

































Effect of Class Size on Academic Achievement  
of Chemistry Students in Ikere Local Government Area of  

Ekiti State, Nigeria 

 
Amoke  M.  KENNI 

Department of Chemistry, College of Education, Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti State Nigeria 
E-Mail: kenni.amoke@coeikere.edu.ng         Phone No:  +2348053158669 

 
 

Abstract 
This research investigated the effect of class size on academic achievement of chemistry 
students secondary schools in public in Ikere local government area of Ekiti State. The study 
was guided by four (4) objectives which were raised into three (3) research questions and 
formulated into four (4) hypotheses. The study adopted quasi – experimental research design. 
The sample size of eighty (80)respondents were used for the study using purposive sampling 
technique to select a school that practices co-educational school with at least 100 Chemistry 
students in the SS2 classes. The class was grouped into two. Group 1 named large class 
consisted of 50 students while the second group, Group 2 was named small class with 30 
Chemistry students. The instrument for data collection in the study was a student Chemistry 
Achievement Test (SCAT). The test retest method of reliability was used to ascertain the 
reliability index of the instrument using Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation (PPMC). A 
coefficient of 0.85 was obtained. Frequency counts and percentage were used to analyse the 
demographic data of respondents while the hypotheses were tested using inferential statistics 
of t-test. Based on the findings of the study, the researcher concluded that Chemistry class 
size either small or large class size had no effects on students’ academic achievement but 
students’ achievement in either small or large class size could be affected by factors like 
teachers’ effectiveness, teaching method, instructional materials available for use etc.  
Students’ treatment in either large or small class size had no effects on Chemistry 
achievement scores of students taught in small class and those in large class in the post-test. 
Class size did not affect Chemistry achievement scores of male and female students taught in 
small class in the post-test. Gender Chemistry achievement is independent of large class in 
the post-test. Therefore, based on the findings, appropriate recommendations were made. 
Keywords: Class size, academic achievement, chemistry student, school discipline. 
 
 
Introduction 

Globally, science has been embraced as driver of the new world and catalyst of 
civilization of any country. Science has been described as a discipline that is unique with 
beautiful qualities that branded it with systematic approach through which knowledge is 
sought after and collected. For every nation to benefits immensely and effectively from the 
abundant opportunity of science, there is need for substantial level of scientific literacy 
among the citizen. Pember & Humbe (2009) defined science as a process of teaching or 
training especially, in school to improve one’s knowledge about environment and to develop 
one’s skill of systematic inquiry as well as natural attitudinal characteristics. 

Science plays important roles in the society because it relates to our daily life and 
career. Both the process and product of science are acquired through education and this is 
specialized type of education such as science education. No country can be globally 

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mailto:kenni.amoke@coeikere.edu.ng


recognized without talking about its scientific advancements. The importance of science in 
our society made the Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Federal Ministry of 
Education to introduce science subjects in the nation’s secondary school curriculum. 
Chemistry is one of such subjects introduced. 

Chemistry occupies a unique position among various science subjects offered at the 
senior secondary school level. The study of Chemistry involves pursuit of truth, a process that 
instills diligence, patience and objectivity in learners (Opara & Waswa, 2013). Chemistry 
learning develops the scientific habits in students, which are transferable to other areas of life. 
Such habits involve non-reliance on superstition, use of critical thinking and respect for other 
people’s opinion (Yunus & Ali, 2012). Chemistry as a science is a fundamental requirement 
for most core science based courses (Oloyede, 2010). Improving students’ academic 
achievement in Chemistry has been the concern and the reason for most educational research 
and programmes. In addition to the students’ qualities, other determinants such as home 
factors, school variables, and teacher qualities have been found to impact on students’ 
academic achievement, either positively or negatively. Class size is one of the school 
variables that determine how effectively students learn. 
 There is therefore the need to adopt efficient teaching and learning strategies that will 
enhance better achievement and retention of the subject matter by students. Michael (2010) 
defined class size as the number of students for whom a teacher is primarily responsible for 
during a school year. The class size could be large or small. Class size is akin to the 
administrative element of ‘span of control’, which is the number of subordinates a manager 
can effectively supervise. It is an administrative measure signifying the number of students 
for whom a teacher is responsible during the school year. Adeyemi (2008) described class 
size as an educational tool that can be used to describe the average number of students per 
class in a school.  

The teacher who is the classroom manager should therefore, have the number of 
students he/she can effectively control, supervise and teach at any given period. It is often 
perceived that smaller classes have less number of disruptions thereby engendering better 
student/teacher engagement and better student learning than larger classes. Adding more 
students to a class increases the number of disruptions and decreases the amount of time 
during which learning can take place because the teacher spends time dealing with these 
students that cause disruptions. Meanwhile, Hattie (2009) argued that not all interactions 
between student and teacher will result in improved learning; rather effective interaction is 
what is needed. 
 However, Sparks (2010) noted that class can be said to be large when the student 
number is more than 25. As the world population continues to increase, the class sizes are 
also affected. Class size is often mentioned by experts in the educational literature as having 
effect on student‘s feelings and performance, quality of school budgets and on administration 
as well (Owoeye & Yara, 2011). It is considered as one of the important determinants of 
academic achievement over which teachers in schools have little or no control. Mokobia & 
Okoye (2011) explained that educators universally have identified class size as important and 
desirable attribute of effective educational system.  
 According to Doyle (2014), in modern day education, the focus is on the needs, 
interest and comfort of the students. Thus, managing class size allows students to learn 
effectively without disturbing one another (Garret, 2008). While a number of studies have 
found support for the importance of class size on student achievement, others strongly 
disprove this claim concluding that class size has little or no impact on objective student 
outcomes. The orthodox wisdom among parents, teachers, school administrators, and policy 
makers is that, smaller class size translates to improvements in student learning and 
outcomes. This orthodox wisdom, however, has not been universally supported by realistic 

