Effectiveness of blended teaching on learning engagement and academic achievement in Organic Chemistry: A case study of South Africa Grade 12 Learners

Abstract

Globally, the use of blended teaching has increased tremendously, particularly at university level. However, there is a dearth of research on the use of blended teaching at high school level and in a developing nation, as well as on the efficacy of blended teaching at high schools, particularly those that are least advantaged. These under-resourced schools where traditional face-to-face teaching is prevalent, cater for the largest learner cohort in South Africa. This study focused on Organic Chemistry, a Physical Sciences topic which most South African learners generally find difficult resulting in poor academic achievement. All this requires that innovative teaching methods be employed. When designed effectively, blended teaching comes with several benefits, such as catering for learner diversity, self-directedness, and flexibility, thereby increasing learning gains (Armellini & Rodriguez, 2021, Halverson & Graham, 2019). The main aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of blended teaching in developing learning engagement and academic achievement in Organic Chemistry in Grade 12 learners at one of the least advantaged High schools of South Africa. A mixed method approach in the form of sequential explanatory design was utilised. Two existing groups (resembling quasi experimental design in which the subgroup sample assignment depicted elements of random sampling), one experimental (n=100), and another control (n=100), comprising Grade 12 Physical Sciences learners from one school participated in this study. Quantitative data collected through surveys and Organic Chemistry test were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics as well as moderated regression analysis while qualitative data (interview data from six boys, six girls, and two teachers) were analysed using thematic, content, and comparative analyses. This showed that blended teaching was significantly more effective in developing learning engagement and improving academic achievement in Organic Chemistry. It was concluded that the ‘blend’ used in this study was effective for the broader South African high school context. Additionally, two out of three learning engagement sub-constructs had significant moderating effects on the relationship between blended (or traditional face-to-face) teaching and academic achievement while the third one did not.