Secondary School Teachers’ perceived benefits of ICT to Science Teaching And

Learning

By
Oludipe, Bimbola D. Ph.D
Curriculum Studies And Instructional Technology Dept,
Faculty Of Education
Olabisi Onabanjo University
Ago Iwoye
Ogun State, Nigeria
bimbolaoludipe@yahoo.com

Abstract
The study sought to find out teachers’ perceived benefits of ICT to Science
teaching and learning. This study was a descriptive survey type of Research.
Ninety-two Secondary School Science teachers (52 males and 40 females) were
randomly selected from fourteen Co-Educational Secondary Schools in four local
Government areas of Ondo State. A questionnaire was developed for data collection
( α = 0.76). From the findings, Secondary School teachers believed that the use of
ICT for Science teaching and learning can: enrich learning experiences; make
students to understand their lessons quicker; make lessons more motivating;
develop students’ higher level reasoning; improve students’ problem solving
skills; make teacher’s lesson more diverse; improve students’ attitude towards
learning; make students more engaged in learning; and provide access to rich
resources that enhance instruction. Recommendations were made based on the
findings.

INTRODUCTION
Science is the foundation upon which the bulk of present technological development
is built. Through its application, man ensures the longevity of his existence
through various discoveries, innovations and inventions that have improved the
quality of lives of mankind. The prestige, political power and economic survival
of any nation resides in its level of scientific activities. Developed nations of
the world are so called based on their advancement and growth in Science and
technology. For Nigeria to be at par with the developed nations of the world,
there is need to make Science more popular among its citizenry and to ensure its
effective teaching in our Schools. Modern Science curricula stresses students’
involvement in Science activities and teachers’ use of a pedagogy that moves away
from teacher-dominated to student-centered. Also, this age is witnessing the use
of Information and Communication Technology in teaching-learning process.
Computers are important for ICT. For a developing Country like Nigeria, computers
have become deeply involved in many areas of human lives than any other dominant
technology ever invented. Its use is slowly but speedily creeping into the fabric
of business and industry. The need for computer technology literacy even in our
educational system has been considered imperative(Abimbade, 1997; Akudolu, 2002;
Oludipe, 2004). Abimbade, (1997) was of the view that the use of computer as an
instructional tool permit self-pacing by learners, provide remedial instruction
for those who need it, and supports learner’s exploration of all aspects of
knowledge that is of interest. Badmus, (2004) believes that ICT enables learners
to absorb more information within a short time. Infact, there is widespread belief
that Information and Communication Technology can empower teachers and learners,
transforming teaching and learning processes from being highly teacher-dominated
to student-centered, and that this transformation will result in increased
learning gains for students, creating and allowing for opportunities for learners
to develop their creativity, problem-solving abilities, informational reasoning
skills, communication skills, and other higher-order thinking skills (Trucano,
2005). However, there are currently very limited data to support this belief. This
study therefore sought to find out teachers’ perceived benefits of ICT to Science
teaching and learning. This becomes necessary because teachers are the
implementers of ICT in the classroom and their perception of its benefits to
Science teaching and learning will inform the way they will embrace and utilize it
in the classroom.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
What is the perception of Secondary School Science teachers on the benefits of ICT
to Science teaching and learning?
METHOD
This study was a descriptive survey type of Research. Ninety-two Secondary School
Science teachers (52 males and 40 females) were randomly selected from fourteen
co-educational Secondary Schools in four local Government areas of Ondo State. The
characteristics of the Respondents is described in Table 1 below.
Table I: Description of Respondents according to Sex, School type, Teaching
Experience and Qualification

Variable Category N %
Sex: Male 52 56.5
Female 40 43.5
Teaching Experience: Less than 1 year 07 7.6
1- 5 years 38 41.3
Above 5 years 47 51.1
Qualification: NCE 27 29.3
B.Ed./ M.Ed./PGDE 59 64.1
B.Sc./M.Sc. 06 6.5

A questionnaire titled, “ Teacher’s Perceived Benefits of ICT for Science Teaching

and Learning Questionnaire (TPBICTSTEL) ” was developed by this researcher for
data collection. It was made up of two sections: Section A sought information on
Teachers’ biodata; Section B was made up of 15 items beside a 4-point- scale of
Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Disagree (D), and Strongly Disagree (SD), to which
teachers were expected to indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with
each of the statements on their perceived benefits of ICT to Science teaching and
learning. The instrument after ensuring the face validation was pre-tested on
thirty Science teachers in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State. The
Cronbach coefficient alpha yielded 0.76.
This researcher visited the respective Schools and the instruments were given to
the Principals / Vice Principals who forwarded them to the Heads of Science
Department in the various Schools for completion. The questionnaires were
collected back few days later.
The instruments were manually scored by the researcher. The SPSS statistical
package was later employed to analyse the data. The items were such that all were
positively worded and a score range of 1 through 4 was assigned to Strongly
Disagree to Strongly Agree. The minimum score was 15, and the maximum score was
60.
RESULTS