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evidence (Aturupane, Glewwe & Wisniewski, 2013). It has been argued that increasing the 
intake of senior secondary school students in a large class has numerous benefits for the 
schools and the country as a whole. It helps to reduce the cost of building additional 
classrooms of which few schools as well as the country have the resources to fund additional 
classrooms and teachers.  
 Determining the ideal class size continues to generate a lot of discussion, especially in 
this present period of school population explosion, financial hardship, shortage of teachers 
and students’ poor academic achievement. Opinions differ among educationists and different 
people/ nations have varying perceptions of what constitutes a small, large or ideal class size. 
Whether a class is perceived as large or small depends on factors such as teacher factors, 
school environment, educational theories and philosophies. Several factors such as 
inadequate school building, population explosion, inadequate number of subject teachers, 
give rise to larger class sizes. In a normal classroom, the teacher is expected to cater for/ deal 
with diverse personalities with divergent backgrounds, ideas, interests, attitudes and abilities 
(Eboatu & Ehirim, 2018). 
 Academic achievement is the educational outcome that indicates the extent to which 
the specific goal of education has been accomplished in an instructional environment. This is 
normally shown in terms of students’ scores and grades in test examinations or assignments. 
Maguson (2007) describes academic achievement as commonly measured by examination or 
continuous assessment but maintains that there is no general agreement on how academic 
achievement is best tested. Though the relationship between class size and academic 
achievement has been a perplexing one, many educationists believe that small class sizes 
engender better student achievement and that it helps students get sufficient feedback. 
Proponents of small class sizes posited that it enables students to get adequate attention from 
teachers which invariably lead to better academic achievement and eliminates frustration. 
Bruhwiler & Blatchford (2011) believes that students who were taught in smaller classes in 
their early elementary grades continue to have enhanced academic achievement even if they 
are in larger classes in upper elementary or middle school. 
 In Ekiti State, inadequate classrooms are coupled with insufficient numbers of 
chemistry teachers due to no immediate replacement of teachers, as many retire from the 
teaching profession each year. This leads to increases in teacher-students ratios in schools and 
lack of specialist teachers to handle some subjects. More often than not, two or more classes 
are combined to be taught chemistry because of these deficiencies. It brings about large class 
formation in schools which may hinder academic achievement of students in chemistry. It 
was observed by the researcher that in some secondary schools within Ikere local 
government, the class size is large because of insufficient chemistry teachers. Some of the 
problems that are associated with large chemistry classes are congestion, noisy classes, little 
or no interpersonal relationships between teacher and students, etc.  
 In a chemistry class of 50:1 students-teacher ratio, some of the students will not be 
able to hear the teacher audibly while teaching and learning process are ongoing. Therefore, 
this leading to poor dissemination of instructions from chemistry teachers to students and 
resulting into low impact of knowledge of the topic under discussion. Hence, this study 
intends to investigate the effect of class size on academic achievement of chemistry students 
in Ikere local government area of Ekiti State. 
 
Hypotheses 
 The following hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance in the study: 

1. There is no significant difference between the Chemistry achievement scores of 
students taught in small class and those in large class in the pre-test. 

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2. There is no significant difference between the chemistry achievement scores of 
students taught in small class and those in large class in the post-test. 

3. There is no significant difference between the chemistry achievement scores of male 
and female students taught in small class in the post-test. 

4. There is no significant difference between the chemistry achievement scores of male 
and female students taught in large class in the post-test. 

 
LITERATURE REVIEW 
Concept of School Environment 

According to Mick (2011), school environment means the extent to which school 
settings promote student safety and student health, which may include topics such as the 
physical plant, the academic environment, available physical and mental health supports and 
services, and the fairness and adequacy of disciplinary procedures, as supported by relevant 
research and an assessment of validity. Environment is a place where the child functions. 
This includes home, the school, the peer group, the classroom, the totality of the child’s 
upbringing including his spiritual life, tissue needs, social needs, psychological needs it is 
defined not to mean only the place in which the child lives (physical) but also the people with 
which he comes in contact with (social) (Akem, 2008). 
 Students’ academic success is greatly influenced by the type of school they attend. 
School factors include school structure, school composition and school climate. The school 
that one attends is the institutional environment that sets the parameters of a students’ 
learning experience. As schools are faced with more public accountability for student 
academic performance, school level characteristics are being studied to discover methods of 
improving achievement for all students. Depending on the environment, schools can either 
open or close the doors that lead to academic performance (Barry, 2005).  

