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An evaluation of the Nigerian Integrated Science Project (NISP) after a decade of use in the classroom

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Abstract

The following article is an evaluation study of the Nigerian Integrated Science Project (NISP) which focussed on discovering how successful the project had been, a decade after its initial implementation. A number of instruments, including Teachers' Questionnaire, Assessment, Attitude, and Readability Tests, were employed for collecting data from the teachers involved (N=482) and from a cross-section of the students (N=1,894) using the books throughout the country. The results suggest that the teachers of Integrated Science are not favourably disposed towards parts of the project because of their lack of appropriate training; the cognitive objectives achieved are below expectations but the majority of the students have developed positive attitudes towards science through NISP. Areas that particularly need to be examined when revising the Project, and which could be of concern to developers of similar projects in other parts of the world, have been identified.

Zusammenfassung

Der folgende Artikel ist eine Auswertung des nigerianischen Projekts für ‘Integrierte Naturwissenschaft’ (NISP), welches sich darauf konzentriert, herauszufinden, wie erfolgreich das Projekt ein Jahrzehnt nach seiner Durchführung ist. Eine Anzahl von Mittel, einschließlich des Lehrerfragebogens, Tests zur Materialbeurteilung, zur Einstellung zum Lehrmaterial und zur Lesbarkeit wurden angewandt, um Daten von den betroffenen Lehrern (N=482) und von einem Querrschnitt der Schüler (N=1894) zu gewinnen, die die Bücher im ganzen Land benutzen. Die Resultate zeigen, daß die Lehrer der ‘Integrierten Naturwissenschaft’ Teilen des Projekts auf Grund mangelnder geeigneter Ausbildung nicht besonders geneigt sind; die kognitiven Ziele, die erreicht wurden, sind unter der Erwartung, aber die Mehrzahl der Schüler haben eine positive Einstellung gegenüber der Naturwissenschaft durch das NISP gewonnen. Die Bereiche, die ganz besonders berücksichtigt werden müssen, wenn das Projekt überarbeitet wird, und die im Interesse von denjenigen, die ähnliche Projekte in anderen Ländern entwickeln, sind identifiziert worden.

Résumé

Cet article est une étude d'évaluation des résultats du Projet Nigérian de Sciences Intégrées (NISP) après dix ans d'expérience pratique. Un grand nombre de moyens, y compris un Questionnaire des Enseignants, leur Appréciation, des Tests sur les Degrés de Difficulté des Textes et sur l'Attitude, ont été utilisés afin de recueillir toutes les données possibles auprès des enseignants concernés (N=482) et aussi d'un échantillonnage d'étudiants (N=1,894) utilisant ces livres dans l'ensemble du pays. Les résultats montrent que les enseignants de Sciences Intégrées ne sont pas favorablement disposés à l'égard du projet et cela par suite de leur manque de formation appropriée; les objectifs cognitifs atteints sont inférieurs aux prévisions établies mais par contre la majorité des étudiants ont acquis et développé une attitude positive vis-à-vis des sciences grâce à ce Projet. On a identifié les domaines qui demandent à être reconsidérés lorsque le Projet sera révisé et qui pourraient intéresser les personnes s'occupant du développement de projets similaires dans d'autres parties du monde.

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Jegede, O.J. An evaluation of the Nigerian Integrated Science Project (NISP) after a decade of use in the classroom. Int Rev Educ 28, 321–336 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00597897

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