THE INSTITUTIONAL

                      FACTORS AFFECTING THE ACHIEVEMENT IN                   

PHYSICS IN TRIPOLI, LIBYA

By

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Almahdi Ali Elwan                                           Serage M. Ali Alwan

Faculty of Education Tripoli University                               Master Degree Student in statistic

ABSTRACT

This study primarily attempts to investigate if there is any relationship between selected factors namely gender, school and student factors and academic achievement in physics of high school students in Tripoli, Libya.

The study specifically answered the following questions

1. Is there any relationship between students' achievement in physics and school factors in terms of the:

(i)                        Availability of physics laboratory?

(ii)                      Availability and use of school library?

1. Is there any relationship between students achievement in physics and the teacher factor in terms of

(i)                        Qualification?

(ii)                      Teacher quality?

(iii)                    Teacher turnover?

1. Is there any relationship between students' achievement in physics and :

(i)                        Students’ interest in physics?

(ii)                      Their perception of the value of physics in society?

The sample consisted of 100 science students, 50 males and 50 females from two randomly chosen high schools in Tripoli, Libya.

Two instruments were used in the study. The physics achievement test (PAT), was designed to assess student performance in physics. The second was a student questionnaire (SQ), designed to obtain information on personal characteristics of the students, school factors and student factors.

The main findings of the study are the following:

1. Gender was found to be significantly associated with achievement in physics. Specifically, female students were found to perform better than male students.

2. Among the school factors, the factor which emerged as influencing students' achievement in physics was the teacher factor. The following are the two elements of teacher factor which were significantly related to students' achievement in physics.

(i). Making students understand of what were taught. and

(ii) Teacher's provision of adequate exercises.

3. Among the student factors, the factor which emerged as influencing students' achievement in physics was students' interest in physics. The study found a significant relationship between students' achievement in physics and their interest in physics.

Recommendations are offered regarding the need for a multivariate study on a national scale, the need to rethink pre-service and in-service teacher education programmes, the need to develop interest in physics among students the need to examine the nature, origins and consequences of gender differences in performance in physics and the need to address the issue of socio-economic levels of parents towards improving the level of students achievement in physics.

INTRODUCTION

1 THE BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Science education has become a major concern in almost all countries and its development has been accorded a high priority. Libya is no exception. Science is taught in Libyan schools at the preparatory level as General Science and as separate subjects - Physics, Chemistry and Biology - at the high school level. The impact of scientific progress, proceeding at a rapid pace, demands that children should receive a sound education in the sciences.

Thus, physics, the science of properties of matter and energy, is recognized as a essential component of a child's education. Education in physics helps the child to understand the physical universe (as in answering such questions as "why is the sky blue?') and also develops skills such as observing accurately and completely, analyzing, thinking and judging. In addition, it fosters and develops interest, positive values, curiosity and creativity. All these acquired through education in physics are required to satisfy the needs of socio-economic development in Libya such as energy, natural resources and productivity. Another important reason for the inclusion of physics in the child's education is that the ideas and results of physics is relevant to society and every day life.

Hence physics is of utilitarian value to the child and the society. For the nation to develop economically, it necessitates that the children be literate in physics and technology.

            Apart from the quantitative expansion in the education system, the Libyan government has made efforts to improve the quality of education at all levels. In the area of science education, including physics education, at the lower secondary and high school level, the teaching of General Science and pure Sciences including Physics has been upgraded. Teachers have been trained, laboratories and facilities have been provided in each school and, to support the teaching staff, laboratory assistants have been employed. Since physics is an experimental science, the importance of laboratory activities has been stressed.

            However, in spite of the attention given, it is common knowledge that student performance in physics examinations is poor. In the 1989 final examinations, Taugihia, only twelve percent of the students obtained a pass grade in physics.

            Research findings, to date, on student academic achievement (performance in examinations) have suggested a number of different factors as influencing student performance. This is evident from the mention of the findings of these few studies. For instance, the Coleman et.al report (1966) suggested that academic achievement was affected by family background factors (eg. Socio economic status of parents) and that per pupil expenditure and school factors had little relationship to achievement.

Anderson (1987, p.83) found "the prior learning and attitudes that students bring to particular classrooms and courses influence what they learn in these classrooms' .

Bourke (1986) found that teacher effects was stronger than all other school inputs, with the effects becoming more pronounced with increasing grade level. Further, according to the review by Glasman and Biniaminov (1981) , some studies have suggested a relationship between performance and the availability and use of the school library.

            The findings of past studies, in certain cases, have suggested the same factor as having a different effect in different countries or context. For example, Heyeman and Loxley (1983), contrary to the earlier study mentioned by Coleman et. al. (1966) , found that, in lower income countries, the influence of pupils ' social status on achievement was not significant and that school factors had greater influences. It is clear therefore that attention needs to be paid to research on factors determining student performance in a particular country or context in order to be useful to educators in improving the educational processes towards better student performance.

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

            The problem is the poor performance and achievement in physics by the students studying in high schools in Tripoli, Libya.

1.3 THE FACTORS CAUSING THE PROBLEM

1. Fixed factors, which are beyond the control of educators, specifically the factors of gender and

2. Alterable factors, which may be altered by educators, specifically, availability of laboratory and availability and use of the school library, qualification of teacher, teacher change frequency, teacher quality and student interest in physics and his/her perception of the value of physics.

            More specifically, the researcher sought to answer the following questions:

1.         Is there any significant difference between male and female students in their physics achievement?

2.         Is there any relationship between students' achievement in physics and school factors in terms of the :

i) Availability of physics laboratory?

ii) Availability and use of school library?

3. Is there any relationship between student achievement in physics and the teacher factors in terms of :

i) Qualification?

ii) Teacher quality?

iii) Teacher turnover?

4. Is there any relationship between students' achievement in physics and :

i) Their interest in physics?

ii) Their perception of the value of physics in society?

1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

                          This study concerned itself with the levels of performance in physics and the factors associated with it.

            The specific objectives of the study were to :

1. Determine the level of achievement in physics among high school students in Tripoli, Libya, in terms of their performance in a physics test, designed by the researcher.

2. Determine whether the variable gender is associated with students' achievement in physics.

3. Determine whether there is an association between students' achievement in physics and students' awareness of the availability of a physics laboratory in the school.

4. Determine whether there is an association between students' achievement in physics and the availability and use of the school library.

5. Determine whether there is any influence of qualified or unqualified teachers, teacher turnover and teacher quality on students' achievement in physics.

6. Determine whether there is any relationship between students' interest in physics and their perception of value of physics and students' achievement in physics.

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The research is of dual significance. Firstly, it adds to our knowledge in the area of determinants of academic achievement. Specifically, the results of the study will provide us with information as to whether the factors such as gender, school factors and student factors influence academic achievement in physics in the Libyan context.

Secondly, it is hoped that the findings will enable better planning of education in Libya, in terms of the allocation of resources for provision of relevant and necessary school facilities and training of school personnel.

The findings of this survey study may indicate some influencing factors, which may be investigated further using an experimental approach to determine the factors linked to academic achievement of students in physics.

1.6 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The investigation is limited to students in Tripoli and to final year high school students. The sample of the study comprised only 100 science students. It does not adopt a causal model which will entail a large sample and a more sophisticated analysis, which is not within the resources of time and money of a single researcher. Further, the study only deals with a few factors, in other words, it is not a multi-variate study.

The instrument used to measure academic achievement in physics only dealt with a limited content area of Electricity and Magnetism and not the whole domain of physics.

1.7 OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS

Academic achievement in physics :

The percentage mark obtained by students in the physics test designed by the researcher.

School factors:

School factors in this study include school facilities (library and laboratory.) and teacher factor (specifically teacher qualification, teacher turnover and teacher quality).

Student factors:

Student factors in this study refer to students' interest in physics and their perception of the importance/value of physics in society.

High school:

This level follows the three years of preparatory school. Admission to the University is based on the successful completion of this level of education, which is three years.

The certificate earned at the end of the high school is termed Taugihia.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2 . 1 INTRODUCTION

The influence of diverse variables such as gender, school facilities and experiences (including teacher quality) and student variables on academic achievement of students have been and is continuing to be an area of interest to educators and educational planners both in the developing and developed countries. In other words, many researchers have focused on the important issue of factors influencing student achievement. The question of whether genetic factors, and educational investment of resources into schooling make a difference in educational achievement has been tested by many researchers in many countries at various levels of education. Educational achievement has been taken to mean general school achievement or achievement in specific subject areas.

            From among all the factors researched into, in the search for the determinants of academic achievement, it was decided in this study to focus on four groups of factors of interest to the researcher, namely”

i) Gender of students.

ii) School inputs, specifically availability of a physics laboratory, availability and use of a library and certain teacher characteristics

iii) Students' interest in physics and their perception of the role of physics in society

            Hence, this review will consider briefly the researches on the relationship or association of the three above-stated groups of factors to academic achievement, particular achievement in the sciences.

