AN EXAMINATION OF THE EXTENT AND TYPE OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS IMPROVISATION IN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the study

The most significant tool for transformation and resource development is education. It entails far more than just classroom instruction and factual information. The transfer of values and concepts that are supposed to be internalized is the true nature of education. The Federal Government believes that education should be a way of attaining creativity, self-reliance and mental independence, a patriotic vision, and liberation from mental colonization, as outlined by the National Policy on Education (2004 edition).

The aforementioned fundamental difficulties of education are not unique to Nigeria or the twentieth century. People concerned with educational development have been giving answers to the ever-intriguing concerns of education in a quickly changing world with its complex and sophisticated educational phenomena.

"Over verbalization" is a common charge leveled at teachers. This refers to the overuse of words to communicate something. Unfortunately, many instructors are so enamored with the sound of their own voices that they frequently overlook whether or not their pupils are truly comprehending and appreciating what they (the teachers) are saying. The issue is that many professors talk excessively without actually saying anything. Others have a tendency to "speak at" their pupils rather than "talk with" them. As a result, they continue to speak despite nonverbal cues from students that they are bored or even lost. Teachers no longer have to rely entirely on words to convey their message, thanks to the advancement of contemporary technology. A wide range of materials are available to us that may be employed to make our message more vivid and engaging. According to Stella, Abeke, and Abiodun, these resources might be of four types: natural, human, material, and institutional (2000). These items are frequently referred to as instructional materials, and they are utilized to enhance or complement the work of the teachers.

"Any item brought into the classroom for the purpose of lesson presentation to support or facilitate the teacher's teaching effort and help the occurrence of learning in the pupils (students)" is how some educationists describe instructional materials (Akande 2002).

Instructional materials, according to Ajelabi (2002), are "a collection of teaching-learning resources that comprise an intrinsic component of an instructional process and are used in conveying educational content to the learners." Many educational technologists, according to Akinleye (1997), view instructional materials as materials, equipment, and resources utilized in learning situations to augment written and spoken words in the transfer of knowledge, attributes, ideas, concepts, and values. They are also items or objects that are brought into play to highlight clarity, reinforce, and vitalize the teachers' teachings, according to him. According to the definitions given above, they are linked by a string. That is to say, educational materials serve as a supplement and complement to the standard teaching procedure. They range from the extremely simple and affordable chalkboard, flat graphics, diagrams, drawings, and maps to the more intricate and costly television, mini-projectors, slides, and filmstrip projectors, according to Ajelabi (2000).

All of this points to the notion that effective teaching in schools is built on the foundation of instructional materials. Without them, teaching is not result-oriented. Almost all occupations involve the usage of materials in order to successfully carry out their job. The profession of teaching is no exception. The mere use of these resources, however, does not ensure effective communication or education. Their usefulness in enhancing learning is due to their careful selection and skilful use by teachers. It is also critical for instructors to get aware with the many types of instructional resources as well as the benefits that may be garnered from their effective usage, especially at the beginning. Teachers must also have a working understanding of how to use them properly. Teachers must also have a good understanding of the criteria to be used in choosing and assessing them, as well as the concepts that underpin their effective usage. Although instructional resources are essential for efficient teaching and learning, they are in short supply in our institutions. "In the 1970s, Nigeria had a time of economic prosperity, so it was feasible for schools to buy certain instructional materials for teaching," Stella, Abeke, and Abiodun (2000) said in their book Teaching Effectiveness in Nigerian Schools. Teachers must be resourceful and creative in light of the current economic downturn and the expensive cost of resources.

Because of the current economic slump in Nigeria, the government and schools have not been able to provide the sufficient number of instructional resources required in schools, according to the above remark. A visit to several of the community's schools is required to prove this. "There were decaying houses.... The premises were unclean," Onyene (2005) noticed on such a visit. In several classrooms, there was no duster. In their classrooms, the majority of the teachers did not use teaching materials. There were no visual tools to make instruction more effective. According to Abiodun et al (2000), the solution is for instructors to be inventive and innovative. Teachers will have to improvise in order to meet this challenge. The most important question is: What is Improvisation?

