Impact of Discovery-Based Learning Method on Senior Secondary School Physics

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to ascertain the impact of discovery- based learning method on teaching and learning of physics in secondary schools in Awgu Education Zone. Two research questions and two hypotheses were posed to guide the study. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. A sample size of 490 respondents made up of 291 male and 199 female teachers were drawn using stratified random sampling techniques from four senior secondary schools in Awgu Education Zone. The instrument used for data collection was a 10 - item questionnaire. The instrument had face validity and reliability co-efficient of .77 obtained using Cronbach Alpha formular. Mean statistic was used to answer the research questions while the hypotheses were tested at .05 level of significance using t-test statistic. The result of data analysis showed that; discovery-based learning method has helped to a great extent in effective teaching and learning of Physics. Also, discovery-based learning method has promoted research in Physics. The respondents classified by gender did not differ on the extent to which discovery-based learning method helped in effective teaching and learning, improved students’ knowledge and promoted research in Physics. Conclusion and recommendations were equally highlighted.