ABSTRACT
Textbooks
have been emphasized to be the most important tool in the teaching-learning process
of any school subject. They have been identified as one of the factors
affecting students’ learning outcomes. This study was aimed at carrying out a
content analysis on senior secondary school economics textbooks used in Enugu
state in order to find their adequacy of content coverage of the Economics
curriculum, ascertain their appropriateness of the illustrations, find their
appropriateness of verbal communication and also to ascertain their
appropriateness of the evaluation guide. Four research questions guided the
study. The literature was reviewed under the conceptual framework, theoretical frame
work and empirical framework. The sample of the study was three Economics
textbooks recommended by the Enugu state Ministry of Education. Qualitative
research design was adopted for this study. The senior secondary curriculum for
Economics was used alongside a textbook analysis guide adapted and developed as
the instruments for data collection. Three secondary school Economics teachers
were selected as research assistants to analyse the textbooks. The method of
data analysis was description and analysis of the information found in the
textbooks in order to answer the research questions. The major finding of the
study is that, none of the textbooks analysed covered the curriculum content
adequately. It was also discovered that all the textbooks were appropriate in
terms of illustrations, verbal communication and evaluation guide. Based on the
findings, some recommendations were made. It was recommended that, authors of
these Economics textbooks should endeavour to review and update them by
including all the newly introduced topics and concepts and make sure that the
content of each topic is adequate and up to date as well, government should
work together with stakeholders in education especially teachers in prescribing
textbooks for use in schools and recommendation of textbooks should be
appropriate by considering those textbooks that have a very good content
coverage of all the topics and all the attributes of readability such as
appropriate verbal language (simple, short and clear sentences), and
appropriate diagrams and pictures.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of study
A textbook is an educational resource or instrument. One of the major educational resources required for teaching and learning (of Economics) in Nigerian senior secondary schools is quality textbooks (Federal Government of Nigeria, 2004). The teaching and learning of Economics as a senior secondary school subject requires the use of Economics textbooks to achieve its objectives as enshrined in the National Policy on Education. A textbook can be seen as an important tool in the teaching-learning process of Economics and any other subject. It could be one among other factors affecting students’ learning outcomes. A textbook according to Jones (2007) is a book that contains information about a subject that students study. Also, it is a book that students use regularly during a set of lessons, textbooks treat subject comprehensively and is used by students as a basis for study. Ciftci, Cecen and Melanliogu (2007) defined textbooks as printed educational and instructional materials which are comprised of rich text equipped with cognitive and perceptive capabilities appropriate for age and knowledge levels of students and are prepared based on educational programme principles for transfer of knowledge to students. Williams (1983) says that the textbook is a tool and the teacher must know not only how to use, but also how useful it can be and so must use discretion in adapting textual materials to the need and interests of students. The textbook as an instructional tool is unique among all other instructional media due to its possession of certain characteristics. It is durable, permanent (not transient), portable and independent of electricity or electronic device when in use. It appears to be the oldest of instructional media. Due to its age-long existence and availability, it is common among teachers and learners more than any other medium. Moreover, textbooks have a prominent position in curriculum reform and are considered the most important tool for the implementation of a new curriculum in many countries (Valverde, Bianchi, Wolfe, Schmidt & Houang, 2002). While emphasising on textbook(s), Aggarwal (2001) stated that, classroom teaching activities depend heavily on the use of textbook especially in the institutions where the teachers are not well qualified. Aggarwal suggested guidelines upon which the relevance and adequacy of textbook features could be evaluated. They include; selection of content, organization of content, presentation of content, verbal communication (language) and visual Communication (illustration). To each of the items listed above, Aggarwal identified some specific features, thus; the selection of content consists of eight parameters which are; content must be relevant, there must be adequate coverage of the content, there must be adequate content of each topic, there should be authentic content, there should be up-to date content, there must be integrated content and there should be content linked with real life. Under organization of content, 3 parameters were identified thus; division into suitable unit, division into suitable sections and psychological approach to the content. The presentation of content should be attractive and have an appropriate title, motivating, creative and interesting content. Verbal communication (language) has four parameters thus, appropriate vocabulary, short and simple sentences, correct spelling and correct punctuation. Visual illustrations should be; suitable for the mental level of students, easily portable and up to date, motivate learners, relevant and purposeful, accurate, simple, and large enough for sight. Given the adequacy and relevance of these features, a textbook can be referred to as good.
