Instructional Strategies for Promoting Genetics Literacy for Sustainable Science Education in The Twenty-First Century

Abstract

This paper investigated instructional strategies for effective teaching and learning of
genetics for promoting genetics literacy for sustainable science education in the 21st
century. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. The participants were Senior
Secondary 3 biology students in Enugu Education Zone, Enugu State, Nigeria. Two
research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation and two null
hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of significance guided the study. The population consists
of 1,986 students and 50 Biology teachers. 200 students and 20 biology teachers selected
through multistage sampling constituted the sample. A 12-item structured questionnaire
titled Promoting Genetics Literacy for Sustainable Science Education (PGLSS) was used
for data collection. The reliability coefficient of the instrument was 0.89 obtained using
Cronbach Alpha. The findings of the study showed that the use of creative critical thinking,
communication, constructivist and collaborative instructional strategies were effective
strategies for promoting genetics literacy needed for sustainable science (biology)
education. There is no significant difference between the mean responses of teachers
and students on the instructional strategies needed for promoting genetics literacy. It was
recommended among others that biology teachers should adopt instructional strategies
that would offer students the opportunity to participate actively in the teaching and
learning process for sustainable development through science education, thereby
promoting the acquisition of 21st-century skills.

Keywords: Genetics Literacy, Instructional Strategies, Science Education, 21st-century
skills