EFFECT OF GUIDED DISCOVERY METHOD ON STUDENTS' ACHIEVEMENT IN BASIC SCIENCE IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN OLAMABORO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF KOGI STATE

The paper investigated the effect of guided discovery method on junior secondary school students' achievement in basic science in Olamaboro Local Government Area of Kogi State. A quasi-experimental design was adopted for the study. Two objectives, two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. The population of the study was made up of all Junior Secondary School two (JSS II) students from the area of study. A total of eighty (80) students were selected by simple random sampling technique from two schools in the study area. The instrument used for the study was a Basic Science Achievement Test (BSAT). The reliability of the instrument was determined using Kuder-Richadson (K-R 20) which yielded a reliability coefficient of 0.78. Data were collected after administering the instruments to the students. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions while Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. Findings from the study revealed that students taught basic science using discovery method did better than those taught using conventional method. The result further reveals that there was no significant difference in the achievement of male and female students taught using discovery method in basic science. It is recommended that basic science teachers should use discovery method to foster teaching and learning in basic science in order to enhance students' achievement in the subject.