The effect of analogies on eighth grade student's achievement and retention level in teaching science course

Abstract

This research is a quasi-experimental study aiming to investigate the effect of using student-generated analogies, ready-made analogies, and instruction without analogies on students' academic achievement and retention level. The study was carried out with the participation of 93 eighth grade students in three state-run primary schools in Tavas, Denizli. The first experimental group learned through student-generated analogies while the second learned via ready-made analogies. The control group was subjected to methods other than analogy. Gathered data were analyzed through ANOVA, Paired Sample t-test, and Repeated Measures of ANOVA techniques. Findings reveal a significant difference between the average scores of the groups instructed by analogy technique and the group that did not use analogy on behalf of the experiment groups. However, the average achievement and retention scores between the groups using student-generated analogies and ready-made analogies do not demonstrate a significant difference.