Students’ anxiety towards the learning of chemistry in some Ethiopian Universities

Abstract

Chemistry is a human endeavor that relies on basic human qualities like creativity, insights, reasoning, and skills. It depends on habits of the mind: skepticism, tolerance of ambiguity, openness to new ideas, intellectual honesty, and curiosity. The study was thus designed to find out students’ anxiety towards the learning of chemistry, identify the factors that cause the anxiety, examine the disposition of sex towards the learning of chemistry and suggest ways to increase their taste towards the learning of the subject. Data for the study were obtained by administering a questionnaire to 300 respondents. The data obtained were analyzed using frequency counts, percentages and stanine test. The finding of the study revealed that the students, whether male or female, urban or rural based, show great anxiety towards the learning of chemistry and that the anxiety is higher in female and rural based students than male and
urban based students. The cause of students’ anxiety as revealed by the study includes; redundancy of the curriculum, low awareness of career opportunities, the teachers and their teaching methods and lack of teaching aids/laboratories. [AJCE, 3(2), June 2013]