CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Physics is a foundation of science and technology. It underpins fields such as engineering, electronics, medicine and energy, and it is therefore tied to a country’s social and economic development. In Nigeria it is a core science subject in the senior secondary school curriculum, and a pass in it opens the way to many university and technical programmes. Yet students’ performance in physics in the Senior School Certificate Examination has long been weak. Physics is abstract: many of its ideas cannot be seen directly and must be pictured, which leads many students to lose interest and to perform poorly (Chukwunenye, n.d.). Modern physics, which includes topics such as atomic structure, radioactivity, nuclear physics and quantum ideas, is among the most abstract parts of the subject. The West African Examinations Council’s Chief Examiners reported that candidates showed poor understanding of questions on atomic and modern physics, along with other topics, and recommended workshops and seminars for physics teachers (WAEC, 2018).

Information and communication technology (ICT) offers ways of making abstract concepts more concrete through simulations, animations, video and interactive presentations. Studies in Nigeria show that the use of ICT in physics teaching can help. In an experiment in Kaduna State, students taught a physics concept with ICT materials performed better than those taught by lecture alone, and the performance of male and female students did not differ significantly when both used ICT (“Impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on performance among physics students in Giwa Education Zone, Kaduna State, Nigeria,” n.d.). Computer-simulated experiments have likewise been found to improve senior secondary students’ conceptual understanding and achievement in physics practical work (Chukwunenye, n.d.).

The benefits of ICT in the classroom depend largely on the teacher. A survey of physics teachers in Kwara State found that teachers held positive perceptions of ICT integration, and concluded that teachers can make a significant impact on the quality of physics education and on their own professional development (Akanbi & Afolabi, 2023). In Sokoto, physics teachers’ perception of ICT was significantly related both to their use of ICT tools and to their competence in using them (Amuda & Mohammed, 2022). On the other hand, qualitative research on Nigerian secondary physics teachers has identified challenges to integrating ICT, which can be examined in terms of effort expectancy, performance expectancy, social influence and facilitating conditions, and has argued that professional development in technology integration is needed (Srinivasan, 2024). Teachers’ skills and confidence with technology therefore need to be developed before the technology can be expected to improve students’ achievement.

This is the idea behind ICT-enhanced teacher development (ICTeTD). In ICTeTD, teachers are trained to use ICT tools for instruction, and then use them to teach, so that the benefit of the training can be observed in their students’ achievement. The mode of instruction differs from conventional lecture teaching because it combines teacher capacity building with the use of modern teaching technology. This study examines the effects of the ICTeTD mode of instruction on the achievement of senior secondary school students in modern physics in public secondary schools in Kontagora, Niger State, and the effectiveness and proficiency of teachers in handling and using the technology.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Students’ performance in physics in Nigeria, and particularly in the abstract areas of atomic and modern physics, remains a concern (WAEC, 2018). The WAEC Chief Examiners point to weak teaching and recommend the training of physics teachers (WAEC, 2018). Many teachers are still not able to use modern teaching technologies effectively. Research shows that physics teachers’ perceptions, competence and use of ICT are related and that integration is held back by various challenges (Amuda & Mohammed, 2022; Srinivasan, 2024), and calls for workshops and seminars to keep physics teachers up to date with ICT (“Impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on performance among physics students in Giwa Education Zone, Kaduna State, Nigeria,” n.d.).

Most studies of ICT in physics have looked at the use of ICT materials by students or at teachers’ perceptions, and fewer have tested whether enhancing teachers’ own ICT competence through a development programme leads to higher achievement among their students, especially in modern physics in public schools in northern Nigeria. The problem of this study is therefore whether students taught by physics teachers who have been through ICT-enhanced teacher development achieve more in modern physics than students taught by conventional methods, and whether the teachers’ proficiency in using the technology can be seen in their students’ achievement after treatment.

