ABSTRACT

The study was carried to determine the effect of collaborative learning on academic achievement of senior secondary school students in Christian Religious Studies in Ebonyi South Education Zone. The study was guided by four research questions and four corresponding null hypothesis were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopted quasi experimental research design. Purposive sampling was employed. The population for the study was 9,185 students comprising 4,180 male and 5,005 female students. The sample of the study was 155 students, comprising 79 male and 76 female students from four selected secondary schools. Instrument for data collection was “Christian Religious Studies Achievement Test (CRSAT)”. The instrument was a 40 item multiple choice used in Christian Religious Studies. The instrument was validated by three experts, to ensure content validity of the CRSAT. The reliability index of the instrument was established at 0.74, using Kudder-Richardson (K-R 20) reliability method. The method of data collection was through pre-test and post-test scores of the two groups of students (experimental and control). Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions while analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypothesis. The result of data analysis revealed that: Students taught Christian Religious Studies using collaborative learning achieved higher than students taught with lecture method. The male students taught Christian Religious Studies using collaborative learning achieved higher than their female counterparts. The urban students taught Christian Religious Studies using collaborative learning achieved higher than their rural counterparts. The methods of teaching Christian Religious Studies (collaborative learning and lecture method) and gender had no interaction effect on students’ achievement. Based on these findings, conclusions were drawn. Among the recommendations made were: Teachers should expose students to the use of collaborative learning strategy by giving them opportunity to practice the skill and gain mastery of it. Ebonyi State Ministry of Education should organize regularly seminars, conference, training and retraining of teachers on the innovative teaching strategy such as effective instructional delivery.