(A) Three response instruments were used for data collection. These are:
1. Basic Science Cognitive Achievement Test (BSCAT) (Appendix 1A) 2. Attitude Towards Science Scale (ATSS) (Appendix 2A)
3. Conception of Scientific Phenomena Assessment Sheet (CSPAS) (Appendix 3A) (B) Four stimulus instruments were also used. These are:
1. Teachers Instructional Guide on Ethnoscience (TIGE) (Appendix 4A) 2. Ethnoscience Database (ED) (Appendix 4B)
3. Teachers Instructional Guide on Modified Lecture Method (TIGMLM) (Appendix 5)
4. Teachers Performance Evaluation Sheet (TPES) (Appendix 6):
The Teachers Instructional Guide on Ethnoscience (TIGE) was developed by the researcher while the Teachers Instructional Guide on Modified Lecture Method (TIGMLM) was drawn from the Basic Science curriculum module of the Federal Ministry of Education. They are identical in terms of contents, basic instructional objectives and mode of evaluation. The only differences are in the instructional activities and instructional materials where Ethnoscience method made use of
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additional information from the database and utilized additional instructional materials that reflected local beliefs. Teachers Instructional Guide on Modified Lecture Method (TIGMLM) involves the following procedure. The teacher:
(i) introduces the lesson by asking questions on relevant prior learning.
(ii) presents the new concept to the learners by explaining the new topics to the learners.
(iii) shows or demonstrates with relevant materials.
(iv) concludes the lesson by asking learners questions on what they have been taught and later take the summary of the lesson. The teacher finally gives assignments and home works to the learners.
The Teachers Performance Evaluation Sheet (TPES) (Appendix 6) was designed by the researcher to assess the performance of the teachers after the training programme.
3.4.1 Basic Science Cognitive Achievement Test (BSCAT) [Appendix 1A]
This was used in measuring the cognitive achievement of the students in science. It is made up of two sections. Section A was used to collect the subjects‟ personal data. Section B is a 40-item multiple choice test with four options (A – D), one of which is the correct option. All the questions were answered in one hour. The items were generated around three levels of cognitive domain i.e. Remembering, Understanding and Thinking in accordance with the recommendation of Okpala and Onocha (1995). The items were carefully selected to cover all the contents treated during the period of treatment. The contents were chosen from the four basic themes of the Junior Secondary Basic Science curriculum. They are shown in Table 3.3:
58 Table 3.3: Table of Specification for BSCAT
Broad Themes Remembering Understanding Thinking Total You and Environment 26,28,34,37,39 2,5,27,38 15,16,20 12 Living and Non-Living
Organisms
3,8,12 9,14,18,33 6,29 10
You and Science 11,23 22,25 21,40 06
You and Energy 1,10,31,35,36 4,12,19,32 7,19,30 12
Total 15 15 10 40
An Answer sheet for BSCAT [APPENDIX 1B] was also prepared.
The researcher developed the instrument. It is drawn from an initial 70 item objective test (representative of the selected topics) which was given to four experts in the field of Basic Science and test construction to establish content and face validities. They were asked to ascertain the suitability of the items and their appropriateness for the target population and language clarity. Based on their advice, 10 (ten) items were dropped. Some others were modified for clarity.
The remaining items (60) were then administered on a sample of 35 Junior Secondary I (JSS I) Basic Science students in a school similar to those used for the treatment. An item analysis was performed to determine the difficulty levels and discrimination indices of the test items. Items that were neither too simple nor too difficult were selected. This reduced the items to 51. Forty (40) items were thereafter selected for proportional representation. The reliability co-efficient of the items was calculated to be 0.83 using Kuder-Richardson formula (KR 20). The total obtainable score is 40 marks with each question earning a mark. A marking scheme was also developed for the purpose of assessment. The table below (Table 3.4) shows the Concepts, Period of Treatment and Number of Questions.
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Table 3.4: Table of Concepts, Period of Treatment and Number of Questions for BSCAT
Broad Themes
Selected Concept \ Topics
Period of
Treatment (week)
Number of Questions You and Environment Environmental conservation
and Safety
3 12
Living and Non-Living Organisms
Matter and characteristics of Living and Non- Living Things
2 10
You and Science Gravitation and
Weightlessness
1 06
You and Energy Forces 3 12
Total 09 40
3.4.2 Attitude Towards Science Scale (ATSS) [Appendix 2A]
This instrument is designed to assess students‟ attitude towards science and is made up of Sections A and B. Section A consists of personal data of the subjects while Section B is a 47 item 5-point Likert type scale. It was scored on a 5-point basis. Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Not Sure (NS), Disagree (D), and Strongly Disagree (SD). An answer sheet for ATSS was also prepared and attached (Appendix 2B).
ATSS was given face validation by four experts in Science Education and test construction. The items were scrutinized in terms of relevance, suitability, general test format and language. Their comments formed the minor adaptation made in the scale which is the already standardized and universally accepted Modified Fennema-Sherman Science Attitude Scale. (Doepken, Lawsky & Padwa, 2008).
