Effect of the Lesson Study Practice on Students' Academic Achievements in Life Sciences Course

Abstract

The aim of this research is to examine the effect of the lesson study practice on the academic achievements of primary school students in the Life Sciences Course. The study was performed with quantitative research method by using a quasi-experimental design, namely, the pretest-posttest control group design. The research was conducted with the participation of six primary school teachers and 167 third-year students who were enrolled at six different sections in two different primary schools at the center of Agri province of Turkey. The participants were selected through purposive sampling method. As the data collection tool, the academic achievement test which was prepared by the researchers was utilized. The practice of the lesson study took seven weeks and was performed in the context of achievements referred to in the Life Sciences Course Instruction Program in relation to ‘Life at Our Home’ unit. At the primary school with relatively low socio-economic and academic achievement levels, there was an increase in the academic achievements of the experimental groups in association with the practice of lesson study whereas there was no statistically significant difference in the control group. At the primary school with relatively high academic achievement and socio-economic levels, there was a statistically significant increase in the academic achievements of both the experimental groups and control group. Upon the analysis of research findings, it was found that there was a significant improvement in students’ academic achievements in association with the practice of lesson study practice particularly at schools with low level of academic achievements.