CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
The views of scholars who had worked
centrally or peripherally on this subject are the concern of this chapter, and
have been organized according to the following sub-headings:
i.
Biology
education in Nigeria
ii.
Lack
of qualified and motivated biology teachers
iii.
Methods
and techniques used in teaching biology
iv.
Lack
of adequately equipped biology laboratories.
v.
Infrequent
and in-efficient biology practical classes
vi.
Inadequate
provision of infrastructural facilities in schools.
2.1 BIOLOGY
EDUCATION IN NIGERIA
Biology, being the science that
studies life, is as important as life itself. Everybody has a need for it, for
it has to do with their food, health, environment, business and virtually
everything – air, water, soil and we are still counting; so that one is right
to ask, where on earth is biology needed?
It
is needed in agriculture for food production and processing, growing of plants
and animals for nutritional, pharmacological, industrial and environmental
uses. Industries that deal with organic substrates, catalysis (enzymes) and
products are in need of biology. The biotic and abiotic distinctions,
interaction and transformations that is obtained in the air, soil and water are
only elucidated by biology.
The
Nigerian system of education had a scheme for inevitable study of biology in
the school curriculum.
It
is offered in combination with other natural sciences in primary schools as
primary science, in junior secondary school as integrated science, and in
secondary schools, it is offered as general biology.
Even
in tertiary institutions, students whose disciplines do not have inclination
with biology offer it still as natural sciences under general studies. Life
sciences students and those of other natural science go deeper in the course,
where as many others of core-life science disciplines pick careers in it.
Regrettably,
the teaching of biology in secondary school is in a decline owing to some
immediate and remote factors and this portends a bad omen to the advancement of
the subject, since the secondary school biology is the heart of the study,
which is aimed at ensuring that students acquire skills of science.
Alien
(1980) identified nine (9) areas that pose problems of teachers and students,
in the teaching and learning of biology which are founded in resources and
materials.
Lessa
(2010) blamed the ineffective teaching of biology on poor teaching method and
techniques.
Salami
(2002) showed that lack of effective communication hampers effective flow of
information between the teachers and students of science subjects and blamed it
on the non-qualification of teachers that handle science subjects.
In
his study, Iroegbu (2006) identified that teachers of biology fail to
acknowledge that biology is a volume that needs to be broken into bids through
participatory explanations and demonstrations.
Educationist
have laid a lot-emphasis that a good biology teacher is expected to posses at
least a university degree or possesses a National Certificate in Education NCE.
Ogunleye
(1999) cited Ukeje in his book to have said that the poor achievement in
science (Biology in particular) is due to teachers who are not qualified and
not interested in their fields of study as some teach at the limits of their
knowledge and lack of knowledge in planning and selecting teaching methods and
resource management.
The
quality of a teachers teaching determines to a large extent the student’s level
of understanding studies have shown that teacher quality is the most important
educational input predicting students’ achievement. According to the findings
of Aguirre, Haggerty and Linder (1990), Kerby and Cook (1993), and Tabin la master
(1995) reveal a wide range of ideas and believe about teaching and learning.
Some teachers believe that students’ learning must come from students
themselves as a form of inquiry.
Obiora
(2007), among other barriers to the effective teaching of biology in secondary
schools, discredited the decay in instrumentation and demonstration of biology
practical in laboratories, ie poor equipment of biology laboratories,
infrequent, inefficient and most times unskilled practical classes. This, he
remarked, denies students of the chances of internalizing the principles of
biology through participatory laboratory experiments and analysis.
Suffice
to say that learning cannot thrive in an environment that is not engineered to
support learning, meaning that the nature of the classrooms and laboratories
where biology classes are held determines whether there is comfort and conducive
atmosphere for learning or not.
Dike
(2007) reported that the Acting Head of Research Division at the headquarters
in WAEC office explained that government was expected to create an enabling
environment for effective teaching and learning to take place through the
provision of infrastructural facilities.
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