The researcher however felt it worthwhile to carry out a re-validation of the final version of the instrument by administering it on an independent but similar sample of 30 junior secondary students. A Cronbach Alpha coefficient of 0.86 was obtained.
Each positive item in the instrument received points as follows: SA = 5, A = 4, NS = 3, D
= 2, SD = 1. The scores were reversed for negative items. The highest possible score for positive
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statements in Table 3.5 is 120 points while the highest score for negative statements is 115 points.
Table 3.5: Table of Specification for ATSS
Attitude Categories Items Total
Positive Negative
Personal Confidence about subject matter 1,12,25,33,37,41 4,8,19,23,32, 43 12 Usefulness of the subject‟s content 3,10,17,27,34,44 5,13,21,29,39,42 12 Subject is perceived as a male domain 6,15,28,31,38,46, 9,11,18,24,36 11 Perception of teachers‟ attitude 2,14,20,35,45,47 7,16,22,26,30,40 12
Total 24 23 47
3.4.3 Conception of Scientific Phenomena Assessment Sheet (CSPAS)[Appendix 3A]
This instrument was designed to explore students‟ conception of specific scientific phenomena. It is made up of Sections A and B. Section A was used to collect students‟ personal data. Section B is a 20-item multiple choice test with four options (A-D) designed to reflect both cultural and scientific views. An answer sheet was developed and attached to the instrument. A
„No idea‟ option was included to allow for full expression of the learners.
CSPAS was given face validation by two experts in ethnoscience and test construction.
They made useful suggestions which were utilized in the production of the final version. The instrument was adapted from Abonyi (1998). The adaptation was in the modification of some of the sentences to reflect local beliefs and the non-inclusion of the need to explain the reasons for possible shift in conception. As a conception test, there is no fear of testing effect.
The instrument was quantitatively assessed by the number of shifts from local beliefs to scientific beliefs in respect of the 20 items making the obtainable scores 20. A reliability coefficient of the instrument after administrations on an independent but similar sample of 30 junior secondary schools students was calculated to be 0.82 using Kuder-Richardson formula (KR 20). An Answer sheet for CSPAS (APPENDIX 3B] was also prepared.
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3.4.4 Teachers Instructional Guide on Ethnoscience (TIGE) [Appendix 4A]
This instructional guide was designed as a comprehensive guide for teachers in the Ethnoscience Instructional Method group. The guide involves the following broad steps:
1. The teacher briefly introduces the concept.
2. The teacher enumerates and explains related common sayings on the concept using information from ED.
3. Learners respond and are encouraged to list more related common sayings and other prior knowledge.
4. The teacher presents the new science concept and jointly with the students interacts with relevant ethnoscientific instructional materials.
5. Students compare new concept and related common Yorùbá sayings and classify the sayings into:
(a) Compatible sayings (b) Modifiable sayings (c) Contradictory sayings
6. The teacher demonstrates and allows learners to interact with relevant instructional materials 7. The teacher asks questions and allows the students to ask questions and takes summary of the lesson.
8. The teacher gives assignment.
Specifically, the ethnoscience paradigm intervention is in respect of teachers and students activities in which information available in the Ethnoscience Database (ED) in respect of the theme or concept is made use of to complement normal classroom activities. Instructional materials that relate to the concept and common Yorùbá sayings were also used as shown in Appendix 4A. The instrument was face validated by two experts in this area. Their comments and suggestions were made use of in the final preparation of the instrument.
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3.4.5 Teachers Instructional Guide on Modified Lecture Method (TIGMLM) (Appendix 5)
This instructional guide was designed as a comprehensive guide for teachers in the Modified Lecture Method group. The guide involves the following broad steps:
1. The teacher briefly introduces the concept.
2. The teacher reviews the students‟ prior knowledge.
3. The teacher presents the new science concept.
4. The teacher demonstrates and allows the learners to interact with relevant instructional materials.
5. The teacher asks questions and allows the students to ask questions.
6. The teacher gives assignment.
However, ethnoscientific paradigm intervention is absent. The steps as shown in Appendix 5 are normal lecture method steps. It is modified because demonstration activities are included. The instrument was also face validated by two experts. Their comments and suggestions were made use of in the final preparation of the instrument.
3.4.6 Teachers Performance Evaluation Sheet (TPES)[Appendix 6]
This is the instrument designed to assess the performance of the trained teachers in the class after the training before the commencement of the treatment. They were assessed in terms of the following themes:
i. Statement of objectives.
ii. Organization of the lesson.
iii. Presentation of the subject content as it relates to either the experimental or control group.
iv. Evaluation.
Two observations were made per teacher and each sub-theme was based on a maximum obtainable score of 5. There were two sub-themes for presentation of the subject content as they relate to the experimental and control groups. The average of the two observations per teacher
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was determined. Teachers with an average of 70% and above were considered for selection. The best two teachers in each group out of a total of ten (6 in the Ethnoscience group and 4 in the Modified group) and their schools were eventually chosen for the study.
Two experts in the field of evaluation were contacted to face validate the performance sheet in term of its appropriateness before the observations were made and their suggestions were helpful in preparing the final draft.