www.ijcrt.org © 2018 IJCRT | Volume 6, Issue 1 March 2018 | ISSN: 2320-2882
IJCRT1803195 International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts (IJCRT) www.ijcrt.org 689
A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON EFFECTIVENESS
OF CONCEPT MAPPING & CONSTRUCTIVIST
APPROACH IN TEACHING LIFE SCIENCE AT
SECONDARY LEVEL IN WEST-BENGAL
SUBRATA NASKAR
1
M.Sc, M.Ed (2015-2017)
The West Bengal University of Teachers’ Training Education Planning & Administration
(Erstwhile David Hare Training College, Kolkata)
PROF. PALASH DAS
2
Assistant Professor
The West Bengal University of Teachers’ Training Education Planning & Administration
(Erstwhile David Hare Training College, Kolkata)
ABSTRACT:
The present study compared the effect of concept mapping and constructivist approach in teaching life science at secondary level. The
pre-test post-test design was adopted for the purpose of data collection. A secondary school in Kolkata was randomly selected and
made into experimental and control group. Life science Achievement Test was prepared by the researchers followed by item analysis
and checking reliability. A reliability co-efficient r=0.79 was arrived after pilot study. Life science Achievement Test was
administered to the students by the researchers. Data collected was analyzed using t-test statistics. The result indicated that the
concept mapping groups taught using concept-mapping strategy performed significantly better than the constructivist group exposed
to constructivist teaching strategy. This showed that the concept mapping strategy was found to be more effective than the
constructivist teaching strategy for understanding of life science concepts. Based on verbal feedback from the students it was also
concluded that although concept mapping strategy is very effective but in some field based chapters if teachers can use constructivist
approach it will more fruitful to students.
KEYWORDS:
Concept mapping, Constructivist approach, Effectiveness, Life science
INTRODUCTION:
There are several perspectives in ways in which pupils learn (Bennett, 2003). In this study researchers try to identify which teaching
strategy (concept mapping and constructivist approach) is best effective for teaching life science. Concept mapping is a type of
instructional strategy for organizing concepts in a hierarchical manner and linking the related concepts in such a way that the students
make meaning of what they learn. The steps in concept mapping activities are (Ezenwa 1993):
Identity and list the keywords or terms or concepts.
Rank the listed concepts from most abstract and inclusive to the most concrete and specific.
Clusters the concepts according to criteria, concepts that function at a similar level of abstraction and concepts that interrelate
closely.
Link related concepts with lines and label each line in propositional form (Ault, 1985). When a student completes the above steps
for a given concepts, the concepts become meaningful to him.
According to Novak (1985), concept mapping strategy helps students learn how to learn meaningfully and help teachers as well more
effective in their teaching. Most of the researchers on concept mapping were done overseas by the initiators of the strategy (Novak,