Abstract:
This study focused on senior high school students’ perception of their computer laboratory learning environment and how the use of computers affects their learning in urban and community senior high schools. Data was obtained with the Computer Laboratory Environment Inventory questionnaire, administered to 278 second year senior high school students. The sample consisted of 171 males (61.5%) and 107 females (38.5%) with a mean age of students being 17.4 years. The data were analyzed using SPSS to find how frequent students experience a particular factor that affect them when in the computer laboratory and also the difference in how male and female students perceive their computer laboratory learning environment as measured using the t-test. Four factors, supply material environment, integration, supervision and reliable material environment, were found to influence students’ perception of their computer laboratory environment. The findings revealed that students’ general perception of their computer laboratory environments in both school types were positive but significantly different in favour of those in urban schools. The findings suggest that serious efforts must be made by the Ministry of Education (MOE) to improve the material environment, particularly, in Community schools. These schools lack the necessary facilities required to perform practical activities in the laboratory. The acquisition of manipulative and recoding skills which are tied to the context of a laboratory and are emphasized by the MOE and the West African Examination Council will continue to be lacking if this is not done.
