Teachers’ Competencies in the Design and Delivery of Chemistry Practical Work

Chama Sarah ,Nachiyunde Kabunga

doi:10.7176/jep/10-23-03

Abstract

The aim of the study was to investigate chemistry teacher’s competencies in the design and delivery of chemistry practical work in selected schools of Kitwe District. The objectives of the study were to: determine the nature of chemistry practical activities designed and delivered by teachers, establish the range of science process skills developed through chemistry teacher designed practical activities. The study was qualitative and a case study design was used. The target population was chemistry teachers teaching the two chemistry syllabi; pure Chemistry (5070) and Science (5124) a combination of Chemistry and Physics in selected secondary schools of Kitwe district. The sample comprised six chemistry teachers and 24 pupils drawn from three secondary schools. The study involved the use of: observation schedule, semi-structured interview schedule, focus group discussion guide and document analysis schedule to collect data. The findings showed that most of the practical activities designed by teachers were procedural in nature hence they were characterised by learners following laid down procedures. It was also noted that the focus of most of these practical activities was to expose learners to pieces of apparatus, verify and confirm what was discussed during theory lessons. The types of science process skills and how they were developed was linked to the nature of the observed practical activities. For this reason, these science process skills were not effectively developed to the extent that could lead learners to construct their own understanding of concepts. The findings of this study are likely to be informative to chemistry teachers, secondary school heads of science department and science teacher educators. Keywords: Teacher’s competency, Science Process Skills, Practical work, Designing DOI : 10.7176/JEP/10-23-03 Publication date : August 31 st 2019

Highlights

Chemistry is a science that describes matter, its properties, the changes it undergoes and the energy changes that accompany those processes. Jimmi (2014:313) describes teachers’ competency as a “set of knowledge, skills and proficiency in creating meaningful experiences when organising an activity”
To establish the range of Science Process Skills developed through chemistry teacher designed practical activities
Results of the Study The study results are presented in line with the objectives: (a) the nature of chemistry practical activities designed and delivered by chemistry teachers, (b) the range of science process skills developed through practical activities designed and delivered by chemistry teachers

Summary

Introduction

Chemistry is a science that describes matter, its properties, the changes it undergoes and the energy changes that accompany those processes. Jimmi (2014:313) describes teachers’ competency as a “set of knowledge, skills and proficiency in creating meaningful experiences when organising an activity”. Jimmi (2014:313) describes teachers’ competency as a “set of knowledge, skills and proficiency in creating meaningful experiences when organising an activity”. Chemistry is a science that describes matter, its properties, the changes it undergoes and the energy changes that accompany those processes. This suggests that teachers’ ability to design and deliver practical work is key in enhancing learner’s conceptual understanding and acquisition of science process skills. The report further points out that the average performance fell below the pass mark of 40% (ECZ, 2014).The chief examiners reports for 2015 and 2016 indicate that the general performance in practical work was poor. The reports highlight that learners had challenges: making observations and undertaking a critical analysis of their observations, drawing conclusions from their observations and applying their theoretical knowledge to explain observations and results from experiments

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion