A Comparative Study Between Experiential and Conventional Teaching Methods on Students’ Retention of Mathematics Concepts

Abstract

The efficacy of several pedagogical approaches for teaching mathematics that improve student retention were examined in this study. Using a non-equivalent control group for both the pre- and post-test, the researcher employed a quasi-experimental design. Sixty seven (67) students in SHS 2 made up the population. A sample of 67 second-year students from Krobo Community Day Senior High Schools served as the study's subject conducted in 2022/2023. Experiential learning was the mode of intervention for the experimental group, whereas traditional/conventional teaching method was employed by the control group. Based on the study's findings, t(df) = -9.646 and p = 0.00 less than ? = 0.05, indicating a significant difference between the experimental and control groups. The results showed that students taught limit of functions through experiential learning approaches retained more content than students taught limit of functions through traditional method. It was therefore recommended from the study that mathematics teachers should teach mathematical ideas through practical learning strategies (experiential learning).

Keywords

Introduction

In today's worldwide society, mathematics is the engine that drives scientific and technological endeavours (Cobb, 2018). Mathematics plays a major role in the objective of building national capacity in science and technology. According to Inweregbuh et al. (2020) and Okeke et al. (2022a, 2022b), countries that prioritize mathematics, science, and technology are likely to have higher living standards and be less reliant on outside assistance. Even though mathematics is valued highly in Ghanaian schools, the majority of pupils still have little interest in the subject (Egara et al, 2021; Evans et al., 2019; Kumah et al., 2016 This in turn leads to poor achievement and retention mathematics examinations. This situation calls for some investigations to address the problems of mathematics education in Ghana and Techiman North in particular. One of the factors that contribute to learners’ poor mathematics achievement is their inability to retain what they have learned (Nzeadibe et al., 2019).  Retention is measured in collaboration with achievement (Nzeadibe et al., 2020), which means that achievement and retention are inseparably linked. Students' achievement is the amount of academic content a student learns in a given length of time, whereas students' retention is the preservation and recall of the learned concept (Etukudo, 2011). Improving learners' achievement necessitates improving their retention of concepts learned. As a result, enhancing learners' achievement demands improving their retention of concepts learnt.  Poor instructional methods and the lack of proper instructional resources, among other factors, have been identified in research as contributing to persistently low achievement and retention of school learners in mathematics (Nzeadibe et al., 2019; Okeke et al., 2022b; Tuliao, 2020). According to experiential learning theory, learning is the process by which knowledge is generated through the transformation of experience. (Kolb, 1984). Experiential learning enables students to think, investigate, ask questions, make decisions, and apply what they have learned. Experiential learning-based teaching material takes a student-centred approach based on the underlying concept that people learn best through experience. Experiential learning is meant to provide a comprehensive learning experience (Llewellyn & Frame, 2012). Contrary the traditional learning approaches do not give students the chance to be active participants in the classroom, and so they do not suit the learners' learning needs Herbert (2013). The conventional technique is used to teach mathematics in primary and secondary schools (Okpala, 2011). The author has also noticed that the teacher-centred approach predominates in primary and secondary education classrooms. The teaching dynamics have a huge impact on how much students learn. Though achievement and retention in mathematics are not only the consequence of the teacher's teaching activities, they do have a substantial impact on classroom learning.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The objective of this research seeks;

To assess the retention potential of students’ mathematical concepts in limit of a function between control and experimental group.

LITERATURE

2.1 Retention of Mathematics Concepts

Retention is measured by achievement. This means that achievement and retention are inseparable. According to Hornby (2000), retention is the ability to remember experiences and lessons learnt. These imply that retention is judged by the amount of knowledge retained, the level of competence maintained, or the consistency with which problem-solving behaviours are displayed. Mathematics retention refers to a learner's capacity to retain, remember, recall, or repeat the taught knowledge or some piece of the knowledge after a certain amount of time. As a result, enhancing student retention of mathematics concepts is required to improve their level of achievement in limit of functions. The researcher believes that it is necessary to investigate whether utilizing an experience learning technique when teaching mathematics could improve student retention. According to (Reed, 1993; Singley & Anderson, 1989), transfer of learning is the ability to apply what one has learned in one setting to another. According to some researchers (Lupart, et al., 1995), the ultimate goal of education is the transfer of knowledge. To solve an issue, people must successfully transfer their information from the context in which it was initially taught to the context of the specific problem; for example, in Mathematics, this frequently requires applying knowledge from an abstract, idealized framework to a more concrete situation. The ultimate purpose of education is to prepare pupils for the new difficulties they will encounter after they finish school. In the classroom, students cannot learn everything. However, we can encourage students' personal growth if we help them develop the ability to apply their knowledge to new difficulties. Transfer of learning study is strongly related to retention. We examine a topic that has long intrigued teachers: transfer of learning, to learn how students apply what they have learned in a calculus course to other courses. A frequent definition of transfer of learning is the ability to adapt what has been learned in one setting to another (Byrnes, 1996).

