EFFECTS OF POLYA AND TARGET-TASK PROBLEM-SOLVING MODELS ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN CHEMISTRY

Abstract

This study examined the effects of Polya and target-task problem-solving models on secondary school students' academic achievement in Chemistry in Mkpat Enin, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. The study was guided by two research questions and hypotheses. The study adopted a pre-test, post-test quasi-experimental design. The population consisted of 1,740 Senior Secondary two (SS2) Chemistry students, with a sample size of 92 Chemistry students from two intact classes of the two randomly selected schools in the study area. The Chemistry Achievement Test on Redox Reactions (CATRR), with a reliability coefficient of 0.88 determined using the Kuder-Richardson formula-20. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions, while hypotheses were tested using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) at a 0.05 significance level. Results indicated that students taught using the target-task problem-solving model performed better than those taught with the Polya problem-solving model.

However, no significant difference was found in the mean achievement scores of male and female students across both models. Based on these findings, it was concluded that the target-task problem-solving model is more effective in enhancing students‟ academic achievement in redox reactions in Chemistry. Also, it was recommended that Chemistry teachers should incorporate the target-task problem-solving model in teaching redox reactions in Chemistry to enhance students‟ academic achievement.