Email this article The Impact of Contextual Teaching Approach on Divergent and Convergent Learning Styles
Abstract
This research aimed to examine the impact of the Contextual Approach on the academic performance of students with varying learning styles in the teaching of Electrochemistry compared to the traditional lecture method. The study was conducted among 4305 second-year chemistry students from sixteen public secondary schools in Bauchi State, Nigeria. A balloting method was used to randomly select 162 students (94 males), and 68 females), and ANOVA and Scheffes Post hoc were utilized to divide them into experimental and control groups based on their academic ability. To gather data, two tools were used: the Electrochemistry Performance Test (EPT) to assess student performance, and the Convergent and Divergent Identification Test (CDIT) to categorize them into convergent and divergent learning styles. Both instruments had reliability coefficients of r= 0.70 and r=0.60, respectively. The study formulated three research questions and three null hypotheses, which were answered using descriptive statistics and tested using ANOVA and t-test. The research findings revealed that the Contextual Approach significantly improved the academic performance of divergent and convergent students in Electrochemistry, with the experimental group showing higher performance. Additionally, the performance of male and female convergent students did not differ significantly when exposed to Electrochemistry using the Contextual Approach, indicating that this teaching method is gender-friendly. Similarly, teaching Electrochemistry using the Contextual Approach significantly enhanced the performance of both male and female divergent students, suggesting that this approach is gender-inclusive. This finding contradicts earlier studies that suggested gender differences in mathematical abilities influence academic performance. To sum up, this research highlights the effectiveness of the Contextual Approach in improving the academic performance of students with different learning styles in the teaching of Electrochemistry.
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