Learning Automobile Petrol Engine from a Computer Simulation Compared with Direct Experience of the Engine

Abstract

The main purpose of the study is to determine the effect of psychomotor performance scores of students of Motor Vehicle Mechanics’ Work taught automobile petrol engine using computer simulation teaching technique and conventional teaching method respectively. Section 8 of the 2013 Nigerian National Policy on Education recommended the establishment of Education Resource Centers and Information Technology (IT) facilities to support the educational system and for the capacity building of teachers. This paper is one of the material resources necessitated by the capacity building of the teachers using IT facility. This paper compared two groups of four technical college classes studying automobile petrol engine. The study adopted a pretest, posttest, control group, quasi-experimental research design. Psychomotor performance test, in form of rating scale, was used to obtain data. The Psychomotor performance test used in the study is Automobile Engine Rating Scale (AERS). Pearson Product Moment Correlation was computed to establish a correlation coefficient of 0.82 after test-retest of the AERS, which means that the instrument is reliable. The instrument was validated by five experts. Reliability of the instrument was carried out using the test re-test method and reliability coefficient of the cognitive achievement test was 0.82. The area of the study is Enugu State of Nigeria. 526 NTC 1 (average of 16-17 years old) students of Motor Vehicle Mechanics’ Work formed the population of the study; while 106 (49 in experimental group and 57 in the control group), students were purposively sampled from 4 schools out of the 22 schools managed by Science Technical and Vocational Schools Management Board (STVSMB), Enugu. Arithmetic mean was utilized to answer the research question, while the hypothesis was tested using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) tested at .05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that real object experience group performed better than that using computer simulation teaching technique. It was also found that the difference was not significant. Based on the findings, one of the recommendations made is that computer simulation teaching technique should be incorporated in the teaching of Motor Vehicle Mechanics’ Work.