Aina Jacob Kola | KWARA STATE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION (TECHNICAL) LAFIAGI (original) (raw)
Papers by Aina Jacob Kola
The article looked at the learning problems in two different perspectives which are field area an... more The article looked at the learning problems in two different perspectives which are field area and sexism. Many studies indicate that the challenges to the students' academic performance globally in Physics are related to these two areas. Though, several solutions had been proffered to solve the problem with little improvement. Given this, the paper criticized many Physics teachers inability to see Physics classes as being of multiple intelligences. The author of the script, therefore, identified eight types of intelligence from Howard Gardner's Frame of Minds. The script believed that Physics learning problems could be solved if teachers apply five of the intelligence to the teaching and learning of Physics in schools. The paper has some implications for the teaching and learning of Physics at all levels.
The paper reviewed the importance of science education in the development of every nation of the ... more The paper reviewed the importance of science education in the development of every nation of the world including Nigeria. However, it argued that the science education in Nigeria as studied in the Universities, Polytechnics, and Colleges of Education could not be functional. It is not functional because it only produced graduates who are not creative. The paper attributed this to the lack of the good governance in the country. The pinnacle of bad governance was summarized to be corruption in the nation. Visionary leaders, total war against corruption, Youth Scientific Collaboration Programme (YSCP) and much more are some of the solutions recommended by the authors.
The paper looked at the reform in the teaching and learning of science in Nigeria educational sys... more The paper looked at the reform in the teaching and learning of science in Nigeria educational system because the present system lacked the authentic learning experience. The inability of the students to transfer theory to practice makes the system inadequate. The paper criticized the teaching strategies most Nigerian teachers employed in classes and put forward a more research-based pedagogy. Nine fundamental authentic learning elements were highlighted in the article. In other to achieve some of the elements the paper recommended peer instruction (PI) as a better method of teaching already implemented in many developed countries. The paper suggested a revision of the curriculum along the line of some of these authentic learning elements.
The paper believes the method a teacher employed in science class for instruction makes students’... more The paper believes the method a teacher employed in science class for instruction
makes students’ learning difficult. A literature review of some common methods of
teaching in science was done. The paper highlighted the conceptual framework of the
Peer Instruction Argumentative Strategy (PIAS) and discussed the importance of PIAS
to science learning. The paper recommended PIAS for science education classes based
on its perceived advantages over the other teaching strategies.
Fifty-two students of a college of education were sampled for this study. The sample comprises of... more Fifty-two students of a college of education were sampled for this study. The sample comprises of thirty male
and twenty-two female pre-service teachers. The quasi-experimental method was employed with the pretestposttest
design. Data were collected using Electromagnetism Physics Assessment (EPA). The data gathered
were analyzed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), descriptive statistics and the independent T-test. The study
provided an answer to three research questions. Finding reveals that based on the gender there was no
significant difference in academic performance of the pre-service teachers who did not participate in the PI.
However, there was a significant difference between male and female pre-service students who took part in the
PI. The study has implications for the students teaching and learning of Physics.
The paper considered developing a constructivist model for effective physics teaching. The model ... more The paper considered developing a constructivist model for effective physics teaching. The model is imperative because of the increasing difficulty in learning physics and the resulting poor academic performance in the subject. The paper reviewed two types of constructivism which are the social and cognitive constructivism. Highlights of correlations between the constructivist learning and the authentic learning were revealed. To applying the model to physics learning, it was argued that constructivist teachers should give serious attention to the prior knowledge of the students. This will determine the mode of teacher instruction. The teacher content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge are central to excellent teaching. The paper concludes that physics teacher should promote student interactions and respect student ideas: being the kernel of the constructivist learning.
The study is a quasi-experimental research employing the pretest-posttest design. 52 pre-service ... more The study is a quasi-experimental research employing the pretest-posttest design. 52
pre-service teachers from a college of education were sampled with 26 pre-service
teachers in both the control group (CG) and experimental group (EG). The instruments
used to collect data were Physics Achievement Test (PAT), Peer Instruction Dialogical
Argumentation Questionnaire (PIDAQ), and Adopted Physics ConcepTest (APC) for
teaching the experimental group. The instruments were validated by experts in science
education and physics. The reliability of the PAT, based on a pilot test conducted,
shows that the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient is 0.876. The data obtained were analyzed
using t-test, Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), and descriptive statistics. Findings
revealed that the incorporation of DA into PI has an impact on the students’ learning of
current electricity. The study considered some implications of the findings on the
teaching and learning of physics.
