Effect of audio-visual instructional materials on Senior High School students’ performance in dissection and digestion in mammals.

Abstract

This study investigates the impact of audio-visual aids on the academic performance of Senior High School students in the topics of dissection and digestion in mammals at Winneba Senior High School, located in the Effutu Municipality of the Central Region, Ghana. The specific objectives of the study were to assess students' understanding of dissection and digestion concepts and evaluate the effectiveness of audio-visual aids in enhancing academic performance. A quasi-experimental design was employed, involving 2 intact classes one as experimental and the other as control groups. A simple sampling procedure that employed balloting was used to select two intact classes from the accessible population. The sample demographics of the study encompassed a total of 98 respondents (50 students in the Experimental group and 48 in the control group). The Experimental group with a class size of 50 students were made up of 24 males and 26 females whiles the control group with the class size of 48 was made up of 19 males and 29 females. Data was collected using pre-and post-tests, as well as a questionnaire, and was analysed using percentages, means, standard deviations and T-test. The results indicated significant improvements in academic performance post-intervention, with positive shifts in students' conceptions of the subject matter. Additionally, gender-based analysis revealed similar performance outcomes between male and female students in the experimental group. The study also found that students developed more favourable attitudes toward the use of audio-visual aids as a teaching method. These findings suggest that integrating audio-visual aids into biology lessons can significantly enhance both academic performance and conceptual understanding. The study recommends that schools should prioritize the integration of audio-visual aids into the teaching of Dissection and Digestion. Educators are encouraged to utilize a variety of multimedia resources, such as videos, animations, and interactive simulations, to improve student understanding of complex topics to enhance their performance. In conclusion, the findings of this study support the hypothesis that the use of audio-visual aids positively influences students' performance in dissection and digestion in mammals. The experimental group, which received instruction through multimedia instructional methods, demonstrated significantly higher achievement scores compared to the control group, which received traditional instruction. This suggests that the integration of audio-visual aids enhances students' understanding, engagement, and retention of complex biological concepts.