There are some criteria for selecting a good textbook. Afolabi (2014) opined that in the selection or choice of a good textbook, the textbook must be well-graded, that is, suitable for the capability of the children for which it is intended. The facts must be simple, clear and logically set out, fit into child-centred education. For the general presentation format, Afolabi gave the following conditions; first, the textbook should be interesting, because it makes the learner interested in learning, well written and beautifully compiled so that it might win and retain users’ goodwill by virtue of more solid qualities. Secondly, it should be well-illustrated with attractive colour, inspiring drawings and photographs. It should be attractive, inviting, pleasant to look at and read, with well-chosen illustrations that are well connected and sequential. Thirdly, the textbook should be up-to-date in content, frequently revised and reprinted when necessary and lastly the textbook must be complete with its table of contents, illustrations, charts or other references. And for higher classes’ textbooks, Afolabi suggested inclusion of references at the end of each chapter for supplementary reading so as to inculcate in the learners the skill of comparison. It should also include the index. This is to give room for supplementary textbooks.
Textbooks play a large part in determining what is taught in secondary school classes and they stand out at the heart of educational enterprises. Teachers rely on them to set the parameters of instruction and to impart basic educational content. In schools, students’ school work often begins (and in some schools ends) with the textbook. Textbooks constitute the base of knowledge, particularly in the third world countries (like Nigeria) where there is a chronic shortage of qualified teachers, and online educational services (Naiz, 2001). This would make teachers who are poorly prepared to address the curriculum to rely heavily on textbooks for information and assignments. Since textbooks are very important in teaching and learning processes, they need to be critically evaluated to see whether they are meeting the expected goals of the National Policy on Education (NPE, 2008).
In Nigeria today, there are many (Economics) textbooks written by different authors, published and pushed into the market and schools. Additionally, many senior secondary schools offer Economics as an elective subject and there are some practical problems facing the teaching and learning of Economics ranging from obsolete textbooks with the exception of a few, and badly written Economics textbooks in Nigeria which are, sketchy and lack the in-depth content, they are largely descriptive, poorly illustrated, contain lots of inaccuracies and they are mostly produced in a hurry (Afolabi, 2014). Similarly, studies on textbooks have shown that some of them may contain incorrect information. Schwartzman (2008) in his study on South Korea’s elementary, middle and high school textbooks found out that eight of them contain incorrect information. In the same vein, Nomoto,Nonaka, Mizoue, Kobayashi and Jimba (2011) in their study on the content of health textbooks used in elementary, junior and high schools in some 14 countries, also found out that several current textbooks provide insufficient content and contain inaccurate or out of date health information. Given these problems associated with textbooks, there is a need to carry out a content analysis on Economics textbooks used in senior secondary schools in Nigeria in order to make sure they contain accurate and up to date information and are rich in content in terms of adequacy of content coverage, appropriateness of illustrations, verbal language and evaluation guide.