Thirty-two pre-service physics teachers were sampled for the study to investigate the effect of i... more Thirty-two pre-service physics teachers were sampled for the study to investigate the effect of interactive lecture engagement on the conceptual understanding of physics students. Pre-test-post-test quasi-experimental design was adopted for the study. Physics Achievement Test (PAT); Interactive Student's Questionnaire (ISQ), and Face-to-Face Interviews (FFI) were used as the research instruments. Data collected were analyzed using a mixed between subjects ANOVA and t-test as statistical tools. Two research questions were raised to guide the study. Findings revealed that there was a significant interaction between the students' scores in the conceptual physics and the teaching method employed. Besides, through the interactive engagement, the students were able to identify some misconceptions in conceptual physics. There was no significant gender difference in performance among the students in the interactive engagement. The study has some implications for stakeholders in education.
The article reviewed the effectiveness of teachers in both Finland and Nigeria with the aim of dr... more The article reviewed the effectiveness of teachers in both Finland and Nigeria with the aim of drawing lessons for Nigerian teachers. The paper observed that many Nigerian teachers are not effective in teaching due to reasons peculiar to both our economic and political conditions. In contrast, the teachers in Finland are effective due to the type of training they received, recruitment method, and teachers' welfare. There are lessons Nigerian teachers could draw from the Finland teachers' effectiveness as identified by this paper. These are the establishment of teachers' universities with secondary schools for assessing teachers in training; good welfare in term of better pay; thorough assessment of teacher pedagogy and written interview base on content knowledge before employment.
Open Journal of Education, 2013
The paper looked at importance of teacher"s knowledge and learner"s interactions in Physics learn... more The paper looked at importance of teacher"s knowledge and learner"s interactions in Physics learning; poor academic achievement in Physics and some possible causes of this poor performance. The paper highlighted some applications of ICT in Physics education; problems confronting the use of ICT in teaching and learning Physics. The paper was concluded by suggesting solutions to these problems.
Graduating students of 2012/2013 session of college of education (T) Lafiagi who combined Physics... more Graduating students of 2012/2013 session of college of education (T) Lafiagi who combined Physics with computer science were sampled to find out effects of English language on physics and computer science. These students’ results in physics, computer science and general English were collected using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient to analyze the results. Finding reveals that English language had no influence on students’ performance in physics and computer science and there was correlation between students’ performance in physics and computer science. Recommendations were suggested after the study in line with the findings of the study.
A survey was made among physics students in a College of Education challenges in conducting effec... more A survey was made among physics students in a College of Education challenges in conducting effective physics practical. All students in year two and three in Physics Department were sampled. Results revealed that students had challenges in motivation, supervision, graph, calculations, writing report some recommendations to overcome these challenges and improve students' performance in physics practical.
The study was a descriptive survey of science teaching in primary school in Edu Local Government ... more The study was a descriptive survey of science teaching in primary school in Edu Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. Questionnaire containing 30 items in two sections was used to sample teacher’s views on science teaching in primary schools. Analysis of the returned questionnaire was done using frequency count and percentages. Results revealed that unqualified science teachers teach science, lack of science laboratory and library with relevant science textbooks. One of the recommendations was that unqualified science teachers should not be allowed to teach science in primary schools.
The Internet and Higher Education, 2006
The study focused on the importance of language proficiency in the learning of science and techno... more The study focused on the importance of language proficiency in the learning of science and technology with attention given to the review of research studies on language proficiency and students' academic choice of language of instruction in schools.
