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Effect of Virtual Laboratory Practical’s on Secondary School Students’ Achievement in Chemistry in Ogidi Education Zone

Akachukwu, Ebele Esther, Nwankwo Rosemary Chiamaka

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of virtual laboratory practicals on secondary school students’ achievement in chemistry within the Ogidi Education Zone of Anambra State. A quasi-experimental design was employed, guided by two research questions and three hypotheses tested at a 0.05 significance level. The population comprised 3,435 SS2 students offering Chemistry in the zone. A sample of 82 SS2 students was selected using a multi-stage sampling procedure was involved in the study. Data was collected using the Chemistry Achievement Test validated by three experts from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. The reliability of the CAT was established using the Kuder-Richardson Formula 20 (KR-20), yielding a coefficient of 0.82. Data were gathered with the assistance of two trained research assistants. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions, and ANCOVA was used to test the hypotheses at the 0.05 alpha level. Findings revealed that students taught with VLP achieved significantly higher mean scores in chemistry achievement compared to those taught with physical laboratory practicals . This improvement was consistent across gender, with both male and female students in the VLP group outperforming their counterparts in the PLP group in achievement. Based on the results, it is recommended that chemistry teachers integrate VLP into their instruction to enhance students’ understanding, performance, and engagement. Additionally, training programs should be organized to equip teachers with the necessary skills for the effective implementation of virtual laboratory tools.

Keywords

Virtual laboratoryPracticalAchievementChemistryOgidi

References

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