Assessment of the Approaches Used in Teaching and Its Influence on Selection of Science Subjects among Female Students in Public Secondary Schools in Arusha District

Teaching approaches and its influence on selection of science subjects among female students in public secondary schools in Arusha District Council, Tanzania was investigated. Objectives were to; highlight approaches used in teaching of science subjects in public secondary schools and determine how teaching approaches influence female students’ choice of science subjects in public secondary schools. Active Learning theory guided the study. Convergent mixed methods design suitable to collect data through questionnaires, documentary analysis and interview guide was adopted. Sample size of 132 respondents; 80 students & 44 teachers selected by simple and stratified random sampling techniques while 8 school heads were purposively selected. Validity was established through expert judgment. Reliability was determined and reliability index, QS, r=0.914 and QT, r=0.912 was obtained. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically alongside research questions and presented in narrative forms while quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics in the SPSS and results were presented in charts and tables. The study revealed that student centred, experimental and outdoor teaching/learning approaches attract more girls in taking science subjects. In conclusion, schools with adequate staffing of science teachers and laboratory materials are likely to adopt student centred, experimental and outdoor teaching/learning approaches which encourage female students in selecting science subjects. It is recommended that, since Tanzania is emphasizing industrialization as a backbone for economic development, science education for female students in all levels should be given a special attention in terms of proper infrastructures, human resources and funding that will enable teachers to adopt the right teaching approaches.