of reaction did not remain stable because there were no

substances affecting the reaction.

The above citations suggest and attest to the fact that students’ difficulties in chemical

kinetics is universal and thus teachers all over the world must adopt strategic means of

helping the students learn the real scientific concepts.

23
 CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

Overview

This chapter dealt with the study area, research design, population, sample, research

instruments, validity and reliability of the research instruments, data analysis procedure

and the implementation of the intervention strategy.

Study area

This study was conducted at Apam Senior High School popularly known to the local

folks of Apam and Ankamu as Great APASS. APASS is located in Apam in the Gomoa

West District of the Central region. The school is about 1km meter away from the Gomoa

West District Assembly Office Complex in Apam. The school has a total student

population of about 1200 as at the time this research was conducted.

Design of the Study

The study is a practical action research. With regard to this type of research, the

researcher investigates a problem within his/her own professional context to improve

professional practice. It can also be conducted by a group of staff or stakeholders to solve

a problem in their professional context. According to Schmuck (1997), the main purpose

of practical action research is to ‘research a specific school situation with the view of

improving practice’.

This type of research however has a major limitation. During or after the implementation

of the findings, other issues may emerge, which would require further research process to

begin (Kusi 2012).

24
Despite this limitation, I chose this type of design because it helped me to produce valid

information and knowledge that has immediate application in the classroom. It also helps

to solve problems which have direct effect on students’ academic performance as the

problem is identified mostly in the classroom environment.

Sample Size/ Population

Fifty-seven (57) SHS2 Science students were used for this study. The fifty-seven

students used for this study consisted of twenty-eight (27) females and thirty-seven (30)

males. Apam Senior High School admits students for five different programmes under

the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate. These are General Science, Home

Economics, Business, General Arts and Visual Arts. The target population is the two

classes of form two science students which comprise one hundred students under the

General Science programme. However, one of the classes (1/1) was chosen purposively

as the accessible population and sample for the study. This class (1/1) was chosen

because the pre-test results showed much downward trend in performance in the class ie.

25 out of 57 students had scores below the pass mark of 50 out of a total of 100 marks

than the other class which is (1/2), hence an intact class of 57 students was used as the

sample for the study.

Instruments of Data Collection

These are tools used to collect information on the students about the problem under

study. The data collected were based on the student’s understanding of the concept,

“chemical kinetics”. The main instruments used to collect data for the study were tests

(pre-test and post-test), unstructured interview and questionnaire.

25
 Observation

Observation is the act of recognizing and noting facts or occurrences. The Concise

Oxford Dictionary (2001) defines observation as ‘accurate watching and noting of

phenomena as they occur in nature with regard to cause and effect or mutual relations’.

From the description of Fainu (2005 ) and Cobuild (2003) on the other hand, one can

conclude that observation is the process of studying things or people and being able to

tell what they are, what they are capable of or why they behave the way they do.

I perceived that, the students have a problem when it comes to balancing chemical

equations, identification of reactants and products in a given chemical reaction,

identification of chemical change and physical change using unstructured observation.

Although observation has an advantage of overcoming the bias which the phrasing of

questions may have on respondents, Asamoah-Gyimah and Duodu (2006) noted

that,though its disadvantages cannot be done away with , data collected through

observation, are authentic

Interviews

According to Kusi (2012), unstructured interview involves a free-style discussion with

the interviewees. However, I chose to use unstructured interview because of its flexibility

and freedom which will enable me to unearth to unearth detailed, relevant as well as

sensitive information about the problem through probing questions because of its

flexibility. The participants also have the freedom to express themselves. This instrument

has the disadvantage of ‘aimless rambling’ on the part of the interviewee hence I took

time in guiding them to the desired responses.

26
 Tests

According to Fianu (2005), a test is a series of questions which serve as a measuring tool

used for collecting specific information from subjects to aid in finding solution to a

research problem. Even though some respondents or testees may not supply accurate

answers as they may suffer from faulty memory or not be able to express their ideas

adequately in writing which is weakness of test as an instrument, I chose to use it because

it is an effective way of securing information from students and also an ideal method that

will help to measure students’ performance. The main instruments used for the study are

pre-test and post-test because they are effective ways of securing information from

students and are ideal methods that helps to measure students’ performance. The pre-test

and post-test were self-prepared and self-administered. This ensured that, the test items

are in line with the course content.

The pre-test was used during the pre-intervention stage to ascertain the authenticity of the

problem while the post-test was used in the post-intervention stage of the research to find

out the effects of the intervention strategy on the participants.

