INT. J. SCI. EDUC.

2003, VOL. 25,

NO.

5, 605624

RESEARCH REPORT

The effectiveness of student team-achievement division (STAD) for teaching high school chemistry in the United Arab Emirates

Nagib M. A. Balfakih, United Arab Emirates University, Al-Ain Box 17551, United Arab Emirates; e-mail: balfakih@hotmail.com
Education in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) faces major problems which may hinder its future development. These include low achievement in science and a negative attitude toward science subjects, which have resulted in a high number of student dropouts from the science track in high school. It is believed among UAE educators that the main reason is the way science that has been taught in its schools. A solution to this problem depends on finding effective teaching methods, which maintain student achievement, improve students attitude and provide opportunities to develop essential scientific skills. The effectiveness of Student Team-Achievement Division (STAD) for teaching science to high school classes in the UAE was investigated. The sample was selected randomly. A representative group of UAE high school students was chosen from the northern province, which includes urban areas, and from the eastern province, which includes rural areas. The study involved sixteen tenth grade classes. During the second semester of the academic year 1998/1999, three units in the chemistry curriculum were covered. This study was designed to investigate the effectiveness of STAD in teaching high school chemistry in the UAE and to find out which groups, gender, area, and ability benefitted most.

Introduction Schools in the United Arab Emirates follow the national curriculum and science teaching starts in the first grade and concentrates primarily on animal behaviour. Chemistry and physics are taught as separate subjects in grade 10. Then, in grade 11, students have to choose either a science or arts track. The curriculum of students majoring in science includes mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology, and geology. In contrast, the arts curriculum includes geography, history, and social science. The common teaching practice in both divisions is the traditional method, the lecture. The teacher lectures on a topic on the day appointed by the curriculum time-table. Most of the time the lecture is not supplemented by any other teaching methods. The high achievers in the class are the ones who have the ability to memorize the content material. One of the disciplines that suffers as a result of using the lecture method is science. In science, the two strong qualities that each student must have in order to be successful are an understanding of the subject matter and a good command of the scientific method or process. Even if the content can be covered through lecture, the process cannot.
International Journal of Science Education ISSN 09500693 print/ISSN 14645289 online # 2003 Taylor & Francis Ltd http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals DOI: 10.1080/09500690110078879

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To understand science, students should experience science as scientists do. Cognitive psychologists, such as Piaget (1964) and Bruner and Haste (1987), had explained that students understanding is based on their own experience and that each individuals knowledge of mathematics and science is personal. Such experience will enable them to develop the skills needed to form their own appreciation of the science process. Unfortunately, the least effective methods of teaching mathematics and science are also the most common practices in classrooms today (Adams and Hamm 1990). The analysis of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data (Ward, 1979), as well as the research of independent science educators (Goodlad 1984; Lash et al. 1984) shows that the most common teaching practices in the science classroom are lectures, question and answer sessions, and discussions of textbook material. Despite efforts in a number of countries towards more studentcentred learning, teaching practices in the science classroom have not changed. As with studies reported by the National Centre for Technology in Education (NCTE), findings from a 1993 survey of science and maths education showed that, although hands-on activities have increased in science classes, the largest proportion of class time is still spent in listening to lectures (ASCD 1995). The latest report published by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) of teachers across the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) countries showed that the two predominant activities in science classes are teacher lectures and teacher-guided student practice (Martin 1999). An emphasis on the interaction and participation of the students is a very important factor in the learning process and has been mentioned repeatedly in the literature (Weaver 1978, Cornwell 1979, Bloom 1980, Weaver 1983, Roueche 1984, Chism 1989, Herr 1989). Piaget (1964) believed that social transmission is one of the four factors necessary for the development of mental structures such as proportional reasoning. According to Piaget, learners construct their knowledge schemes in an adaptive process where cognitive activity organizes experience with mental structures that exist in the mind. Learning is not the copying of an object or receiving of information. What students perceived from their teachers might not be the same thing as what the teachers were saying (Labinowicz 1980, Piaget [1941] 1995). To achieve a meaningful learning, from the constructivist view, the new experience has to make sense to students (von Glasersfeld 1990); and they should be active learners, discussing and exchanging thoughts and ideas with classmates or adults (Driver and Bell 1986, Prawat, 1989). The integration of cooperative learning within active learning activities leads to the development of critical and independent thinking skills, deeper understanding of concepts, and longer-lasting learning (Donmoyer 1996, Secules et al. 1997). Several studies (Forman 1981, Skon et al. 1981) have shown that students working together can produce problem solutions characterized by higher cognitive levels of response better than those produced by individual children. Both thinking skills and science process skills are improved when using cooperative learning (Kyle 1984). One of the major problems that education in the UAE suffers from is students low achievement in grade 10. Students in the tenth grade are assigned to take fourteen subjects, science subjects as well as art subjects. Students who favour

