Teaching strategies and student achievement in chemistry

Abstract

The principal aim of our research was to gain insight from the students' perspective into the teaching strategies utilized by chemistry teachers when teaching general, inorganic and organic chemistry, and to study their effect on student achievement. The sample consisted of 741 high school students aged between 16 and 18. A questionnaire was designed with 24 items with a five-point Likert-type scale. The findings show that chemistry teachers use various teaching strategies, but do not indicate variation in teaching strategies with regard to general, non-organic and organic chemistry content. The greatest effect on student achievement in chemistry is produced by strategies that stimulate individual laboratory work, the solving of practical tasks and problems, and a deductive approach to the study of chemistry subject matter. This study contributes to the specification of teaching strategies employed in teaching practice, which is an important reference point in analyzing and drawing out practical implications for chemistry teachers.

Keywords

• teaching strategies
• chemistry instruction
• student perception
• teaching
• high school