COMPARATIVE EFFECT OF SIMULATION AND DEMONSTRATION METHODS OF INSTRUCTION ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN BUSINESS STUDIES

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

Comparative Effect Of Simulation And Demonstration Methods Of Instruction On Students’ Academic Performance In Business Studies At Junior Secondary School Level. This study focused on the “Effect of Simulation and Demonstration teaching methods on Junior Secondary School Students’ Performance in Business Studies”. Five research questions were posed and th ree hypotheses formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study was quasi-experimental design. The population for the study consisted of all Junior Secondary School (JSSII) students offering business studies in the 15 government owned secondary schools selected in Isoko North Local Government Area. Purposive sampling technique was used to select two (2) intact classes amounting to 93 students, comprising 51 male and 42 females. The school were grouped into simulation and demonstration groups. A test was administered to the two groups which served as a pre-test. A demonstration teaching method was used for the demonstration group while students in the simulation group were exposed to the simulation method of teaching. A teacher made test was later administered to the groups which served as a post test. Data collected were organized in tables and analyzed using mean and standard deviation. ANCOVA was used to test the hypotheses. The finding of the study shows that simulation method has significant effect on students performance in learning business studies. There was significant difference in students’ mean achievement score after using simulation in teaching business studies. The simulation group perform significantly better than the demonstration group. Female students perform better than their male counterparts showing a significant difference in their performance in business studies. The mean performance scores of students before and after simulation differed significantly showing that students performed better after they have been exposed to simulation method. One of the recommendations made based on the findings is that, business teacher should be encouraged to adopt the use of simulation as an alternative to demonstration teaching method in teaching business studies. Implications were drawn and areas of further research were highlighted.

Social Studies is one of the compulsory subjects studied in junior secondary schools in Nigeria. The subject according to Udoh (1993) and Mansaray (1996) is a discipline that can be used in solving problems of relationship and interaction in man’s dynamic environment. Social Studies must be centered on innovative methods that aim at seeking the truth which include problem detecting, problem solving, learning by experimenting and discovery learning. Of great concern to the investigators is that most Social Studies teachers still rely mostly on the lecture method for imparting information. In the lecture method, the teacher according to Ajimoko (1975), Fabusuyi (1981), Ogunsanya (1984), Iyewarun (1989), Akinlaye, Mansaray and Ajiboye (1996), Akinlaye, Bolarin, Olaniyonu & Ayodele (1997) and Ogundare (2000) simply becomes the expositor and drill master while the learner remains the listener and a storehouse of facts that can be retrieved when a student hears his name called by the teacher. The problem of students’ under–achievement in Social Studies has been a much discussed educational issue since the early 80’s when it became a compulsory subject in Nigeria (Adaralegbe 1980, Dubey and Barth (1980), Dubey & Onyabe (1980), Adedoyin (1981), Akinlaye (1981), Adekeye (1982), Orimoloye (1984), Lemlech (1984, 1990), Mansaray (1987), Iyewarun (1988), Mansaray (1991) and Akinlaye (1997). Such discussions have consistently centred round instructional strategies used in teaching the subject. When similar situations of under-achievement were experienced in Mathematics and the Sciences in Nigeria, new instructional methods were employed such as: mastery learning, peer tutoring, computer-assisted instruction, simulation games and brainstorming. Findings revealed that simulation games and brainstorming have been of tremendous effect (Wood, Mento and Locke (1987), Adeniran (1994), Paulus, Larey and Ortega (1995), Adelakun (1997), McGlynn, McGurk, Effland and Johll (2004), Valacich, Jung and Looney (2006) and Adewale (2008).

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Traditionally, teachers use face-to-face method. But with the development of high technology, such as internet, video and voice technology, virtual teaching method is becoming increasingly popular. As of September 2007, states sponsored “significant supplemental online learning programs, significant full-time programs, or both” (Watson & Ryan, 2007; Roblyer et al, 2009). In comparison with face-to-face teaching, virtual teaching method can increase students’ cognitive-affective engagement (PytlikZillig et al, 2011), create an environment that cultivates better achievement and attitudes (Bernard, 2004), give students more time to prepare