Table II : Teachers’ Perceived Benefits of ICT to Science Teaching and Learning

S/N ITEMS SA
% A
% D
% SD
% Missing
% Mean Standard Deviation DECISION
ICT use can:
1 enrich learning experiences of students 63.0 35.9 1.1 - 3.62
.510 Agree
2 make students to understand their lessons quicker 57.6 41.3 - -
1.1 3.58 .496 Agree
3 make lessons more motivating 39.1 55.4 4.3 1.1 - 3.33 .613 Agree
4 develop students’ learning skills 48.9 51.1 - - - 3.49 .503
Agree
5 make teaching-learning more interactive 44.6 53.3 - - 2.2 3.46
.501 Agree
6 make lessons more interesting 54.3 45.7 - - - 3.54 .501 Agree
7 make students gain control of their learning 28.3 68.5 3.3 - -
3.23 .576 Agree
8 develop students’ higher level reasoning 19.6 73.9 4.3 1.1 1.1 3.13
.521 Agree
9 makes students more engaged in learning 26.1 73.9 - - - 3.26
.442 Agree
10 Improve students’ problem-solving skills 13.0 71.7 10.9 4.3 - 2.93
.643 Agree
11 make teacher’s lesson more diverse 22.8 66.3 3.3 2.2 5.4 3.16 .588
Agree
12 serve as a substitute for classroom teaching 1.1 5.4 62.0 31.5 -
1.76 .600 Disagree
13 Provide access to rich resources that enhance instruction 32.6 67.4 -
- - 3.33 .471 Agree
14 help teachers to create inspiring and adaptable instructional materials
17.4 55.4 15.2 8.7 3.3 2.84 .824 Agree
15 Improve students’ attitude towards learning 21.7 65.2 7.6 5.4 -
3.03 .718 Agree

From the data analysis above, it was observed that 98.9% of Respondents agreed
that the use of ICT for Science teaching can enrich learning experiences of
students; 98.9% also agreed that ICT use in Science teaching can make students to
understand their lessons quicker; 94.5% believe that it can make lessons more
motivating; 97.9% believe it can make science teaching-learning more interactive;
96.8% believe it can make students to gain control of their learning; 93.5%
believe it can develop students’ higher level reasoning; 84.7% believe it can
improve students’ problem solving skills; 89.1% believe it can make teacher’s
lesson more diverse; 72.8% believe it can help teachers to create inspiring and
adaptable instructional materials; 86.9% believe it can improve students’ attitude
towards learning. In addition, all the respondents (100%) believe that it can
develop students’ learning skills; make students more engaged in learning; and
provide access to rich resources that enhance instruction. However, 93.5% of
respondents believe that ICT should not be used as a substitute for classroom
teaching.
In summary, the findings of this study revealed that overall, teachers positively
perceived ICT use as being beneficial to Science teaching and learning.
DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The findings above are corroborated by the reports of some researchers who found
that the use of ICT in teaching-learning process, resulted in more positive
attitudes in a high School Biology Course (Hounshell & Hill, 1989); enhancement of
Scientific reasoning skills (Friedler & Songer, 1989); enhancement of inquiry
skills and Scientific knowledge (Shute & Bonar, 1986); and self esteem (Robertson,
Ladewig, Strickland & Boschung, 1987). Since Science teachers are aware of the
benefits of ICT to Science teaching, the probability is high that they will
embrace the teaching of Science with ICT materials if they are made available to
them. However, some of the challenges that will be faced by these teachers will
include irregular supply of power, lack of skill to operate some of these
materials as Research findings (Oludipe, 2004; Trucano, 2005) have reported that
most of these ICT materials are not within the reach of School teachers and
teachers lack the skill of operating them. Inadvertently, they may not be able to
handle them competently. This being the case, the need then arises for the
Government to make these facilities available to Schools and educate Science
teachers on their use. In addition, erratic supply of power must be addressed as
most of the ICT facilities are dependent on power for operation. Also students
access to computer should be increased particularly in our Schools. Some Schools
already have computer laboratories though many are not put to maximum use.
Already, the great majority of students are familiar with the computer and they
often have to do one thing or the other on it. For instance, many have access to
the Internet, though the quality of connectivity varies widely (Oludipe, 2004).
Students are also familiar with e-mail and the use of the Internet for information
research and quite a number can use word processors though the degree of expertise
varies. Very few students have experience in Web design or the creation of HTML
documents and many could not use the Internet for more sophisticated purposes. The
frequencies of using communication technologies other than e-mail, e.g., chats and
games is also high among our students. It is therefore the duty of the Government
to ensure that provision is made for adequate ICT facilities( particularly
computers ) in our Schools so that our students can have early exposure to it and
gain a mastery of its operations.
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