This research study used Peer Instruction (PI) as a pedagogy to investigate pre-service physics t... more This research study used Peer Instruction (PI) as a pedagogy to investigate pre-service physics teacher's academic performance in electromagnetism in a Nigerian college of education. PI is a research-based pedagogy developed for teaching large introductory science courses. The study is a quasi-experimental of pretest-posttest control group design. The design is an equivalent pretest-posttest where the researcher randomly assigns the participants to experimental and control groups. The underpinning theories for the study are social constructivism theory (SCT) and constructive controversy theory (CCT). 52 pre-service physics teachers of College of Education (Technical) Lafiagi was purposively sampled for the study. The pre-service teachers were sampled because of the central position teacher holds in any educational system. Instruments for the study are Electromagnetism Physics Assessment (EPA) and the Dialogical Argumentation Questionnaire (DAQ). Data collected for the study were analyzed using, descriptive statistics, t-test, and Analysis of Covariant (ANCOVA). The study provided answers to three research questions. Finding reveals that there is a significant difference between students taught with PI and those taught with the traditional lecture method. However, the study indicates that there is no significant different between male and female that was taught with PI. The study also reveals that PI helps students to get rid of misconceptions in physics. The study suggests the adoption of PI for the teaching of science at all level of education in Nigeria schools.
Solving the unemployment problem by employing graduates who are not trained as teachers to teach ... more Solving the unemployment problem by employing graduates who are not trained as teachers to teach in Nigerian schools and the likely problem is the focus of the article. The article highlighted the problems and importance of qualified teachers in any educational system. It was identified that untrained graduates teachers in the classroom create more problem than the one intended to solve. The article beams its searchlight on four areas where untrained teachers could have a problem that may badly affect the nation. These areas are self-efficacy, pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), out-of-field teaching and professional focus. Four components of professional focus were highlighted as no distraction, professional development, interpersonal relationship and punctuality. The article was concluded with some recommendations.
esearch studies show that teachers’ method of teaching causes poor students’ academic performance... more esearch studies show that teachers’ method of teaching causes poor students’ academic performance in physics.PI is a research-based pedagogy for teaching large introductory science courses developed to improve students’ academic performance in physics. PI is considered for solving the problem of poor academic performance in physics because it has some common elements with authentic learning instruction. The article considered some likely implications of implementing this pedagogy in physics class for both the students and the teachers. It was concluded that, implementing PI in physics class need teachers who are effective and have adequate pedagogical content knowledge (PCK).
Nigerian schooling system is divided into three levels. Students’ academic performance in science... more Nigerian schooling system is divided into three levels. Students’ academic performance in science at both the secondary and tertiary level of this schooling system has been to many factors. One of these factors is teacher’s strategy of teaching. That is why this paper is advocating for a shift in the pedagogy of teaching in science education. Based on the weaknesses of the lecture and other teaching pedagogy in science, the paper considered Peer Instruction (PI) to be a better alternative. Peer Instruction is a research-based pedagogy developed for teaching large introductory science courses. It is a method created to help make lectures more interactive and to get students intellectually engaged with what is going on. Lectures in PI consist of short presentations on key points, each followed by short conceptual questions called ConcepTest, typically posed in a multiple-choice format, on the subject being discussed. The choice of PI is based on several research studies that confirmed its effectiveness. The underpinning theories for this paper are social constructivism and constructive controversy because they viewed learning through interactions and argumentation. The paper suggested some recommendations.
The study investigated the authentic learning experiences among pre-service teachers in a College... more The study investigated the authentic learning experiences among pre-service teachers in a College of Education. Two hundred pre-service teachers were randomly sampled for the study. 50 students each from science and technical education while 100 students were from vocational education. Data were collected using questionnaire and interview. Analysis of the data was done using frequency counts, percentage, and descriptive statistics. Findings revealed that science and technical education students had an authentic learning experience, except that the students received lecture through the traditional lecture method. Vocational education had an inadequate authentic learning experience because their learning had only five elements out of the nine authentic elements investigated. Some recommendations were suggested.
The paper reviewed the controversy surrounding the teachers’ qualifications and its influence on ... more The paper reviewed the controversy surrounding the teachers’ qualifications and its influence on students’ academic
achievement. The paper measured teachers’ qualification using seven indicators which are: formal education, experience,
subject matter knowledge, pedagogy studies, duration of training, certificate/licensing and professional development. The
paper reviewed different opinions on the relationship between these indicators and students’ academic achievement. Though, it
seems there is no consensus among the authors as regard the subject. However, there is a common opinion that subject matter
knowledge, pedagogy studies, professional development and years of experience are imperative and positively correlated with
students’ academic achievement. As a new dimension to the argument, this paper conceptualized teacher qualification into two
categories. The article posits that one of the categories, teacher’s personal quality is more important than certification. The
paper suggested some recommendations.