Crosnoe (2004) suggested that school sector (public or private) and class size are two 
important structural components of the school. Private schools tend to have both better 
funding and smaller sizes than public schools. The additional funding for private schools 
leads to a better academic performance and more access to resources Research shows that 
students who trust their teachers are more motivated and as a result perform better in school 
(Eamon, 2005). School policies and programmes often dictate the school climate. 
Furthermore, if a school is able to accomplish a feeling of safety, students can have success 
regardless of their family or neighbourhood backgrounds (Crosnoe, 2004). According to 
Muleyi (2008), teachers do influence students’ academic performance. School variables that 
affect students’ academic performance include the kind of treatment which teachers accord 
the students. Teachers cannot be dissociated from the schools they teach and academic results 
of their schools. 

Teacher’s experience is another indicator of student academic performance. School 
climate is closely linked to the interpersonal relations between students and teachers. 
According to Crosnoe (2004), school climate is the general atmosphere of school. Trust 
between students and teachers increases if the school encourages teamwork. Quite a bit of 
research has been done to identify the influence of classroom and school characteristics on 
academic performance. Student achievement variables aggregated to the school level have 
been used a great deal to describe school output but variables describing aggregation of 
properties of classrooms within schools have been studied somewhat less often in school 
analyses. 

  
Concept of Class Size 

The concept of class size refers to the number of students undertaking a particular 
course/ subject or the number of students taught by a teacher in a classroom in a given period. 

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It is the number of students a teacher attends to during a given period of instruction (Eboatu 
& Ehirim, 2018). Class size is thus different from the student-teacher ratio, which is 
expressed as the relationship between the student population and the number of teachers 
available in the school. The schoolteacher-to-student ratio may be low but conceals the 
existence of a dearth of teachers in some subject areas that lack teachers, thereby giving rise 
to few teachers teaching large numbers of students in these subjects. Class size may be 
defined as the number of students per teacher in a given class or the population of a class 
(Ajayi, Audu & Ajayi, 2017). 

Several factors such as inadequate school building, population explosion, inadequate 
number of subject teachers, give rise to larger class sizes. In a normal classroom, the teacher 
is expected to cater for/ deal with diverse personalities with divergent backgrounds, ideas, 
interests, attitudes and abilities. In large classes and overpopulated classes, the result is 
student disengagement (Eboatu & Ehirim, 2018). The teacher in such a situation may not be 
able to give individual students the attention they need and this may lead to poor academic 
achievement. FRN (2013) therefore prescribes a student-teacher ratio of 1:25 for pre-primary 
classes; 1:35 for primary and 1:40 for secondary schools. Some researchers have maintained 
that class size is a tool which can be adopted in measuring performance of educational system 
(Kedney, 2013).Class size is refers to as students to teacher ratio per class (Ali, 2012).  

In the view of Ikolo (2011), class size equally means group which is a set of persons 
among whom there exist a definable or observable set of relations. The word group then can 
refer not only to a set of persons but to a place where the interaction occurs. According to 
Imoke (2006) optimum class size implies rational coordination of educational infrastructures, 
subject to available number of students in order to attain high level of productivity. The class 
size is becoming increasingly unmanageable, putting teachers in an impossible position of 
giving individual student required attention. In Nigeria public schools, the teachers' eye 
contact with the students in class has become so reduced that some of the poorly motivated 
students can form number of committees at the back of the class while teaching is going on to 
engage in non-school discussion. Regular assignments and home works are dreaded by 
teachers considering the staggering number of books to mark and to record (Adimonyemma, 
Akachukwu & Igboabuchi, 2018). 
 
 
 
 
Class Size, School Discipline and Performance 

Discipline is a variable that impact and influence either way the students’ academic 
performance in the school. Discipline according to Animashaun (2009), is the control of the 
class by the teachers as applicable to a feature of school life. Discipline is the training which 
produces cooperation from the students. Classroom discipline is the business of enforcing 
classroom standards and building patterns of corporation to maximize learning and minimize 
disruption. Makinde (2011) opined that to build positive classroom discipline, teachers 
should model appropriate behaviour and use appropriate classroom management methods. It 
is often argued that many notable problems that are militating against students’ academic 
performance in Chemistry originated from the class.  

A lot of indiscipline acts in the classroom are born of out of the fact that the class is 
too large for the teacher to manage (Mcintyre, 2005). The over population of the classroom 
and the prevalent acts of indiscipline is a thing of concern for educators and this researcher. 
Several factors have been incriminated as being responsible for the conducive teaching and 
learning environment. Among such factors are class size and discipline (Tobih, Akintaro & 
Osunlana, 2013). On one side, classroom congestion in terms of large class is blamed and on 

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the other hand, low utilization of classrooms in the sense of small class size have been 
identified as a common feature of secondary schools in Nigeria. Conflicts has often appeared 
on the ideal class size. Zyngier (2014) stated that the relationship between class size and 
academic achievement is an approach that has been tried, debated and analysed for many 
decades. Some educators have long argued that students do better in small class sizes and 
there is a logic that small class size increase students’ academic achievement. 
 Despite large amount of research on the debate on relationship between class size and 
student academic performance, there exist sharp disagreements about the findings. The 
divergent views have made it difficult to pin down the precise relationship among class size, 
discipline and students’ academic performance. Although, most studies in Nigeria revealed 
significant relationship between class size and students’ academic performance such as, 
Fabunmi, Brai-Abu & Adeniji (2007) who found out that class size alongside classroom 
space and classroom utilization rate determines significantly secondary school students’ 
academic performance in Oyo State. Tobih, et. al. (2013) revealed that there is significant 
relationship between class size and students’ academic performance in mathematics in JSSCE 
examination. 
 
