The use of graphic organizers in teaching history to grade seven students in Bhutan

Abstract

This mixed methods study was conducted to compare the learning achievement of Grade Seven students before and after the use of graphic organizers and to find students’ opinion towards using graphic organizers in learning History. The study was conducted in one of the schools in Bhutan with 18 students over the period of four weeks. The quantitative data was collected through learning achievement tests (pretest and posttest) and survey questionnaires. The qualitative data was collected from semistructured interview. The analysis of the pretest and posttest scores through Wilcoxon signed rank test showed 100% students had improved their scores in posttest as compared to pretest. The mean (x̅) difference of 6.81 between posttest (x̅14.64) and pretest (x̅7.83) indicated that the use of graphic organizers improved the learning achievement of students. Likewise, the data collected from survey questionnaire and interview showed that the students had positive opinions in using graphic organizers to learn History. The mean (x̅) rating of the opinion questionnaire was 4.46 out of 5, which rated ‘Agree’ on the Likert scale. The findings from interviews and survey questionnaire revealed that students were motivated and satisfied to use graphic organizers to learn History. It had also developed their interest in the subject. Therefore, this study recommends using graphic organizers as one of the learning strategies to improve the academic performance and interest in learning History.