Impact of the Use of MBL, Simulations and Graph Samples in Improving Ghanaian SHS Science Students’ Understanding in Describing Kinematics Graphs

Abstract

Ghanaian SHS science students have difficulty when it comes to describing the shapes of kinematics graphs, conversion of kinematics graphs, getting the meaning and calculating slopes (especially from curved graphs) and areas under kinematics graphs, as they are not used to practicing these approaches in the classrooms. They describe shapes of graphs as pictures and give interpretation without taking into cognizance of the type of graph being considered. In this paper, students from experimental group were introduced to the use of microcomputer based laboratory (MBL) tools, simulations and graph samples to practice and describe the shapes of kinematics graphs, convert one form of graph to the other, calculate and get the meaning of slopes and areas under kinematics graphs, whereas students from the control group were introduced to the same topics by the use of the traditional lecture approach, where the teacher only talks and students listen. Students in both the experimental group and the control group were made to answer “Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics (TUG-K) before and after the introduction of the two instructional formats as pre TUG-K and post TUG-K respectively. Their scores were compiled and converted to mean proportion scores and average normalized gain , and compared. The outcome of the results did indicate that students from the experimental group, who were introduced to the use of MBL, simulations and graph samples had better interactive teaching and learning, did better in describing the shapes of kinematics graphs, transforming kinematics graphs, calculating and getting the meaning of slopes and areas under kinematics graphs and as such have better conceptual understanding in kinematics graphs than the students from the control group who were introduced to the same concepts using the traditional lecture approach.

Keywords: Ghanaian science students, Kinematics graphs, MBL