The article looked at the learning problems in two different perspectives which are field area an... more The article looked at the learning problems in two different perspectives which are field area and sexism. Many studies indicate that the challenges to the students' academic performance globally in Physics are related to these two areas. Though, several solutions had been proffered to solve the problem with little improvement. Given this, the paper criticized many Physics teachers inability to see Physics classes as being of multiple intelligences. The author of the script, therefore, identified eight types of intelligence from Howard Gardner's Frame of Minds. The script believed that Physics learning problems could be solved if teachers apply five of the intelligence to the teaching and learning of Physics in schools. The paper has some implications for the teaching and learning of Physics at all levels.
The paper reviewed the importance of science education in the development of every nation of the ... more The paper reviewed the importance of science education in the development of every nation of the world including Nigeria. However, it argued that the science education in Nigeria as studied in the Universities, Polytechnics, and Colleges of Education could not be functional. It is not functional because it only produced graduates who are not creative. The paper attributed this to the lack of the good governance in the country. The pinnacle of bad governance was summarized to be corruption in the nation. Visionary leaders, total war against corruption, Youth Scientific Collaboration Programme (YSCP) and much more are some of the solutions recommended by the authors.
The paper looked at the reform in the teaching and learning of science in Nigeria educational sys... more The paper looked at the reform in the teaching and learning of science in Nigeria educational system because the present system lacked the authentic learning experience. The inability of the students to transfer theory to practice makes the system inadequate. The paper criticized the teaching strategies most Nigerian teachers employed in classes and put forward a more research-based pedagogy. Nine fundamental authentic learning elements were highlighted in the article. In other to achieve some of the elements the paper recommended peer instruction (PI) as a better method of teaching already implemented in many developed countries. The paper suggested a revision of the curriculum along the line of some of these authentic learning elements.
The paper believes the method a teacher employed in science class for instruction makes students’... more The paper believes the method a teacher employed in science class for instruction
makes students’ learning difficult. A literature review of some common methods of
teaching in science was done. The paper highlighted the conceptual framework of the
Peer Instruction Argumentative Strategy (PIAS) and discussed the importance of PIAS
to science learning. The paper recommended PIAS for science education classes based
on its perceived advantages over the other teaching strategies.
Fifty-two students of a college of education were sampled for this study. The sample comprises of... more Fifty-two students of a college of education were sampled for this study. The sample comprises of thirty male
and twenty-two female pre-service teachers. The quasi-experimental method was employed with the pretestposttest
design. Data were collected using Electromagnetism Physics Assessment (EPA). The data gathered
were analyzed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), descriptive statistics and the independent T-test. The study
provided an answer to three research questions. Finding reveals that based on the gender there was no
significant difference in academic performance of the pre-service teachers who did not participate in the PI.
However, there was a significant difference between male and female pre-service students who took part in the
PI. The study has implications for the students teaching and learning of Physics.
The paper considered developing a constructivist model for effective physics teaching. The model ... more The paper considered developing a constructivist model for effective physics teaching. The model is imperative because of the increasing difficulty in learning physics and the resulting poor academic performance in the subject. The paper reviewed two types of constructivism which are the social and cognitive constructivism. Highlights of correlations between the constructivist learning and the authentic learning were revealed. To applying the model to physics learning, it was argued that constructivist teachers should give serious attention to the prior knowledge of the students. This will determine the mode of teacher instruction. The teacher content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge are central to excellent teaching. The paper concludes that physics teacher should promote student interactions and respect student ideas: being the kernel of the constructivist learning.
The study is a quasi-experimental research employing the pretest-posttest design. 52 pre-service ... more The study is a quasi-experimental research employing the pretest-posttest design. 52
pre-service teachers from a college of education were sampled with 26 pre-service
teachers in both the control group (CG) and experimental group (EG). The instruments
used to collect data were Physics Achievement Test (PAT), Peer Instruction Dialogical
Argumentation Questionnaire (PIDAQ), and Adopted Physics ConcepTest (APC) for
teaching the experimental group. The instruments were validated by experts in science
education and physics. The reliability of the PAT, based on a pilot test conducted,
shows that the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient is 0.876. The data obtained were analyzed
using t-test, Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), and descriptive statistics. Findings
revealed that the incorporation of DA into PI has an impact on the students’ learning of
current electricity. The study considered some implications of the findings on the
teaching and learning of physics.
