Relationship between the usage of equipment designed for right-handed people and attitudes towards chemistry among left-handed high school students in Kenya

Abstract

Research into left-handedness concurs that generally, left-handed people experience difficulties manipulating right handed tools. Specifically, left-handers face challenges associated with right handed instructional resources because of their inherent peculiarities due to their hand orientation in science classrooms. There is evidence for a general cognitive disadvantage for lefthanders compared to right-handers according to recent research. Studies have explicitly shown that left-handed learners are disadvantaged when using mismatched instructional resources that are generally ‘ungraspable’, and more so during chemistry laboratory timed tasks. Whereas the importance of practical work in science cannot be ignored based on its significance to learning school science, adaptations left-handers have to make so as to fit with right handed instructional resources gets in the way of their learning. A persistent failure to effectively interact with the resources fluidly lowers learners’ self-efficacy thereby causing them to harbor negative attitudes and interest towards chemistry. This comparative case study assuming a mixed methods concurrent triangulation design sought to find out the relationship between left-handers’ use of right handed instructional resources and their attitudes towards high school chemistry. Participants were drawn from a cross-section of secondary schools in Kenya. Left-handedness was determined using the Torque test for handedness. Quantitative data was collected by use of questionnaires. Qualitative data was collected through focus group discussions. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically while quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS. The final report had contextual description and direct quotations from the research participants, a statistical significance of findings, correlations, and comparisons of means. Suggestions to instruction designers to generate instruction designs that encourage low cognitive load were made. Practical suggestions to instructors on the best practices when instructing left-handed learners during chemistry practical sessions were also highlighted. The findings served to contribute to existing literature on special learning needs, enlightening education stakeholders to embrace the unique needs of left-handed learners. [African Journal of Chemical Education—AJCE 5(2), July 2015]