RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHEMISTRY LABORATORY WORK AND STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN CHEMISTRY, IN KILIFI NORTH CONSTITUENCY, KENYA

Abstract

Despite the fact that Chemistry is the gatekeeper and backbone of other science subjects, the general performance in Chemistry among secondary school students countrywide remains poor. Research evidence shows that poor performance in Chemistry not only results from intrinsic conceptual difficulties in the subject but also springs from poor Chemistry Laboratory work. However, Chemistry educationists seem to be in disagreement with respect to the relationship between Chemistry Laboratory work and students’ academic performance in Chemistry. This study, therefore, sought to find out the relationship between Chemistry Laboratory work and students’ academic performance in Chemistry. The study was guided by John Dewey’s Constructivist Learning theory. The study was conducted in Kilifi North Constituency. The research design was correlation, simple random sampling was used to select one girl school, six mixed schools, and Purposive sampling was used to select one boys’ school. Stratified random sampling and simple random sampling were used to select 80 students. Data was collected by use of Student Questionnaire (SQ) and through analysis of documents and mark sheet form. Statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) was used to facilitate data analysis. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used. The level of significant used in the study was 0.05. The findings revealed, 27.5% of schools utilize the expected 11-13 lessons per term, 33.75% utilizes 7-10 lessons and 38.75% utilizes 3-6 lessons. The findings emerging from this study also revealed that there was a significant positive relationship between; the use of chemistry laboratory and student’s academic performance in chemistry. In conclusion, students whose teachers always take them to the laboratory during practical lessons performed better in practical examinations.

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