Title: Teaching Methods And Students' Achievement In Biology: A Comparative Study Of Demonstration And Instructional Analogy In Delta State, Nigeria
Authors: OBINNE, Maria Onyedikachi, Prof. O. P. Ajaja, IRORITERAYE-ADJEKPOVU, Janice Imizuokena (Ph.D)
Volume: 10
Issue: 7
Pages: 115-121
Publication Date: 2026/07/28
Abstract:
This study examined the comparative effects of the demonstration method and instructional analogy on the academic achievement of senior secondary school students in Biology in Delta State, Nigeria. A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest non-equivalent control group design was employed. The study population comprised 39,904 Senior Secondary School II (SS II) students enrolled in public mixed secondary schools across the state, from which a sample of 298 students drawn from six schools was selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using the Biology Achievement Test (BAT), a 50-item multiple-choice instrument whose reliability was established using the Kuder-Richardson Formula 21 (KR-21), yielding a coefficient of 0.88. Descriptive statistics, specifically mean and standard deviation, were used to answer the research questions, while Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and the independent samples t-test were employed to test the hypotheses at the 0.05 level of significance. The results revealed that instructional method significantly affected students' achievement in Biology. Students taught through the demonstration method recorded the highest achievement scores, followed by those who received instruction through instructional analogy, whereas the lecture method produced the lowest achievement. Further analysis showed that both learner-centred instructional approaches significantly outperformed the conventional lecture method, although no significant difference was observed between the demonstration method and instructional analogy. The findings also indicated that gender did not significantly influence the achievement of students exposed to either instructional strategy. The study concludes that learner-centred instructional methods provide more effective alternatives to the traditional lecture approach for improving students' achievement in Biology. It is therefore recommended that Biology teachers should integrate demonstration activities and instructional analogies more frequently into classroom instruction to strengthen students' understanding of biological concepts and enhance their academic performance.