Effect of Inquiry Teaching Strategy on Students’ Achievement in Nervous System in Jos-South Local Government Area of Plateau State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the effect of the inquiry teaching strategy on students’ achievement in the nervous system in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State, Nigeria. A quasi experimental research design involving a pretest–posttest control group was adopted. Two research questions and two corresponding null hypotheses were formulated and tested at the 0.05 level of significance. The population of the study comprised of the 485 (264 male and 221 female) senior secondary two students offering Biology in the 13 co-educational secondary schools that met the criteria of the population. A sample of 80 students (31 males and 49 females) drawn from intact classes in two co-educational public secondary schools was selected using purposive sampling. The Nervous System Achievement Test (NSAT) was used for data collection. The instrument was validated by three experts, and a reliability coefficient of 0.64 was obtained using the Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient. Data collected were analysed using mean, standard deviation, and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The findings revealed that students who were taught the nervous system using the inquiry teaching strategy achieved significantly higher results than those taught using the lecture method. The results also showed a significant difference in achievement between male and female students taught using the inquiry teaching strategy. Based on these findings, it was recommended that Biology teachers should adopt inquiry-based instructional strategies alongside other gender-responsive teaching approaches to enhance students’ achievement in Biology.