Economics textbooks are a representative of the Economics curriculum. Textbooks which are given over-reliance by teachers are regarded as representing the intended curriculum (Flanders, 1994). Economics is one of the elective subjects to be studied at the Senior Secondary School level as prescribed by the National Policy on Education (2004). The curriculum is based on the principle of equipping Senior Secondary School graduates with basic knowledge and skills to appreciate the nature of economic problems in any society and adequately prepare them for the challenges in the Nigerian economy. The curriculum is designed thematically and structured in a spiral form to spread from Senior Secondary one level to Senior Secondary three levels (SS1-SS3) in a simple to complex way with in-built teachers and learners activities for each topic. The Economics curriculum reflects depth, appropriateness, and interrelatedness of the curricular contents. Also, emerging issues which covered value orientation, peace and dialogue, including human rights education, family life/ HIV and AIDS education, entrepreneurial skills et cetera were infused into the relevant contents of the new Senior Secondary Curriculum. In general, the curriculum pays particular attention to the millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the critical elements of the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategies (NEEDS). Since the curriculum represents the total experiences to which all learners must be exposed, the contents, performance objectives, activities for both teachers and learners, teaching and learning materials and evaluation guide are provided. The prescription represents the minimum content to be taught in the schools in order to achieve the objectives of the new Senior Secondary School programme. However, teachers are encouraged to enrich the contents with relevant materials and information from their immediate environment. Changes in Economics curriculum are supposed to be reflected to both textbooks used in Economics course and teaching activities of Economics teachers, so as to bring about the desired learning outcomes in students.
In the recent review of the Senior Secondary School Economics Curriculum in 2008, the former twenty six (26) themes have been restructured into sixteen (16) themes with 49 topics spread over the three years of Senior Secondary levels based on the complexity of topics and the total teaching time available in each year (Senior Secondary one-16 topics, Senior Secondary two-18 topics and Senior Secondary three-15 topics). The inclusion of new topics and concepts requires new Economics textbooks to reflect the content of this curriculum. Given these changes in the review of the curriculum, there is a need to find out the adequacy of content coverage of Economics textbooks and the inclusion of the new topics and concepts in order to bring about the desired learning outcome.
Some science and social science (Economics) textbooks used in Senior Secondary Schools in most part of the country have been criticized by stakeholders to be irrelevant because of the learning outcomes of the students at the end of the programme (Afolabi, 2014). However, most statements of the critiques were not based on empirical evidence. For some years now, research findings have shown the abysmal achievement of students of secondary schools in public examinations in Economics. Ajayi (2002), Nwokocha and Amadike (2005), Adeyemi (2008) and Ashikhia (2010) in their various studies have all shown the extent of poor achievement of students in Economics examinations. The trend of Economics students’ achievement in May/June Senior Secondary School Examination (WAEC) 2009-2012 for Enugu State shows that, in 2009, when 519,524 enrolled for Economics, 33.97% had credit pass (A1-C6), 28.16% had ordinary pass (D7-E8), 34.47% failed (F9), while 3.4% were absent. Similarly, in 2010, out of the total number of candidates that enrolled for Economics (554,853), 38.20% had credit pass, 36% had ordinary pass, 34.41% failed, while 2.03% were absent. Furthermore in 2011, 649,277 candidates enrolled for Economics, out of which 41.12% passed at credit level, 31.09% had ordinary pass, while 24.95% failed while 2.84 were absent. Finally in 2012, 849,028 candidates enrolled, 46.75% had credit pass, 26.75% had ordinary pass, 24.24% failed while 2.26% was absent from the examination (source: WAEC Statistics Office Enugu, 2013). Though there has been a steady increase in the number of Economics student enrolment, but the conclusion drawn from their achievement between 2009 and 2012 is that, more than 50% of the students that enrolled had below credit pass which implies poor academic achievement (See Appendix C, page 72). This persistent decline in students’ achievement in internal and external examinations is not just a source of worry to stakeholders alone, but also frustrating to the students and their parents; its effects are equally grievous on the society and do not justify the objectives of secondary education. Carrying out a content analysis on most of these Economics textbooks used in senior secondary schools in Enugu State in order to determine their adequacy in terms of content coverage, appropriateness of illustration, verbal language and evaluation guide, would bring about an improvement in the quality of the textbooks and subsequently also improve the quality of content conveyed by the schools to students thereby improving their academic achievement.
