Heliyon (Aug 2024)
The effect of using simulator “evolution of electrical systems’’ in electricity lessons on students' motivation and academic performance
Abstract
The emergence of simulators and their integration into teaching practice in the world of education have offered us technological opportunities to enhance and promote learning. Science students' abilities to observe, measure, predict, control variables, formulate hypotheses, and interpret data can all be activated by including simulations into the curriculum. The aim of this work is to study the effects of integrating an ''evolution of electrical systems'' simulator in improving students' motivation, participation and school results in learning and teaching electricity lessons in Moroccan secondary schools. Two study groups of 34 and 35 students were chosen to examine the research hypothesis. They both meet the standards for this research (same teacher, same school level, coming from the same socio-economic environment, and almost similar results in their school careers). Before beginning the process of incorporating simulation sequences in teaching, a diagnostic test was administered to both groups to assess the prerequisites for the RC and RL dipoles, and the results were evaluated. Then we designated one of the two groups as the test group, which received instruction using simulation sequences, and the other group as the control group, which received traditional teaching. Both groups took an Achievement test to evaluate the impact of this integration on the learning of physics. After examining the test data (Charts Comparison and Student's t-test), we came to the conclusion that the use of simulation sequences in the classroom produced significantly more positive and satisfactory results than the traditional approach (Mt = 12,09 for the test group and Mc = 9,69 for the control group). We saw during the sessions that the experimental class students were more motivated and engaged in their learning than the control group. We collected this data by closely observing behavioral shifts, participation rates, and student involvement in the design of the course. These new techniques contribute at improving the experimental part of electricity in secondary schools.
