The use of instructional resources in selected private and public senior high schools in the Kumasi metropolis

Abstract

The use of instructional resources in teaching and learning plays very important roles in education all over the world. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of instructional resources and its impact on the academic performance of students in selected private and senior high schools in the Kumasi Metropolis. The research objectives were to find out the factors affecting the use of instructional resources for teaching and learning in Private and Public Senior High Schools, to assess the challenges teachers face in using instructional resources in their lesson delivery and to find out the extent to which instructional resources impact the performance of private and public senior high school students. The study employed the descriptive survey design combining both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection. The main tool for data collection was questionnaire supported with observational inquiry. The target population in this study was all tutors and students in the private and public Senior High Schools in the Kumasi Metropolis. An equal number of 125 participants each were sampled from the public and private institutions. The sample of schools, teachers and students was selected using stratified random sampling techniques. The researcher randomly five public schools and five private schools. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages and means were used to analyse the data. The study found that teachers in the public and private schools agreed that physical infrastructure, class size and teacher qualification are factors that affect the use of instructional resources in teaching and learning. Further, it was observed that the public school teachers were more resourced than their private school counterparts and hence utilised instructional materials more in their teaching. Based on the findings, the study recommends that the ministry of education should place more emphasis on the training of teachers in using instructional media, and try to procure the relevant instructional materials to ease the work of teachers to enhance students’ academic performance.