Determining the effectiveness of science practical activities in some concepts in integrated science

Abstract

The study investigated effectiveness of science practical activities in some concepts in integrated science. The study involved two classes of form two students in St Bernadet’s Technical Institute Navrongo, who were selected through purposive and convenience sampling technique. Seventy (70) students were used for the study. A group of 35 students who represented the experimental group (EG) was exposed to intensive practical work. The other group of 35 students representing the control group (CG), was conventionally taught the same content without the use of practical activities. Data was collected using both qualitative and quantitative methods through pre intervention test and post intervention test items and questionnaires. Data collected was analyzedusing z test, t-test and descriptive statistics.. Results from post-tests show that learners from the EG outperformed those from the CG in all the research objectives. Findings from this study show that practical work improved learners' performance. The implication for teachers is that the use ofpractical work in teaching of Physical Sciences improves learners’ performance and that many resources are available locally that can be used to make the curriculum vital.The study recommends the use of practical work as an instructional strategy in science lessons at the senior high school (SHS) level.