Abstract

This study examines the effect of the discovery teaching approach on scientific creativity among Chemistry students in public secondary schools in Buea Municipality, Cameroon. The discovery teaching approach, which emphasizes student-led exploration, critical thinking, and problem-solving, is believed to foster scientific creativity by encouraging active learning and inquiry. The research aimed to assess the extent to which this method enhances students’ creativity in Chemistry compared to traditional lecture-based instruction.

A quasi-experimental design was employed, involving 120 students from four selected public secondary schools. The students were divided into two groups: the experimental group, taught using the discovery teaching approach, and the control group, which received traditional lecture-based lessons. A pre-test was administered to both groups to establish their initial levels of scientific creativity. After eight weeks of instruction, a post-test was conducted to evaluate any changes in the students’ creative abilities in scientific tasks.

Data were collected using a validated Scientific Creativity Test, which assessed students’ abilities to generate hypotheses, design experiments, and solve scientific problems creatively. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data, with the paired sample t-test applied to measure significant differences between the pre-test and post-test scores of both groups.

The results indicated a significant improvement in the scientific creativity of the students in the experimental group compared to the control group. Students exposed to the discovery teaching approach demonstrated higher levels of creativity in hypothesis generation, problem-solving, and experimental design. These findings suggest that the discovery teaching approach is an effective method for enhancing scientific creativity among Chemistry students in public secondary schools in Buea Municipality.

The study concludes that adopting the discovery teaching approach could play a crucial role in improving scientific creativity and overall academic performance in science subjects. Teachers are encouraged to incorporate more inquiry-based learning strategies into their teaching practices to promote creative thinking in students.

Keywords: Discovery teaching approach, scientific creativity, Chemistry education, public secondary schools, inquiry-based learning, Buea Municipality, Cameroon