Effects of Cooperative E-Learning Approach on Students’ Chemistry Achievement in Koibatek Sub-County, Kenya

Abstract

The study investigated the effectiveness of Co-operative E-learning approach (CELA) on secondary school students’ achievement in Chemistry. It was carried out in Koibatek sub county in Kenya, where there has been persistent low achievement in the subject. The Solomon Four Group, Non-equivalent Control Group Design was employed in the study. Three students from twelve county schools, purposively selected from 40 secondary schools were taught the same course content on the topic “mole” for a period of five weeks. The experimental groups (E1 and E2) received their instruction through the use of CELA approach and control groups (C1 and C2) using the conventional teaching method. The researcher trained the teachers in the experimental groups on the technique of CELA before treatment. The Chemistry Achievement Test (CAT) was used for data collection. Pre-test was administered to students in the experimental group (E1) and control group (C1) before teaching commences and after the teaching a post-test was administered to the four groups. The instrument was pilot tested to ascertain its reliability. The data collected was analyzed using t-test, ANOVA and ANCOVA. Hypothesis of the study was tested at α = 0.05 level of significance. Results indicated that, the students in the experimental groups outperformed the control groups in the Chemistry Achievement Test. It was concluded that CELA enhanced better performance in Chemistry than conventional teaching method. Science teachers, educationist and policy makers are expected to benefit from the findings of the study. It should be included in regular pre-services and in-service training of Chemistry teachers in Kenya.