Abstract

The study investigates the effects Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on the academic achievement of Geography students in Secondary Schools in Buea Municipality. Specifically, the study sought to identify the different ICTs available in secondary schools, find out the extent to which ICTs are used in schools and to find out the ways in which the use of ICTs impact on students’ academic achievement. To achieved the study objective, descriptive survey was employed to sampled 90 Geography students from three secondary schools in the Buea Municipality by means of purposive sampling techniques’ using a structured-questionnaire. Data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS.21.0) using descriptive statistics. Findings revealed that majority of the secondary schools in the Buea Municipality have different ICT tools such as projectors, photocopying machine for printing, computers lab and presence of Internet connection both in the library and school laboratory. Findings also revealed that majority of the students have access to ICT tools present in their school, however, very few make proper used of these ICT tools during lessons. Results further show that ICTs has enabled students to score better grades in geography.  It also helps increase student understanding of the concepts taught in geography. ICT tools such as projectors were also seen to be used during workshops and seminars in schools. In general, the study concluded that secondary schools have various ICT tools such as projectors, photocopy machines for printing, computers and internet connections, which they have access to them both during the teaching and learning of geography lessons which has improved their academic achievement in Geography. It was recommended that schools should be provided with ICT tools needed for the teaching and learning process.

CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Introduction

The use of computers is now a daily fact of life. Students should be computer literate and be prepared for the fast changing world of information technology. The curriculum of Computer Literacy in our junior forms ensures that students attain a general awareness of the ranges of tasks that computers can do, how computers are used to solve daily-life problems, and to what extent computers affect individuals and society (Kozma, 2005). The senior ICT curriculum provides students with knowledge, practical skills and an understanding of the processes involved in problem-solving using technology. It encompasses problem identification, solution and design, and the applications of ICT knowledge and skills in these processes. The study of an ICT course contributes significantly to the education of students by providing pathways into the workforce or preparing them for further studies. It also provides opportunities for the development of key generic skills such as critical thinking, communication, creativity and problem-solving, in contexts that derive naturally from the learning objectives, outcomes and experiences (Leech, 2008). Having ICTs to be one of the instruments that fosters student’s ability in geography this can assist them to be able to know and designed the various geographical images and thus empower them to improve their academic performance. Thus this study seeks to examine the effects of ICTs on the academic achievement of geography students in secondary schools in the Buea Municipality

This chapter is comprised of the following: background of the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, objectives of the study, research questions, justification of the study, significance of the study, scope and delimitation of the study, and definition of major terms.

Background of the Study

Historically, education began informally when children learned trades of their parents. The duties of parents were shifted when the society become more work demanding. Parents were recognized as role models and all-knowing and the children under their care considered as blank slates to be written on. The invention of alphabets, numerals and the system of inscribing in clays in the 3100 BC assisted the teaching and learning process as information could be stored and revisited in the future. Further invention of paper in 105 AD enabled teachers and learners to document knowledge. The Johannes Gutenberg invention of the printing press in 1436 made a drastic positive change in education; textbooks, newspapers and other vital documented tools in education were produced. After the 15th century, graphs, charts, boards, chalk, quill pens, pencil (1795), erasers (1770) and rulers (1675) became introduced in education and the formal training of teachers to become a norm.

In 1920s, school museum and motion pictures were used in American schools. In 1930-1940s, photography, displays, radio, and programmed instruction were introduced in the US school. Televisions were also introduced in the 1950s–1960s in US schools. By 1970s, videotape, recorders were introduced alongside televisions and application of pre-recorded programmes became a major educational activity. All of these discoveries showed a gradual improvement in the science world. These also marked the gradual introduction of technology in the field of education.

Another notable argument to this effect is by Kelles-Viitanen (2003) who referring to developing countries in general, commented that ICT plays a major role in all aspects of national life: in politics, in economic life, as well as in social and cultural development. Kelles-Viitanen (2003) further argued that ICT are rapidly transforming the way people do business, access information and services communicate with each other and even entertain themselves. The United Nations Economic and Social Council (UN ECOSOC) Ministerial Declaration (2000) provided special attention to the application of ICTs for development, for which urgent and concerted actions at the national, regional and international levels have been suggested. A Microsoft Corporation (2007) report on its ICT initiatives in Africa acknowledged that technology alone does not drive development but enables it. In the report, while noting that 300 million Africans live on less than $1 per day. The country has to overcome this challenge in order to provide quality education for all. Consequently, ICTs have been introduced in the curriculum of schools in Buea. It is especially adaptable for teaching in those schools that are remote or isolated from the main urban centres that may have other forms of ICTs more readily available. Radio possesses a big advantage over other learning experiences in the form of music, language, history, literature, drama and many social studies areas (Tambo, 2003).

