Influence of E-Learning Environment Program on Pupils’ Instructional Approaches in Physics Measurement Lessons in Kenyan Secondary Schools

Abstract

This article explores the pupils’ approaches and development of measurement concepts in an innovation that involved an e-learning environment in school physics conducted in a developing country, namely Kenya. A total of 118 randomly pupils enrolled in schools that could be visited conveniently in Nakuru district, Kenya were exposed to an e-learning environment program (ELEP) in physics for a period of six weeks. The ELEP physics module was developed from a physics course dealing with the concept of measurement. It was chosen because the majority of teachers viewed it as a topic that is difficult to teach through the regular method. The content was based on the Kenya Institute of Education (KIE) approved syllabus for science education, science textbooks and other relevant materials. Part of the investigation was to gain insight on the pupils’ approaches and reactions to having to learn measurement concepts through ELEP. In order to achieve this, they were interviewed and other information captured during the physics course to understand what really transpired when they were learning measurement concepts using the ELEP lessonware. The participants’ classroom behaviors were captured using the Physics Practical Lessons Analysis System (PPLAS) and Classroom Practical Work Assessment (CPWA). A selected group of pupils’ were also interviewed to gain insight into their own expressions using the Pupils’ Interview Guide (PIG). The results showed effective approaches and reactions that the pupils exposed to the computer-augmented lessons used to learn physics that differed remarkably from those denied this program. For, the pupils in the experimental condition depended more on their peers and the program while their counterparts in the traditional class were solely dependent on the teacher. The study concludes that the use of ELEP to support conventional physics instruction can have substantial advantages over other instructional methods. Moreover, it proved that the use of ELEP enabled the learners not only to actively participate in the learning process and to engage fully in the instructional process but to under build a deeper understanding of measurement and procedural skills.