Thirty-two pre-service physics teachers were sampled for the study to investigate the effect of i... more Thirty-two pre-service physics teachers were sampled for the study to investigate the effect of interactive lecture engagement on the conceptual understanding of physics students. Pre-test-post-test quasi-experimental design was adopted for the study. Physics Achievement Test (PAT); Interactive Student's Questionnaire (ISQ), and Face-to-Face Interviews (FFI) were used as the research instruments. Data collected were analyzed using a mixed between subjects ANOVA and t-test as statistical tools. Two research questions were raised to guide the study. Findings revealed that there was a significant interaction between the students' scores in the conceptual physics and the teaching method employed. Besides, through the interactive engagement, the students were able to identify some misconceptions in conceptual physics. There was no significant gender difference in performance among the students in the interactive engagement. The study has some implications for stakeholders in education.
The article reviewed the effectiveness of teachers in both Finland and Nigeria with the aim of dr... more The article reviewed the effectiveness of teachers in both Finland and Nigeria with the aim of drawing lessons for Nigerian teachers. The paper observed that many Nigerian teachers are not effective in teaching due to reasons peculiar to both our economic and political conditions. In contrast, the teachers in Finland are effective due to the type of training they received, recruitment method, and teachers' welfare. There are lessons Nigerian teachers could draw from the Finland teachers' effectiveness as identified by this paper. These are the establishment of teachers' universities with secondary schools for assessing teachers in training; good welfare in term of better pay; thorough assessment of teacher pedagogy and written interview base on content knowledge before employment.
Open Journal of Education, 2013
The paper looked at importance of teacher"s knowledge and learner"s interactions in Physics learn... more The paper looked at importance of teacher"s knowledge and learner"s interactions in Physics learning; poor academic achievement in Physics and some possible causes of this poor performance. The paper highlighted some applications of ICT in Physics education; problems confronting the use of ICT in teaching and learning Physics. The paper was concluded by suggesting solutions to these problems.
Graduating students of 2012/2013 session of college of education (T) Lafiagi who combined Physics... more Graduating students of 2012/2013 session of college of education (T) Lafiagi who combined Physics with computer science were sampled to find out effects of English language on physics and computer science. These students’ results in physics, computer science and general English were collected using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient to analyze the results. Finding reveals that English language had no influence on students’ performance in physics and computer science and there was correlation between students’ performance in physics and computer science. Recommendations were suggested after the study in line with the findings of the study.
A survey was made among physics students in a College of Education challenges in conducting effec... more A survey was made among physics students in a College of Education challenges in conducting effective physics practical. All students in year two and three in Physics Department were sampled. Results revealed that students had challenges in motivation, supervision, graph, calculations, writing report some recommendations to overcome these challenges and improve students' performance in physics practical.
The study was a descriptive survey of science teaching in primary school in Edu Local Government ... more The study was a descriptive survey of science teaching in primary school in Edu Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. Questionnaire containing 30 items in two sections was used to sample teacher’s views on science teaching in primary schools. Analysis of the returned questionnaire was done using frequency count and percentages. Results revealed that unqualified science teachers teach science, lack of science laboratory and library with relevant science textbooks. One of the recommendations was that unqualified science teachers should not be allowed to teach science in primary schools.
The Internet and Higher Education, 2006
The study focused on the importance of language proficiency in the learning of science and techno... more The study focused on the importance of language proficiency in the learning of science and technology with attention given to the review of research studies on language proficiency and students' academic choice of language of instruction in schools.
