Abstract
The crusade to universalize basic education and improve its quality is now very much on the agenda of many countries including the developing ones. Meaning that, there is an implication, there is an overwhelming concern over the quality and relevance of education globally. Undoubtedly, the quality of education is a direct consequence and outcome of the quality of teachers and teacher education. The socialization of the child is a long process which requires careful and systematic application of workable principles as to achieve the desired results. To perhaps improve the student’s academic achievement in biology, a shift will be necessary from what has traditionally been experienced in the Nigeria classrooms toward more inquiry teaching practices, which facilitated teaching for meaningful learning. Suffice it to note the importance of inquiry in the science process, as, allowing students to describe objects and events, ask questions, construct explanations, test those explanations against current scientific knowledge, and communicate their ideas to others. This is the contention in this paper. The thesis of this paper is to contribute to the ongoing debate on enhancing teaching and learning strategies through innovation and changes in the contemporary epoch of new world order, thus globalization and technology. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2014.v4n7p121
Highlights
Nwagbo (2001), quoting research reports, noted that teachers shy away from the more effective activity oriented teaching methods in preference for methods that are easy and most times inadequate and inappropriate
To help students understand the nature of science the strategies developed by the Biological science curriculum study (BSCS) committees introduce students to the methods of biology at the same time that they introduce them to the ideas and facts (Schwab, 1965)
Inquiry through Demonstration: An inquiry method where concepts are demonstrated as fixed facts from where students are required to draw inferences either through questions drawn by the teacher or from their own direct observation. (Trowbridge and Sound 1973)
Summary
Nwagbo (2001), quoting research reports, noted that teachers shy away from the more effective activity oriented teaching methods in preference for methods that are easy and most times inadequate and inappropriate. Teachers are expected to be intellectually and professionally competent as well as dynamic enough to adapt to the dynamics of scientific growth and development and discharge their duties to a much more satisfying level To buttress this point, it was emphasized that even a good curriculum in a well – stocked laboratory would still not give the desired result in the hands of an incompetent teacher (Ossai, 2004). The teaching of biology generally conforms to the conventional methods and continues to be dominated by teacher making it as dull and uninspiring as ever before (Kalia,2005) Various workers such as Arainde (1985), Ogunsola- Bandele and Lawan (1996), Ango and Sila (1986), Oguniyi (1983), Ajayi (1998), Ajaja and Kpagban (2000) have reported the low percentage passes in biology at senior secondary school certificate examination (SSCE) were partly due to ineffective methods of teaching
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