Content analysis is one of the most frequently applied research methods in the field of education. Content analysis originally used in communication, journalism, sociology, psychology, and business (Neuendorf, 2002), is today considered to be one of the main methods of educational research and it is also frequently applied in areas such as law and health care. As Weber (1990: 117) puts it “content analysis is a research method that uses a set of procedures to make valid inferences from text” and it has several advantages in comparison with other research methods. According to Cohen, Manion, and Morrison (2007), content analysis in a broader sense refers to the process of summarising and interpreting written data, whereas, in a narrower context, it is “a strict and systematic set of procedures for rigorous analysis, examination and verification of the contents of written data”. One of the fundamental features of content analysis is that a vast amount of written data is reduced to smaller groups of information, or as put by Weber (1990), long texts with loads of words are represented by fewer words or expressions. In addition, content analysis can be conducted with any written material, from documents to interview transcriptions and can be applied to examine large amounts of text (Cohen, Manion & Morrison 2007). The supervision and control of information and ideas found in textbooks, and other printed materials for students, are very important. There is a clear need to carefully analyze textbooks, journals, and other communication media for the purpose of uncovering parts thought to be dated, offensive or irrelevant. Thus, an important rationale for a content analysis of textbooks is to improve the quality of the contents conveyed by the schools to students. In carrying out a content analysis on Economics textbooks used in senior secondary schools, the curriculum is a very important tool.
As a result of the importance of textbook to school teaching-learning process, the paucity of research on Economics textual materials and rare analysis of these textbooks themselves, this research will consider the content analysis of some recommended Economics textbooks used in senior secondary schools in Enugu State in accordance with the specifications of the existing Senior Secondary School Economics Curriculum to ascertain the adequacy of content coverage, appropriateness of illustration, verbal language and evaluation guide and also to establish a basis for a true critique and to enhance improvement and also to achieve the objectives of the post-basic Economics curriculum (2008).
Statement of the Problem
While textbooks and learning materials are especially important for students, they may contain incorrect information. For instance, many researchers have found that some textbooks contain factually incorrect information. One study found that eight of South Korea’s elementary, middle, and high school textbooks contain incorrect information. Another study reviewed analytical studies about the contents of health textbooks used in elementary, junior high, or high schools in some 14 countries and found that several current textbooks provide insufficient content and contain inaccurate or out-of-date health information.
Textbooks have been identified as one of the factors affecting learning outcomes. Stakeholders in education have criticised textbooks used in our education system because of the poor results of students at the end of the learning programme. The results of senior secondary school Economics examinations from 2009 to 2011 (WAEC) in Enugu State has shown that the percentage of failure is above 50%, which implies poor academic achievement.
In the recent review of the Senior Secondary School Economics Curriculum in 2008, the former twenty six (26) themes have been restructured into sixteen (16) themes with 49 topics spread over the three years of Senior Secondary levels based on the complexity of topics and the total teaching time available in each year (Senior Secondary one-16 topics, Senior Secondary two-18 topics and Senior Secondary three-15 topics). The inclusion of new topics and concepts requires new Economics textbooks to reflect the content of this curriculum.
When Economics textbooks used in Enugu State are not analysed properly and evaluated, they tend to be counterproductive to students with devastating consequence of loss of interest in Economics as a subject and subsequently mass failure in Economics examinations. There is, therefore an urgent need to carry out a content analysis on some of the Economics textbooks used in Senior Secondary Schools in Enugu state, to determine their adequacy and appropriateness in terms of content coverage, illustrations, verbal communication and evaluation guide so as to provide the basis and guide for their revision.
Purpose of the Study
The main purpose of this study is to carry out a content analysis of Economics textbooks used in senior secondary schools in Enugu state. Specifically this study seeks to;
- Find the adequacy of content coverage of the Economics curriculum.
- Ascertain the appropriateness of the illustrations used in the textbooks.
- Find the appropriateness of verbal communication.
- Ascertain the appropriateness of the evaluation guide.
