Assessment Of The Availability And Adequacy Of Audio-Visual Resources In Teaching Biology Education

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background Of The Study
Audio-visual materials are teaching aids through which information can be heard and seen simultaneously. Teaching aids that only utilizes one sense at a time might be bearing or seeing is audio or visual aids. Audio-visual according to Dike (2013) do not only increase, they add clarity to the topic taught and make teaching more interesting. Visual instruction encourages the use of audio-visual aids to make abstract ideas more visible or concrete to the learners.
Educators have come to realize the most effective teaching that take place when an individual has direct experience with the subject understudy, in other words, learners learn but by doing. It is only the use of instructional materials such as audio-visual that teaching can be offered the chance or opportunity to teach by doing experiments. This is because motivation, attention, concentration and retention of facts are enhanced through the use of this materials Ode (2014).
Teaching processes are very important at all levels of educational development. If well planned and directed, they are key to success and progress of an individual. Therefore, best approach or methods have to be used in order to enhance effective teaching. Consequently, there is a need to employ the use of teaching aids like audio-visual materials to enhance effective teaching of Biology.
According to Anzaku (2013), the terms audio-visual materials are commonly used to refer to those instructional materials that may be used to convey meaning without complete dependence upon verbal symbols or language. This according to Anzaku’s definition, a textbook or a reference material does not fall within this grouping of instructional materials but on illustration in a book does. Anzaku (2013) stated that audio-visual materials include materials and equipments alike, that materials are considered to be system or body or content of potential value when put to work while equipment often referred to as hardware components are the means of presenting such content.
The importance of audio-visual materials in the teaching process cannot be over emphasized. Below are some of the roles of audio-visual materials, basing learning in sense experience, encouraging serve as a source of information. Individualize instruction (Ngozi, B. O; Samuel, A. O and Isaac, O. A; 2013). Despite the place of Biology as a science subject in national development. It appears that the quality of the subject is lagging behind. Various views have been expressed in the media as to whether or not the standard or education is falling. A number of factors could be responsible for the apparent decline in the standard of science education.
One that easily comes to mind is the quality of instructional materials. A very important variable which has direct bearing on the quality of classroom instruction is availability and utilization of audio-visual materials as on institutional material by the teachers and students in schools. It is on the premises that the researcher seeks to assess the availability and adequacy of audio visual resources in teaching biology education.

1.2 Statement Of The Problem
Despite the fact that audio-visual aids are essential tools that can make learning practical and knowledge acquisition easier, one cannot categorically say whether they are readily available or not in many Nigerian secondary schools and where available, whether they are adequate and adequately in use. This could result in low level of performance of learners in many examinations. Afolabi and Adeleke (2010) identified nonavailability, inadequacy and non-utilization of learning materials as a result of teacher’s poor knowledge as factors responsible for the use of lecture method. It was therefore imperative that teachers should either improvise or procure audio-visual aids for teaching and learning of school subjects.
This study was motivated by the fact that many students develop phobia for biology which as a result do affect their biology achievement in the schools. Likewise, some students dislike biology which is a very important school subject and this can however be traced to the way biology is being taught by teachers in many schools. It on this note that this study investigated the Availability, Adequacy and Utilization of Audio-Visual Materials for Teaching and Learning of biology at the senior secondary Schools in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State.

1.3 Objective Of The Study
The purpose of this study therefore is to investigate the availability and adequacy of audio visual resources in teaching biology educationat the senior secondary schools in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State. The specific objectives are to:
i. Find out whether audio-visual aids have a significant effect on the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools.
ii. Find out whether audio-visual aids are adequately provided for the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools.
iii. Find out whether the extent of the availability of audio-visual aids significantly influences the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools.
iv. Ascertain how adequate the available audio-visual aids are during the teaching and learning of biology in secondary schools.
v. Find out whether audio-visual aids are accessible during the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools.
vi. Examine the attitudes of biology teachers towards the use of audio-visual aids in teaching and learning of biology in secondary schools.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The questions below will guide this study
1. Does audio-visual aids have a significant effect on the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools?
2. Are audio-visual aids adequately provided for the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools?
3. Does the extent of the availability of audio-visual aids significantly influence the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools?
4. How adequate are the available audio-visual aids during the teaching and learning of biology in secondary schools?
5. Are the available audio-visual aids accessible during the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools?
6. What is the attitude of biology teachers towards the use of audio-visual aids in teaching and learning of biology in secondary schools?

