Effect of Computer Simulation on Secondary School Students’ Academic Achievement in Acid-Base Reactions

This study investigated effect of Computer simulation instructional strategy on Chemistry students’ academic achievement in Acid-Base Reactions in Jalingo Education Zone, Taraba State. Quasi-experimental design was used for the study. The  sample size was 168 students, drawn from 2 intact classes. Acid-Base Reactions Achievement Test (ABRAT) was used for data collection using the Kuder-Richardson’s formula-20 (K-R20) with a  reliability index of 0.92.  The research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation while the null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance using t-test and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The findings revealed that there is significant difference in the mean achievement scores of students taught Acid-Base Reactions using Computer simulation than the Conventional method. However, findings on gender revealed that there is no statistically significant difference in the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught Acid-Base Reactions using Computer simulation. Based on the findings, it is evident to conclude that the use of Computer simulation enhances performance of students in chemistry than the Conventional method of teaching. It is therefore recommended that  Computer simulation  instructional strategy should be adopted and practice by teachers in secondary schools to enhance students’ academic achievement in Chemistry and promote gender-friendly classrooms.