Contribution of an instructional module incorporating PhET simulations to Rwandan students' knowledge of chemical reactions, acids, and bases through social interactions

Abstract

The current study ascertained the influence an instructional module had on enhancing students’ understanding of chemical reactions and acid–base topics. The sample size for this study consisted of 197 students, including 101 in an “experimental” group and 96 in a “control” group, selected from schools in two Districts (Rwamagana and Musanze) in Rwanda, Africa. The experimental and control groups received a pre-test and post-test to collect data. In addition, focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with students in the experimental group. Further, a test question analysis was used to evaluate the students’ content knowledge of chemical reactions and acids, bases, and pH. To analyze the research data, the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software was used for quantitative analysis. The independent t-test results indicated no significant difference between the means of the control and experimental groups at the pre-test stage (df = 195, p = 0.380). At the post-test stage, a statistically significant increase was observed in the mean scores of the experimental group compared to the control group (df = 195, p < 0.001), showing that the intervention effectively improved student learning outcomes in chemistry education.