Status of Class Size in Senior Secondary Schools Chemistry Class 
 Education is the systematic training of individual in order to bring about positive 
change in his or her behaviour so as to become fulfilled citizen (Angelo, 2008). Across the 
globe, trends in education have reflected significant increase in students’ enrolment 
(Ademola, 2014). This is very evident in Nigeria with an upward trend in school enrolment at 
all levels of education including science (chemistry) after the civil war in 1970. Nigeria, like 
most of the countries across the globe has adopted and implemented to a large extent the 
Education For All (EFA) policy of the United Nations (UN), which has in no small measure 
resulted in the increased students population at all levels of education. The increased numbers 
in enrolment have led to another educational problem which piqued the interest of educators, 
particularly when this increased number is juxtaposed with students’ classroom management 
and engagement. The increased figure in enrolment has led to increased number of students 
in a chemistry classroom.  
 According to Yusuf (2015), classrooms are used as appropriate places for seeking and 
acquiring education usually from a teacher to the learners. Classroom size is the population of 
a given class in terms of number of students per teacher. The FRN (2013) recommended an 
average of 40 students per class as the standard class size in Nigeria. Two class sizes are 
normally distinguishable in the educational sector. A large class size falls within 41 and 
above learners to one teacher while small class size is within 15-40 learners to one teacher 
(Aliu, 2015). Many scholars including Yusuf (2015) all support this classification of class 
sizes. Therefore, class size with 1 - 40 students per teacher will be categorized as small class 
size while class size with 41 and above students per teacher will be categorized as large class 
size.  
 Dror (2009) noted that class size (in chemistry) has become a phenomenon often 
mentioned in the educational literature as an influence on students’ socializing pattern and 
academic performance, quality of instruction, administration and school budgets. The scholar 
added that class size is an administrative decision which teachers have little or no control. 
Ogunyemi & Hassan (2011) maintained that the issue of small or large class size can be 
counter-productive. In remote and even local areas, classes are found to be over-congested 
which is indeed an indication of the dearth of educational facilities in schools. The issue of 
large class sizes and the associated consequences is paramount. The phenomenon of large 
classes is fast becoming the vogue of senior secondary schools in Nigeria and in most 
developing countries.  

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The large class syndrome has been attributed to the expansion in annual students’ 
enrolment. Sesugh (2012) discovered that there is tremendous increase in the enrolment of 
students and in the average size of classrooms in Nigeria senior secondary schools these days 
from 30 - 40 students to 60 - 75 or even more. Though, open enrolment in schools is 
laudable, yet, the deficiency is in the corresponding provision of adequate infrastructures, 
inadequate classrooms, short supply of teachers, dilapidated structures and classrooms which 
look like poultry in some schools. Seats and desks which are basic classroom requirements 
are insufficient and in some senior secondary schools, students are sitting on ransacked 
furniture and some even sit on bare floor (Omwirhiren & Anderson, 2016). 

The size of classes has become increasingly unmanageable, leaving the chemistry 
teachers with the impossible task of giving individual attention to the learner’s needs. The 
chemistry teachers’ eye contact with the learner in class becomes so dissipated that a number 
of poorly motivated learners can form small committees at the back of the class to engage in 
non-school discussion, while the teacher is busy teaching. Continuous assessments are 
dreaded by teachers when they consider the staggering number of scripts to be marked and 
recorded. In modern education, attention is centered on the needs and comfort of the learner, 
how the learning is distributed by social background and may be influenced by the structural 
and organizational properties of the school. Thus, attention is centered on class size which 
allows (chemistry) students to learn effectively without disturbing one another (Ajayi, Audu 
& Ajayi, 2017).  
 