Scope of Study
This research work would focus on approved Economics textbooks for Senior Secondary Schools in Enugu State. This study will be delimited to five Economics textbooks for the post basic level or Senior Secondary School. They are; Fundamentals of Economics by R. A. I Anyanwuocha; Economics for Senior Secondary Schools by M. A. Shittu, O. J. Ajuwoa and O. Kehinde; New Economics for Senior Secondary Schools by K. Nnachi and A. Falodun. Standard Economics for Senior Secondary School by Attah C. N. and New System Economics for Senior Secondary Schools by Ewa Udu and G. A. Agu.
Significance of the Study
The outcome of this study will have both theoretical and practical significance. The theoretical significance of this study is explained by the theory of Cognitive learning which was developed by Jerome Bruner in 1966. Bruner said that learning is a highly complex activity which involves three major processes namely: acquisition of information, transformation or manipulation of the information into a form suitable for dealing with the task at hand, testing and checking the adequacy of this transformation. Transformation here refers to past experiences in the memory which are utilized to deal with the present situations and that they are represented in three systems labelled by Bruner and they are; the inactive mode, the iconic mode and the symbolic mode. He explained that inactive mode operates through action, the iconic mode operates through imagery and the symbolic operates with language.
Cognitive learning can be applied to the content analysis of Economics textbooks so as to develop favourable attitude towards learning of Economics. Bruner’s theory when applied to content analysis of Economics textbooks, the inactive mode refers to the student’s activities in the textbook which the students are expected to practice in other to acquire skills. The iconic mode refers to the use of imagery without language to relay information. The use of imagery is likened to the use of familiar diagrams and clear pictures in textbooks which can make them interesting and readable since illustrations are among the content of a textbook. The symbolic mode employs representation through language which leads to learning of abstract things. Also, Economics textbooks employ representation through language. If they are written in a simple and neutral language, the texts will lend themselves to easy reading and understanding. When the ideas and information in the textbooks are understood, through familiar diagrams, clear pictures, students’ activities, simple and neutral language, the textbooks are said to be appropriate and accurate and its contents can bring about the desired learning. Where the textbooks are appropriate and accurate, there will be acquisition of information and transformation of information. Hence, the findings of this study will help to either strengthen or refute this assertion of Bruner.
The practical significance of this study is that, the findings of this study will be of great benefit to teachers, students, Federal and State ministries of education and the society at large. This study will benefit Economics teachers greatly because they will be able to select Economics textbooks that are rich in content which will serve as a good resource material in the teaching and learning of Economics. The findings of this study would also benefit Economics students by helping them to opt for textbooks with content validity and are up to date in order to read and understand easily during assignments and projects. Similarly, the findings of this study will be beneficial to Economics textbook writers by serving as a guide in the review and writing of these textbooks through updating their knowledge towards the use of appropriate language, picture, illustrations and evaluation guide in order to improve the quality of Economics textbooks they publish and bring it up to standard in order to meet the changing needs of the society and curriculum review.
The outcome of this study is significant to subsequent researchers carrying out similar investigation on content analysis of textbooks as it will serve as a springboard for further empirical studies. The present study will help improve their methodology. More so, the result of this study will invariably reveal Economics textbooks that are rich in content and up to date to the Ministry of Education and stakeholders for guidance in prescription and recommendation for use in senior secondary schools to bring about the achievement of the desired learning outcome and also the achievement of the objectives of the post-basic Economics curriculum.
The findings of this study will also reveal the importance of analysing the contents of textbooks used in our secondary schools hence, the Nigerian government may perhaps see and accept the need to enact and implement laws promoting the content analysis of textbooks before they are used in schools. This could be achieved through the setting up of a content analysis unit or department under the Federal or State Ministry of Education to make sure textbooks used in schools are adequate, appropriate and rich in content.
Research Questions
The following research questions are posed to guide the study:
- How adequate is the content coverage of the Economics curriculum?
- How appropriate are the illustrations used in the textbooks?
- How appropriate is the verbal communication of the textbooks?
- How appropriate is the evaluation guide of the topics?
