Using animations and models to enhance the performance of students in biology at the St. Mary’s Boys Senior High School

Abstract

This study investigated the use of animations and models to enhance the teaching and learning of biology at St Mary‟s Boys Senior High School, Takoradi in the Western Region of Ghana. It explored the views of students on biology as a subject as well as the views of students on the role of animations in learning. The population consisted of 60 students from two intact classes of Saint Mary‟s Boys Senior High School in the Western Region of Ghana. Based on the results of the pre-test, one of the classes was assigned to the control group, and the other to the experimental group. Interviews, questionnaires and test were used as the main instruments to collect data for the study. These instruments were examined and modified by lecturers in the Department of Science Education, University of Education, Winneba. The Cronbach Alpha reliability of the questionnaires, pre-test and post-test used were determined to have values ranging between 0.75 and 0.81. An animation-oriented instructional approach was applied in teaching the experimental group whereas the control group was taught without the use of models or animations. Analysis of the data gathered with the various instruments was conducted using the Statistical Package for The Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16. The results showed that, there was a statistically significant difference in performance between the experimental and control group. The experimental group performed better in the post-test than the control group. It was recommended that biology teachers should employ an animation-oriented instructional approach in teaching biology to enhance students‟ understanding and performance in the subject.