Large Class Size and Academic Achievement of Chemistry Students 
 Teaching large classes is particularly challenging. The challenge to schools to provide 
a high quality education comes when secondary schools are also facing budget crises. A 
solution that many schools have turned to is large classes. Besides, the literature has argued 
that pedagogies specifically designed for teaching smaller classes sometimes overlap with 
pedagogies employed when teaching larger classes but have distinct characteristics that 
differentiate them from those employed when teaching larger class (Aturupaneet al., 2013; 
Azigwe, Kyriakides, Panayiotou & Creemers, 2016).  
 Although no consensus exist as to the exert size of the large class, the term generally 
applied to classes with more than 50 pupils. Some regard a large class as one with more than 
100 pupils. According to Amadahe (2016), one of the most essential parts of the teaching and 
learning process is assessment and evaluation of students. Large classes call for large 
volumes of marking to be done and feedback given to students. This is a major challenge, 
especially in Nigeria public senior secondary schools. In the face of large classes, instructors 
are upset with the workload and resort to traditional teaching and assessment methods. 
Teachers are unable to finish marking assignments, exercises and examinations on time, and 
this delays the feedback given to students. Kasumi (2014) stated that large classes are less 
likely to make compositions and oral presentations and are more likely to mark students with 
multiple-choice-exams involving multiple solutions. 
 Large classes may be a cost effective solution to budget crises at some schools, but 
they have been criticized by teachers and education stakeholders. Instructors frequently feel 
that teaching large classes is an unrewarded, ineffective or, at the very least challenging 
situation. Olatunde (2010) in his study on class size and academic achievement of students in 
mathematics in Southwestern Nigeria, found out that the performance of students in large 
classes was very low (23%) compared to those students in smaller classes (64%). And for 
many schools, regardless of experience, teaching a large class seems difficult to do well. The 
large class experience also challenges pupils. Most large- class courses are introductory and 
intended for first and second year pupils for whom learning in a large class is a new 
experience. They must learn to get by with less individual attention than they may have 

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received in primary schools. As a result, some chemistry students may feel anonymous in the 
class and this anonymity may make it harder for them to become motivated to keep up.  

Another obstacle is that with so many of their peers listening, many pupils in large 
classes feel too intimidated to ask questions or too overwhelmed by the material to approach 
instruction or others for help. Larger classes needed fewer teachers and classrooms, hence the 
per-pupil cost was less (Tomlinson, 1998). The response of educators and school reformers to 
this practice was the same then as now. They believed that larger classes would increase the 
teachers’ work burden and reduce the efficacy of instruction. Seats and desks which are basic 
classroom requirements are insufficient and in some secondary schools, students are sitting 
on ransacked furniture and some even sit on bare floor (Oyeniran, 2014). The size of the 
classes has become increasingly unmanageable, leaving the teachers with the impossible task 
of giving individual attention to the learner’s needs. The teachers’ eye contact with the 
learner in class becomes so dissipated that a number of poorly motivated learners can form 
small committees at the back of the class to engage in non-school discussion, while the 
teacher is busy teaching. 
 
Small Class Size and Academic Achievement of Chemistry Students  
 Class with a smaller number of students is often perceived to allow teachers to focus 
more on the individual needs of students and shorten the amount of time in the classroom that 
teachers dedicate such as discipline, or disruption among students. Factors that affect the 
interaction between teachers and students in the class are: courses subjects, teachers’ sharing 
time between teaching and other duties, students’ grouping within the classroom and teaching 
practice in groups or teams (Kasumi, 2014). Resnick (2018) stressed that class size must be 
reduced substantially to achieve the benefits. There is no experimental research suggestions 
that any benefits are realized by subtracting only a few children from a larger class, for 
example, transitioning from 28 to 25 pupils. 
 Muraina & Muraina (2014) revealed that comfortable classroom temperature and 
smaller classes enhance teachers’ effectiveness and provide opportunities for students to 
receive individual attention, ask more questions, participate fully in discussion, reduce 
discipline problems and perform better than students in schools with larger classes. Filges, 
Sonne‐Schmidt & Bjørn (2018) concluded that reducing class size from 40 or more to 20 
pupils led to almost no increase in achievement. Not until class size is being dropped to 15 
pupils or lower will there be larger effects on achievement. In light of the varying definitions 
and methodologies for defining school and class size, a procedure had to be established for on 
the effect of class size on pupil achievement. Identifying large and small schools, then 
calculating the class size in those schools, was the most logical way to define class size. 
 Filgesset al (2018) emphasized the importance of investigating underlying 
motivations for teachers and parents and the need to examine teaching practices. Disruptive 
students are reasons why some promote small classes. Improving classroom management 
skills, providing alternative settings or additional support for disruptive pupils, or changing 
the curriculum might have more of an effect on pupil achievement performance than 
universally reducing class size. 
 Normore & Ilon (2006) concluded that smaller class size had a positive impact in 
several areas like having time to cover school curriculum, higher levels of pupil- pupil and 
pupil-teacher relationship and safer schools with fewer discipline problems.  
 At the same time, the evaluation of small class sizes is better, where teacher has an 
idea, prediction and keeps complete records for each student, for their achievements or their 
full performance (Kasumi, 2014). Teachers and students shall be provided with appropriate 
classroom conditions and limited number of students per classroom in order to organize and 
develop work in groups and course related practical activities. The class size could also affect 

