Effects of Cooperative Learning and Field Trip Strategies on Secondary School Students’ Knowledge of and Attitudes to Multicultural Concepts in Social Studies

Abstract

Multicultural concepts in Social Studies are themes which promote national unity through education.  Emphasis is laid on the teaching of multicultural concepts as a result of the growing spate of ethno-religious crises that characterizes Nigerian polity. These have resulted in loss of lives and unquantifiable psychological and material damages. Hence, there is a need for teaching strategies which could promote student interaction and respect for other cultures. This study therefore examined the effects of cooperative learning and field trip strategies on secondary school students’ knowledge of and attitude to multicultural concepts in Social Studies in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. Two null hypotheses were generated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopted a pretest- posttest, control group, quasi experimental design. Multicultural Concepts Knowledge Test (r=0.82) and Multicultural Concept Attitude Scale (r= 0.86) were used to elicit responses from 352 JS III students randomly selected from six secondary schools. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, analysis of covariance and Scheffé post hoc test. It was found out that there was significant main effect of treatment on students’ knowledge of and attitude to multicultural concepts. The probable reasons for the findings and their implications on the need for social interaction and respect for other cultures in Nigeria are further discussed in this paper.

Keywords: Cooperative learning, Field trip, Social Studies, Multicultural concepts, Multicultural education