Abstract:

The need for the use of edutainment videos in the teaching and learning of preschool children cannot be overlooked. Edutainment can be seen as an integration of educational content and elements of entertainment. It is defined as the type of teaching and learning that is placed within the framework of entertainment. It is also seen as those audio-visual electronic devices that are used to educate children on numbers and numeracy, colours, drawing, the alphabet, literacy, and vocabulary among others. Edutainment videos are characterized by an electronic medium where learning and entertainment occur simultaneously. With these edutainment videos, children may learn while having fun, which enhances their learning and has the capacity to boost their cognitive and social skills as well. This study was therefore carried out to examine the effect of edutainment videos on cognitive and social skills development among preschool children in Gboko LGA of Benue state, Nigeria. Four research questions and six null hypotheses guided the study. The study adopted a quasi-experimental research design. The study population comprised all nursery three preschool children in Nsukka LGA for the 2021/2022 academic year. A sample of 85 preschool children (39 males and 46 females) in four intact classes in two different preschools was drawn through a purposive sampling technique. A rating scale developed by the researchers on cognitive and social skills development was used as an instrument for data collection. The instruments were validated by two experts in childhood education and one expert in measurement and evaluation. The reliability coefficients of the instruments were 0.79 and 0.82 for cognitive and social skills questionnaires respectively using Cronbach’s alpha. Data obtained were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions while analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used in testing the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The result of the study, among others revealed that edutainment videos enhanced preschoolers’ cognitive and social skills more than the conventional teacher-centred method. It was also found that gender had no significant influence on preschoolers’ cognitive and social skills development. The result also showed that the difference between the cognitive and social skills development of the groups taught using edutainment videos and conventional teacher-centred methods were statistically significant (p<0.05). Based on these findings, the researchers concluded that the use of edutainment videos as an instructional strategy was effective and it was recommended among others that workshops and conferences should be organized for the training of preschool teachers on the use of edutainment videos to teach preschoolers. It is also recommended that audio-visual materials be provided to preschool centres to enhance lesson delivery by preschool teachers.

Keywords:

Cognitive Skills, Edutainment videos, Gender, Preschool learners, Social Skills.