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the teacher’s allocation of time and, hence, effectiveness, in other ways, too. According to 
Johnson (2010), classes that require active participation of the students are small. Small 
classes tend to be effective, since students actively process the material rather than just listen 
and read. 
 Olatunde (2010) investigated the class size and the students’ mathematics 
achievement of senior secondary schools in Southwestern Nigeria. The results showed that 
the performance of students in large classes was very low (23%) compared to those students 
in smaller classes (64%). It was then recommended that policymakers and the government 
should ensure that more classrooms are built and the number of students in a class should not 
be greater than 30. 
 Bakasa (2012) also investigated the effect of class size on academic achievement at a 
selected institution of higher learning in South Africa. Descriptive findings, which were a 
triangulation of the data gathered from the various instruments of data collection, pointed 
towards a conclusion that class size and school factors such as teacher effectiveness can 
influence student achievement. 
 Cho, Glewwe & Whitler (2012) analyzed the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment 
test of all third and fifth grade students in Minnesota. They found that reducing class size had 
a positive impact on student performance in reading and mathematics. However, the 
researchers’ analysis of the data showed only a minimal increase with a 10-student decrease 
in class size, resulting in a 0.04 to 0.05 standard deviation increase in the distribution of 
student standardized test scores.  
 Kassile (2014) conducted a study to look at the effects of various resources on student 
achievement. The study analyzed the effect of student-teacher ratio on pass rates on the 
Primary School Leaving Examination in Mainland Tanzania. It was found out that student-
teacher ratio had a statistically negative effect on student achievement with a Pearson 
correlation coefficient of 0.74176 and p=.0001.  

Mahlo (2015) in his study compared class size (learner-teacher ratio) between 
boarding and non-boarding schools, along with the correlation between them and academic 
achievement of Grade 12 learners of the Capricorn District in the Limpopo Province of South 
Africa. A simple random sample was drawn from the population of 339 schools, comprising 
of 51 principals, 158 teachers and 290 learners from 51 schools. The School Environmental 
Questionnaire (SEQ) collected data on the school environment, while the Capricorn District 
Academic Summary Report of the Grade 12 collected data on academic achievement. The 
data analysis technique used was the t-test. The results showed no significant difference in 
learner-teacher ratio between boarding and non-boarding schools. It also revealed no 
significant difference in class size exists between low and high achieving schools indicating 
that the class has no significant relationship with academic achievement.  
 McKee, Sims & Rivkin (2015) investigated patterns of heterogeneity in the effects of 
class size on student achievement in the Project STAR classes that showed improvement. 
They found out that students in higher poverty schools and academically gifted students both 
benefitted from smaller class size. It was conjectured that in higher poverty classrooms, there 
are a larger number of interruptions and classroom management issues that can be minimized 
with smaller class sizes. In academically gifted classrooms, smaller classes can result in more 
individualized and challenging instruction. 
 
Methodology 

The design of this study was quasi – experimental research design. It utilized the null 
randomized pre-test and post-test design.  
 The target population for the study consisted of the students in senior secondary 
school class 2 (SSS 2) studying Chemistry in Ikere Local Government Area of Ekiti State. 

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The choice of Senior Secondary School II Chemistry students was borne out of the researcher 
decision that this is the class in which organic chemistry was being introduced to students in 
secondary schools and also it is a class preparing for Ekiti State unifying mock examination 
for senior secondary school students. 

The sample for the study consisted of seventy five (25) SS2 Chemistry students in a 
selected secondary schools in Ikere Local Government Area. Purposive random sampling was 
used to select a school that has practice co-educational school programme with at least 100 
Chemistry students in the SS2 classes. The students were randomly selected into two groups. 
Group 1 named large class consisted of 50 students while the second group, Group 2 was 
named small class with 30 Chemistry students. 

The only instrument for the study was a Students’ Chemistry Achievement Test 
(SCAT). The SCAT was a 50 – item multiple choice test developed by the researcher based 
on the Chemistry concepts organic chemistry. The SCAT consisted of two sections A and B. 
Section A was used to elicit demographic data of the respondents like name of school, gender 
and age while section B consisted of fifty multiple choice questions with four options labeled 
A – D.  

The SCAT was used as pretest and posttest. The pretest was used to establish the 
baseline of all the selected students before the commencement of the treatment. The posttest 
was used to determine the effect of class size on students’ achievement in chemistry. 

The Students Chemistry Achievement Test (SCAT) was subjected to both content and 
face validity. The content validity was accomplished by ensuring that the test reflected the 
test blue print. Face validity was established by evaluation of the test items by the 
researcher’s supervisor and one lecturer in Department of Chemistry in University of Nigeria, 
Nsukka, Ikere-Ekiti Campus. The validators were given the research topic, research questions 
and hypotheses to enable them validate the instruments.  
Reliability of the Instrument 

To ensure that the items are consistent, test retest reliability method was used. A pilot 
study was carried out in a school which involved 50 SS2 students in Ikere Ekiti, Ekiti State. 
The school selected was not part of the school selected for the study. The data collected were 
subjected to item analysis using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Statistics. This was 
used to obtain the reliability index of the instrument. The reliability index obtained was 0.85. 
 The researchers personally visited the selected secondary schools and get the consent 
of the school management before administering the same pre and post achievement test i.e. 
SCAT for the students. The study lasted for six weeks. In the first week the researchers 
divided the student into 2 classes’ i.e. large class and pre-tests was administrated on the 
participating students after the researcher has brief the student on the importance of the study. 
On the second week, the researchers taught each days on different hour based on the 
chemistry concept (Organic chemistry).The researchers had prepared the lesson notes for the 
lesson and this lasted for two hours a week. On the last week which is the sixth week. The 
SCAT was re-administered to the students as post-test so as to determine their level of 
achievement. 

