Mediating Role of Scientific Reasoning Ability in the Relationship Between Teaching Quality and Physics Achievement in Kano State

This study examined scientific reasoning ability as a mediating variable in the relationship between teaching quality and Physics achievement among senior secondary students in Kano State, Nigeria. While previous research has established direct associations between teaching quality and student performance, the mechanism through which instructional quality translates into science achievement has rarely been interrogated empirically in the North West context. A descriptive mediation research design was adopted. A sample of 480 SS2 Physics students and 60 Physics teachers from secondary schools across Kano Municipal, Nassarawa, and Tarauni Local Government Areas was used. Data were collected using a validated Teaching Quality Scale, a Lawson Scientific Reasoning Test adapted for the Nigerian context, and a Physics Achievement Test. All instruments had reliability indices above 0.80. Structural Equation Modelling with mediation analysis was performed using AMOS software. Results confirmed a significant indirect effect of teaching quality on Physics achievement mediated through scientific reasoning ability. Teaching quality predicted scientific reasoning, which in turn predicted achievement, with a partial mediation model fitting the data best. The study contributes an empirically validated mediational framework to the Nigerian Physics education literature and recommends embedding scientific reasoning development tasks into Physics lesson sequences and teacher education programmes. Keywords: scientific reasoning, teaching quality, Physics achievement, mediation, Kano State.