METHODS

3.1 Research Approach

The research approach employed for this study is quantitative research approach.

3.2 Research Design

The study was conducted using a quantitative (quasi-experimental) design; the researcher chose a non-equivalent group since it was impossible to assign and choose the groups at random. Because the participants in the control and experimental groups did not receive the same treatment (the experimental group was taught using Kolb’s experiential learning, whereas the control group was taught using the conventional method).

3.3 Sample

The sample size for this study was sixty-seven (67) students. The number of samples which were used for the study falls in line with Yamane (1973) who revealed a formula for calculating the ideal sample size.

n=N1+Nα2

where n = sample size N = population size α

 = error (0.05) reliability level 95%

n=80(1+80(0.05)2=66.67

n≈67

3.4 Sampling Technique

The researcher used Purposive sampling. Purposive sampling allows the researcher to use his/her choice to select a sample which he/she thinks, that would supply the information needed (Fraenkel & Wallen, 2009).

3.5 Reliability and Validity of the Test

The reliability analysis that was conducted using Cronbach alpha, yielded a value of 0.84, for the pre-test, 0.88 for the post-test. This coefficient indicates the internal consistency of the test items, measuring the extent to which they collectively measure the intended construct. According to George and Mallery (2003), Cronbach Alpha values above 0.7 are generally considered acceptable, suggesting that the current test demonstrates an acceptable level of reliability.

FINDINGS

4.1 What is the Retention Potential of Students in the Control and Experimental Group?

The data for this research was obtained by distributing questions of retention test to the experimental and control group. The result of retention test was analysed to find out the retention potential

Source: SPSS Output

The analysis from the table 2 above shows the following results for the experimental group (Mean= 39.00 SD= 6.530) and the control group (Mean= 35, SD =4.570) of the retention test with t(df) = -9.646 and   p = 0.00, which indicate a significance difference in retention potential between the two groups. From the data analysis the mean score of the experimental group was higher than their counterpart from the control group indicating that the experimental group had a higher retention potential.

DISCUSSIONS

The study revealed a higher retention in the experimental group, which supports the research by Matthew and Cheng (2020) that active learning techniques such as experiential learning and peer tutoring improve retention of mathematical concepts among students. Additionally, the result is consistent with earlier findings from studies using an ethno-mathematical approach which is a form of experiential learning conducted by Kurumeh (2006) and Omenka (2010), which demonstrated that using an ethno-method of teaching improves student achievement, which implies that student retention is also improved because achievement is a function of retention. The study found that learners had lesser capacity upon entering but had better levels of progress in a variety of skills after being exposed to experiential learning, such as critical thinking, innovation, and problem-solving skills. This result is in line with the study done by Taneja and Bose (2019). This finding supports Ozimek (2004) that experience-based learning improves student retention. The study's findings, also support studies by Powell & Wells (2002), which show that the experimental group retained more information than the control group.

CONCLUSION

The result of this study indicated that there was a significant difference between the achievement score of students in the control and experimental groups. The means of the test from the independent sample t-test revealed that students taught using experiential learning method was higher than those taught conventionally.

RECOMMENDATION

From the summary of the findings of this study, it is recommended that:

• Experiential learning should be used by mathematics teachers as an effective teaching pedagogy since it improves retention according to this study.
• Schools should be equipped with good, functional computers and a laboratory to assist mathematics teachers in incorporating digital technologies in their teaching of mathematics.

Funding:

There is no funding source for this study.

Acknowledgements:

The authors of this paper would like to express their appreciation to the reviewers for providing insightful remarks and ideas. We sincerely acknowledged their efforts towards enhancing the presentation and the content of the work.

Declaration of interest:

The authors have reported no conflicts of interest.

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