Effectiveness of teaching chemical equation for higher secondary students through CAI

Chemistry is a difficult subject to teach and to learn at both secondary and tertiary levels. Major learning difficulties are due to the particular views of chemistry phenomena that in many ways contradict intuitive and everyday views of the learners. As a result, major misunderstandings occur when students try to comprehend chemical explanations within the framework of their pre-instructional conceptions. Students find difficulty in remembering molecular formulae, writing equations, completing the equations, balancing the equations etc. Thinking all the above in mind, we can say that there is a necessity to improve the attachment of the students in learning chemical equation. There is a need to analyse the problems of Higher Secondary School level students in learning chemical equation. This paper describes research findings on students difficulties in learning chemical equation and on attempts to guide students to overcome the difficulty. Teaching methods such as lecture, memorization, text book reading etc do not encourage student's activities such as discussion, manipulating objects, experimentation, and creative thinking which are necessary for real science learning. In order to reduce the difficulty of learning chemical equation, a Computer Assisted Instruction remedial package on “Chemical Equation” was prepared and experimental sessions were carried out for 4 weeks. Post test was conducted using a pattern similar to that of pretest in all aspects to the selected students. New strategies should be used to give remedy to the specific problem. These teaching strategies and techniques appear to hold great educational potential, especially for the students who have difficulty in learning.