AN EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH ON REVITALIZING SOCIAL STUDIES; THE ROLE OF ACTIVITY BASED LEARNING (ABL) ON STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the effect of Activity-Based Learning (ABL) on academic performance and retention of students while teaching social studies. ABL enhances creativity and higher-order thinking skills in learners, allowing them to investigate topics independently, thereby preserving the content knowledge longer. The study conducted to investigate the effects of activity-based learning (ABL) on students' academic achievements and their engagement comparing it with traditional teaching methods. The study was conducted using an experimental research design, with two groups of secondary school students from a private school in the Gulshan District, Karachi. The experimental group use ABL based strategies, and the control group follow conventional way of teaching. Pre-test and post-test were conducted with both experimental and control group. The findings reveals that experimental group shows excellent test scores on post-test as compared to the control group which indicates the effectiveness of using ABL in classroom setting. The findings reveals that ABL proves to be beneficial due to its ability to meet diverse student needs, foster collaboration among learners, and encourages critical thinking through differentiated learning styles. The findings reveals ABL as a highly effective teaching method for enhancing students' academic achievement, active participation, and engagement as compared to traditional teaching methods used in schools. Therefore, school needs to implement ABL activities within their classroom setting.