Towards Reconceptualizing Science Instruction in Africa: A Model for Process Skills Acquisition in Culturally Relevant Biology Classrooms

Abstract

Science teaching in Nigerian classrooms often relies on methods and textbook content that fail to connect with students’ culture and environment. This disconnect has made it difficult for students to develop essential process skills in Biology, creating a gap between classroom instruction and meaningful learning outcomes. To address this gap, the study investigated the potency of Culturo-Techno-Contextual Approach 2.0 (CTCA 2.0) in enhancing process skills acquisition in biology. A non-randomized pre-test, post-test quasi-experimental design with a 2x2 factorial matrix was used, involving 227 senior secondary II students from two randomly selected secondary schools using two intact classes in Education District I, Lagos State, Nigeria. The experimental group (113 students) received CTCA 2.0 instruction, while the control group (114 students) was taught using the conventional lecture method over five weeks. Data collected through the Biology Process Skills Acquisition Test (BPSAT) and Process Skills Observation Checklist (PSOC) [BPSAT = 0.81; PSOC = 0.80] were analyzed with mean, standard deviation and ANCOVA. Findings revealed that CTCA 2.0 significantly improved process skills acquisition compared to the control group [F(1,224) = 60.05, p < .05], students mostly developed inferring, communicating, observing, and classifying skills. Therefore the study concluded that CTCA 2.0 enhances process skills development in biology and recommended its adoption to promote process skills competence in senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria.