MISCONCEPTION IN ORGANIC CHEMISTRY AS A CORRELATE OF ACADEMIC INTEREST AMONG SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN AWKA EDUCATION ZONE OF ANAMBRA STATE

Abstract

Organic Chemistry often dubbed the “language of life” is both a gateway to scientific discovery and a minefield of student misconceptions that can obscure true understanding. This study aims to examine students' misconceptions as correlate of academic interest among senior secondary school students in Organic Chemistry in the Awka Education Zone of Anambra State, Nigeria. Two research questions guided the study and two hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopted a correlational research design. The population of the study consisted of 5005 Senior Secondary School (SS 3) students from all public secondary schools in the Zone. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to draw a sample size of 370 senior secondary school students from co-educational public schools in the Zone. Organic Chemistry Misconception Assessment Test (OCMAT) and Organic Chemistry Interest Scale Questionnaire (OCISQ were used for data collection. The instruments were validated by three experts from Faculty of Education in Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. The reliability of the OCMAT and OCISQ were established using Cronbach's alpha, which yielded coefficients of 0.78 for OCMAT and 0.81 for OCISQ, indicating satisfactory internal consistency. Data collection involved the direct administration of the test and questionnaires to respondents by the researcher and the five research assistants. The data collected were analyzed using Pearson Correlation Coefficients and Fishers’ Z-Test. The findings of the study revealed low negative and significant relationship between students’ misconceptions and interest. The findings further showed that there is a low negative significant relationship between misconception and interest of both male and female students in Organic Chemistry. Based on the findings, it was concluded that students’ conceptual understanding in Organic Chemistry plays a vital role in shaping their academic interest at the senior secondary level. It was recommended amongst others that Chemistry teachers should adopt diagnostic and remedial instructional strategies such as concept mapping, use of molecular models, inquiry-based learning, and formative assessment techniques to identify and correct students’ misconceptions early before they solidify and negatively influence interest.