Influence of Animated Instructional Materials on Comprehension of Social Studies Concepts Among Primary School Pupils in Edo State

This study investigates the influence of animated instructional materials on primary school pupils' comprehension of social studies concepts in Edo State, South South Nigeria. Animation brings abstract social studies content such as civic processes, historical events, and community structures to life, potentially improving conceptual understanding among young learners. A quasi-experimental design was employed, involving 130 Primary Five pupils from four public primary schools in Benin City. The experimental group received social studies lessons delivered through curriculum-aligned animations displayed on a projector, while the control group was taught through conventional text and chalkboard methods over five weeks. A researcher-designed Social Studies Concept Comprehension Test was administered as pre-test and post-test. Analysis of covariance results show significantly higher post-test scores for the experimental group. Female pupils demonstrated marginally greater improvement than male pupils. The study concludes that animated materials are effective tools for enhancing conceptual comprehension in social studies and recommends that the Edo State Primary Education Board facilitate access to educational animation libraries for all primary schools, including through offline repositories on school tablets. Keywords: animated materials, social studies, comprehension, primary school, Edo State