EFFECT OF COOPERATIVE LEARNING STRATEGY ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF CHEMISTRY STUDENTS IN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL IN IGALAMELA LGA, KOGI STATE.

This study investigated the effect of cooperative learning strategy (CLS) on the academic performance of Chemistry students in senior secondary schools in Igalamela Local Government Area, Kogi State, Nigeria. A quasiexperimental research design was employed, involving 25,220 students (143 in the experimental group, 91 in the control group) from selected public secondary schools. Both groups underwent pre and posttesting, with the experimental group receiving an eightweek intervention using CLS, while the control group was taught using the traditional lecture method. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) for research questions and ttest statistics for hypotheses at a P ≤ 0.05 significance level. The findings revealed a significant difference in academic performance, with students taught using CLS performing significantly better than those taught via the traditional lecture method (tcal = 8.16, tcrit = 1.65). The study also found no significant difference in academic performance between male and female students exposed to CLS (tcal = 0.18, tcrit = 1.65), indicating its genderfriendly nature. However, a significant difference was observed in the academic performance of urban and rural students when exposed to CLS (tcal = 2.11, tcrit = 1.65). Furthermore, CLS led to significant improvements in students' performance in practical, physical, and human Chemistry. The study concludes that CLS is an effective instructional strategy for enhancing Chemistry students' academic performance and recommends its adoption by Chemistry teachers to improve teaching and learning outcomes.