Lack of Qualified and Motivated Biology Teachers

Lack of Qualified and Motivated Biology Teachers

The success of any educational problem depends on the caliber of teachers. Lack of qualified and motivated biology teachers is a major impediment militating against the effective teaching of biology. The quality of a teacher determines to a large extent the students level of understanding, it is pertinent to know that the quality of a teacher is the most important educational input predicting students achievement.

Ajeyalemi (1990), opined that the students poor performance and lack of interest in science, particularly biology is as a result of lack of qualified and motivated biology teachers. If teachers from any other field are mandated to teach biology in schools, in such cases, then due to the abstract nature of biology the learners will not be able to benefit maximally from the lesson because the teacher is not professionally trained in the mandated field of study. Owing to the need for scientists and their accelerated influx in other sectors, teaching is generally seen as unlucrative profession,
compared with other learned professions – such as medicine, law, engineering, and architecture and so some teachers are dissatisfied and even depressed about their professional standing. They feel that the work load is too heavy, and the recognition and appreciation are too limited and as such the few available qualified biology teachers are not motivated, resulting from poor human resources policies, there is a net deficiency of capable hands to sciences and biology in particularly in secondary schools.

Again, the demand for teaching biology has been upgraded since there are new areas that are being explored day by day. So, the quality of biology teachers is a guest for intelligence and an up-to date fitness in the subject, plus the ability and will to teach, only a few of biology teachers meet this demand, where as the rest vast majority are not qualified. In the same vain a good number of biology teachers are not conversant with modern gadgets and information technology nor acquainted with the recent advancements that computer and other sophisticated gadgets avail biology. This automatically excludes many biology teachers from the confidence list of 21^st century biology education for their lack of skills and latest applications of the principles of biology.

Imoh (2006) observed that lack of qualified teachers oblige some schools to engage the services of non-qualified persons to handle the skill intensive subject. This leaves the subject and the learners at the mercies of weaklings, who might claim to be the best even when they lack basic understanding of the subject, its philosophy and teaching.

Ukeje (1995) held that it is a national suicide for any nation to have its best brains as engineers, physicians, lawyers while its poorest brains teach its youths. He concluded that the cumulative effect is national crisis and non-development. This is exactly what is happening in our secondary schools today, the brains that are able to teach are not motivated to teach, where as those that are contented to teach are not qualified to teach.

In most of our secondary schools, the few available biology teachers and those who are able and willing to teach are overloaded with work which cumminates in diminishing returns and in many cases monopoly and undue exploitation of helpless knowledge seekers. This is why we hear of extra-moral classes, special practical classes, exam runs, special centres and their likes. These teachers having no one to checkmate their works, end up in many instance teaching their own ideas which is a shift from the provisions of the curriculum.

It is one thing to be able to teach, and another thing to be willing or motivated to do so. Teaching a delicate subject like biology require both qualification and motivation (in form of sponsorship to seminars, conferences, science fairs, courses and time –to time appraisal and promotion with an enhanced salary packages, enabling working environment and conditions, provisions of teaching facilities, infrastructure, interesting human resources policies, incentive, retirement/disengagement packages and job security)

Agunyegon (1980) noted that there exist relationship between teachers’ qualification and students performance. This points to the fact that the quality of a teachers’ teaching determines to a large extent the students’ level of understanding, therefore it is clear that teacher quality is the most important educational input predicting students’ achievement. It is a known fact that qualified, skillful biologist and biology educationist are not engaged to teach because they are not adequately mobilized or motivated, where as mere job seekers who are not fit to do the job but are cheaper to engage are hired especially in private schools. This makes a mess of the education system and the teaching and advancement of biology in particular in Nigerian Secondary Schools.

Every other agency, ministry, parastatals and government itself depends on the strength of education to function effectively in this country yet, the policy makers, politicians and stakeholders who are sitting on the circle of the wealth of this country, even though they are not as productive as teachers often make quick reference to the economic depression we are facing as their inability for not making adequate provision for the education sector and not motivating teachers to teach. The teachers, though professionals are constantly neglected as we see in their ridiculous salary scheme to start with.

This neglect is only a display of how myopic our leaders are about the root of the said economic depression, the disdain with which education and educationist have been treated over years. In reprisal attack against the nation for the protracted neglect of schools and teachers, our educational institutions now break our youths who in turn break the society, instead of building youths who would have built out nation.

The concern here is not to appropriate guilt on either government or teachers, nor to discern who is culpable, but to profer solutions to the mess we are already caught up in, biology teachers who are knowledgeable in the subject and are skillful to teach it, deserve attractive pay cheques and other fringe benefits to keep working, where as others who are misfit in the teaching field should pick up careers in other works of life. This country will fail when education fails and only rise when education rises.

Non Use of Proper Teaching Methods and Techniques

Non Use of Proper Teaching Methods and Techniques   

          A method is a way of doing something consequently, a teaching method is a systematic procedure employed by teachers in their attempt to help learning take place. A teaching method often represents the implementation of a given theory of learning. People have various concept of the nature of education and how learning takes place. These concepts have resulted in different propositions of what teachers should do to facilitate learning.

