1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
Teaching as the name implies could be seen as the process of giving knowledge or skill in a particular subject, Longman dictionary of contemporary English (1984:1137). To enhance effective communication and transfer of knowledge, the process of teaching needs the provision of certain tools or materials — otherwise referred to as aids to teaching. Instructional resources are teaching and learning resources.
According to Adeweyi (1991). Instructional resources can be categorized broadly into human and material resources. There are so many kinds of instructional materials; some are visual for instance pictures, graphs, diagrams, posters, chalkboard, models to mention but a few.
Apart from the visual materials, Maduabum (1984:64) indicates audio-acid as another kind of instructional material. The visual materials have to do with helping the children to learn through the medium of sight, while the audio materials enable teaching and learning to take place through the medium of sound. Examples of these include radio, tape recorder, gramma-phone and wireless.
They provide training and listening and consist largely of the spoken word. The third category of instructional materials consists of the audio-visual materials, some of which include television sets, video sets and firm. The application of educational technology, otherwise instructional resources at all levels of education sector of the economy.
The aim of this is to improve instruction at all levels to enable the child learn with interest and ease. Also the insidious of instructional resources increases teaching and learning effectiveness, making learning become more real, concrete and immediate. Gariba (1973) asserted that the effectiveness utilization of various communication media in education provide guidelines for solving the current problems of mass enrolments, shortage of teachers and rapid growth in new knowledge. Akude and Ofoena (1990) on their own side argued that the use of instructional resources help teachers to simplify their teaching so as to make the exercise more meaningful, concrete, natural aid permanent.
A combination of human and material resources improve and extend knowledge to a greater, number of learners. It further creates impressions that are so vivid and powerful that the learner hardly forgets the experience into which he was exposed. Odili (1989) posits that instructional materials, as useful devices for teaching and learning help the teacher to teach without much talking and the learner to learn by observation. The usefulness of instructional resources to facilitate teaching and learning has been declinated by studies by many scholars. Duke (1987).
Onyejemezi (1988). Mkpa (1988). Akude et al (1990). Adowayin (1991) yet there is a conspicuous lack of the materials are well as use of instructional materials in teaching in our schools. As rightly observed by Onyejemezi (1988), our schools and colleges in Nigeria lack educational technology materials.
This is evidence by the absence of those resources in the classrooms could with the fact that the dominant method of teaching has been frontal teaching oral expositions, she observes that teachers talk alone average 90% of all lessons. But research in education Akudo et al (1990), shows that knowledge is absorbed through the five senses assessed in the following proportion. Sight 75% hearing 13%, touch 6% smell 3%, taste 3%, for a normal human being. This implies that the Nigerian primary and secondary school child is subjected to hearing 90% of his lessons, absorbed 13% and losses the remaining 77% of learning due to non-absorption by the senses of hearing.
Another importance of instructional resources is that, their provision will help to accomplish the cardinal objective of education, which demands improvement in science and technology. Such improvement will lead to the acquisition of skills and specialization of students in different vocations of life. No wonder the Nigerian government deems it necessary to adopt a system of education that is mainly vocational. According to the national policy or education (1987:16) this new education system is called 6-3-3-4 system.
The policy contends that the secondary education should be of size years duration and be given in two stages — a junior secondary school stage and a senior secondary school stage; each stage being of three years duration. The essence of grouping it into stages is to ensure that each stage, students, will be adequately and skillfully equipped to carryout their life vocations within the society.
Although certain reasons might prevail against the availability and use of instructional material in our secondary schools. The problem as Okpalla (1981:45) rightly pointed out is that “even when the teachers knows that learning takes place in a variety of ways, he still clings to verbal symbolism (talk-chalk process) as the only medium of impacting knowledge. Thus, teachers are accused of not using instructional materials in the classroom.
But Dike (1981) and Onyemezi (1988) aptly stated that effective utilization of instructional resources is not possible unless we ensure that we have material at the time we need them and in the right amount and teaching and learning resources, since the adopting of educational technology or improving the content quality and quantity of education. In terms of human resources, our primary and secondary schools and colleges lack resources personnel that can teach, use or maintain the equipment or help teachers in the use of available materials. Instructional materials required availability and use of human and materials resources in terms of personnel, facilities, find, support, services and resource centres for the improvement of teaching and learning in the classroom.