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the art subjects suffer most in this grade. The science content is discussed much more deeply than in previous grades. Posner and Markstein (1994) investigated the effectiveness of cooperative learning on the academic performance of minority students and also on their subsequent enrolment in elective courses in biochemistry and molecular biology. The results of the study showed that students Grade Point Average (GPA) increased from 2.13 to 2.96. Okebukola (1992) compared three teaching methods for 147 senior secondary school biology students: concept mapping alone; concept mapping in conjunction with cooperative learning groups; and lecture/demonstration methods. Results indicated that the groups that utilized concept mapping in conjunction with cooperative learning scored significantly higher than the other groups. Basili (1991) conducted a study, using 62 chemistry students at a suburban community college, to test for conceptual change. In that study, the treatment students worked in a small cooperative group on tasks aimed at eliciting their previous misconceptions in chemistry. In groups, they discussed their misconceptions, in contrast to the scientific concepts that had been taught during direct instruction. The treatment group had significantly lower numbers of misconceptions on four out of five target concepts. Lonning (1993) evaluated the effectiveness of cooperative learning in secondary science on students verbal interaction patterns and achievement using a conceptual-change instructional change model. She found that students using cooperative learning strategies showed greater achievement gains and made greater use of the specific verbal patterns that are believed to be related to increased learning. Numerous studies have been conducted on classes using a cooperative learning method. In an evaluation of four studies using different methods of cooperative learning, Slavin (1980b) found that 83% of the studies showed that students in cooperative learning classes achieved significantly more than those who had been taught by traditional methods. Other positive outcomes of using cooperative learning are the increase of social relationship among students (Edwards and DeVeries 1974, Gonzales 1979, Ziegler 1981) and an increase in self-esteem. In cooperative learning classrooms, groups are formed heterogeneously, based on several factors including their academic performance, race, sex, etc. However, academic performance is the most important factor. Most reports of the effect on achievement for the group levels had indicated that low-ability students achieved significantly higher than their counterparts in other group levels. Knupfer (1993) evaluated the effects of grouping by the students ability to learn Logo and on the transfer of geometry knowledge. The study results showed that the low-ability students benefited from heterogeneous grouping, whereas the impact on the average- and high-ability students was not clear. Webb (1977, 1980) and Webb and Cullian (1983) conducted three studies using the same model in order to compare students ability and achievement in group versus individual setting. The results of all three studies have one thing in common: the higher achievement of the low-ability students in the mixed-ability groups. There is other work that supported this finding (Johnson et al. 1985). In addition to the positive impact, cooperative learning improves students attitude toward science. Tlusty (1993) discussed his attempts to use cooperative learning with two sections of a college chemistry course. He focused specifically on the attitudes and achievement of male and female students in the course. While cooperative learning did not produce differences in achievement along gender

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lines, there were discernible differences in attitudes and beliefs with regard to studying chemistry. A substantial and growing body of research indicates that cooperative learning can result in improved learning, more positive attitudes to science, improved thinking and social skills, and better attitudes toward peers who are members of other ethnic and socio-economic groups (Johnson et al. 1976). These arguments have led educators to the conclusion that science has to be taught differently to improve the attitude toward science of both boys and girls (Yager and Penick 1986). To investigate the overuse of lecture and develop alternatives, the Student Team-Achievement Division (STAD) was selected by the researcher. The main purpose of utilizing this method was to test whether there was a significant difference in the achievement levels of students taught by two different methods. STAD is a cooperative teaching method which was developed by Slavin (1978) as part of a student learning approach programme along with other cooperative methods such as Teams-Games-Tournaments, Jigsaw II (Slavin 1980), and Team Assisted Individualization (Slavin et al. 1981). In STAD, students are assigned to four- or five-member learning teams. The teams are composed of high, average, and low performing students, and of boys and girls of different racial or ethnic backgrounds. Thus, each team is a microcosm of the entire class. There are five main steps a teacher should follow when STAD is implemented. The teacher first introduces new materials to be learned. The team members then study worksheets on the material until they master the material. Individual quizzes are taken on the material studied. The teacher then combines the scores to create team scores. Members of the winning team are given certificates and a weekly one-page class newsletter recognizes the teams with the highest scores. Researchers reported that classes using cooperative learning showed an increase in achievement, attitude, self-esteem, and social relationships (Edwards et al. 1972, Edwards and DeVries 1972, Gonzales 1979, Slavin and Karweit 1981, Ziegler 1981, Slavin 1989). This study investigated the effectiveness of the use of STAD for changing students achievement in chemistry in the UAE. There are four reasons, which led to the selection of STAD as an alternative teaching method. First, it facilitates interaction between students in class. Second, it improves attitude, self-esteem, and interpersonal relationships; all of these contribute to a positive attitude towards science. Third, it adds an extra source of learning within groups, such as the high achievers who take on the role of tutors. The end result is a higher achievement for everyone. Fourth, it prepares students to fit into modern society by teaching them to work with their classmates efficiently and effectively.

Significance and rational for the study This study is significant for the following reasons: (1) STAD has not so far been investigated as an alternative method for teaching high school chemistry in the UAE. (2) This research will provide the foundation for other studies that may suggest different ways to modify and improve the teaching methods used in the UAE.

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In this study, the most influential variables, which could affect students achievement in the UAE, were gender, province, and students ability. The interactions of these variables with students achievement were studied. This study was designed to answer the following question:
Does STAD change the chemistry achievement score of the UAE students when it is used as an alternative teaching method?

Methodology To answer the question, seven hypotheses were stated. Each one tries to investigate the achievement score difference in a different setting. H1: The change of mean achievement scores between male and female students under investigation is not affected by the combination of the teaching method used and gender. H2: The change of mean achievement scores between students in the two provinces under investigation is not affected by the combination of the teaching method used and province. H3: The change of mean achievement scores among the 24 subgroups in the eight classes of students under investigation is not affected by the combination of the teaching method used and ability level of the student. H4: The change of mean achievement scores of male and female students under investigation is not affected by the combination of the teaching method used, province, and gender. H5: The change of mean achievement scores among the 12 subgroups in the eight classes of students under investigation is not affected by the combination of the teaching method used, gender, and ability level of the student. H6: The change of mean achievement scores between students in the two provinces under investigation is not affected by the combination of the teaching method used, ability level of students, and province. H7: The change of mean achievement scores among the twenty-four subgroups in the eight classes of students under investigation is not affected by the combination of the teaching method used, gender, province, and ability level of the student. Subjects In the UAE, students are segregated on the basis of gender. The difference in science performance between genders is rarely studied and no study has been conducted that related to the student performance when STAD was used as a teaching method. United Arab Emirates (UAE) consists mainly of three provinces: the northern, eastern, and western provinces. Lifestyle in both western and eastern provinces is different from the northern province. Students in the northern parts of the country spend less time on study and more time on entertainment. The northern province is the urban part of the country. On the other hand, western and eastern provinces are the rural parts of the country. Four schools from the northern and eastern provinces were selected randomly. Two schools, one male and one female have represented each province. From each school, four tenth grade classes

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were selected randomly. The researcher had in mind that all classes in schools were equivalent in their achievement score in chemistry. This equivalence was reached by the close attention that each school principle pays at the beginning of each school year to the distribution of students based on their previous academic performance. In addition to that, the researcher chose the classes which were similar in their academic performance last semester. The two experimental classes were selected randomly from the four. The same teacher was teaching the control and the experimental classes in each school. The total number of students sample was 486 students, 133 male experimental, 123 female experimental, 114 male control, and 118 female control. Before the start of the study, students in each class were classified based on their previous academic performance, as being at high, average, and low-ability students. Instrument A multiple-choice exam with 23 items was given to the students towards the end of the semester. The exam was reviewed by experts from the UAE University in the field of chemistry and science education. Supervisors and teachers of the subject of high school chemistry at the Ministry of Education also reviewed the exam. Delimitation The delimitation factors in this study are: (1) (2) (3) (4) The grade level under investigation was the tenth grade in UAE. Not all the students in the classes under study were science majors. Chemistry was the subject used to measure the method and achievement. The study was conducted in the second semester of the academic year 1998/1999. Definitions Student team-achievement divisions: the use of heterogeneous teams for study and practice. Individual quizzes are given on content to obtain team points. If students want their team to earn some form of team recognition, they must help their teammates learn the material. High-ability students: students who scored more than 80% in chemistry in the first semester. Average ability students: students who scored 6579% in chemistry in the first semester. Low performing students: students who scored less than 65% in chemistry in the first semester. Assumptions The following assumptions were made regarding the conduct of this study:

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611

(1) The teacher understood the STAD design and implemented it as instructed. (2) The students understood their role in this design and did what they were supposed to do. (3) The students cooperated with each other.

Results and discussion There were two limitations over which the researcher had no control and may have affected the results of the study: (1) Success of the research study is determined by the improved academic performance of all students. However there is no assurance, for example, that the high ability student will actually help the lower ability students in the group in order to improve the overall performance. (2) The teachers who taught using STAD had no experience with the method prior to this study. The descriptive statistics for score means of all the groups under investigation have shown that classes which used STAD scored higher than those which had used traditional teaching method (see table 1). The first hypothesis of this study investigates the improvement of achievement scores for the male and female students. Results of the repeated measures ANOVA were presented in table 2. The data indicated that there was significant two-way interaction between test, gender and teaching method, F 30:396, p 0:000. Results of the analysis to test the first hypothesis indicated that the male experimental class achieved a significantly higher mean score than the female experimental class. This suggested that STAD was more effective than the tradiTable 1. Score means of the groups under investigation.
Control 47.51 53.60 46.61 47.51 59.10 34.08 52.78 38.33 56.37 57.97 38.31 66.92 52.17 33.33 33.56 67.15 45.82 Experimental 56.23 58.71 65.92 56.26 65.88 43.05 53.13 53.60 58.71 68.48 65.48 76.40 62.26 60.87 37.17 69.10 46.33

Groups under investigation All classes Gender differences Province difference Male Eastern Province Female Eastern Province Male Northern Province Female Northern Province All male classes All female classes High-male Eastern Province Low-male Eastern Province High-female Eastern Province Low-female Eastern Province High-male Northern Province Low-male Northern Province High-female Northern Province Low-female Northern Province

612 Table 2.
Source of variation Main effects Method Ability Gender Province 2-way interactions Method ability Method gender Method province Ability gender Ability province Gender province 3-way interactions Method ability gender Method ability province Method gender province Ability gender province

N. BALFAKIH

Repeated measures ANOVA analysis.

Sum of squares 60867.608 08970.104 29244.203 08299.891 14353.410 11446.663 00019.865 05270.454 04069.361 00246.213 01105.234 656.4 3227.806 1276.444 1089.222 191.855 261.706 DF 5 1 2 1 1 9 2 1 1 2 2 1 7 2 2 1 2 2 2 23 444 467 Mean square 12173.522 08970.104 14622.101 08299.891 14353.410 1271.851 009.932 5270.454 4069.361 0123.106 0552.617 0656.484 461.115 638.222 544.611 191.855 130.853 517.149 517.149 3329.408 173.392 328.827 F 70.208 51.733 84.330 47.868 82.780 7.335 0.057 30.396 23.469 0.710 3.187 3.786 2.659 3.681 3.141 1.106 0.755 2.983 2.983 19.202 Sign of F 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.944 0.000 0.000 0.492 0.042 0.052 0.011 0.026 0.044 0.293 0.471 0.052 0.052

4-Way interactions 1034.298 Method ability gender province 1034.298 Explained 76576.376 Residual 76985.861 Total 153562.236

tional-teaching method for teaching chemistry to the tenth grade male classes in the UAE. To investigate the interaction between the variables, table 3 was compiled and from this figure 1 was drawn. Figure 1 indicated that both male and female in the experimental classes scored higher than their counterparts in the control classes. The score difference between the traditional-teaching method and STAD for male students was 8.86, and for the female students was 3.56. This gave us an indication that STAD was more effective than the traditional teaching method for both groups; however, male students benefited more than female students. The difference in response to the teaching methods used has been reflected in the slight interaction between the teaching methods and gender (figure 1). As a result of the discussion above, the first null hypothesis was rejected and it was concluded that STAD was more effective than the traditional-teaching method in teaching tenth grade male chemistry classes in the United Arab Emirates. The second hypothesis investigated the interaction of the teaching methods used in this study and province. Results of the ANOVA analysis are represented in table 2. The data showed that there was a significant two-way interaction between test, province and teaching method, F 23:469, p 0:000. To investigate this interaction, table 4 was constructed and figure 2 was drawn from this. Figure 2 indicated that experimental classes scored higher than the control classes. However, table 4 and figure 2 have indicated that students in the northern province benefited more than their counterpart students in the eastern province. The score difference between the traditional-teaching method and STAD for the