This research study used Peer Instruction (PI) as a pedagogy to investigate pre-service physics t... more This research study used Peer Instruction (PI) as a pedagogy to investigate pre-service physics teacher's academic performance in electromagnetism in a Nigerian college of education. PI is a research-based pedagogy developed for teaching large introductory science courses. The study is a quasi-experimental of pretest-posttest control group design. The design is an equivalent pretest-posttest where the researcher randomly assigns the participants to experimental and control groups. The underpinning theories for the study are social constructivism theory (SCT) and constructive controversy theory (CCT). 52 pre-service physics teachers of College of Education (Technical) Lafiagi was purposively sampled for the study. The pre-service teachers were sampled because of the central position teacher holds in any educational system. Instruments for the study are Electromagnetism Physics Assessment (EPA) and the Dialogical Argumentation Questionnaire (DAQ). Data collected for the study were analyzed using, descriptive statistics, t-test, and Analysis of Covariant (ANCOVA). The study provided answers to three research questions. Finding reveals that there is a significant difference between students taught with PI and those taught with the traditional lecture method. However, the study indicates that there is no significant different between male and female that was taught with PI. The study also reveals that PI helps students to get rid of misconceptions in physics. The study suggests the adoption of PI for the teaching of science at all level of education in Nigeria schools.
Solving the unemployment problem by employing graduates who are not trained as teachers to teach ... more Solving the unemployment problem by employing graduates who are not trained as teachers to teach in Nigerian schools and the likely problem is the focus of the article. The article highlighted the problems and importance of qualified teachers in any educational system. It was identified that untrained graduates teachers in the classroom create more problem than the one intended to solve. The article beams its searchlight on four areas where untrained teachers could have a problem that may badly affect the nation. These areas are self-efficacy, pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), out-of-field teaching and professional focus. Four components of professional focus were highlighted as no distraction, professional development, interpersonal relationship and punctuality. The article was concluded with some recommendations.
esearch studies show that teachers’ method of teaching causes poor students’ academic performance... more esearch studies show that teachers’ method of teaching causes poor students’ academic performance in physics.PI is a research-based pedagogy for teaching large introductory science courses developed to improve students’ academic performance in physics. PI is considered for solving the problem of poor academic performance in physics because it has some common elements with authentic learning instruction. The article considered some likely implications of implementing this pedagogy in physics class for both the students and the teachers. It was concluded that, implementing PI in physics class need teachers who are effective and have adequate pedagogical content knowledge (PCK).
Nigerian schooling system is divided into three levels. Students’ academic performance in science... more Nigerian schooling system is divided into three levels. Students’ academic performance in science at both the secondary and tertiary level of this schooling system has been to many factors. One of these factors is teacher’s strategy of teaching. That is why this paper is advocating for a shift in the pedagogy of teaching in science education. Based on the weaknesses of the lecture and other teaching pedagogy in science, the paper considered Peer Instruction (PI) to be a better alternative. Peer Instruction is a research-based pedagogy developed for teaching large introductory science courses. It is a method created to help make lectures more interactive and to get students intellectually engaged with what is going on. Lectures in PI consist of short presentations on key points, each followed by short conceptual questions called ConcepTest, typically posed in a multiple-choice format, on the subject being discussed. The choice of PI is based on several research studies that confirmed its effectiveness. The underpinning theories for this paper are social constructivism and constructive controversy because they viewed learning through interactions and argumentation. The paper suggested some recommendations.
The study investigated the authentic learning experiences among pre-service teachers in a College... more The study investigated the authentic learning experiences among pre-service teachers in a College of Education. Two hundred pre-service teachers were randomly sampled for the study. 50 students each from science and technical education while 100 students were from vocational education. Data were collected using questionnaire and interview. Analysis of the data was done using frequency counts, percentage, and descriptive statistics. Findings revealed that science and technical education students had an authentic learning experience, except that the students received lecture through the traditional lecture method. Vocational education had an inadequate authentic learning experience because their learning had only five elements out of the nine authentic elements investigated. Some recommendations were suggested.
The paper reviewed the controversy surrounding the teachers’ qualifications and its influence on ... more The paper reviewed the controversy surrounding the teachers’ qualifications and its influence on students’ academic
achievement. The paper measured teachers’ qualification using seven indicators which are: formal education, experience,
subject matter knowledge, pedagogy studies, duration of training, certificate/licensing and professional development. The
paper reviewed different opinions on the relationship between these indicators and students’ academic achievement. Though, it
seems there is no consensus among the authors as regard the subject. However, there is a common opinion that subject matter
knowledge, pedagogy studies, professional development and years of experience are imperative and positively correlated with
students’ academic achievement. As a new dimension to the argument, this paper conceptualized teacher qualification into two
categories. The article posits that one of the categories, teacher’s personal quality is more important than certification. The
paper suggested some recommendations.