1.3 Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of the study is to investigate the effects of the ICTeTD mode of instruction on the achievement of senior secondary school students in modern physics in public secondary schools in Kontagora, Niger State. The specific objectives are to:

1. investigate the effect of using ICT-enhanced teacher development (ICTeTD) on senior secondary school students’ achievement in modern physics, compared with conventional instruction;
2. determine the effectiveness and proficiency of teachers in handling and using modern teaching technology after ICTeTD, as reflected in their students’ achievement after treatment; and
3. determine the effect of gender on students’ achievement in modern physics when taught with the ICTeTD mode of instruction.

1.4 Research Questions

The following research questions guide the study:

1. What is the effect of the ICTeTD mode of instruction on the achievement of senior secondary school students in modern physics, compared with conventional instruction?
2. How effective and proficient are teachers in handling and using modern teaching technology after ICTeTD, as reflected in their students’ achievement after treatment?
3. What is the effect of gender on students’ achievement in modern physics when taught with the ICTeTD mode of instruction?

1.5 Research Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses are tested at the 0.05 level of significance:

• Ho1: There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores in modern physics of students taught with the ICTeTD mode of instruction and those taught with conventional instruction.
• Ho2: There is no significant difference between the pre-treatment and post-treatment mean achievement scores in modern physics of students taught by teachers who have undergone ICTeTD.
• Ho3: There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught modern physics with the ICTeTD mode of instruction.

1.6 Significance of the Study

The study will be useful in several ways. For physics students, it will show whether a more technology-based approach helps them to understand abstract topics in modern physics and so improve their results. For physics teachers, it will show the value of ICT-focused development and how it affects their effectiveness in the classroom; this answers recommendations that teachers be given workshops and seminars to improve their instruction (WAEC, 2018). For school administrators, the Niger State Ministry of Education and the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria, the findings can guide in-service training and investment in ICT facilities. Curriculum developers and examination bodies can use it in deciding how teaching technology can support the physics curriculum, and researchers will find a basis for further studies of ICT-based teacher development in other subjects and regions.

1.7 Scope of the Study

The study covers senior secondary school students and their physics teachers in public secondary schools in Kontagora, Niger State. Its content is limited to modern physics, and the independent variable is the ICTeTD mode of instruction compared with conventional instruction. The dependent variable is students’ academic achievement in modern physics. Gender is included as a moderating variable.

1.8 Operational Definition of Terms

ICTeTD: ICT-enhanced teacher development: a programme in which teachers are trained to use ICT tools for instruction and then use them to teach their students.

Mode of instruction: The method or approach used to teach a subject.

Modern physics: The part of the physics curriculum covering topics developed since the early twentieth century, such as atomic structure, radioactivity, nuclear physics and quantum ideas.

Academic achievement: The score a student obtains in a test of knowledge and understanding in a subject.

Teacher effectiveness and proficiency: The skill and competence with which a teacher handles and uses modern teaching technology, judged in this study by students’ achievement after treatment.

Public secondary school: A secondary school owned and funded by the state or federal government.

References

Akanbi, A. O., & Afolabi, O. Y. (2023). Teachers’ perceptions of the integration of information and communication technology in secondary schools in Kwara, Nigeria. ZAJOLA. https://journals.abu.edu.ng/index.php/zajola/article/view/793

Amuda, A. A., & Mohammed, R. E. (2022). Physics teachers’ perception and utilization of ICT tools for teaching senior school physics in Sokoto, Nigeria. African Journal of Educational Research, 26(1), 13–18. https://uilspace.unilorin.edu.ng/handle/20.500.12484/10679

Chukwunenye, J. N. (n.d.). Effects of computer-simulated instructional strategy on senior secondary school students’ interest and achievement in practical physics in Imo State, Nigeria [Doctoral thesis, University of Ibadan]. https://repository.ui.edu.ng/items/bdfbd3d9-86c1-42a2-b982-8f1c95f8ff14

Impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on performance among physics students in Giwa Education Zone, Kaduna State, Nigeria. (n.d.). https://www.ajol.info/index.php/kje/article/view/292287

Srinivasan, H. (2024). Nigerian secondary physics teachers’ perceptions of factors that challenge information and communication technology integration [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/15812

West African Examinations Council. (2018). Chief examiners’ report: Physics (essay) paper 2, WASSCE for private candidates, 2018. https://waeconline.org.ng/e-learning/Physics/Phys227jw.html