2.2 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GENDER AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT.

The variable gender has been found to influence educational achievement. The claim that the boys perform better than girls is supported by the findings of Siebert (1956) , Dietz (1969) , Comber and Keeves (1973) , Bowman and Anderson (1980) , NAEP (1978), APU (1979), Erickson and Erickson (1984).

Siebert (1956) found that male students were generally superior to female students. This finding was further supported by Dietz (1969) , who from his study in California of high school seniors concluded that male students were superior in their understanding of economics due to their greater interest and exposure through reading. The results of the international survey of teaching and learning in 19 countries (IEA study) also found that boys were superior in performance in science and mathematics subjects than girls (Comber and Keeves, 1973).

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) studies in the 70s and the Assessment Performance Unit (APU, 1979) study too supported the claim that, in the sciences and mathematics, male students perform better than female students.

The studies of Bowman and Anderson (1980) on the participation of women in education in the Third World seem to lend support to the view that there are male-dominated subject areas, for example science and mathematics, in which females perform poorly. He suggested that if females wish to study male-dominated subject areas they require a lot of continued encouragement and support.

From the results of the British Columbia Science Assessment, Tivoli and Power (1989) found that boys performed better than girls in science among the final year secondary school students in Kenya.

Other researches such as the studies by Fennema and Sherman (1977) , and Boyle and Start (1989), however make the claim that there are no significant influences of gender on academic achievement. Fennema and Sherman (1977) found no gender-related differences in mathematics learning in 2 high schools, when the mathematics courses enrolled in was held constant. Similarly, Boyle and Start (19.89) using a sample of Australian elementary school children found that the reading and mathematics achievement did not differ significantly across sex.

On the other hand, the findings of certain researches have contradicted the normal claim that the male students perform better than female students (Stockard and Wood, 1984, Cheah, 1984). Stockard and Wood  (1984) reported that boys rather than girls tend to underachieve in high schools in the United States. Cheah (1984), using a Malaysian sample, found that girls performed better in science than boys.

The findings of the researches on the issue of sex-related differences in science achievement is equivocal and not conclusive. The researches differ in context, population, subject area, etc. More variables than the gender of students are involved and these give rise to varying conclusions. For instance, in the study by Tunhikorn (1986) on "Attitudes towards and Achievement in Science of secondary students in Kasetsart Demonstration School in Bangkok, Thailand", the subject areas and grade levels vary. Hence, he found no significant differences in physical science achievement between boys and girls in grades 7 and 8 but found significant differences in grade 9, with boys scoring significantly higher. The study also found significant differences in biological science achievement between boys and girls in grade 7, with girls scoring significantly higher, but no significant difference was found in grade 9.

Several researchers have posited plausible explanations for the differences in achievement found across gender.  Some attribute the differences to genetic influences (Fennema and Sherman, 1977).

2.3 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCHOOL VARIABLES AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

The identification of school variables, which influence student achievement, has been a concern of researchers even before the 60s. For example, Goodman (1959) found that per pupil expenditure, teacher experience, number of specialist teachers, classroom atmosphere was significantly associated with achievement. However, increased activity in this field of research ensued with the report by Coleman et al (1966) that socio-economic variables accounted primarily for the explained variance in student achievement and school characteristics had little or no impact. The IEA study (Comber and Keeves, 1973) also indicated that school variable effects on science achievement was only minimal. These findings are contradicted by Heyneman (1976), who, from data collected in Uganda, showed that school inputs, especially school resources, account for a high proportion of variance in achievement.

Further, Heyneman and Loxley (1982) conducted a re-analysis of the data collected for the IEA study and showed that for the developing countries, a much larger proportion of the variance in science achievement is explained by school effects. The regression analysis produced the proportion of explained academic achievement variance due to school effects (material resources and teachers) as 90.0 % for India, 88.0 % for Columbia, 81.0 % for Thailand and Brazil, 22.0 % for Australia, 26.0 % for Scotland and 27.0 % for Sweden.

School effects research focused on a variety of school inputs which include school physical facilities (school library, science laboratory and equipment), overall expenditure, textbooks, average class size, teacher characteristics (qualifications, experience, teacher quantity and quality, teaching method, nature of teacher-pupil interactions), existence of science society or clubs and curriculum.

            With reference to school material resources, Jacobson and Doran (1986), reported that ninth grade students in American secondary schools often used textbooks in the study of science but only sometimes used library books.