Improvisation simply refers to the process of coming up with alternatives or substitutions for pre-made items. It entails the substitution of locally available and easily available resources with factory-made ones (Adesanya 2000). "What operates in the country should not be used as a justification for the reduction in teachers' productivity," according to the above description and what was previously expressed about the Nigerian economy. Teachers must improvise educational materials, according to the Nigerian Educator Times (2004). In light of this, the purpose of this research is to investigate the prevalence and forms of improvisation in Lagos State schools.

1.2 Statements of the Problem

Although many educators recognize the value of teaching resources, the reality is that they are in short supply in Nigerian classrooms. When it comes to supplying the essential educational resources, the government is failing to live up to its obligations, resulting in an issue of inadequate instructional materials in schools. In addition, the government fails to make a concerted effort to make suitable training programs available that promote alternative-improvisation.

Another issue identified by Ogunranti (2001) is that "some educational administrators' unfavorable attitude toward the provision of instructional aids (materials) for use in schools appears to have exacerbated this indifference." Insufficient finances to equip schools; instructional materials overlooked in curriculum preparation; and a lack of adequately-trained staff are among the other challenges he identified that work against the integration of instructional materials with classroom instructional procedures in Nigeria.

As a result, the purpose of this study is to determine the breadth and types of educational materials that are being improvised by everybody and found in the school system.

1.3 The Purpose of the Study  

The purpose of this study is to:

i. Survey the extent and types of instructional materials provided by the government;

ii. Determine the extent and the types of instructional materials that teachers actually improvise with their students;

iii. study the effect of instructional materials usage in the teaching and learning situation;

iv. Examine the extent and the types of instructional materials that the school administration can improvise;

v. Investigate the extent and the types of instructional materials that can be improvised by the students and their parents.

1.4 Research Questions

This study will provide answers to the following research questions:

i. To what extent have the government been able to provide instructional materials to schools in Lagos State?

ii. How well have schools administrators been responding to improvisation of instructional materials in Secondary Schools in Lagos State?

iii. What types of instructional materials do students help to improvise?

iv. To what extent do students participate in the improvisation of instructional materials

v. To what extent do teachers improvise instructional materials in your school?

vi. What are the types or instructional materials available in your school?

1.5 Significance of the study

It is intended that the findings of this study would give valuable information for improvising relevant educational materials.

Improvisation, for one thing, encourages inventiveness. Teachers, teachers, and students will all profit as a result of this. They will be more resourceful as a result of this study, and this will give them confidence in manipulating materials successfully.

The government will profit as well, because they will recognize that improvisation is a permanent answer to the importation of instructional materials. Because of the current exchange rate, imported instructional materials may be too expensive for the government and most institutions. However, improvising these components is a cost-effective option. The majority of the supplies need are readily available. We can get them through the resources available in our neighborhood. There are four categories of resources that may be employed as instructional materials: natural, human, material, and institutional (Abiodun et al 2000)

Furthermore, curriculum makers will learn from this study that instead of importing teaching aids, they should encourage the usage of indigenous teaching aids created via improvisation. Because of the implications of cultural variations, the majority of imported instructional materials are intended for a different cultural context. As a result, they may not fully meet the teachers' aims since background experience and examples in such materials vary from one location to the next.

Finally, due to ill-trained or inadequate personnel, the upkeep of imported instructional materials may provide certain challenges. Using improvised local teaching resources, on the other hand, may not necessitate as much knowledge because the materials are known to the end users.

1.6 Scope of the Study

This study will cover ten secondary schools selected in three local government areas of Lagos –state. There are listed below:

1.7 Definition of terms

Improvisation: The process whereby teachers students o the school administrators construct materials for teaching to supplement the written and spoken activities of the teachers.

Over-verbalization: This means the excessive use of words to convey meaning. During a teaching and learning situation in which the teachers continues to talk without carrying the students along.

Talk with: this is the opposite of ‘talk at’ The teaching in this situation will be an interactive one between the teacher and the students.