A common experience in secondary schools in Idemili where the researcher teach, that classroom lessons are dominated by frontal teaching or lecture method as most teachers do not use instructional materials in teaching. This results from the lack of or non-availability of instructional materials in the secondary schools. The situation is worsened by the teachers' inability to provide or improve the materials for teaching, due to the fact that they cannot afford to use the meager salary or lack of skill or positive attitude to improvise them.
Furthermore, the teachers' lack of skills to utilize instructional materials in teaching is another source of the problem of non-utilization. Dike (1987). Onyejemezi (1988) and Mkpa (1988) observed that majority of teachers do not use the available instructional materials because of lack of the required skills.
They stated further that many teachers are not trained to operate most of the materials or equipments and schools too have not employed the services and experienced instructional media operators. Also accessibility to a functional generator or (NEPA); electricity supply is a factor in the utilization of some hardware materials which requires the use of electricity in secondary schools in Idemili have alternative facilities.
Where there is lack of availability and non-utilization of instructional resources cannot be guarantee quality education of the child. The researcher decided to undertake the study to investigate into the availability and use of instructional materials in Nigeria secondary and with a particular reference to Idemili local government area.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Mathematics is a science that requires an intensive use of adequate instructional materials for its effective teaching and learning. According to some Nigerian Educationist, this subject not been accorded due to priority, despite all the emphasis laid on it in the school curriculum, because of inadequate instructional materials.
Extracts from literature show this inadequacy;
- “There are little or no instructional materials available for the teaching and learning of mathematics in our secondary schools”. The national concord (Wed. Feb. 12. 1992:15)
- “Our secondary schools have little or no well equipped mathematics laboratories” Peterson (1971:107).
- “There are no library materials for the effective teaching and learning of mathematics in our secondary schools” Green (1965”81).
- “Resource people are not available for the teaching of mathematics in our secondary schools”.
- The National Concord (Wed. Fed. 12. 1992:15).
Studies have shown that the application of instructional resources in teaching and learning is so vital to the entire gamut of the educational system in order to ensure quality education. The problem of this study is delineated in the following questions:
- Are instructional materials available in secondary schools?
- Do teachers use them in teaching of mathematics?
- If not, why do they not use them in teaching?
1.3 Purpose of the Study
Most disciplines of human endeavours have got certain facilities, which enhance effective teaching and learning experiences. This makes the researchers to venture into the study such as to determine the availability and utilization of instructional materials for the teaching and learning of mathematics in the secondary schools in Idemili Local Government Area.
Specifically, the study would:
- Identify the instructional materials that are or not available for the teaching and learning of mathematics in our secondary schools.
- Determine if there are enough resource people available for the teaching of mathematics in our secondary schools.
- Determine how often teachers utilized available resources for the enhancement of teaching and learning of mathematics.
- Determine whether the teachers are skilled in operating certain instructional materials or equipments.
- Determine to what extent fund and electricity supply are provided for teaching and learning in the schools
- Established the extent to which the resource materials for teaching and learning are relevant and functional.
1.4 Significance of the Study
This study is being carried out on the view that:
- Its findings will reveal the types and extent to which instructional materials have been provided for effective teaching and learning of mathematics in the secondary school in Idemili Local Government Area.
- The researcher believes that this study would enable the authorities and the West African Examination Council, including those in the Ministry of Education to make necessary arrangement for the provision of mathematical instructional materials.
- Hopefully, this study would also help in planning an effective mathematics curriculum in the senior school certificate, so that its objectives would be achieved at the end.
1.5 Scope of the Study
This study was limited to identifying the available resources for teaching and learning of mathematics and the extent, which teachers use them in their lesson; it did not extend to how to establish a resource centre or the training of personnel for the resource centres.
1.6 Research Questions
This study attempted to provide answers to the following questions.
- What are the materials that are not available for the teaching and learning of mathematics in our secondary school?
- Do our secondary schools have well equipped mathematics laboratories?
- Are there enough materials for teaching and learning of mathematics?
- Have our secondary schools been provided with enough resource people?
1.7 Research Hypothesis
This study was guided by the following hypothesis:
- Instructional materials are not available for the teaching and learning of mathematics in our secondary schools.
- Our secondary school mathematics laboratories are poorly equipped with instructional materials.
- Resource people are not available for effective teaching of mathematics.