Some students never used library books. Simmon and Alexander (1978), in reviewing studies, state that availability of textbooks demonstrated a positive relationship with student achievement. Similarly, Fuller (1981) reported significant effects of material inputs such as availability of textbooks and library and its use on academic achievement.

Laboratory work is accepted as an integral part of science instruction (Gallagher, 1987). The laboratory is posited by many science educators as beneficial in the teaching and learning of science but research on the effects of laboratory is inconsistent in both low and high income countries. Even the re-analysis of the IEA survey study data, for developing countries by Heyneman and Loxley (1982) did not show significant effects of laboratory facilities on science achievement.

With regard to research on the effect of teacher characteristics on academic achievement the reviews of studies in the area by Rossi (1961) and Simmon and Alexander (1978), state that the findings seem to be equivocal. For example, Simmon and Alexander (1978) found that in 19 out of 32 studies, students taught by teachers without teaching qualifications performed as well as those taught by professionally trained teachers.

However, other researchers suggested that there is substantial evidence that professionally trained teachers do make a difference in students' performance and attitude formation, especially in developing countries (Husen et al, 1978, Rutter et al, 1979 and Brophy and Good, 1986).

For example, Husen et al (1978) found that motivation to learn science is influenced by teachers and extent of exposure to science experiences.

Rutter et al (1979), from data collected from schools in England, demonstrated that the school plays a significant role in enhancing academic development of children.

An early study by Mayeske (1972) suggested that teacher characteristics, such as number of teachers with a higher degree, types of undergraduate preparation, teacher experience and teachers' verbal score, exert a stronger influence on student achievement than physical facilities and programs in the school.

Gallagher ( 1987 ) listed the quality of instructional experience, which is dependent of school resources (both human and material), as one of the nine factors having a significant effect on variance in achievement and attitudes in science. Further, Simmon and Alexander (1978) indicated that assignment of homework (a teacher variable) demonstrated a positive relationship with achievement.

Anderson (1987) concluded that students' perception of their classroom and the instruction they experience influences their achievement and attitudes. Specifically, he found that the extent to which students perceived their classrooms as having an academic orientation, has a weak but consistent influence on student achievement across the countries studied. In addition, students' perception of the degree to which their teachers provide the necessary structure for their learning (an aspect of teacher quality) also exerts a weak but consistent influence on student achievement. In terms of classroom activities and teacher behaviors, he reports that students achieve lower in classrooms in which more time is spent on activities related to classroom management.

According to Heyneman (1976) and Theisen et al (1983), school material resources and human resources are considered important factors in school learning. The teacher is important in that he or she is the person who selects plans and provides the educational experiences in line with the curriculum guidelines. The material resources aid the teacher in organizing learning experiences, which the student can benefit from. The effect they posited however depended on the implementation.

2.5 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE STUDENT VARIABLES AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

            Another factor found associated with students achievement or underachievement, in the literature, is the student factor. A variety of variables, within the student factor, have been investigated to determine their influence on student achievement. These include student prior learning or achievement and experience, aptitude, ability, intelligence level, study habits, student autonomy,

attitudes towards school and towards school subjects, aspirations, interests, motivation and self concept. This section of the review will focus on researches examining the effect of student prior achievement and experience, student interest and attitudes towards school subjects on academic achievement.

Prior achievement in the relevant subject area logically seems necessary for success in school. Several researchers for eg. Anderson (1987), similarly found that prior learning and achievement, relative to the subject matter being taught, influenced students ' achievement in all the participating countries.

Benbow and Arjmand (1990) conducted a survey investigating the predictors of high achievement in mathematics and science among mathematically talented students. They found that pre-college experiences in mathematics and sciences were associated with high academic achievement. However, ability of seventh grade students was not found to be a good predictor of subsequent achievement.

With regard to interests and attitudes of students, Chakravarthy (1970) found that attitudes towards mathematics among Malay students in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were affected by their interest in the subject. Interest in science was found to be positively related to the success in science (Edwards, 1957). Examined the interests of a sample of university psychology students and found that the interest variable discriminates between the high achieving, average achieving and low achieving male students. However, they found that interest does not discriminate among female students of differing achievements levels.

Several researchers (Mayeske, 1972, Rajagopal, 1976, Benbow and Arjmand, 1990) have investigated the influences of student attitudes on students ' achievement. Similarly, Rajagopal (1976) found that students who held positive attitudes towards the study of the English Language performed better in the English Language attainment test than students who held negative attitudes towards English language.

