EFFECT OF PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AND INTEREST IN FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING IN UNIVERSITIES IN DELTA STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study determined the effect of problem-based learning on students’ academic achievement and interest in financial accounting in universities in Delta State, Nigeria. Two research questions and two null hypotheses guided the study. The study adopted a quasi-experimental research design. The population studied was 126 two-hundred-level business education students. Financial Accounting Achievement Test (FAAT) of 50 items was used to collect data for pretest and post-test achievement scores of the students, while Financial Accounting Interest Inventory (FAII) of 20 items was used to collect data on students’ interest. The reliability index for the validated instruments, using KR20 for FAAT, and Cronbach's Alpha for FAII, was 0.88 and 0.83, respectively. A problem-based learning strategy was used to teach the treatment group, while the lecture method was used to teach the control group. Data collected from FAAT and FAII were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions, while the null hypotheses were tested using Analysis of Covariance at 0,05 level of significance. The study found that students taught financial accounting using problem-based learning in the treatment group recorded greater academic achievement and showed more interest than students taught in the control group using the lecture method. Conclusion and recommendations were made