The Effectiveness of the POEE Strategy in Developing Life Skills among Second-Year Intermediate Female Students

Abstract

The present research aims to identify the effect of the POEE strategy on developing life skills among second-year intermediate female students. To achieve this aim, the researcher formulated the following null hypotheses:
1. There is no statistically significant difference at the significance level (0.05) between the mean scores of the experimental group, who study Social Studies according to the POEE strategy, on the pre- and post-administrations of the life skills scale.
2. There is no statistically significant difference at the significance level (0.05) between the mean scores of the control group, who study Social Studies by the conventional method, on the pre- and post-administrations of the life skills scale.
The researcher adopted the experimental method and selected a partial-control experimental design. She prepared a life skills scale. The research population was defined as second-year intermediate female students in the government day intermediate schools affiliated with the Directorate of Education of Babylon (city center). The experimental group, taught according to the POEE strategy, comprised (35) students, and the control group comprised (38) students.
The researcher equated the students of the two research groups in the following variables: chronological age calculated in months, fathers’ educational attainment, mothers’ educational attainment, intelligence test score, the pre-test of the life skills scale, and a prior-knowledge test.
The instructional material comprised the last four chapters of Part Two (Chapters Three, Four, Five and Six) of the Social Studies textbook for the second intermediate grade, prescribed for the 2025–2026 academic year under the official semester (course-based) system. In light of this material, the researcher formulated (120) behavioral objectives and prepared (48) daily lesson plans for the experimental and control groups, (24) plans for each group. The research instrument, the life skills scale, comprised six skills (self-esteem, critical thinking, communication, decision-making, planning and goal setting, and support), with (24) items distributed across the six skills. To arrive at the results, the data were collected and analyzed using several statistical methods with the aid of the Statistical Package (SPSS). The results showed the effectiveness of the POEE strategy in developing life skills, as statistically significant differences were found at the (0.05) level between the mean scores of the experimental and control groups, in favor of the experimental group.
In light of the results, the researcher concluded the following:
1. The effectiveness of the POEE strategy in developing life skills among the experimental group students compared with the control group.
The researcher recommended the following:
1. The necessity of organizing workshops to train Social Studies teachers in the use of modern teaching methods and strategies, including the POEE strategy, because of its effect on developing life skills.
2. The necessity of focusing on developing life skills appropriate for students at all educational stages.
The researcher proposed the following:
1. Conducting a study entitled “The Effect of the POEE Strategy on Developing Holistic Thinking among Second-Year Intermediate Female Students in Social Studies.”
2. The effectiveness of a proposed program based on the POEE strategy in developing inferential thinking and awareness of some contemporary historical issues among student-teachers in the Department of History at the College of Basic Education.
3. Conducting field studies to identify students’ general level of possession of life skills, and benefiting from workshops to develop them.