Jigsaw Cooperative Learning in Physics: It's Impact on Secondary School Students' Achievement in Bukuru Metropolis, Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated the impact of Jigsaw cooperative learning on secondary school students' achievement in Physics. It employed the non-equivalent control group pretest-posttest type of quasi-experimental research design. One hundred and twenty eight (128) Senior Secondary Two (SS II) students from )(bur co-educational secondary schools were used as sample for the study. A 50-item multiple-choice instrument called, "Heat Energy Achievement Test (HEAT)", was used to test students on the concepts of heat energy measurements. The internal consistency of HEAT was estimated at 0.83, using Kuder-Richardson formula 20. Three research questions were raised and answered using mean while two hypotheses were formulated and tested at a=0.05 using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). Findings revealed, amongst others, that students taught using jigsaw cooperative learning achieve significantly higher than students instructed under conventional lecture method, irrespective of gender and the type of school they attend. Based on the findings, recommendations were made which included encouraging Physics teachers to employ jigsaw cooperative learning in teaching secondary school students, since the method has been found to enhance students' achievement in Physics and it is gendeririendly and independent of school type in terms of improving their achievement in the subject.