Effect of Ethnoscience-Based Instructional Approach on the Attitude, Interest and Academic Performance of Senior High Physics Students in Techiman Municipality.

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of ethnoscience-based instruction on attitude, interest and academic performance of Senior High Physics students in Techiman Municipality. Four research questions and three hypotheses guided the study. The study adopted survey and Quasi- experimental pretest-posttest control group designs. Ten (10) people were randomly selected for the interview in addition to 196 physics students randomly sampled out of 400 total physics students’ population in S.H.S 2. Physics Students Academic Performance Test (PSAPT), Attitude and Interest measurement Questionnaires and Semi-structured interview guide were used to collect data for the study. The PSAPT was tested with a reliability co-efficient r=0.834. The research questions were answered descriptively where the hypotheses were tested using paired samples and Independent Sample t-tests at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that; there was a statistically significant difference in attitude and interest scores of students taught Physics concepts using ethnosciencebased instruction and their counterparts taught same concepts using conventional teaching method in favour of those taught using the ethnoscience-based instruction. Also, there was a significant difference between the academic performance of students taught physics concepts using ethnoscience-based instruction and those taught same concepts using conventional teaching method in favour of those taught using the ethnoscience based instruction. The indigenes outlined some ethnoscience practices that could be adopted into teaching some physics concepts.