Comparative Effects of Concept Mapping and Student-Team Achievement Division on Secondary School Students' Achievement in Photosynthesis

Academic achievement in science, particularly in some Biology, perceived difficulty and abstract topics, such as Photosynthesis, is a global challenge, particularly for educators in most nations with low incomes. As a result, researchers in science education have kept looking for efficient methods of instruction that might raise students' academic achievement in such topics. This study examined the effects of Concept Mapping (CM) and the Student-Team Achievement Division (STAD) on students' achievement in Photosynthesis among secondary school students in Nyamagabe and Gicumbi districts, Rwanda. A quasi-experimental pre-and post-test non-equivalent control group research design was used in the study. Data were obtained from 70 students who were taught using CM, 66 who were taught using STAD, and 65 who taught using the Conventional Teaching methods (CTM ). The Photosynthesis Achievement Test (PAT), which served as pre-and post-test, was the instrument used to gather the data before and after interventions in the study groups. The mean, standard deviation, and Analysis of Covariance were used to analyze data. The results showed that the CM and STAD groups outperformed the CTM group in academic achievement in Photosynthesis. There was a statistically significant difference between the experimental groups in favor of the CM. Female students performed statistically higher than male students in STAD, while males and females performed equally in the CM group. Additionally, there was a statistically significant interaction effect of gender and instructional strategies on students' achievement in Photosynthesis. The study concluded that the CM and STAD improved students' photosynthesis achievement better than the CTM. Thus, biology teachers should implement the CM and STAD to help students better grasp Photosynthesis-related content.