The pre-test and post-test were similar in structure (in terms of construction and difficulty

level) but different in content. Each of the tests was in two sections. The section A of

the tests consisted of 5 multiple choice questions. Each of these questions contained only

one key and three other distracters. Thus in all each multiple choice question had four

alternatives from which the students were to choose the correct answer. According to

Dzakadzie (2015) students can predict answers in multiple choice questions without

having in-depth understanding of the concept. Due to this assertion, each of the multiple

27
choice questions had four alternatives, thus the probability of the students predicting the

correct answer was 25%.

The sections B of the tests were mainly theory questions which involved definitions,

explanations of chemical kinetics and consisted of two major questions with some sub-

questions under each major question. The tests were marked out of hundred.

Validity and Reliability of the Test

Validity

In every research work, the validity of the research instruments is a paramount factor to

be considered. According to Dzakadzie (2015), validity of an instrument is the ability of

the instrument to measure what it is supposed to measure. To ensure the content validity

of the tests,

three chemistry teachers were made to review the questions. Two of the reviewers were

degree holders with one of them having diploma in educational studies.

Reliability

To ensure that the questions in the tests were reliable, they were pilot-tested with thirty

SHS2 Science B students of Apam SHS who also offer elective chemistry. The students

were given a maximum of one hour to attempt all the questions on the test. The students

were also given a one week notice before the conduct of the test. They were also made

aware that the test would be centered on chemical kinetics. The students were given a

notice one week prior to the test. The students were also made aware of the structure of

the tests even before the day they sat for the paper. The rules governing the conduct of

the tests were explicitly stated in the question paper.

28
 Data analysis procedure

The students’ scores in each of the tests were grouped into three categories, above

average, average and below average. Students who scored above 75% were categorized

as above average, those who scored between 50% and 74% were categorized as average

and those who scored below 50% were categorized as below average. The pass mark for

both tests was 50% thus students who scored below the pass mark were considered to

have failed the respective tests.

Implementation of the Intervention Strategy

As part of my quest to help improve the performance of the students in chemical kinetics,

I adopted an intervention strategy to help enhance the students’ understanding in

chemical kinetics. I spent about two hours with the students in each of the two days we

met in a week. The intervention strategy used was activity-based instruction. Before the

intervention lesson, the students were put into eight groups with each group containing

seven members while the last group contained eight students. Each group was assigned

to go and read and make short notes on the concept of physical and chemical change and

to cite examples of physical and chemical changes. The first intervention lesson focused

on the definition of physical change and chemical change and some examples of this

phenomenon. The second lesson also focused on identification of reactant and product

species in chemical reactions as well as how to balance chemical reactions. In both

lessons, each group was allowed five minutes for their presentation as I observed. I

started the first intervention lesson by brainstorming with the students using questions to

help students come out with the definition of physical and chemical changes. Each group

was given tasks to perform and record their observations after a series of guidelines and

29
instructions. The tasks included shredding a piece of paper, cooking an egg, melting an

ice, boil water, mixing an acid with a base, evaporating alcohol, burn a piece of paper,

grinding of salt crystal to powder. The students were then asked to categorize the

activities they performed into physical change and those that involved chemical change.

They were then asked to categorise their activities based on the following parameters: If

there was production of odor, colour, sound, release of energy or a particular change in

the natural composition of the substances involved, and record their observation. I then

called a member randomly from each group to give their presentations. After each

presentation, I discussed what constitute a chemical change and physical change and also

used the activities they carried out to explain what reactants and products are. Based on

the discussions, the students were able to distinguish between which of the activities they

performed constituted a physical change or chemical change. Thus each group realized

that in chemical changes, a new compound or substance was formed as a result of atoms

in the substance rearranging themselves to form new chemical bonds hence, new

compounds. They also saw that in a physical change no new chemical species forms but

changing of the state of a substance between a solid, liquid and gas phases of matter

occurs. They also noted that reactants are the substances that combine with one another to

form a new substance that is referred to as the product. They also realized some

substances under certain conditions would necessarily undergo decomposition to form

new substances also called products. This stimulated the students’ understanding of

physical and chemical changes in a practical perspective. I used question and answer to

summarize the lesson and informed students on the topic for the next lesson and closed.

30
The second intervention lesson started with a quick recap of the previous lesson and each

group was asked to present their findings on the meaning of rates of reactions,

mathematical representation of rate of reaction and factors that affect chemical reactions.

