CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Backgroundof the Study

             Globalization is affecting every area of humanendeavor all over the world. As a result, there is a very high demand forimprovement in nearly every aspect of human life.  This demand has mounted serious pressures onall that are concerned all over the world for improvement and development. Nonation or any of its component or institution wants to be left out. Theeconomy, politics, socialization and education of the world are individuallyaffected by globalization. School subjects including Economics and the modes ofinstruction are also affected. 

            Economicscurriculum is particularly affected by these changes. The curriculum content isno longer as scanty, without mathematical and statistical contents, as it usedto be from the inception till about a decade ago. Then virtually everycandidate can pass it at credit level without difficulty at the schoolcertificate and general certificate examinations. NigerianEducational Research and Development Council (2008) thus confirm that “the21st century has witnessed landmark economic reforms andstrategisation globally. In Nigeria, the last decade has also witnessedunprecedented economic reforms that have  influenced different sectors of the economy. These reforms have ushereddifferent concepts, models and theories not only into Economics but also intoother disciplines. There is therefore need to make the post-basic Economicscurriculum responsive to make it relevant to Nigeria’s quest to be among thetop 20 players of the world economy come 2020. Development of the human capitaland the entire country is the hall mark of new Economics curriculum”.“Curriculum can be taken to mean the instruments by means of which schools seekto translate the hopes of the society into concrete reality” (Onwuka, 2002:7). Curriculum, according to GreatSchools Partnership (2014),is “the knowledge and skills students are expectedto learn, which includes learning standard or learning objectives they areexpected to meet; the units and lessons that teachers teach; the assignments …materials …tests, assessments,  and other methods used to evaluate student learning”.Economics was introduced insecondary schools curriculum in Nigeria in 1966 and the students were firstexamined in 1967 after much controversy which led to the realization thatEconomics was necessary for every citizen to have the knowledge of economicsystem and how the economy works. It was generally believed that only those whostudied Economics had all the answer to all the problems of the country.  Economics was recognized as a vehicle ofstrict intellectual discipline. Economic is a course of study that is taught insecondary schools, college of education, polytechnics and Universities. It iscentral to the study of management and social science courses in the country’stertiary institutions. Without a credit pass in it in ordinary level certificateexaminations, most tertiary institutions will not offer admission to thecandidates to study management and certain social science courses. It is asocial science that is concerned with optimum allocation and utilization ofresource to satisfy the wants of consumers, firms and the economy at large. Itaims at maximizing returns such as utility, profit, welfare, personal income,firms’ out-put et cetera, at the micro level; and  potential out-put, full employment levelwhile keeping inflation low, equilibrium level of income and so on, at themacro level. It is a vehicle for rapid economic development, self reliance,economic /financial welfare and national economic self reliant. It governs thegovernment economic policies and policy implementation, and it is a tool forregulating the economy. Economics is a course that cut across every sector ofthe economy and if Nigeria is going to achieve the current economic developmentplans: Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and vision 20: 2020 and any short,medium or long term economic plan, the teaching of economic theories, conceptsand policies effectively in schools must be an imperative.

Without effective instructionaldelivery of Economics, nations will, without doubt, remain impoverished. Thisis because there must, for instance, be technological and economical efficiencyin the use of both human and material resource in Nigeria to maximize outputand minimize costs for firms, maximize satisfaction for consumers and welfarefor governments, leading to increased Gross Domestic Product (GDP) whichin-turn leads to increase in standard of living. There is also the need tostabilize the economy through effective trade, monetary and fiscal policies inorder to maintain stable exchange rate, favourable terms and balance of paymentas well as to reduce unemployment, control inflation and to tackle the problemof stagflation which currently ravaging the economy.   