Tambo, (2003) observed that, television is one of the most impressive technological wonders developed in the 20th century. Although it has been used in the more technological advanced countries for more than half a century, it is only recently that the medium has available to a sustainable number of people in African countries. In some of these countries, the medium, owing to lack of infrastructure such as electricity, is still not available to most people living in rural areas unlike the radio which is familiar to many people. The use of television at this time tends to be concentrated in the urban areas.

Cameroon is among the Sub-Saharan African countries that are making enormous progress in the use of ICTs in various development sectors, including education. In Cameroon, between 1998 and 1999, efforts were made in a private mission school like College François Xavier Vogt in Yaounde to use ICTs in education whereas it was only in 2001 that ICTs were introduced in public schools in Cameroon. In fact, before the ministries of education could provide the ICT curricula, several private primary and general secondary and technical schools in major cities had acquired computers and had begun to provide courses on ICTs (Karsenti et al. 2012). In February 2001, the President of the Republic of Cameroon called for the orientation of education toward the knowledge economy in his address to the Cameroon youth (Mbangwana, 2008). He promised the introduction of computing in schools and the endowment of computer rooms to schools. This led to the official introduction of ICT in general and technical secondary schools. Government involvement in the area of ICTs seriously began with the development of the policy document and the general strategy for the integration of ICTs in all sectors by the National Agency of ICTs (ANTIC) and the setting up of Multimedia Resource Centers in some primary and secondary schools (Government Bilingual High school Yaounde, Lycée Général Leclerc, Yaounde and Government Bilingual High School, Joss, Douala), and primary schools like École des “Champions” of the Chantal Biya Foundation. By 2003, official ICT programmes for secondary schools were conceived and ICT syllabuses and National Sequential Schemes of work published in 2008 were made available to Nursery, Primary and Teacher Training Colleges. Textbooks have also been written and selected by the National Book Commission to facilitate the teaching of it.

In 2004, key strategies on using ICTs in education were highlighted in the first official draft of the Cameroon National Information and Communication Infrastructure (NICI) policy and plan prepared by the government with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). In this document, the government recognised ICTs as a national priority along with education, health, forestry and governance (Josue, 2007). The NICI had as resolve the following;

1. Modernising the educational system through the introduction of ICTs in schools.
2. Introducing ICT application modules into national Universities.

iii.        Training teachers in the use of ICTs.

1. Multiplying pedagogic resource centres for teachers and students.
2. Preparing a sectorial ICT policy for the educational sector.
3. Preparing support for the production of ICT teaching materials (Josue, 2007).

Since the introduction of ICTs in schools in Cameroon, the government is succeeding in the implementation of its ICT objectives. In 2007, the field of Computer Science and Educational Technologies was established at the Higher Teacher Training College (HTTC) Yaounde (Centre Region) to train general secondary school ICT and Computer Science, teachers. The following year, a similar field was established at the Higher Teacher Training College, Maroua (Far North Region). In 2009, an information management system was set up at the Higher Teacher Training College, Bamenda (North West Region) to train technical secondary school teachers.  Apart from government initiatives, non-governmental organizations like the Association for Development, Communication and Environment (ADCOME) and Agence Nationale des Technologies de l’information et de la communication (ANTIC) have also contributed at regional levels to bridge the digital divide in secondary schools in the South West Region of the country through their project (Computer and Internet Access Centres) CIAC project. ADCOME’s initial objective was to bring the internet closer to the people at a low cost (Nganji, 2010).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Education is a field in which data processing using computers as an aid of teaching and learning in a classroom, communication using the Internet for wide research across the globe and for effective communication to the whole world is necessary. However, looking at the way geography is taught in higher institutions, the vision is in doubt because of the theoretical way of teaching bearing in mind that Geography is a practical and bridging subject (KIE, 2006).  The 2030 vision states that teachers are expected to possess high technical skills so that they can impact on learners if the nation is to be industrialized. Being a visual type of subject, this study puts emphasis on the integration of ICTs for good teaching and learning process. The improvement of students’ academic achievement in geography is very minimal among secondary schools in Cameroon and Buea Municipality in particular.

Therefore, it is the purpose of this study to examine the effects of ICTs on the academic achievement of students in geography and to challenge geography teachers to use a variety of instructional techniques and resources in order to achieve the desired goals.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

1.3.1 General Objective

The general objective of the study was to investigate the effects Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on the academic achievement of Geography students in Secondary Schools in Buea Municipality

1.3.2 Specific Objectives

The specific objectives of the study include to:

1. Identify the different ICTs available in secondary schools
2. Find out the extent to which ICTs are used in schools.
3. Find out the ways in which the use of ICTs impact on students’ academic achievement.

1.4 Research Question

1.4.1 Main Research Question

Do the various types of ICTs used in secondary schools have an impact on the academic achievement of Geography students in Buea Municipality?

1.4.2 Specific Research Questions

The specific research questions for this study included:

1. What are the different ICTs used in schools?
2. What is the extent to which ICTs are used in school?
3. In what ways the ICTs used affect the academic performance of students?