1.5 Research Hypotheses
Ho: There is no significant relationship between the availability of audio-visual aids and the effective teaching of biology in secondary schools.
Ha: There is a significant relationship between the availability of audio-visual aids and the effective teaching of biology in secondary schools.

1.6 Significance Of The Study
The study has both theoretical and practical significance. Theoretically, it can provide support and insight into the current cognitive theory of teaching and learning in schools. Here the theory of Jean Piaget which states that learning takes place in stages. Teachers can sequentially from simple to complex use audio-visual aids suitable for each stage of learning for the students.
For the practical significance, the findings of this study will benefit the followings: the school, students, biology teachers, government, biology text book writers, and curriculum planners.
The school shall use the findings of this study in making decisions on the importance of making available and accessible of audio-visual aids in the teaching and learning of biology in secondary school. The reason why the result of these findings will be advantageous to the school is because the school is the centre of learning that houses both the teachers, the students and other academic activities.
The result of this study shall expose the students to the need of learning with audio-visual aids and invest more effort in acquiring them when need be. The students shall be exposed to the need of seeing, touching and hearing practically the knowledge that is to be learnt to remove sense of abstraction.
The biology teachers shall be more exposed to the reasons why they should use teaching aids in dispensing their knowledge. The teacher shall read from the result of the research the needs to employ audio-visual aids as it tends to reduce stress and energy spent on explanation of an abstract phenomenon.
The government shall use the findings of this study to make an informed decision on the types of audio-visual aids to be supplied to schools at various levels, the amount of money that should be allotted to education in the budget owing to the fact that huge amount of money is required for the procurement of these instructional material. It will also help the government to set up supervisory/monitoring team to ensure that teachers implement what has been planned in the curriculum.
The authors who write books in education shall use the result of this research to as a proper guide to bring in audio-visual aids as a veritable tool that will enhance proper understanding of what is to be learnt. Most teachers depends greatly on textbooks for their research and preparation before going to the classrooms, audio-visual aids at that point will help the teacher to easily understand the phenomenon of interest.
The curriculum planners shall greatly benefit from the findings of this research as it will help them in the planning of the curriculum on the audio-visual aids that should be fixed, how it should be used and who uses it. It shall also exposed the curriculum planners to effectively help the teachers as teaching is only but the implementation of what has already been written in the curriculum.

1.7 Scope Of The Study
This study is structured to generally examine the use of visual aid in the teaching of social studies in junior secondary school. However, the study will further find out whether audio-visual aids have a significant effect on the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools, find out whether audio-visual aids are adequately provided for the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools, find out whether the extent of the availability of audio-visual aids significantly influences the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools, ascertain how adequate the available audio-visual aids are during the teaching and learning of biology in secondary schools, find out whether audio-visual aids are accessible during the teaching/learning of biology in secondary schools, and examine the attitudes of biology teachers towards the use of audio-visual aids in teaching and learning of biology in secondary schools.
This study will be carried out in both public and privately own senior secondary schools. Hence, the respondents will comprise of biology teachers and students in some selected public and private senior secondary schools in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State.

1.8 Limitation Of The Study
In the course of carrying out this study, the researcher experienced some constraints, which included time constraints, financial constraints, language barriers, and the attitude of the respondents. However, the researcher were able to manage these just to ensure the success of this study.

1.9 Definition Of Terms
Instructional Materials: These are objects utilized by the teacher to complement teaching and learning process.
Facilitate: process of promoting or improving teaching and learning.
Utilize: making use of instructional materials.
Apparatus: These are basic equipment use for the purpose learning activities.
Audios: These are teaching aids which appeal to the sense of hearing.
Audio-visual: These are instructional materials that can be used to aid teaching and learning via the sense of sight and of hearing at the same time.
Visual: These are instructional materials which appeal to the sense of sight.

1.10 Organization Of The Study
This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows. Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), historical background, statement of problem, objectives of the study, research hypotheses, significance of the study, scope and limitation of the study, definition of terms and historical background of the study. Chapter two highlights the theoretical framework on which the study is based, thus the review of related literature. Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding. Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study.