CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
In Ofankor, a village in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana – West Africa, (where I come from), proverbs, stories and games are held in high esteem because it is believed they help to solve problems the people may encounter in life. It is believed in an oral myth that, their ancestors or fore-fathers created these stories, games and proverbs out of the problems they went through in life. Hence, a person could find possible solutions to all the problems he or she faces now in the games, stories and proverbs of his or her people. Also, it is often perceived that, there is nothing new under the sun; meaning everything that is happening now has happened before. For instance, a situation or problem that occurred in the lives of an older generation can happen in the lives of this present generation and this may be regarded as a new phenomenon. However, if there is any member of the old generation living in this generation, he or she may be able to provide solutions to these problems without any hassle. However, this is not always the situation; hence, the creation of these proverbs, stories and games to aid in finding solutions to societal problems.
Therefore, to what problems did our ancestors wanted us to find solutions to when they created and left behind this proverb as a legacy for this generation when they said, “fiofio ni adidon ke yeo gbee toi”, literally; every hard working person achieves good results. Invariably, our forefathers are telling us to focus on the simple or the little things that makes life good. Could it be that after creating and using this proverb, they found it
enduring and therefore preserved it to benefit a generation like ours.l Iwwanilt to believe that as a way of sharing and preserving their experiences for future use, our forefathers created these proverbs to fore-tell us about a time like this. Again, it is also frustrating to see the increase in numbers with regards to our schools which limit the attention teachers give to students. Nonetheless, these one-time future leaders of the nation are the very people parents and all other stakeholders are struggling to provide them with the needed logistics in learning environments.
Recently, it has been perceived that some pupils are less academically endowed because they either fail to get their homework done correctly or fail to pass their terminal examination. Most schools due to their search for good grades during the Basic Education Certificate Examinations have gone to the extreme to make these so called
„academically less endowed‟ repeat their classes after the end of the year‟s examinations. However, the said authorities or schools do not go the extra mile to investigate possible ways of helping these children improve academically.
A “learning disability” according to the United States (US) public law is a disorder in
[O]ne or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. The term does not include children who have learning problems which are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor handicaps, of mental retardation, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage”.1
A learning disability will usually slow down the brain ability of a person to either receive, analyse, process or even store information. This problem can make it very difficult for a student to learn as smartly as someone who is not affected by any learning disorder. The term, „learning disorder‟ can stand for different things in different contexts. This difficulty can pose in a situation as a child‟s inability to concentrate and focus which can cause the child‟s mind to wander about. In another instance, it can interfere as a difficulty whenever the child tries to read, spell, write or even solve basic problems in the assignments given at school.
However, learning disorder no matter how it poses in a child is not a problem with intelligence because both the affected and the unaffected brain, to an appreciable degree, can receive, process, or communicate information. The only difference is that the affected brain will work at a slower pace and be interested in other things rather than what is happening in the classroom. So, if a child is seen to be slow, dull or uninterested in any of his class activities, he or she could not be classified as a poorly performed pupil but be given the necessary opportunities for him or her to improve.
Dale (1954) developed a Cone of Learning theory, in which he explains that after reading material in a text, we tend to remember only 10% of the things we read after two weeks, only 20% of the material is retained after listening to a radio discussion, 30% of the information is gained after watching pictures and listening to audio materials (audio or visuals), 50% is achieved through watching a movie, exhibition and demonstrations. Further, we tend to remember 70% of whatever we say, and finally, after two weeks of saying and doing things in a dramatic presentation, simulating real experiences or in
doing the real thing we tend to remember 90% of it.2 This means that, if teachers only allow these children to listen to their friends talk about the pictures and see the pictures without getting them involved, by giving them the opportunity to describe what they see and put it into a dramatic activity then, only 50% of that activity will be remembered by these children. The table below clarifies Dale‟s assertion.
| After two weeks we tend to remember | Nature of involvement | |
| 90% of what we say and do | Doing the real thing. Simulating the real experience And doing a dramatic presentation. | Active |
| 70% of what we say | Giving a talk and participating in a discussion | Active |
| 50% of what we hear and see | Seeing it done on location. Watching a demonstration. Looking at an exhibit. Watching a movie. | Passive |
| 30% of what we see | Looking at pictures or listening to audio materials(audio or visuals) | Passive |
| 20% of what we hear | Hearing words | Passive |
| 10% of what we read | Reading | Passive |
According to Mariotti (2009), learning becomes more meaningful when abstract learning styles and concrete experiences are related in that an involvement of the learner, coupled with the utilization of a variety of senses in the classroom activity will enhance his or her ability to memorize and retain the subject matter.3
