The Effects of Brain Based Learning Activities on Academic Achievement in Physical Sciences Lesson

Abstract Brain based learning is a method which fits the phenomenon of making each student feel special and valuable by considering their differences. The theory of brain based learning is interested in the question “how does the brain learn the best” rather than the question “what shall we teach”. It is extremetly important to try new approaches in physical sciences lesson, which has a very important place in understanding life and which is applied in third grades for the first time. This study examines the effects of the approach of brain based learning on 3rd grade students’ success levels in physical sciences lesson. The study uses experimental model. The research was conducted in Abdullah KepKep Primary School in ？ahinbey town of the city of Gaziantep. “Physical Sciences Achievement Test” was developed and used in the study to collect data. KR-20 reliability coefficient of the test which had 40 questions was found as .93. The sample of the study consisted of a total of 122 3rd graders, 61 students in the experimental group and 61 students in the control group. The research was applied in physical sciences lesson.The students in the experimental group were taught with brain based learning method, while the students in the control group were taught as instructed in the program and in the guidebook. The students were taught for a total of 72 hours. Normality test, anova and unrelated samples t-test were used for statistical data analysis. As a result of the analyses, although no significant difference was found between groups in terms of post-test scores, significant difference was found in permanence test in favor of the experimental group. In the light of this result, it can be said that brain based learning activities are effective in ensuring the permanence of knowledge