After each group had finished with their presentations, I brainstormed with students on

what rate of reaction is, and also deduce the mathematical representation of rate of

reaction as well as factors affecting the rate. A dilute solution of HCl was prepared and

each group was given a strip of zinc metal of mass 1.5g. Each group used 20cm³ of the

solution for the first experiment. Each group was then asked to dilute their solutions

again with 10, 15 and 20cm3 of water. Then dip the zinc metal into each of the diluted

solutions and record the time it took for the disappearance of the zinc metal in each case.

Based on the observations the students made during the experiment such as how long it

took the zinc metal to disappear in the solutions, I brainstormed with them to come out

with the meaning of ‘rate of chemical reaction’, as the amount of reactant consumed per

unit time or the amount of product formed per unit time. The students also undertook an

experiment to show the effect temperature has on the rate of a chemical reaction. Each

group was provided with a sodium thiosulphate solution and dilute hydrochloric acid.

They were asked to measure equal volumes of the sodium thiosulphate into three separate

beakers and label them accordingly, they were then asked to warm the solutions to certain

temperatures using a thermometer to record the temperature. They were instructed to

make a big black cross sign on a sheet of white paper placed beneath the beaker and pour

the thiosulphate solution into the acid and immediately start their stop clock and observe

how long it took for the cross sign to disappear when looked through the beaker. Again to

explain the effects of surface area or particle size on reaction rates, each group was given

31
a lump of calcium carbonate and a powdered calcium carbonate with a dilute

hydrochloric acid. They were instructed to take the same mass of both the powdered and

lump of calcium carbonate and react with the acid in separate beakers and observe which

of the calcium carbonates reacted faster and why. The students concluded from their

observation that the finely divided solid is, the faster the reaction occurs, the reason being

that the powdered solid has a larger surface area compared to the lump.

I used oral questioning and answers periodically to assess students’ learning and give

individual attention where necessary. I closed the lesson by letting students summarize

the discussion. Two days after the intervention activities, I administered my post-

intervention test to ascertain the effectiveness or otherwise of the intervention strategy.

32
 CHAPTER FOUR

DATA PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION

Overview

The purpose of this chapter is to present data analysis findings in order to determine the

effect of activity-based instruction on form two science A students’ performance in

chemical kinetics at Apam Senior High School, Apam. It also focuses on discussion of

the data analysis findings. The results and discussions are presented based on the order of

the research questions.

1. Research question 1: What are the factors affecting students’ performance in the

study of chemical kinetics in Apam Senior High School, Apam.

To find out some of the factors that affect form two science students’ performance in the

study of chemical kinetics, a questionnaire containing ten (10) items were given to

students to respond to. The questionnaire and the results are provided in table 1 below.

33
Table 2: Students’ Responses to Questionnaire

QUESTION YES NO

No. % No. %

1. Were you taught chemistry as an elective course in 55 6.5 2 3.5

S.H.S. one?

2. Do you like chemistry as a subject? 25 43.9 32 56

3. Was your previous chemistry teacher regular at 30 52.6 27 38.4

class

4. Were you taught chemistry using Teaching and 10 17.5 47 82.5

Learning Resources (TLR) in your previous class?

5. Did you have a personal textbook/ reference 12 21.1 45 78.9

material?

6. Did your chemistry teacher take you to the 30 52.6 27 38.4

chemistry laboratory at the S.H.S.?

7. Did your chemistry teacher take his time to explain 9 15.8 48 84.2

concepts well for your understanding in form one?

8. Did your chemistry teacher give you regular 20 35.1 37 64.9

assignment in form one?

9. Did your chemistry teacher provide feedback after 12 21.1 45 78.9

each assignment in the S.H.S. one?

10. Were you regular and punctual to chemistry class when 47 82.5 10 17.5

you were in the S.H.S one?

N= 57

34
From table 2 above, 55 students representing 96.5% agreed that they studied chemistry as

an elective subject at the S.H.S one. According to Bruner (1973) any subject could be

taught at any level of development provided it is handled in an intellectually honest

manner. This results in the development of the spiral curriculum in Ghana, where for

instance chemistry is supposed to be taught at all levels even at the lower levels through

to the university level with varied degree of difficulty. This was lacking in the 2 students

who did not study chemistry at senior high school level. This implies that there was a

break in the chain of knowledge in chemistry for these two students, hence contributed to

their poor performance in the pre-test given them. (27) twenty-seven respondents agreed

that their previous chemistry teacher at S.H.S. one, was not regular in class hence could

not perform well in the pre-test given. This confirmed the finding of (Saettler, 1990) who

stated that the permanent presence of an instructor or teacher creates a level of confidence

and trust in learners for a particular subject. This also helps to increase in knowledge and

interest in that field of study. A larger number of the students could not have access to the

regular presence of a chemistry teacher. This resulted in their lack of knowledge and

interest in some aspects of chemical kinetics and chemistry as a subject. Even though 30

respondents representing 52. % agreed that their chemistry teachers at S.H.S one were

regular, they likewise performed poorly due to other factors such as non-usage of TLRs

in teaching, lack of textbooks/reference materials and lack of regular assessment after

teaching.