Unfortunately, many students failEconomics in senior secondary school certificate examinations organized by WestAfrican Examination Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council (NECO). Infact, the poor academic achievement, retention and interest of senior secondaryschool students in Economics is alarming since the enrichment of the curriculumwith many more contents including those that are mathematical and statisticalin nature. Difficult Concepts and Topics in Economics/ Social Science Education511 (SSE 511) students of School of Post Graduate Studies, University ofNigeria, Nsukka, carried out a survey assignment in Enugu state of Nigeria ondifficult concepts and topics in secondary school Economics and find out thatmany students and teachers perceive many concepts and topics in Economicsdifficult and that students’ dispositions about the subject have changed fromwhat they used to be. According to them, the students claimed that the topicsare too many, some of them are very difficult and that some are strange(Difficult Concepts in Economics [SSE 511] Students, University of Nigeria, Nsukka,16th February, 2015; personal communication). Using percentage fordata analysis and 50% as base line for topics not preferred by the students tobe set in senior secondary school certificate examination, if they were askedto choose, SSE 511 students discovered that the concepts and topics notpreferred because they are perceived difficult include price determination; elasticityof demand and supply; types of demand and supply; problems involving graphicalillustration; nature of Nigeria economy; mining; instruments for businessfinance; theory of consumer behavior; basic tools for economic analysis; fiscalpolicy; element of national income accounting; human capital development;economic lessons from Asian Tigers, Japan, Europe and America; Economic reformprogramme; current economic plans and economic development challenges amongstothers.                 

Researchers have found out that thecauses of students’ poor achievement, interest and retention in Economics aretraceable to poor teaching methods, the difficult nature of some Economicsconcepts and topics, negative attitudes of students towards Economics, genderfactors, school locations and teachers/students inability to cover theirsyllabus before they take their final examinations in Economics (Okwor &Nwaosu, 2011& WAEC chief examiner’s report, 2007).

            Ithas been observed that the use of expository teaching strategy which seemed tobe successful due to the scanty Economics curriculum content as at then is nolonger effective in teaching and learning Economics in secondary schools sincethe enrichment of the curriculum with new concepts, models and theories. Ossai(2014:153) stated that “instructional strategy otherwise known as teachingmethod can be conceived of as a plan of activities to teach content andsequence learning experience”.  Meziobi,Fubara and Meziobi (2008) stated that “teaching strategies are the umbrellaterm, in fact an overall large scale teaching plan or framework, thatencapsulate both teaching methods and teaching techniques.”  Therefore, instructional strategy includesthe method and the techniques used in and outside the classroom by the teacherand learners in order to achieve the planned learning outcome.

It has been observed that teachersin Nigeria predominantly use expository instructional strategy for contentdelivery in various subjects (including Economics). In order to cover thescheme of work, teachers resort to transmission of facts, dogmas and theoriesto the students who have to regurgitate them in half digested form inexamination. Oduolowu (2007) observed that “among other outdated instructionaltechniques, rote learning which focuses on memorization and regurgitation offacts is still used by teachers in the country (including those in AsabaEducational Zone in Delta State) p. 15. Conventional instructional method of‘talk and chalk’ is grossly inadequate for teaching a problem- solving approachdiscipline such as Economics.   Theprevalent uses of traditional teaching method in teaching Economics do not allowthe students to have in-depth knowledge of Economics concepts which alsoadversely affects retention and interest. This ugly development hinders thecritical thinking skill that Economics develops in the learners and can makethe topics difficult to the students.  Inorder to achieve instructional objectives and education goals, students areexpected to excel in the academic work, experience comfortable academicenvironment and provision of necessary infrastructural facilities while“Gbanaja” according to Ossai, (2014), “pointed out that the method adopted byany teacher in teaching any particular subject can affect learner’s level ofachievement”.  There is therefore, theneed to employ appropriate instructional strategy that can enhance students’achievements, interests and retention in Economics irrespective of their gendergroups and their school locations.