Benbow and Arjmand (1990), to answer the questionnaire attitudinal variables associated with high academic achievement in science? Studied variables such as liking the subject and consideration of a career in mathematics, biology, chemistry and physics. The effect sizes for differences between both male and female high achievers and low achievers were significant. For the female students, the most powerful discriminant variable was found to be having considered a career in mathematics or sciences. The relationship between differences in attitudes towards science and academic achievement in science was found to become stronger as the student progressed through high school to college graduation attitudes towards science clearly influences academic achievement in science.

Mayeske (1972) went a step further, to conclude from his findings, that students' attitudes is a stronger determinant of verbal achievement than the socio-economic status variables.

Students' perception of the value of science in society and its contribution to solve everyday life problems has also been investigated A study conducted in the Nether lands (Lijnse, 1983) on students' attitudes towards the place of science in society found that the majority of students agreed that science is an important factor for improving their lives. Similarly, Jacobson and Doran (1986) found that ninth grade students in American secondary schools viewed science positively. The majority of students believed that science is important and relevant for a country's development and that scientific inventions improve their standard of living. He also found that most students were disposed favorably to the study of science and indicated a desire to find out more about the world in which they live. This desire to learn science is related significantly to achievement in science.

2.6 SUMMARY:

            In summary, research on the factors contributing to differences in achievement reveals a complex picture, owing to the many diverse variables that interact in the teaching and learning processes and how these variables affect achievement. Socio-economic variables have been consistently found to be a source of variation in academic achievement at least in the developed countries. Gender emerged as another source of variation in achievement. Certain teacher and student variables also seem to exert an influence on academic achievement. However, the effect of the laboratory which is accepted and perceived as beneficial to science learning has not been demonstrated to influence achievement.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 DESIGN OF THE STUDY

                          The influence of selected factors on high school students' performance in physics was investigated empirically on the basis of a survey of students in terms of their academic achievement in physics (dependent variable) and selected influencing factors.• The data on the influencing factors (independent variables) were obtained from the students using a questionnaire. The variables examined are listed in the figure below.

Figure 1

Variables in the Study

3.2 POPULATION AND SAMPLING

The population of the study was the high school students in city of Tripoli, Libya. The sample of students was restricted to final year high school students. There were 20 high schools in Tripoli and only 2 high schools were selected for the study. The 2 high schools were selected by cluster random sampling. It was found that in the 2 high schools, the number of year three classes ranged from three to seven. The researcher then selected two classes of students from each school by simple random sampling making a total of 100 students from the two schools. This represented about 10% of the total students population (100 students of  students).

3.3 INSTRUMENTATION

Two instruments were used in the study. The first, the achievement test, was designed to assess student performance in physics. The second was a questionnaire, designed to obtain information on personal characteristics of the student, school factors and student factors.

3.31 THE PHYSICS ACHIEVEMENT TEST (PAT)

The Physics Achievement Test (PAT) a pencil-and-paper test was developed by the researcher.

The test consisted of 25 multiple choice items, based on the first four chapters of the grade three physics text book entitled "General Physics Electricity and Magnetism" for the Libyan High Schools. The test items were drawn up to cover the content and objectives of the area of physics already taught by teachers in Tripoli by December 2009.

3.32 VALIDITY OF PAT

PAT consisted of 25 question items. The question items were contructed such that they were representative of the whole domain of content of the four chapters and in accordance with the emphasis given the specific content topics by the teachers. Both the lower (i.e. knowledge and understanding) and higher (application and analysis) levels of cognitive processes were tested by these items. The table of specification of the final form of the test is presented in Figure 2.

Figure 2

Specification of the Test

The draft test comprising 40 items was given to three physics lecturers in the department of physics of faculty of science of the Tripoli University in Tripoli. The lecturers were asked to judge and comment on these 40 items in terms of coverage, phrasing, ambiguities, difficult vocabularies and distractors. This test of 40 items was also pilot tested with a group of 30 high school final year students in one Tripoli school, not included in the sample of the study.

            The responses were item analyzed revisions were made based on the comments of the judges and students and the item analysis results. Some items were discarded and the amended test of 25 items was judged by the judges as content valid. The final form appears in Appendix IA.

3.33 RELIABILITY OF THE TEST

For reliability, a random sample of 30 students from one school in Tripoli was chosen for the test-retest procedure, the test being administered two weeks apart. The Spearman correlation r had a calculated value of 0.84.

3.34 THE STUDENT QUESTIONNAIRE (SQ)

The Student Questionnaire (SQ) , comprising 19 items, obtained information on demographic variables of the students (Items 2-7) , school factors (Items 8-15) , student interest in physics (Items 16-18), and student perception of the value of physics in society (Item 19).

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