According to Sfard (1998), humans construct all knowledge in their minds by

participating in certain experiences. When an enabling environment is created and

appropriate resources are provided for learners to interact with, learning becomes

35
interesting and relatively permanent. The use of activity-based instructions in teaching

deepens and broadens the horizon of knowledge and understanding of learners. The

absence of these resources retards the understanding of concepts by learners. This can be

attributed to the poor performance of students in the pre-test which was confirmed by 47

out of 57 respondents representing 82.5% who agreed that they were not taught chemistry

using TLRs.

The preparedness of learners for a lesson is a keen factor that influences learners

understanding of any given concept. Learners flow with the teacher in a lesson when they

read around the concept to be taught in advance. The advance preparation of learners can

only be possible when they have textbooks or reference materials to read from. Forty-five

respondents representing 79.8% said they do not have any personal textbook or reference

material when they were at the S.H.S one which is an indication that they do not read in

advance for their lesson, hence their poor performance in the pre-test.

Another factor that affects learners understanding of concepts is the inability of teachers

to take their time to explain concepts to the understanding of their students. Forty-eight

(48) respondents representing 84.2% agreed that their teachers at the S.H.S. level do not

take their time to explain chemistry concepts. This makes it very difficult for the student

to grasp the concept which in turns affects their performance.

Thirty-seven (37) of the respondents agreed that their teachers at the S.H.S level do not

give them regular assignment after teaching. Even out of the (22) respondents who agreed

that their teachers give them regular assignments, only 12 agreed their teachers provide

feedback and 8 out of this twelve (12) said the feedback was prompt. Assessment

according to Black and William (1998) is all the activities undertaken by teachers and/or

36
by their students which provide information to be used as feedback to modify the

teaching and learning activities in which they are engaged. As learners’ performance in

assignments helps teachers modify their teaching strategies, prompt feedback to students

serves as motivation and encouragement for student in learning. The absence of these

regular assignment and prompt feedback from teachers was also a factor that affected the

performance of the students in the pre-test.

Research question 2: What is the effect of activity based instruction on selected Apam

Senior High School students’ performance in chemical kinetics?

A pre-test was given to the students to find out their level of comprehension before the

intervention. The results are in table 2 and figure 3 below.

37
Table 3: Scores of Students in Pre-test

MARKS (x) FREQUENCY MID- Fx PERCENTAGE%

POINT

0-9 4 4.5 18 7.02

10-19 10 14.5 145 17.54

20-29 6 24.5 147 10.53

30-39 8 34.5 276 14.04

40-49 4 44.5 178 7.02

50-59 14 54.5 763 24.56

60-69 6 64.5 387 10.53

70-79 5 74.5 372.5 8.77

80-89 0 84.5 0 0

90-99 0 94.5 0 0

100 0 495 2286.5 100

TOTAL ⅀F= 57 ⅀FX=2286. 100

⅀ FX
Mean
⅀F
=40.1

38
Table 4.0: Frequency Table showing the Students’ Performance in the Pre-Test

CATEGORY NUMBER OF PERCENTAGE %

STUDENTS

Above average 5 8.77

Average 20 35.09

Below average 32 56.14

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
below average average above average

Pre-test result

Figure 1: A Bar Chart showing Students’ Pre-test Scores

A post-test was also given to students to find out students’ performance in chemical

bonding after the intervention. The results are presented in table 3 and figure 4 below.