Frequency counts and percentage were used in analyzing the demographic data of the 
respondents. While the research hypotheses were tested using the t-test at 0.05 level of 
significance. 

 
Results and Discussion  
Test of Hypotheses 
Hypothesis 1: There is no significant difference between the Chemistry achievement scores 
of students taught in small class and those taught in large class in the pre-test. 
Table 1: t-test analysis of performance of students in chemistry pre-test. 

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Variable N Mean SD  df tcal. ttab. Decision 

Small class 30 19.80 3.66 78 0.37 1.96 Not significant 

Large class 50 19.50 3.39     

 P < 0.05 significance level 
Table 1 shows the result of analysis of performance of students in chemistry pre-test. The 

table revealed that mean score for students taught in small class (19.80) was greater than the 
mean score of students taught large class (19.50) with a mean difference of (0.30). The t-test 
revealed that t-calculated (0.37) was less than the critical t-value (1.96) at the 0.05 
significance level. Hence, the null hypothesis was upheld. This means that there is no 
significant difference between Chemistry achievement scores of students taught in small class 
and those in large class in the pre-test. 

 
Hypothesis 2: There is no significant difference between the chemistry achievement scores of 
students taught in small class and those taughtin large class in the post-test. 
Table 2: t-test analysis of performance of students in chemistry post-test. 

Variable N Mean SD  df tcal. ttab. Decision 

Small class 30 44.20 4.01 78 0.13 1.96 Not significant 

Large class 50 44.08 3.93     

 P < 0.05 significance level 
Table 2 shows the result of analysis of performance of students in chemistry post-test. 

The table revealed that mean score for students taught in small class (44.20) was greater than 
the mean score of students taught in large class (44.08) with a mean difference of (0.60). The 
t-test revealed that t-calculated (0.13) was less than the critical t-value (1.96) at the 0.05 
significance level. Hence, the null hypothesis was upheld. This means that there is no 
significant difference between Chemistry achievement scores of students taught in small class 
and those in large class in the post-test. 

 
Hypothesis 3: There is no significant difference between the chemistry achievement scores of 
male and female students taught in small class in the post-test. 
Table 3: t-test analysis of performance of students in chemistry post-test. 

Variable N Mean SD  df tcal. ttab. Decision 

Male small class 16 43.75 4.00 28 0.65 2.00 Not significant 

Female small class 14 44.71 4.10     

 P < 0.05 significance level 
Table 3 shows the result of analysis of performance of students in chemistry post-test. 

The table revealed that mean score for students taught in male small class (43.75) was less 
than the mean score of students taught in female small class (44.71) with a mean difference 
of (0.96). The t-test revealed that t-calculated (0.65) was less than the critical t-value (2.00) at 
the 0.05 significance level. Hence, the null hypothesis was upheld. This means that there is 

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no significant difference between Chemistry achievement scores of male and female students 
taught in small class in the post-test. 

 
Hypothesis 4: There is no significant difference between the chemistry achievement scores of 
male and female students taught in large class in the post-test. 
Table 4: t-test analysis of performance of students in chemistry post-test. 

Variable N Mean SD  df tcal. ttab. Decision 

Male large class 22 43.05 4.38 48 1.68 2.00 Not significant 

Female large class 28 44.89 3.39     

 P < 0.05 significance level 

Table 4 shows the result of analysis of performance of students in chemistry post-test. 
The table revealed that mean score for students taught in male large class (43.05) was less 
than the mean score of students taught in female large class (44.89) with a mean difference of 
(1.84). The t-test revealed that t-calculated (0.65) was less than the critical t-value (2.00) at 
the 0.05 significance level. Hence, the null hypothesis was upheld. This means that there is 
no significant difference between Chemistry achievement scores of male and female students 
taught in large class in the post-test. 

Discussion of Results 
 The results of finding revealed that there is no significant difference between 
Chemistry achievement scores of students taught in small class and those in large class in the 
pre-test. The findings agreed with the findings of Olatunde (2010) that the performance of 
students in large classes was very low (23%) compared to those students in smaller classes 
(64%). And for many schools, regardless of experience, teaching a large class seems difficult 
to do well. The large class experience also challenges students. The size of classes has 
become increasingly unmanageable, leaving the chemistry teachers with the impossible task 
of giving individual attention to the learner’s needs. The chemistry teachers’ eye contact with 
the learner in class becomes so dissipated that a number of poorly motivated learners can 
form small committees at the back of the class to engage in non-school discussion, while the 
teacher is busy teaching. 
 Also, the findings from hypothesis 2 revealed that there is no significant difference 
between Chemistry achievement scores of students taught in small class and those in large 
class in the post-test. The findings is in line with the assertion of Resnick (2018) that class 
size must be reduced substantially to achieve the benefits and further stated that there is no 
experimental research suggestions that any benefits are realized by subtracting only a few 
children from a larger class, for example, transitioning from 28 to 25 pupils. Not until class 
size is being dropped to 15 students or lower will there be larger effects on achievement. The 
findings also agreed with the finding of Muraina & Muraina (2014) that comfortable 
classroom temperature and smaller classes enhance teachers’ effectiveness and provide 
opportunities for students to receive individual attention, ask more questions, participate fully 
in discussion, reduce discipline problems and perform better than students in schools with 
larger classes. In light of the varying definitions and methodologies for defining school and 
class size, a procedure had to be established for on the effect of class size on student 
achievement. Identifying large and small schools, then calculating the class size in those 
schools, was the most logical way to define class size. 

