EFFECTS OF THE PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING STRATEGY ON THE MATHEMATICAL REASONING OF SENIOR SECONDARY STUDENTS IN GEOMETRY IN KATSINA METROPOLIS, KATSINA STATE NIGERIA

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) strategy on the Mathematical Reasoning (MR) of senior secondary students in geometry in Katsina Metropolis, katsina State. The pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was used. Intact classes were used for the study with a sample of 80. Purposive sampling technique was used to choose two public co-educational senior secondary schools from the metropolis. One validated instrument: Mathematical Reasoning Inventory (MRI) was used for data collection with reliability index of 0.70. The treatment group was taught using problem-based learning while the control group was taught using the conventional teaching strategy. Mean scores and standard deviation were used to answer two research questions while Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test two hypotheses. The results showed significant differences in the Mathematical Reasoning (MR) mean scores of students taught geometry using Problem-Based Learning (PBL). The study recommended that problem- based learning strategy should be adopted by mathematics teachers for use in classroom instruction because they improve the male and the female students’ mathematical reasoning.