39
Table 5: Students’ Scores in Post-test

MARKS (x) FREQUENCY MID- Fx PERCENTAGE%

POINT

0-9 0 4.5 0 0

10-19 0 14.5 0 0

20-29 4 24.5 98 7.02

30-39 6 34.5 207 10.53

40-49 4 44.5 178 7.02

50-59 15 54.5 817.5 26.32

60-69 14 64.5 903 24.56

70-79 7 74.5 521.5 12.28

80-89 5 84.5 422.5 8.77

90-99 2 94.5 189 3.51

100 0 495 3336.5 100

TOTAL ⅀F= 57 ⅀FX=3336. 100

⅀ FX
Mean
⅀F
=58.5

40
Table 6.0: Frequency Table Showing the Students’ Performance in the Post-Test

CATEGORY NUMBER OF PERCENTAGE %

STUDENTS

Above average 14 24.56

Average 29 50.88

Below average 14 24.56

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
below average average above average

Post-Test Results

Figure 2: A Bar Chart Showing Students’ Post-test scores

Table 4.0 A frequency table comparing the students’ scores on the pre-test and post-test

Test Below average Average Above average

Pre-test 32 20 5

41
 Post-test 14 29 14

To find out the impact of the intervention strategy (the use of activity-based instruction)

on the performance of students in chemical kinetics, a comparism of the pre-test and the

post-test results was made. This is represented in table 4 and figure 5 below

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
below average average above average

Pre-test and Post-Test Result

Figure 3: Graph of Pre-test and Post-test

From the pre-test results in table 2 and figure 3 above, thirty-two (32) students

representing 56.14% scored below 50 marks out of a total of 100 marks in the pre-test.

Only four (25) students representing 43.86 % managed to score 50 marks and above out

of a total of 100 marks in the pre-test. From the post-test results in table 3 and figure 4

above, only seven (14) students representing 24.56% scored below 5 out of 10marks in

the post-test and thirty (43) students representing 75.44% scored 50 and above.

42
Comparing the pre-test results with those of the post-test as represented in table 4 and

figure 5 above, thirty-two (32) students representing 56.14% failed in the pre-test as

against seven (14) students representing 24.56% failing in the post-test. This is evidential

that larger number of students failed in the pre-test than in the post-test. Seventy-five

point four percent (75.4%) of the students on the other hand passed the post-test as

against only twenty-five (25) students representing 43.86% who passed the pre-test.

The comparism of the two results revealed clearly that there has been tremendous

improvement in the performance of students in the post-test as compared to that of the

pre-test.

43
 CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSION, SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATION

Conclusion

This action research was designed to identify the problems of form two Science A

students of the Apam Senior High School, in understanding the concept of chemical

kinetics and how to improve upon their performance in the concept of “Chemical

kinetics”.

According to the findings from the study, the students find it difficult to understand the

concept of chemical kinetics if the lesson is presented in an abstract form or without any

hands-on activities. I used activity-based teaching as a technique to assist students to

understand the concept “chemical kinetics”

The study has been very successful, in that the intervention activity used was able to help

improve upon the performance of students in the concept “chemical kinetics”. Students’

performance increased in the post-test as compared to the pre-test.

The positive results obtained by students in the post-test suggest that students attained the

requisite techniques and knowledge needed to enable them understand the chemical

kinetics concept and use such ideas in their further studies.

To conclude I can state emphatically that the intervention strategy used was very

successful.

44
 Suggestions and Recommendations

As a result of the intervention strategies used to help students to understand the concept

“chemical bonding” and the remarkable results obtained, I suggest following.

1. The teaching and learning of chemistry should be activity-oriented. This implies

that teachers should ensure full students’ participation in the teaching and learning

process. Students must be placed at the center of the lesson but should not be

regarded as passive listeners.

2. Motivation should be a tool the teacher should always use to encourage his or her

students’ active involvement in the lesson.

3. Teachers are advised to cultivate the habit of using appropriate TLMs to stimulate

students’ understanding and make chemistry practically based. Thus, with this

recommendation, governments, curriculum planers, school administrators, non-

governmental organizations as well as other stakeholders of education should help

provide the necessary logistics needed by teachers during their teachings

especially subjects that require a lot of teaching materials such as chemistry.

Teachers on this note are also advised to be creative and improvise for materials

that can be found within their immediate environments.

4. Teachers are also advised to vary their teaching techniques to suit the learning

capacities of their students.

45
 REFERENCES

Attahiru, A., Abubakar, U., Haruna, B. and Habiba, Y. (2016). Laboratory activity
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 APPENDIX A

PRETEST ON CHEMICAL KINETICS

Answer all questions on this paper.

SECTION A

Answer all questions in this section by CIRCLING the correct option.