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 The findings in hypothesis 3 revealed that there is no significant difference between 
Chemistry achievement scores of male and female students taught in small class in the post-
test. This supported the findings of Bruhwiler (2011) that students who were taught in smaller 
classes in their early elementary grades continue to have enhanced academic achievement 
even if they are in larger classes in upper elementary or middle school. This implies that 
irrespective of gender, students’ performance is guaranteed when taught in smaller class size. 
This established the fact that students taught in class size have improved academic 
performance whether male or female students. Chemistry students who are taught in small 
class size have access to sufficient learning materials, teachers’ attention, enough 
instructional materials for enhancing learning and improved academic performance. Smaller 
class size had a positive impact in several areas like having time to cover school curriculum, 
higher levels of student - student and student -teacher relationship and safer schools with 
fewer discipline problems. Teachers and students shall be provided with appropriate 
classroom conditions and limited number of students per classroom in order to organize and 
develop work in groups and course related practical activities. The class size could also affect 
the teacher’s allocation of time and, hence, effectiveness, in other ways, too and this will all 
have their effects on students’ performance in chemistry.  
 Hypothesis 4 revealed that there is no significant difference between Chemistry 
achievement scores of male and female students taught in large class in the post-test. This is 
in line with the statement of Kasumi (2014) that large classes are less likely to make 
compositions and oral presentations and are more likely to mark students with multiple-
choice-exams involving multiple solutions. Large classes may be a cost effective solution to 
budget crises at some schools, but they have been criticized by teachers and education 
stakeholders for less effective academic performance of students in subject like chemistry. 
Even, teachers frequently feel that teaching large classes is an unrewarded, ineffective or, at 
the very least challenging situation. Just as Johnson (2010) stated that classes that require 
active participation of the students are small. Small classes tend to be effective, since students 
actively process the material rather than just listen and read. 
Conclusions  
 Based on the findings of the study, the researcher made the following conclusions: 

 Chemistry class size either small or large class size had no effects on students’ 
academic achievement but students’ achievement in either small or large class size could be 
affected by factors like teachers’ effectiveness, teaching method, instructional materials 
available for use etc. Students’ treatment in either large or small class size had no effects on 
Chemistry achievement scores of students taught in small class and those in large class in the 
post-test.The implication of this is that teacher’s methodology and mode of instruction could 
be main determining factors that affects the academic achievement of students in chemistry. 
Class size did not affect Chemistry achievement scores of male and female students taught in 
small class in the post-test. This implied that class size could have influence on students’ 
performance but students’ achievement in chemistry in small class size is independent of 
gender of students. This is because if students either male or female are exposed to chemistry 
teaching that is experimental in nature, they are likely to perform well and achieve better than 
those taught using traditional method of teaching. Gender Chemistry achievement is 
independent of large class in the post-test. That is male and female students in large class can 
perform at the same level if other factors such as environment and other learning materials 
are available. 
Recommendations 
 The following recommendations are suggested based on the outcome of the findings: 

1. In spite of the amazing results of the influence of class size on the academic 
performance of secondary school students, and the facts that large classes has some 

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advantages it is still recommended that schools should stick to the 40:1 student –
teacher ratio as stipulated by the National Policy on education. Class management and 
control is easier to achieve in a smaller class which goes a long way to determine the 
outcome of the learning experience. 

2. Restructuration of class size in chemistry require more facilities, therefore 
stakeholders should endeavour to provide required facilities and instructional 
materials for the teaching and learning of chemistry in senior secondary schools. 

3. Recruitment of chemistry teachers in senior secondary schools should be 
commensurate with the number of students in schools today so that the student-
teacher ratio will not be so wide. This will reduce the possibility of taking more 
number of chemistry students by teachers in a particular class. 

4. Where class size is inevitably large, chemistry teachers should devise a means of 
dichotomizing students into segments so that instructional and pedagogical strategies 
to be applied by the teacher will enable the students to effectively harness the lesson 
very well. 

5. Ekiti State government should build more classrooms and provide adequate learning 
facilities so that chemistry students and teacher have enabling teaching-learning 
environment. 

6. More instructional materials should be provided to include public address system so 
that the students in a large class could be instructed as appropriate. 

7. Chemistry teachers should direct more attention particularly to female students to 
make them improve on their academic achievement. 

8. Parents as well as chemistry teachers should encourage the students to develop 
positive attitude towards chemistry. Also, parents should provide equal learning 
opportunities to their children and should not discourage the girls from studying 
chemistry. 

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