An evaluative study of the experimental tasks of the Ethiopian grade 12 chemistry textbook considering developing “science process skills”

Figures & data

Graph 1: Counted process skills versus frequency of their percentages.

Table 1. Outline of experimental activities in different units in grade 12 chemistry textbook

Unit	Title of experiment	Page
I) Solution	Distinction between homogeneous and heterogeneous mixtures	3
	Investigating properties of some mixture	4
	Investigation of heat of solution	13
	Investigating the solubility of NaCl	17
	Preparation of solutions of known concentrations	37
	Preparation of solution of lower concentration from standard stock solution	40
II) Acid–base equilibria	Acid–base color of litmus in water solution	68
	The buffer action of solutions	92
	Acid–base titrations	99
III) Introduction to chemical thermodynamics	Measuring the standard molar enthalpy of neutralization	142
IV) Electrochemistry	Electrical conductivity test	166
	Investigating electrolysis of sodium chloride solution	173
	Determination of cell potential of Daniell cell	195
V) Chemistry and industry	Studying chemical properties of some metals	236
VI) Polymers	Synthesis of nylon	277

Table 2. Scoring rubrics of ITAI

No.	Skills	Scoring rubrics
1	Observing	If students are required to or must perform observation, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
2	Inferring	If students are required to or must infer, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
3	Measuring	If students are required to or must measure the variables directly related to research questions, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
4	Communicating	If students are required to or must communicate as part of this task, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
5	Classifying	If students are required to or must perform classification that is rigorously defined in the inquiry process (e.g., biological classification), mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
6	Predicting	If students are required to or must predict, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
7	Controlling variables	If students are required to or must control variables, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
8	Formulating hypothesis	If students are required to or must formulate hypotheses and this task in fact belongs to inquiries that necessarily test hypotheses (e.g., experimental inquiry), mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
9	Interpreting data	If students are required to or must interpret data, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No
10	Formulating models	If students are required to or must formulate models, mark Yes; otherwise, mark No

Source: Yang and Liu (2016), p. 23

Table 3. The frequency of science process skill SPS s in different units of experimental instructions

No.	Skills	Frequency occurrence
Unit		1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	Total	Percentage
1	Observing	19	11	1	14	7	7	59	39.33%
2	Inferring	6	5	1	4	3	3	22	14.67%
3	Measuring	15	5	2	4	2	2	28	18.67%
4	Communicating	9	4	1	9	2	2	27	18%
5	Classifying	1	1	0	5	0	1	8	5.33%
6	Predicting	1	0	0	2	1	0	4	2.67%
7	Controlling variables	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
8	Formulating hypothesis	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9	Interpreting data	1	0	0	0	0	1	1	0.07%
10	Formulating models	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total							149	100%

Yang, W., & Liu, E. (2016). Development and validation of an instrument for evaluating inquiry-based tasks in science textbooks. International Journal of Science Education, 38(18), 2688–2711. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2016.1258499

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