Effects of Active Learning in Physics Experiments on Academic Achievement, Attitudes and Concepts among Grade-11 Students

Abstract

One of the problems in learning physics is students’ attitudes. Most students think that physics is difficult to learn and to understand. This causes students' motivation and attitudes of curiosity towards the physics subject to decrease. The objectives of this work were to investigate students' attitudes towards physics and physics concepts, as well as to compare the academic achievement of the sample group before and after studying the lessons based on active learning through physics experiments. The sample group in this study consisted of 31 Grade 11 students, and data collection was conducted over the course of one semester. Data were collected using tests and questionnaires. The statistical methods used for data analysis included mean, percentage, standard deviation, and t-test. The physics taught in this work was based on active learning through physics experiments that emphasized students’ engagement in the learning process and doing experiments on their own. A physics achievement test and a questionnaire were used to evaluate students’ attitudes towards physics and physics concepts. 
A dependent t-test was used for data analysis to compare post-test and pre-test scores of the sample. The results showed that the post-test scores were 68.39 percent higher than the pre-test scores with statistical significance at a level of .05. The greatest changes in regard to the attitudes towards physics and the perceptions of physics concepts among students that had experienced the lessons were as follows: The students perceived physics concepts better when they were closely linked to everyday life, and the students were better able to come up with ideas about the relationship between physics and real-life applications, respectively.