GASPRO International Journal of Eminent Scholars

This paper examined the effects of standard instructional materials and improvised instructional materials on secondary school students’ academic performance in physics in the Uyo local government area of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. Forty-five (24 male and 21 female) SS1 students from three secondary schools in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, made up the sample. Standard instructional materials (SIM) and improvised instructional materials (IIM) for teaching physics concepts were determined using Pretest – Posttest experimental group design. The reliability coefficient of the Biology Performance Test was 0.84 using the Kuder-Richardson (KR-21) formula. The schools were randomly assigned to two experimental groups and a control group. The experimental groups were taught selected concepts of physics using SIM and IIM, while traditional methods were used for the control group. Results revealed that the students taught with SIM performed better than the IIM and control groups, respectively. The SIM and IIM were found to be gender friendly as well. Based on the findings, it was recommended that teachers should be encouraged to use instructional materials to teach abstract concepts to improve students’ performance.