EFFECTS OF VEE-DIAGRAM AND GUIDED-INQUIRY INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS’ PHYSICS ACHIEVEMENT IN KANO STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The persistent underperformance of secondary school students in Physic has been linked to teacher-centred instructional strategies employed during teaching. There is an urgent need to explore student-centred strategies which foster students’ active participation. This study investigated the effects of Vee-diagram and Guided-inquiry instructional strategies on the achievement of secondary school students in Physics in Kano State, Nigeria. Using a quasi-experimental design, the study focused on a population of all physics students across the 707 public secondary schools in Kano State. The target population was 83,981 Senior Secondary Two (SS2) Physics students. A multistage sampling technique was used to select a sample of 413 students, including 225 females and 188 males from nine schools. The target population was firstly stratified into three strata based on senatorial districts, followed by random selection of three educational zones from each stratum, from which nine schools were selected (one school from each zone). The Physics Achievement Test (PAT) was the primary data collection instrument, validated by experts with a reliability coefficient of 0.89 using Pearson-Product Moment Correlation statistics. Data collection involved administering the PAT as a pre-test, followed by six weeks of treatment, and as a post-test. Data analysis included mean and standard deviation for research questions, with Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) used to test the null hypotheses at a 0.05 significance level. Results showed significant differences in achievement scores among students taught with Vee-diagram, Guided-inquiry, and conventional lecture methods, with both experimental groups outperforming the control group. Gender analysis revealed no significant difference in achievement for the Vee-diagram group, while male students performed better in the Guided-inquiry group. The findings highlight the effectiveness of Vee-diagram and Guided-inquiry strategies in enhancing Physics achievement. The study recommends that Physics teachers adopt these strategies to promote students’ achievement, and that training programs focus on these methods to improve educational practices. Additionally, curriculum planners should integrate these strategies into the secondary school Physics curriculum.