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613

Table 3. The interaction of teaching method and gender using repeated measures ANOVA on the test for the eight classes studied.
Instructional method (X1) Traditional Gender (X2) Male Female Mean 40.80 55.94 48.37 STAD 49.66 59.50 54.58 Mean 45.23 57.72

70 60 55.94 59.5

Achievement

50 40 30 20 10 0 Traditional 40.8

49.66

STAD

Teaching Method
Male Female

Figure 1.

Interaction of the teaching method used in the tenth grade chemistry classes and gender.

northern province was 4.66, and for the eastern province was 1.27. The difference in response to the teaching methods used is shown in the slight interaction between the teaching method and province (figure 2). As a result of the discussion above, the second null hypothesis was rejected and it was concluded that STAD was more effective than the traditional-teaching method in teaching tenth grade only in northern province chemistry classes in the United Arab Emirates. Students high score of the control classes in the eastern province minimized the strong effectiveness of STAD on the experimental students. It should be noted here that the students achievement score means of the eastern experimental classes were 6.49 points higher than students achievement score means of the experimental students in the north. This suggested that STAD was more effective than the traditional-teaching method for teaching chemistry to the tenth grade northern province classes in the United Arab Emirates. In this study, the third hypothesis included the ability level of the students. The hypothesis examined the subgroups in every class. Results of the repeated measures ANOVA were presented in table 2. The data indicated that there was no significant two-way interaction between test, students ability and teaching

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Table 4. The interaction of teaching method and province using repeated measures ANOVA on the test for the eight classes studied.
Instructional method (X1) Traditional Province (X2) Northern Eastern Mean 43.43 53.31 48.37 STAD 48.09 61.07 54.58 Mean 45.76 57.19

56 54.58 53.31

54

52

Achievement

50

48

48.09

46

44 43.43 42

40 Traditional STAD

Teaching Method
Northern Eastern

Figure 2.

Interaction of the teaching method used in the tenth grade chemistry classes and province.

method, F 0:057, p 0:944. To investigate if there was any interaction between the three factors, table 5 was constructed and from this figure 3 was drawn. Figure 3 presented the achievement scores of six subgroups, low, average, and high of the students under study, regardless of their gender or provinces. Figure 3 indicated that experimental classes in all three experimental groups scored higher than their counterpart in the control groups. On the other hand, students scores in the control groups have increased in the same manner as in the experimental groups. This resulted in the disappearance of an interaction between the teaching method and students ability. As a result of the discussion above, the third null hypothesis was accepted and it was concluded that there was not enough evidence to name one of the teaching methods used in this study as superior to the other. Both teaching methods had similar effectiveness in teaching tenth grade chemistry classes in the United Arab Emirates. This is true when the other factors were neglected. The fourth hypothesis included the gender and province, in addition to the teaching methods. The hypothesis examined the groups in every class taking into consideration their gender and province. To test the hypothesis, ANOVA with four factors was applied. The design used was a 2 2 2 1 factorial design with

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615

Table 5. The interaction of teaching method and gender using repeated measures ANOVA on the test for the eight classes studied.
Instructional method (X1) Traditional Ability (X2) High Average Low Mean 56.34 47.51 42.47 48.77 STAD 68.71 58.71 52.81 60.08 Mean 62.53 53.11 47.64

70 65

68.71

Achievement

60 55 50 45 40 35 30
High Average Low 56.34 56.23 52.81 47.51 42.47

Teaching Method
Traditional STAD

Figure 3.