The paper looked at various challenges confronting tertiary institutions in Nigeria, such as inse... more The paper looked at various challenges confronting tertiary institutions in Nigeria, such as insecurity, cultism, examination malpractices, corruption, poor funding among others. The paper highlighted importance of science and technical education in overcoming these challenges. Emphasis was laid on skill acquisition programme; entrepreneurship education and Community Learning Service (CLS) for both science and technical students in tertiary institutions. The paper was concluded by suggesting some recommendations for tackling tertiary institutions challenges in Nigeria such as funding of Science and Technical Education programs in Nigerian tertiary institutions; the funding should not be left for government alone, but stake holders and private/corporate organizations should join hands in funding Nigerian tertiary institutions. INTRODUCTION Tertiary institutions in Nigeria are still in their growing stage compare with the developed world because of various challenges that are peculiar to these citadels of learning. These challenges might not be peculiar to Nigeria alone however; the challenges often decimate the academic strength of the institutions. Graduates of Nigerian tertiary institutions are being looked down upon outside the country not because of anything but due to these challenges. Polytechnics graduates in Nigeria can hardly performed when they get to the field because of lack of proper training. Graduates of colleges of Education who are trained to be professional teachers cannot teach effectively when they graduated from schools. The facilities in our campus are not conducive for teaching and learning where both staff and students are experiencing epileptic power outage to read, carry out assignments, research studies, and interact with their counterparts outside the classroom across the globe. All these are some of the situations in Nigerian tertiary institutions, putting Nigerian graduates into a box which make Nigeria a laughing stock among the nations. Students of tertiary institution spend more time outside classroom because of industrial action emanating either from the government or from the students themselves and it could come from workers. All these are ill wind that does not blow the nation any good. Conferences, workshops, seminars are being held even public debate on how to solve tertiary institutions problems but little has been achieved so far. Solution to these problems is not in heaven but in the institution itself; that is why this review is very important. Before looking at the solution to the problems it would be very appropriate to consider some of these challenges that tend to weaken the academic strength of the institutions. Therefore the review is divided into the following sub-heading: Tertiary institution challenges Meeting the challenges of tertiary institution through science education Meeting the challenges of tertiary institution through technical education Tertiary institution challenges Many are the challenges of Nigerian tertiary institutions but this paper will highlight few of these challenges. These challenges are insecurity, cultism, corruption, examination malpractices and poor funding. Insecurity Insecurity is the greatest challenge of Nigerian tertiary institutions; security is very important and germane to academic excellence (Aina, 2012). Gone are the days when Nigerian campuses were saved and secured; today lives and properties in campuses are not saved because of the types of students and workers we have Knowledge for Global Development
This research study investigated the effectiveness of Peer Instruction (PI) as a pedagogy for imp... more This research study investigated the effectiveness of Peer Instruction (PI) as a pedagogy for improving conceptual understanding of physics in a Nigerian college of education. PI is a research-based pedagogy developed at the Harvard University for teaching large introductory science courses. The study is a quasi-experimental of pretest-posttest control group design. The design is an equivalent pretest-posttest where the researcher randomly assigns the participants to experimental and control groups. The underpinning theories for the study are social constructivism theory (SCT) and constructive controversy theory (CCT). 52 pre-service physics teachers of College of Education (Technical) Lafiagi was purposively sampled for the study. The pre-service teachers were sampled because of the importance of the teacher in the training of children in sciences. Instruments for the study are Electromagnetism Physics Assessment (EPA)and the Dialogical Argumentation Questionnaire (DAQ). Data collected for the study were analyzed using, descriptive statistics, t-test, and Analysis of Covariant (ANCOVA). The study provided answers to two research questions. Finding reveals that there is a significant difference between students taught with PI and those taught with the traditional lecture method. However, the study indicates that there is no significant different between male and female that was taught with PI. The study suggests the adoption of PI for the teaching of science at all level of education in Nigeria schools.