1. Which of the following is an example of a chemical reaction?

a. Melting of ice c. Burning of wood

b. Grinding of salt crystal to d. Evaporation of water from

powder the puddle

2. Which of the following best describes a chemical change?

a. Element 1 is hammered into a c. Element 3 turns a greenish

thin sheet. colour as it sits in air

b. Element 2 is heated and d. Element 4 is grinded into a

turned into liquid powder

3. Which of the following is NOT an example of a chemical change?

a. Boiling water c. Burning a piece of paper

b. Rusting of a piece of nail d. Baking

4. A mixture of powdered iron and sulphur is heated. What will be formed?

52
 a. A single element

b. Two other elements

c. A solution

d. A compound

5. Which is NOT a clue that could indicate a chemical change?

a. Change in colour c. change in odour

b. Change in shape d. change in energy

SECTION B

Answer the following questions precisely as possible in the spaces provided.

1(a) Give three ways by which the rate of a reaction can be increased.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

(b) Enumerate 5 differences between a physical change and a chemical change and

give an example each

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

53
……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

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 APPENDIX B

POST-TEST ON CHEMICAL KINETICS

SECTION A

Answer all questions in this section by circling the correct option

1. Which of following is NOT used to determine the rate of a reaction?

a. Change in the amount of c. Change in pH

precipitate formed. d. Change in total gas pressure
b. Change in the intensity of
colour

2. The minimum amount of energy required before a chemical reaction could occur
is called?

a. A reaction energy c. Activation energy

b. Effective collision d. Activated complex

3. Which of the following is a common sign that a chemical change has occurred?

a. A substance has changed size c. A chemical has become a

b. A chemical has changed to a different shape
different state d. A chemical has turned into a
different colour

4. Which of the following statements about the rate of a chemical reaction is true?

a. The rate of reaction varies c. Catalysts increases the rate of

with the temperature of the forward reactions only
system d. the reaction between sodium
b. The rate of reaction increases bicarbonate and hydrochloric
as the reaction proceeds. acid is reversible

55
5. Increase in temperature of a reaction leads to an increase in the reaction rate by?

a. Increasing the concentration

of the reactants
b. Lowering the activation
energy of the reactants
c. Increasing the number of
molecules of reactants having
the activation energy.
d. Providing an alternative
reaction path with low
activation energy

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 SECTION B

Answer the following questions precisely as possible in the spaces provided.

1(a) Explain why the rate of any chemical reaction increases with an increase in

temperature.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(b) Enumerate 5 examples each of a process undergoing a physical change and

chemical change

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

57
 APPENDIX C

Answer each question in the table below by ticking (√) the YES or NO column.

QUESTION YES NO

1. Were you taught chemistry as an elective course at S.H.S.

one?

2. Do you like chemistry as a subject?

3. Was your previous chemistry teacher regular at class?

4. Were you taught chemistry using teaching and learning

resources at your previous class?

5. Did you have a personal textbook or reference material?

6. Did your chemistry teacher take you to the chemistry

laboratory at the S.H.S.?

7. Did your chemistry teacher take his time to explain

concepts well for your understanding in S.H.S. one?

8. Did your c Does your chemistry teacher provide regular

assignment at S.H.S. one?

9. Did chemistry teacher provide feedback after each

assignment at S.H.S.one?

10. Were you regular and punctual to chemistry class when you

were at the S.H.S.?

58
 APPENDIX C
ANSWERS TO THE PRE-TEST QUESTIONS

SECTION A

1. C
2. C
3. A
4. D
5. B

SECTION B

1a.i Increasing the temperature,

ii. Increasing the surface area of the solid,

iii. by the use of suitable catalyst

iv. Increasing the pressure

(b) i.

Physical Change Chemical Change

It is reversible Irreversible
Absorption and evolution of energy do not Absorption and evolution of energy takes
take place place
Affect only physical properties Affect both physical and chemical
properties
No new product is formed New product is formed
Original matter can be recovered Original matter cannot be recovered

(b) ii. Examples of physical changes; shredding of paper, melting of ice, freezing of water

59
(b) iii. Examples of chemical changes; burning of wood, rusting of iron, boiling of egg.

ANSWERS TO THE POST-TEST QUESTIONS

SECTION A

1. B
2. C
3. D
4. A
5. C

SECTION B

1.a. Particles can only react when they collide. If a given substance is heated, the
particles acquire more kinetic energy and faster and so collide more frequently.
Thereby increasing the rate of the reaction.

b.i. Physical processes; shredding paper, boiling water, evaporating alcohol, melting
of ice cube, crumpling a sheet of aluminum foil.

b.ii. Chemical processes; burning of wood, mixing acid and base, chewing a piece of
bread, baking cake, cooking an egg.

60