Abstract:
This study evaluated the classroom implementation of the Senior High School
elective biology curriculum in the Central Region of Ghana. A cross-sectional
descriptive survey design was used for the study. Three instruments were designed
and validated for data collection; these were (i) Questionnaire (ii) Interview (iii)
Observation Instrument (Barbados Workshop Instrument) as the main instrument for
the study. The target population comprised all the public Senior High Schools in the
Central Region of Ghana that offered elective biology. The accessible population
however consisted of 58 public Senior High Schools out of which 21 schools were
selected making up 36% of the accessible population. The schools were categorised as
Grade A, B and C schools based on GES standards. The schools were selected
through stratified random sampling from these districts and municipalities in the
region; Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese, Assin North, Assin South, Cape Coast, Efutu,
Ekumfi, Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem, Mfantseman, and Upper Denkyira East.
Form two biology teachers and students were selected as respondents for the study.
Student respondents were selected through random sampling in single sex schools and
stratified random sampling in mixed schools. Microsoft Excel and The Statistical
Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 22.0) were used by the researcher to
analyse the data. Descriptive statistics was used to analyse and answer research
questions 1, 4, 5 and 6. Factor analyses was also used to perform inferential analysis
and to draw conclusions on research questions 2 and 3. The results revealed that all
teachers in grade A schools were academically and professionally qualified to teach
biology whilst 22.65% in grade B schools, and 9.43% in grade C schools however,
were not professionally qualified to teach biology at the Senior High School.
Resources for teaching and learning biology were also inadequate in all the categories
of schools visited. A high proportion of teacher respondents thus 77.36% agreed that
they had challenges with their teaching functions and this did not also reflect enough
cognitive and process skills in their instructional activities. Over 90% of teachers also
did not organise practical activities regularly and this was affecting some profile
dimensions as suggested by the teaching syllabus. It was recommended that
professionally and academically qualified biology teachers in the Central Region
should be evenly distributed so that they would not be concentrated in only a few
schools while others lacked them. Also only qualified and experienced teachers
should handle Senior High School students in order to build a good and strong
foundation for the students. Among other recommendations made were that schools
should employ qualified laboratory technicians to assist biology teachers in organising
practical activities, regular support and capacity enhancing activities should be
organised to augment teachers‟ pedagogical skills and also imprests should be given
regularly to teachers in order to organise weekly practical activities as suggested by
the biology curriculum. Based on the findings of this study, it was suggested that a
study should be conducted to investigate the classroom implementation of the Senior
High School biology curriculum in other regions of Ghana. Also another study should
be conducted to investigate the professional competence of Senior High School
biology teachers in selected schools.
Description:
A Thesis in the Department of SCIENCE EDUCATION, Faculty of SCIENCE
EDUCATION, submitted to the School of Graduate Studies, University of
Education, Winneba in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN SCIENCE EDUCATION
SEPTEMBER, 2018