ABSTRACT: The study investigated Instructional Technique and Academic Achievement of Students in Business Studies in Secondary Schools. The population of the study consisted of all the junior secondary two (JS2) students in 11 public secondary schools in Ibiono Ibom Local Government Area. Two research questions and two hypotheses were formulated. The sample size was one hundred and twenty Business Studies students from four selected public secondary schools. The quasi-experimental design was used in the study. Business Studies Achievement Test (BSAT) was used as the instrument for data collection and independent t-test statistics was employed in analyzing the data collected.
Instructional Technique And Academic Achievement Of Students In Business Studies In Secondary Schools
Findings revealed that there is a significant difference in the academic achievement of students taught Business Studies using discussion instructional techniques also taught using lecture instructional techniques. Also, there was no significant difference in academic achievement between male and female students when taught Business Studies using discussion instructional technique in secondary schools in the study area. Based on the findings, it was recommended that discussion instructional strategies of teaching should be used in teaching concepts in Business Studies in secondary schools as to improve academic achievement of students, interest and participation in the subject.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The Nigerian Educational system is fast changing in response to socio-economic and technological demand within Nigeria and the world at large. One of the changes is in the area of instructional techniques and methodology. Teaching is an art of assisting students to learn. The primary purpose of teaching at any level of education is to bring a fundamental change in the learner (Tebabal and Kahssay 2011). To facilitate the process of knowledge transmission, teachers should apply appropriate instructional techniques that best suit specific objectives and level exist outcomes in Business Studies.
Business Studies is one of the studies taught from primary to tertiary institution. Akihlaye (2003) asserts that, the main aspiration of Business Studies is to get students in school to better understand the intricacies of man’s existence on earth. With such an understanding, they would then be better equipped to live and interact more effectively and meaningfully within their own environment. It touches dearly at the very heart of our society that most importantly, it provides training in finding out, critical thinking, problem solving, decision making skills and rational business action or participation, all of which are vital for the survival and development of the individual and the society. With the assertion, if Business Studies looks at man and his environment from a holistic perspective-seeing the world as a whole, it then follows that knowledge, man’s life and human behaviour cannot be better understood in fragments.
In response to the view of Business Studies, Adunola, (2011) indicated that in order to bring desirable changes in students, instructional techniques adopted by educators in the field of Business Studies should be best for the subject matter. In order for the techniques used for the teaching of Business Studies to be effective, Adunola (2011) maintain that teachers need to be conversant with numerous instructional techniques that take recognition of the magnitude of complexity of the concepts to be covered.
However, instructional techniques according to National Teachers Institute (2007) refers to all the techniques a teacher use to help him or her explain or evaluate the topic, content or subject to the learner so that learner is able to fully comprehend the topic, content or the subject. Ben (2000) stated that instructional technique included all the techniques a teacher could use during the lesson to aid learning and retention. They include discoveries techniques, case study technique, lecture technique, decision technique and others. Instructional technique that best achieves course objectives is one of the most important decisions a teacher faces, knowing what techniques are available and what objectives each technique is best suited for, help teachers make this decision more easily.
Most people, when asked about instructional techniques, such by identifying two main types of instruction-lecture and discussion which are on the opposite ends with many exciting possibilities in between. A lecture is a narrative technique of delivery verbally a body of knowledge according to prepared scheme of action as cited by International Dictionary of Education (1991). According to it, in lecture technique fact or principle is presented orally to group of students who take notes, have little or no participation in learning and experience passive rather than active learning.
Discussion is a process whereby two or more people express, clarify and pool their knowledge, experience, opinions and feelings. On the other hand, techniques encourage the students to search for relevant knowledge rather than the lecture monopolizing the transmission of information to the learners. It can be summed up that teachers should focus on the desired learning outcome and make decisions about facing and curriculum emphasis so that students may have every opportunity to learn.
It was argued by Adufe (2008) that teaching is based on instructional techniques which at the long run bring about effective teaching. He further affirms that many instructional techniques are meant to make teachers succeed in their effort to disseminate knowledge. However, the success in the use of any techniques differ as a result of an intelligent analysis of the objectives, the students in class, the curriculum content or the type of subject matter.
Also conclusively, the impact of any instructional technique is not only limited to the conditions surrounding the teaching but also the advantages and disadvantages of a particular technique, in a particular situation should not be left out. This therefore formed the background for this research to be conducted to investigate instructional technique and academic achievement of students in Business Studies in secondary schools.
Instructional Technique And Academic Achievement Of Students In Business Studies In Secondary Schools
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Seeing the degree of poor performance put on in recent years by students of the secondary school age studying Business Studies, one is compelled to ask some series of question. A number of studies have been done to check the student’s responsibility when they fail; revisions of the curriculum system have also been done but the level of the menace seems to be on the rise as the years come and go and rising another generation of students but none or little have been done on whether to know how much the teacher’s mode, mean and instructional techniques can affect the student’s performance.
In the traditional epoch, many teaching practitioners widely applied teacher-centered (lecture) techniques to impact knowledge to learners comparative to student-centered or teachers-student centered. Scholars in the world over have now recognized that there are better techniques of learning than through the conventional ways of instruction.
Adunola (2011) stated that substantial research on the effectiveness of instructional techniques indicates that the quality of teaching is often reflected by the achievement of learners. Quite remarkably regular poor academic performance by the majority student’s offering Business Studies is fundamentally linked to application of ineffective instructional techniques by the teachers to impact knowledge to learners.
Until today, questions about the effectiveness of instructional techniques on students learning have raised considerable interest in the thematic field of educational research (Hightomer, 2011). An attempt to answer this question brought about the need for this study. The researcher therefore wishes to investigate the instructional technique that is best suitable for the teaching of Business Studies Secondary Schools.