          According to Adediwuru and Tayo (2007), teaching methods and techniques are like two sides of a corn. Methods can be compared to patterns to be followed in teaching, while techniques are the required characteristics or ingredients for effective teaching. Adequate familiarity with different methods and techniques of presentation and the ability to use them correctly is one of the qualities of an ideal teacher. Unfortunately, most biology teachers adopt methods and techniques that do not conform to what is required.

          The WAEC acting HRDH officers report (2001, 2002,2003 and 2005) on the failure in biology is due to non use of the necessary methods and techniques to impact the required knowledge by teaching in order to ensure that learning takes place.

          Many educationists have emphasized that successful teaching of science subjects cannot be attributed to the use of a specific teaching method. Alexander and

Halverson (1963) stated that no single method of teaching is better than the other and as such one method should not be used often in place of others. Science teachers should use variety of methods in teaching science lessons. In addition to this, Manu (1992) quoting descrild stressed that good teachers do not follow one method but use which ever method that seems best for the achievement of a particular objective.

          Biology as a science subject requires an integration of both theoretical and practical work to make it easily understood by the students. But large number of teachers still use the conventional lecture method while teaching biology.

          Ridgwell (1976) in support of this notion added that all a teacher requires when selecting a method of teaching any science topic is to look for a method that will best motivate and help the students to understand the topic and in the process achieve the desired objectives.

          The teaching approach, methodology and how the professional skills and practices of the teacher are displayed determine the performance of the students. In the same vain, authoritarian and impersonal teacher –student interaction in class could be the major factor that contributes to negative attitude of the students towards learning biology. On the other hand, democratic and personal teacher – student interaction in class elicits positive attitude towards learning biology.

          Ehindero and Ajibade (2002) asserted that students who are curious stakeholders in educational enterprise have long suspected and speculated that some of their teachers lack the necessary professional qualifications like skills, techniques, strategies, ideas etc in a way that would facilitate effective learning. They also believe that these deficiencies contribute significantly to the growing rate of failure in our senior school certificate examinations.

          Odubuni (1981) and Olarewaju (1983) found that most serving teachers employ lecture method in the teaching of biology. The method neglects or is not in tandem with the specialist idea in teaching biology, which recommends enquiry and discovery methods to be used in teaching and learning. Also according to Nolan (1963), a well qualified teacher gives the students the best he can. This shows that he knows the requirements of the subject. He should also recognize the technical components that help the needy students to master their skills as well as recognize their weakness and solution.

          Some biology teachers are graduates of biology and not biology education. This is why, though they know the subject (what to teach), they are not able to pass it on to others and they accept to do so, they employ teaching methods and techniques that are not suitable for the classes and topics they are handling.

          Sofenwa (1973) emphasized that teaching style is an important variable of students achievement. Teachers’ method of teaching can even make a subject which students regard as being difficult and uninteresting, easy to learn. To this effect, Nwankwo (1976) concluded that the effect of teaching methods on the performance of students re-affirms that bad teaching method, use of unsuitable educational gadgets, problem of unqualified and incompetent teachers are all causes of problem of biology learning.

          Mesanya (1970), in the same view, argued that the problem is not what to teach but how to teach it. He added that if the how is lost, the what and when have little significance. All these imply that when a biology lesson is not taught with the right teaching methods and techniques, the students find it difficult to understand the subject and this therefore brings about the poor performance of students in SSCE biology Examinations.

          Smuth (1969) suggested that in order to be effective in bringing about intended learning outcomes, a teacher should be prepared in few areas of knowledge:

i.                   Command of theoretical knowledge about learning and human behaviour

ii.                 Display of attitude of learning and genuine human relationship

iii.              Command of knowledge in the subject matter to be thought

iv.              Control of technical skills of teaching that facilitates students learning.

From the above statement, it seems that the specific teaching methods that arouse students interest and enhance their achievement in biology include activity method, enquiry method and discovery method. Teachers should therefore receive adequate training to be able to apply the suitable teaching methods in order to achieve effective instruction.

Lack of Adequately Equipped Biology Laboratories in Secondary Schools

Lack of Adequately Equipped Biology Laboratories in Secondary Schools  

          With unnumbered botanical (for plants) and scientific (for animals) names, chemical transactions and transformations and biotic and abiotic intra and inter-relations, biology will only amount to boredom if there are no well equipped laboratories to perform experiments which will internalize the principles and practices of the subjects. Bad enough, there are no laboratories in many secondary schools, while the available ones are poorly equipped or mismanaged. This is a serious set-back to the teaching of biology.

          Okeh (2008) argued that science subjects are not to be taught outside laboratories. He further declared that the out-of- laboratory teaching of biology is the chief cause of biology students inadequacies in the art of instrumentation and their poor performance in biology examinations.