Interaction of the teaching method used in the tenth grade chemistry classes and ability.

repeated measures on the fourth factor. There were three factors or variables, with two levels for teaching method (traditional and STAD), province (northern province and eastern province), and gender (male and female). Results of the repeated measures ANOVA were presented in table 2. The data showed that there was no significant three-way interaction between test, province, gender and teaching method, F 1:106, p 0:293. To investigate if there was any interaction between the three factors, table 6 was constructed and figure 4 was drawn. Figure 4 presented the achievement scores of the sixteen classes under investigation which were distributed in different geographical locations in the UAE. The research sample has four male classes in the northern province, two experimental and two control classes. Another four classes in the northern province for the female students have been selected. The same numbers and divisions of classes were applied in the eastern province. Figure 4 indicated that experimental classes in all eight classes scored higher than their counterpart in the control groups. On the other hand, students scores in the control groups have increased in almost the same manner as in the experimental groups. However, figure 4 has shown that achievement scores for the female students in the experimental classes in the northern province were almost

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Table 6. The interaction of teaching method, gender, and province using repeated measures ANOVA on the test for the eight classes studied.
Instructional method (X1) Province Northern Gender (X2) Male Female Eastern Male Female Mean Traditional STAD Mean

34.08 52.78 47.51 59.10 47.37

43.05 53.13 56.26 65.88 54.58

38.57 52.96 51.86 62.49

70 65
65.88

Achievement

60 55 50 45 40 35 30
Male 34.08

53.13

59.1 56.26

52.78 43.05

47.51

Female Northern

Male Eastern

Female

Province
Traditional STAD

Figure 4.

Interaction of the teaching method used in the tenth grade chemistry classes with gender and province.

the same as in the control classes, 53.13 and 52.78 respectively. The difference of achievement scores for the female students in the eastern province was higher, 65.88 and 59.10 respectively. Figure 4 indicated that female students in the northern province benefited the least from using STAD as a teaching method. However, the overall conclusion regarding the interaction was showing the disappearance of an interaction between the teaching method, gender, and province. As a result of the discussion above, the fourth null hypothesis was accepted and it was concluded that there was not enough evidence to name one of the teaching methods used in this study as superior above the other. Both teaching methods have similar effectiveness in teaching tenth grade chemistry classes in the United Arab Emirates. This was true when gender and province were taken into consideration.

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The fifth hypothesis included the gender and students ability, in addition to the teaching methods. The hypothesis would give deeper investigation in this study. The achievement scores of the 12 subgroups in the eight classes under investigation would be analysed. The hypothesis examined the achievement scores of the students in subgroups, high, average and low, in every class for male and female students. To test the hypothesis, repeated measures of ANOVA with four factors was applied. The design used was a 2 2 3 1 factorial design with repeated measures on the fourth factor. The new third factor is the students ability with three levels (high, average and low). Results of the repeated measures ANOVA were presented in table 2. The data showed that there was a significant three-way interactions between test, students ability, gender and teaching method, F 3:681, p 0:026. To investigate this interaction between the three factors, table 7 was constructed and from this figure 5 was drawn. Table 7. The interaction of teaching method, gender, and ability using repeated measures ANOVA on the test for the eight classes studied.
Instructional method (X1) Gender (X3) Male Ability (X2) High Average Low Female High Average Low Mean Traditional STAD Mean

45.65 40.80 35.94 64.04 55.94 49.00 48.56

64.68 49.66 51.33 72.75 59.51 54.30 58.71

55.17 45.23 43.64 64.40 57.73 51.65

75
72.75

70 65
Achievement

64.68

64.04 59.51 55.94 51.33 49 54.3

60 55 50 45 40 35 30 High Average Male

Students' Ability

49.66 45.65 40.8

35.94

Low

High

Average Female

Low

Traditional

STAD

Figure 5.

Interaction of the teaching method used in the tenth grade chemistry classes with gender and students ability.