Knowledge construction requireshigher cognitive ability on the part of the learner to enable him/her becomeconscious of himself as a learner,  hislevel of knowledge, his learning ability, the learning task needed to beperformed,  what is needed to be learntfrom the curriculum content, be able to adjust his/her previous knowledge and use it meaningfully to restructure thenew knowledge in the best way he/she can easily make meaning out of it whetherin the classroom, in group interactions and in personal studies. Theinstructional strategies currently adopted by teachers neglected and overlookedthese potentials at the various phases of Economics curriculum. However, themeta-cognitive instructional strategy variously referred to asmemory-monitoring and self regulation, meta-reasoning, meta-cognition,meta-awareness and auto-consciousness can help students to improve theirachievement, interest and retention in Economics. 

            Various scholars gave variousdefinitions of meta-cognition. Being aware of what you know and don’t know,understanding what you will need to know for a certain task and having an ideaof how to use your current skill to learn what you don’t know is an aspect ofmeta-cognition.  This is the aspect ofmeta-cognition referred to as meta-cognitive knowledge or meta-cognitiveawareness which is made up of personal knowledge, task knowledge and strategicknowledge. Meta-cognition is defined by some scholars as the process ofthinking about thinking and reflecting on ones thinking and seems to be a bigpredictor of success: academically, socially and professionally. In thisdefinition, meta-cognitive awareness and meta-cognitive regulation are implied,though there is the third stage or class of meta-cognition referred to asmeta-cognitive experience which has to do with the drive or the motive thatpropels active learning of perceived difficult task. Chick (2015) defined meta-cognitionas the process used to plan, monitor and assess ones understanding andperformances and includes ones thinking and learning and oneself as a thinkerand learner. In Chick’s definition, the process of planning, monitoring andassessing ones understanding and performances talks about the three steps inmeta-cognitive strategy or meta-cognitive regulation while the reference ofoneself as a thinker and a learner has to do with meta-cognitive awareness allof which may not be developed in learners except through instruction.  Any one that acquired meta-cognitiveabilities has acquired the knowledge, skills, and values that govern, controland regulate the learning of other knowledge, skills and value. This means thatmeta-cognition has in it, the driving force behind acquisition of knowledge,skills, attitudes and values. It affects the three domains of educationalobjectives in which retention, achievement and interest lie. The more meta-cognitiveone is, the more one would be able to acquire knowledge, skills, attitudes and values.  It will help learners to choose the right cognitivetool for task and plays critical roles in active and successful learning.

Cognition on its own is a term thatrefers to the thinking process of an individual. These processes includeattention, perception, memory knowledge representation, language problemsolving, reasoning and decision making (Kolleg, 2007; Marzonu & Kendall,2007). Constructing understanding requires cognitive and meta-cognitiveelements; learners “construct knowledge” using cognitive strategies, and theyguide, regulate, and evaluate their learning using meta-cognitive strategies.It is through this “thinking about thinking” that real learning occurs. Asstudents become more skilled at using meta-cognitive strategies, they wouldgain confidence and become more independent learners. Meta-cognition therefore,means learning how to learn. It is one’s ability to identify learning tasks,set learning goals, identify ones strength and weakness as a learner, use one’sprior strategic knowledge to plan a strategy for approaching  learning task, take necessary steps to solveproblems, monitor ones cognition, reflect on and evaluate results; and modifyones approach when necessary.

There are three classifications ofmeta-cognition. They are meta-cognitive knowledge or meta-cognitive awareness,meta-cognitive regulation or self regulation and meta-cognitive experience.Each of these can be taught and/or modeled in the teaching and learningprocess. Meta-cognitive regulation is the aspect that is referred to as themeta-cognitive strategy which can be used during content delivery of anydiscipline. Research has shown that “meta-cognitive skills can be taught tostudents to improve their learning” (Anderson & Therriault, 2003).  Meta-cognitive strategy can be thoughtalongside with certain teaching or cognitive strategy by slightly adjusting theteaching techniques to accommodate the meta-cognitive elements. It involves theprocesses of teaching the students that they can affect how their ability tolearn develops; teaching them how to set learning goals and plan to meet them;monitor their own learning and adapting when necessary; and evaluate theirthinking process after completing the task and instruction. The teacher canmodel application of questions, think-aloud, read-aloud, jump start journal,lecture wrapper, the use of graphic organizers and mnemonics appropriatelyduring the planning, monitoring and evaluation stages of meta-cognitiveregulation.

