ABSTRACT

This study investigated the effect of blended learning strategy on students’ achievement and retention in Economics in Ebonyi State. The study was guided by six research questions and hypotheses.  The study adopted a pretest, posttest, control group quasi experimental design. Two secondary schools were purposively selected for the study. In each school, an intact class of SSII Economics students was drawn and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group was taught Economics using blended learning strategy while the control group was taught using the lecture method. Data were collected using an Economics Achievement Test (EAT). The instrument was face and content validated by three experts. The reliability of the instrument was determined using K-R₂₀ statistic which yielded the internal consistency index of 0.78. Data obtained were analyzed using mean and standard deviation while hypotheses were tested using the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). The results of the study indicated that blended learning strategy had increasing and significant effect on the mean achievement scores of students in Economics, blended learning strategy had no significant differential effect on male and female students’ mean achievement score in Economics, method and gender had no significant interaction effects on students’ mean achievement scores in Economics, blended learning strategy had high and significant effect on the mean retention scores of students in Economics, blended learning strategy had no significant differential effect on the mean retention scores of male and female students in Economics and there was no significant interaction effect of  instructional method and gender on the mean retention scores of students in Economics. Based on these findings, it was recommended among others that blended learning strategy should always be used to teach Economics in order to facilitate students’ achievement and retention.