Abstract:

Chemistry is among the essential science subjects taught at the secondary school level in Nigerias education landscape. There has been a persistent concern about the poor performance in chemistry in Nigeria. The present study investigated teachers likability as a scarcely explored variable that could explain the variation in students attitudes towards chemistry. A cross-sectional survey was employed for the analysis, and the population of the study comprised senior secondary school students in the Kogi State of Nigeria. Participants included males and females senior secondary school students enrolled in the science classes. One hundred and fifty-three students participated in the study. The respondents completed a self-report measure of the Teachers Likability Scale and the Attitude Toward Chemistry Lessons Scale (ATCLS). The finding showed that most of the participants indicated a negative attitude toward the subject (M = 2.89, SD = 3.32), compared to others (M = 1.18, SD = 3.39) that exhibited an unfavorable attitude towards the chemistry. A linear regression analysis was conducted to test the study hypothesis, and the result showed that teachers likability statistically significantly predicted attitude towards chemistry F (1,151), 124.716, P< .05. Therefore, the study concluded that a teachers likability is an essential determinant of students attitudes towards chemistry. Thus, it is recommended that teachers should improve in their personal and professional attributes.

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