Utilizing WhatsApp as Instructional Strategy to Enhance Pre - Service Teachers Academic Achievement in Educational Management Course: Implications for Classroom Management in Imo State Tertiary Institutions.

The study investigated utilizing WhatsApp as instructional strategy to enhance Pre-service teachers academic achievement in educational management course : Implications for classroom management in tertiary Institutions in Imostate, Nigeria. Based on the purpose of the study one research question and hypothesis guided the study. The population of the study consisted of two hundred and forty-one (241) Pre-service teachers from the faculty of education in two universities in Imo state. The sample of the study consisted of one hundred and fifty- five (155) Pre-service teachers from the two universities that offer educational management courses through random sampling technique. The data collection instrument used was Educational Management Achievement Test (EMAT). The EMAT containedc forty (40) multiple choice items with four (4) options A, B, C and D. The instrument was validated by two experts in Measurement and Evaluation and one expert in Educational Administration to enhance the face, content, and construct validity of the data collection instrument. Pilot group made up of forty (40) Post Diploma in Education students, was conducted in Abia State University, using Kuder Richardson K-21 and a reliability coefficient of 0.76 was obtained for EMAT. Data collected was analysed using mean and standard deviation and ANCOVA to test the hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. Results indicated that WhatsApp as an instructional strategy plays significant role in improving pre-service teachersteaching and learning performance. Specifically, it enhances learning outcomes, supports effective teaching practices and fosters collaborative learning. It was recommended, among others, that pre-service teachers should adopt WhatsApp platform as a tool for ensuring both academic collaboration and teaching practice improvement.