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Figure 5 indicated that all experimental subgroups scored higher than their counterparts in the control groups. However, the subgroups response toward the teaching method differed from one to another. The extreme response was from the low-ability students in the male subgroup, whose achievement scores had jumped dramatically to the extent that they scored better than those who were classified as average students prior to the study. Low-ability students in the female subgroups had benefited from using STAD as well, but to a limited extent compared with male low-ability students. The difference in achievement scores of the low-ability students in the male experimental and control subgroups was 15.39 points. The other strong noticeable influence of STAD was in the high-ability students in the male groups. The difference in achievement scores of the high-ability students in the male experimental and control subgroups was 19.03 points. This different response to the teaching methods had resulted in an interaction among the factors under investigation. As a result of the discussion above, the fifth null hypothesis was rejected and it was concluded that STAD is more effective than traditional-teaching method in teaching tenth grade chemistry classes in the UAE. This is true when gender and students ability were taken in consideration. The question raised here is: Which province contributed more to the higher achievement of the high and low-ability students in the experimental groups? The investigation of the sixth hypothesis has the answer to the question. Hypothesis 6 investigates the interaction of students ability, province, and teaching methods used. This hypothesis neglected the gender. In this study, the sixth hypothesis included the province and students ability, in addition to the teaching methods. The achievement scores of the 12 subgroups in the eight classes in both provinces under investigation would be analysed. The hypothesis examined achievement scores of the students in subgroups, high, average and low, in every class in the two provinces. To test the hypothesis, repeated measures ANOVA with four factors were applied. The design used was a 2 2 3 1 factorial design with repeated measures on the fourth factor. Results of the repeated measures ANOVA were presented in table 2. The data showed that there was a significant three-way interactions between test, students ability, gender and teaching method, F 3:141, p 0:044. To investigate this interaction between the three factors, table 8 was constructed and figure 6 was drawn. Figure 6 indicates that all experimental subgroups scored higher than their counterpart in the control groups. However, groups response toward the teaching method differed from one person to another. The extreme response at this stage has been shown from the low ability students in the eastern province whose achievement scores jumped dramatically to the extent that they scored better than those who were classified as average students prior to the study. The difference of students achievement score between the experimental and the control subgroups was 18.63 for the eastern low-ability students, and 2.06 for the northern province students. On the other hand, the experimental subgroup of the low-ability students in the northern province benefited almost the same as their counterparts in the control subgroup. The achievement scores of the other subgroups varied. For example, high ability students in the eastern province scored 18 points, and 14 points in the northern province, these scores were higher than their counterparts

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Table 8. The interaction of teaching method, province, and students ability using repeated measures ANOVA on the test for the eight classes studied.
Instructional method (X1) Province (X3) Northern Ability (X2) High Average Low Eastern High Average Low Mean Traditional STAD Mean

50.24 43.43 39.69 62.45 53.31 45.24 49.06

64.99 48.09 41.75 72.44 61.07 63.87 58.70

57.15 45.76 40.72 67.45 57.19 45.56

80

75
72.44

70

Achievement

65

64.99 62.45

63.87 61.07

60

55
53.31

50

50.24 48.09 41.75 45.24 43.43

45

40

39.69

35
High Average Low High Average Low

Northern

Eastern

Students' Ability

Traditional

STAD

Figure 6. Interaction of the teaching method used in the tenth grade chemistry classes, with province and students ability. in the control subgroup. This different response to the teaching methods resulted in an interaction among the factors under investigation. As a result of the discussion above, the sixth null hypothesis was rejected and it was concluded that STAD was more effective than the traditional-teaching method in teaching tenth grade science classes in the UAE. This was true when province and students ability were taken into consideration. The seventh hypothesis included the province, students ability, gender, and teaching methods. Hypothesis 7 was more comprehensive; it gave us more detail about the effectiveness of the teaching methods used. The achievement scores of the 24 subgroups in the eight classes under investigation would be analysed. The hypothesis examined achievement scores of the students in subgroups, high, average and low, in every class in the two provinces for both male and female.

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The design used to test the hypothesis was a 2 2 2 3 1 factorial design with repeated measures on the fourth factor. Results of the repeated measures ANOVA were presented in table 2. The data indicated that there was no significant four-way interaction between test, students ability, gender, province and teaching method, F 2:983, p 0:052. To investigate if there was any interaction between the four factors, table 9 was constructed and figure 7 was drawn. Figure 7 indicated that all experimental subgroups scored higher than their counterparts in Table 9. The interaction of teaching method, province, gender and students ability using repeated measures ANOVA on the test for the eight classes studied.
Instructional method (X1) Province (X3) Northern Gender (X4) Male Female Ability (X2) Traditional STAD Mean

