Reimagining Pedagogical Strategies: YouTube-Based Edutainment in Learning Difficulty Concepts in Secondary School Mathematics in Nigeria

Abstract

Mathematics remains one of the most challenging subjects in STEM education at the secondary level, particularly in topics such as Statistics and Probability. This study examined the effectiveness of YouTube-based edutainment as a pedagogical strategy for improving students’ learning outcomes in these complex concepts. A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest nonequivalent group design was adopted, involving 112 Senior Secondary II (SS2) Mathematics students purposively selected from two public schools in different educational zones of Ogun State, Nigeria. The schools were comparable in teacher qualifications, facilities, student population size, and urban location. Quantitative data was collected and analysed using ANCOVA after preliminary tests for statistical assumptions. While the Shapiro–Wilk test indicated non-normality (F (112) = 0.97; p.05), while the ANCOVA analysis showed a statistically significant difference in favour of the experimental group (mean 21.00; SD = 2.78) than the control group (mean=14.6; SD = 3.49), F (1, 109) = 112.70, p < .01. There was no significant difference in the learning outcomes based on gender. The study concludes that YouTube-based edutainment positively influenced students’ learning outcomes, suggesting that incorporating engaging, technology-driven content into mathematics instruction can improve comprehension of complex topics and foster more profound learning experiences in secondary education.