Integrating ICT in teaching and learning biology to improve the academic performance of students

Abstract

The integration of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in to teaching and learning has the potential to transform the teaching and learning process. This study investigated the integration of ICT into the teaching and learning of some selected topics in biology to improve students’ performance at St. Martins Senior High School at the Adoagyiri-Nsawam Municipality. The study is an action research. .An intact class of 2 Home Economics was purposely selected. The instruments used for gathering qualitative and quantitative data are observation, interviews, pre-test and post-test. Descriptive function of SPSS was used to organize students pretest and post test scores into percentages, mean scores and standard deviation. The data from observations, and interview was thematically analysed. The findings were that students showed more interest in lessons and were coming to class earlier than before. The results further indicated that when Information and Communication Technology was integrated into lessons students participated and did a lot of research on topics before coming to class. The study concluded that ICT tools improved students’ performance when they are used as an enhancement to teaching and learning. Furthermore, the use of ICT tools in the teaching and learning of some selected topics in biology were found to be an excellent pedagogical approach that can be used to bridge up the intellectual disparities in biology and increase performance students. The study concluded that, the ICT center in the school is poorly resourced. Information and communication and technological tools were resourceful tools that motivated and increased students’ performance in biology when they were used as an enhancement in the teaching and learning process. Based on the findings, it was recommended that teachers of should integrate ICT tools in the teaching and learning.