High Average Low High Average Low High Average Low High Average Low

33.33 34.08 33.56 67.15 52.78 45.82 57.97 47.51 38.31 66.92 59.10 52.17

60.87 43.05 37.17 69.10 53.13 46.33 68.48 56.26 65.48 76.40 65.88 62.26

47.10 38.57 35.37 68.13 52.96 46.08 63.23 51.89 51.90 71.66 62.49 57.22

Eastern Male Female

80 75
76.4

Achievement

70 65 60 55 50 45 40 35 30
Average 60.87 67.15

69.1

68.48 65.48

66.92 65.88 62.26 59.1

57.97 52.78 53.13

56.26

46.33 43.05 45.82 33.33 34.08 37.17 33.56

47.51

52.17

38.31

Average

Average

Average

Ability

Low

Low

Low

High

High

High

( X

Gender (X4)

2 )

Male (N)

Female (N)

Male (E)

Province (X3)

Students' Ability

Traditional

STAD

Figure 7. Interaction of the teaching method used in the tenth grade chemistry classes, with gender, province and students ability.

High

Female (E)

Low

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the control groups. The teaching methods response that was used could be divided into three main groups based on the points difference between the experimental and control group. This list showed those who benefited from the most to the least as follows:
. Low-ability students: male students in the eastern province (27.17) Female students in the eastern province (10.09) Male students in the northern province (3.61) . High-ability students: male students in the northern province (27.54) Male students in the eastern province (10.51) Female students in the eastern province (9.48)

The female students in the northern province represented the first group. Achievement scores of the students in the experimental subgroups were similar to the students in the control subgroups. The female students in the eastern province represented the second group. It was clear that experimental subgroups achieved higher than their counterparts in the control group. However, figure 7 has not given any indication of an interaction between any subgroup and the teaching methods applied. The male students in both provinces represented the last group. Figure 7 showed a clear interaction between the teaching methods used and the achievement scores of subgroups; however, the overall result was the disappearance of a significant interaction among the factors under investigation. As a result of the discussion above, the seventh null hypothesis was accepted and it was concluded that both teaching methods, STAD and the traditionalteaching method, have similar effectiveness in teaching tenth grade chemistry classes in the United Arab Emirates. This is true when province, gender, and students ability were taken in consideration.

Summary The findings have indicate that STAD is a more effective teaching method than the traditional-teaching method in teaching tenth grade chemistry classes in the UAE. Male students benefited more than female students from using STAD as an alternative teaching method. When provinces were compared, it was found that the northern province benefited more, when all other factors were neglected. Among the four schools, it was found that male students in the northern province benefited the most from STAD (8.97 points), followed by male students in the eastern province (8.75 points), then female students in the eastern province (6.78 points). Female students achievement scores in the northern province almost did not change (0.35 point). This study has shown that all subgroups benefited from the use of STAD as an alternative teaching method. The students achievement scores of all students in experimental groups increased compared to their counterpart in control groups.

Implications In the first semester of the academic year of 2000/2001, a survey of 44 items was distributed to 295 science teachers nationwide. The item which described their teaching practice in science showed that the lecture was still the dominant teaching

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method. This type of practice restricts students creativity and makes students dependent, and passive learners (Page 1990). Officials in the Ministry of Education are aware of this situation. Their desires to change the science programme so as to make UAE students more active is reflected in the visionary plan for 2020. Two very important goals, which related to the teaching of science, had been stated. The fourteenth and sixteenth goals of the vision emphasized the need for science teachers to implement teaching methods which enhance students creativity. In addition, teachers were encouraged to move from the traditional teaching which focus on rote learning to a teaching that enhances meaningful learning. The 2020 vision wants students to be active learners who can solve project problems, work in teams to achieve common goals, communicate, share, and exchange ideas with others. All of these goals require a teacher to be a facilitator or coach not a transmitter of information. The transition from the traditional teaching practice to a new one such as STAD, which could help fulfilling the 2020 vision requirements, is not an easy task. To do so, teachers need to be confident and mastery of both subject content and basic teaching skills (de Feiter et al. 1995). It has been found that confidence and trust in chemistry teachers had been raised when workshops about the use of STAD were conducted. This was achieved for two reasons. First, the results of this study had shown that experimental achievement scores were significantly higher than the control group, especially for male students. Second, UAE chemistry teachers felt more comfortable when STAD worked well applying the same curriculum on similar students. These two crucial factors have been emphasized in the workshops. In addition, teachers worksheets and students team works were presented. As a result, teachers were motivated to try the transition from the traditional teaching practice to STAD.

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