Education Journal, 2018
The paper's attention is on M-learning in Nigerian schools through the WhatsApp, Facebook and the... more The paper's attention is on M-learning in Nigerian schools through the WhatsApp, Facebook and the YouTube. The growing technologies in education have made the concept of M-learning ubiquitous in the present world. Mobile learning is a type of learning that is not only in the four wall of a classroom. The paper argued the current situation in Nigeria where students seem not to be willing to attend classes, and the inadequate infrastructure makes the M-learning imperative. However, acquiring educational knowledge is essential not only limited to the classroom with the student's technologies savvy. The paper considered the WhatsApp, Facebook and the YouTube being the universal apps in every smartphone and easy to operate by the students. It is also the Apps most students are familiar with in the social media networking accessible everywhere there is internet connectivity. The article explored features in these devices significant for learning such as text messaging, image messaging, voice messaging and video messaging. The use of these technologies could also provide the student with the authentic learning experience. The authors concluded that using these technologies in learning will be of significant advantages to the students and stakeholders in education. The paper discussed some implications of the paper such as internet connectivity and the need for regular power supply in every town and village.
International Journal of Education and Practice, 2018
The article critically reviewed the decline in science students’ enrolment in Nigerian Colleges o... more The article critically reviewed the decline in science students’ enrolment in Nigerian Colleges of Education, causes and the solutions. The research evidence abounds that the students’ enrolment for science education in the Nigeria colleges of education reduces every year. The causes for this drawback are the crux of this article. The Nigerian college of education is an institution saddled with the responsibility of training teachers for the primary and secondary schools. Nonetheless, the colleges had been criticised for lack of standards in its admission policy and also of qualified academic personnel. The reviewed literature indicates that there are many challenges confronting colleges of education in Nigeria. Some of these are teachers’ inadequate pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), out-of-field teaching and low teachers self-efficacy. The paper however observed that this problem and others are the results of bad governance experiencing in the nation. Consequent upon these challenges, the students’ enrolment in science education continues to decline every year unabated. The paper identified many causes of the students’ enrolment among these are, the proliferation of private Colleges of Education, loss of interest by the students, lack of science equipment and many others. The paper suggested some recommendations to raise the standard of the Nigeria colleges of education and improve science education students’ enrolment. Among these suggestions is the full government commitment to the funding of the Colleges of Education’s academic programmes.
Authentic learning is a problem of of Physics education because students learn by memorization re... more Authentic learning is a problem of of Physics education because students learn by memorization resulting into poor academic performance. Authentic learning enables students to apply classroom experience to solve real-life problems outside the classroom. Memorization has only been able to help students passed prescribed exams however lacked ability to solve real-life problems outside the classroom. Research studies attribute this to the Physics teachers’ method of instruction. Most teachers do not engage the students appropriately in the classroom. The method employed makes students passive in the class. The book used a research-based pedagogy, peer instruction to investigate the authentic learning experience of Physics students in a teacher training college. The incredible result shows that peer instruction as a pedagogy helps students to collaborate, articulate their understanding, reflect on their learning, have multiple role and perspectives in learning, and much more.
Reforms in education are inevitable when the existing practices have problems. This paper looked ... more Reforms in education are inevitable when the existing practices have problems. This paper looked at Nigeria's education system highlighting some of the problems confronting it. The authors argued that the system has been plagued with examination malpractices and projects that were not properly executed because of corruption. Teachers and teacher education were also discovered to be some of the major causes of the poor educational standard and problems facing the education sector in Nigeria. It was concluded that for any meaningful achievement/ realization of education reform, teacher and teacher education, peace education, agriculture among others must be strengthened. INTRODUCTION Raji (2005) affirmed that reforms are necessary events in the process of education. Reforms aimed at achieving sustainable education development may be seen as measures towards the attainment of the desirable ends of schooling, within the constraints of assumed needs of the society, and the rationalized role of the schools. According to Omosewo (2008), reform is a long process that begins with problem identification, involves study and analysis, and ends with evaluation and the continuation or termination of the programme. It involves, among other things, the development of policy alternatives, experimentation, implementation, and feedback. It is worthy of note that most of the so-called 'reforms' in Nigeria's education system need reformation themselves.