Abstract:
This study investigated the effect of Small Scale Experiments (SSE) on Secondary School Students’ Achievement and Retention in Chemistry in Awka Educational Zone. The design of the study was quasi- experimental, specifically the Pre-test, Post-test, Non-equivalent Control Group Design. A sample of one hundred and forty nine Senior Secondary School one (SSS1) Chemistry students located in three co-educational schools in Awka Zone of Anambra State were used for the study. To guide the study, four research questions were posed and four hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05% probability level. An Instrument known as Chemistry Achievement Test (CAT) was used for data collection. The CAT has a reliability index of 0.81 using Kuder- Richardson 20 (K-R20). Two groups of students were used for this study; they are experimental and control groups. The experimental group was taught using Small Scale Experiment approach while the control group was taught using the conventional demonstration method. The treatment lasted for six weeks. The instrument was reshuffled and re-administered to the students after two weeks to test for retention. The data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation while Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05% level of significance. The results of the study revealed that Small Scale Experiment (SSE) approach was superior to conventional demonstration method in facilitating student’s achievement and retention in chemistry. There was no significant difference in the mean scores of male and female students in chemistry after the treatment, although male students performed slightly better than their female counterparts. In line with the findings of the study, the Educational Implications of the findings were highlighted and some recommendations were equally proffered which include that science teachers, science educators and textbook writers should adopt SSE when teaching or writing of textbooks to enhance student’s achievement and retention.