          Every tradesman uses tools. A teacher is a worker like the farmer. He uses his own brand of tools which are instructional materials.

          According to Nwokolo (2005), instructional materials are those materials employed by a teacher to improve the effectiveness of instruction. The materials helps to maximize teaching and learning because to appeal to a variety of senses. They could be visual aids, auditory aids, audio-visual materials and stimulation devices. The biochemical changes that occur in biology laboratories also comes with notable sensory effects that are identifiable and so improve students’ understanding, assimilation retention and consequent reproduction of whatever has been instructed.

          However, the availability, technicality and willingness of biology teachers, science laboratory technicians and assistants and laboratory attendants and even laboratory equipment are grossly inadequate. This is a minus to effective teaching and learning of biology and the achievement of the subject in a broader view.

          Imoh (2006) complained that some untrained teachers who are engaged to teach in our schools and colleges cannot use instructional materials and laboratory instruments properly. Some of them think that they are more time consuming owing to their ignorance, they do not appreciate the place of gadgets in learning.

          WAEC chief examiners report 2001, 2002,2003) on the failure of biology candidates is due to the fact that there are no laboratories for teaching through participatory demonstration of biology. These show that lack of adequately equipped biology laboratories contribute to in-effective teaching of biology and students poor performance in its examinations.

Infrequent and Inefficient Biology Practical Classes

Infrequent and Inefficient Biology Practical Classes

           

Biology as a science subject requires an integration of both theoretical and practical work to make it easily understood by the students. But a large proportion of biology teachers only concentrate on the theoretical aspect of the subject leaving the essential practical work unattended to.

          The degree to which the teacher is conversant with a chosen topic facilitates the attainment of the instructional objectives. Further more, it is assumed that under the guidance of teacher, students can develop the understanding and skill of biology.

          Omosowo (2003), assessing science laboratory management patterns in selected secondary schools of Moro Local Government Area of Kwara State, found that the highest frequency of laboratory practicals for SS3 students was once in a week in only a fifth of the schools, a few others was once in a while, whereas a whole lot of other schools he sampled never did laboratory praticals. He reported that students did not perform experiments as they should in all the sampled schools, again, he found that only a fifth of all the schools he sampled had a laboratory for each of the science subjects, while others had multipurpose laboratories for all science subjects and others had no laboratories at all.

          This situation is a true representation of what is obtained elsewhere, even in the area this study scopes and is an insignia of impoverishment on biology in particular and science as a whole.

          Some of the methods that can be used to achieve frequent and efficient biology practical classes include discovery methods and laboratory approach. In line with Clough (1968) discovery method leaves the students to using their own initiative to come up with tests and results in biology practicals. He further suggested that laboratory demonstrations should be frequent and efficient to carry along both the fast and the slow learners.

Inadequate Provision of Infrastructural Facilities in Secondary Schools

Inadequate Provision of Infrastructural Facilities in Secondary Schools  

         

Infrastructural facilities such as good class rooms, classroom furniture, staff offices, office equipment, well equipped laboratories, portable water supply, electricity, libraries and library books and gadgets, housing and accommodation, transportation means and accessible routes are vital to teachers and students as they provide them with improved teaching and learning conditions. In addition, a qualified and motivated biology teacher may be often demoralized by the short supply or breach in the provision of these facilities and mainly teaching materials and aids which may lead to the frustration of his efforts.

          Adah (2009) reported that the minister of education, Sam Egwu admitted that the mass failure of students in WASSCE is a testimony of the many years of neglect of the education sector by the government. He promised to introduce measures that would redress the situation. He also revealed that a class teacher at Ojota secondary school, Lagos who spoke to news watch on condition of anonymity also attributed the poor performance of students in public exams to poor facilities in schools.

          Odia and Omofonmwan (2007) opined that instructional materials and living conditions have deteriorated in many of the schools. Classrooms, libraries and laboratories are nothing to write home about, all leading to decline in academic standards.

          Imoh (2006) suggested that for students to perform better academically, the government should provide enough teaching materials for schools. These materials can be in form of chats, tapes, books, laboratory apparatuses and materials etc.

          Nwokenna (2006) stated that the introduction of information communication technology (ICT) is very important and should be provided in schools so that Nigerians and Ebonyians in particular should be trained in their use to be able to follow the global ICT trends. The computer, internet, e-mail, conferencing, electronic white boards, tapes and videos and all that are valuable to the teaching of science. With all this, it is clear that there is inadequate provision of infrastructural facilities to our schools, and their provision will improve the teaching and learning of sciences.

          The provision of basic amenities and infrastructural facilities such as portable water to ease off the stress of seeking for water and the risks of outbreak of water borne diseases, electricity for steady use of light for gadgets, good road net work and automobiles for easy transportation, well furnished accommodation for comfort and improved studies, good libraries and gadgets for researches and up-dating of knowledge, teaching materials and aids for easy instructions, well equipped laboratories for experiments and demonstrations, and so on, pre-orient teachers to teach better and students to learn more.