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The Impact of Physics Education Technology (PhET) Interactive Simulation-Based Learning on Motivation and Academic Achievement Among Malawian Physics Students

Herbert James Banda, Joseph Nzabahimana

Journal of Science Education and Technology, 2022

168 citations

Abstract

The study investigated the impact of PhET simulation-based learning on students’ motivation and academic achievement in learning oscillations and waves among Malawian secondary students. The following research questions guided the study: (i) What were students’ motivation and academic achievement levels at the beginning of the study in oscillation and waves? (ii) To what levels do PhET interactive simulation-based learning impact students’ motivation and achievement in oscillations and waves? (iii) Is the change in post-test scores due to the students’ characteristics in non-randomized settings or the PhET interactive simulation-based learning? A sample of 280 (44.6% females) form three secondary school students with a mean age of 17.5 ( SD = 1.424) from four schools in Blantyre urban district in Malawi was used in a quasi-experimental design of non-equivalent groups. The experimental group was exposed to PhET simulation-based learning, while the conventional teaching methods were used in the control group. Pre- and post-tests were used to collect data on academic achievement, and questionnaires collected data on motivation. Independent samples t -test showed a statistical difference between the two groups on post-test of the academic achievement. Results from linear regression indicated that the differences between the two groups in the post-test were not due to students’ characteristics but rather the intervention with p < 0.01 . The ANCOVA test on motivation constructs…

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