High achievement is usuallyenhanced by appropriate instructional strategy. Achievement is the outcome ofmeasuring the effects of relatively standardized sets of cognitive experienceon a learner or group of learners. The higher the desired effect it has, thehigher the achievement. Retaining cognitive experience over a long period oftime may lead to a higher achievement. Retention is maintaining theavailability of newly acquired information, experience or new meaning or somepart of them. It is the ability to recall or to recognize what has been learntor experienced over a long period of time. Cope (2011) observed that active participation during instructionincreases learning and retention. Retention in Economics is not be acquired bymere transmission of facts and dogma but through the application of appropriateinstructional delivery strategy.

Agbo, Anorue & Asogwa (2008)identified that “the causes of difficulties in students’ learning of Economicsinclude poor attitude of students towards the subject”. This means that thelevel of students’ interest in Economics is ebbing. Interest of the learners inEconomics can be described as great attention or concern of the learners forEconomics; an intellectual curiosity about the subject of Economics. It couldbe aroused by activity that tends to satisfy the needs of the learners. Ifteachers could engage the students in activities that tend to satisfy theirstudents’ needs by applying the appropriate instructional strategies inteaching difficult concepts and topics in Economics, students’ interest in thesubject will be kindled.

Genderas a variable could interact with students’ achievement, interest and retention.  In other words some instructional strategiescould be gender sensitive when it comes to students’ achievement, interest andretention.  “Gender relates to thedifference in sex (that is, either male or female) and how this quality affectstheir dispositions towards academic activities” (Okoh, 2007). With someinstructional strategies and in some disciplines, girls may perform achieve pooreror better than boys. Nzewi (2010) noted that “females are grosslyunder-represented and many of them are noted to underachieve in science andtechnology”.  According to  Ibe (2004), education that will equip theindividual with the power to adapt to change irrespective of gender should bethe most important goal of education of any society that wants to progress.

Anotherobserved variable that could influence students’ achievements, interest andretention in Economics is school location. Location is a particular point orplace in physical space. School location, therefore, is a particular placewhere a particular school or schools are physically situated. According toEzeja, Ezeora and Ezugu (2008), “school location for a quite number of timescan serve as a contributing factor that influences academic performance andinterest of students”. The achievements of the students in schools located inrural areas and that of those in schools located in urban areas could varyaccording to their locations.   

            Sincethe instructional methods persistently used in teaching Economics cannot helpeffectively in teaching the difficult Economics concepts, which manifests inperennial poor students’ achievement, interest and retention, the researcherdeemed it necessary to study the effects of meta-cognitive instructionalstrategy on senior secondary school students’ achievement, interest andretention in Economics. As an additional advantage, meta-cognitive experience,an aspect of meta-cognition, has been identified to be responsible for creatingidentity that matters to an individual. In this sense, identity has to do withgoal, aspiration and ambition. Identity provides a basis for meaning making foraction and that learners experiencing difficulty in learning, as a result ofbeing exposed to meta-cognitive experience apply the incremental theory ofability which states that if efforts matters, then difficulty is likely to beinterpreted as meaning that more effort is needed so as to continue to identifywith the identity (Oyesermen & Destin, 2010). Moreover,  “Meta-cognitive activities can guide studentsas they identify what they already know, articulate what they learned,communicate their knowledge, skills and abilities to a specific audience, setgoals and monitor their progress; and evaluate and reverse their own work”(DePaul, 2014). Considering these qualities amongst others, it might not be outof place to investigate the effects of meta-cognitive instructional strategieson secondary school students’ interest, achievement and retention in Economicsin Asaba Education Zone, Delta State.