The study determined the comparative effects of critical thinking and peer-assessment skills training on Ghanaian senior high school students’ achievement in mathematics. The non-equivalent pre-test and post-test control group 3x2x2 factorial quasi- experimental design was adopted for the study. Three public senior high schools were randomly sampled to participate in the study and a total of one hundred and thirty- seven (137) students made up of ninety-five (95) in the experimental groups and forty- two (42) in the control group from three intact classes were selected from schools in the Central Region of Ghana. Two mathematics achievement tests, with reliability coefficients of 0.79 and 0.83 were employed by the researcher for data collection. Critical thinking and peer-assessment modules were also developed and used by the researcher for the intervention. The peer-assessment and critical thinking modules were content validated by three experts using percentage of agreement method which yielded 79% and 80% respectively. ANCOVA was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study were that: there was no significant comparative effect of critical thinking and peer-assessment skills training on students’ achievement in mathematics. Furthermore, there was no significant interaction effect of gender, age and treatment groups (critical thinking and peer-assessment) on students’ achievement in mathematics. Based on the findings, it was recommended that teachers can make use of either peer-assessment or critical thinking strategies in teaching mathematics lessons to bring about the much-needed improvement in students’ performance in Mathematics.
Students’ achievement in core subjects in the West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) has been a subject of concern for stakeholders due to poor performance. The purpose of this study is to assess whether item difficulty is a significant source of variability to the measurement of students’ achievement in WASSCE in Ghana, using the generalizability theory. The study had three specific objectives: (1) to examine the sources of variability (e.g., item) to students’ achievement in WASSCE in Ghana, (2) to assess the dependability of students’ responses in relation to their ability, (3) evaluate how many items are sufficient to provide an optimum measure of student achievement. The one-facet crossed random design was adopted as the research design. Data were obtained from students’ achievement in 2015 WASSCE in the four subjects, namely, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and English Language. The generalized analysis of variance (GENOVA) was used for the analysis, conducting both G-study and D-study. The analysis revealed that the findings from this study showed that item difficulty had minimal effect on the variability in students’ achievement in English Language and Mathematics. The result further revealed that item difficulty had a significant effect on variability in students’ achievement in Science and Social Studies. Only the English Language test showed relatively low reliability. The study recommended the item difficulty and content structure of the Science and Social Studies multiple-choice test should be evaluated by WAEC officials and their examiners.
Differential item functioning (DIF) occurs when individuals of the same ability level from separate groups have a different probability of answering an item correctly. This study was conducted in two parts: in the first part a real 2015 West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSCE) core mathematics test data were analyzed for uniform and nonuniform DIF using binary logistic regression (LR) procedure and in the second part, content analysis of items identified as DIF were classified under the levels of the cognitive domain by experts. Three research questions were formulated for the study. A sample of 4,285 male and 3,712 female candidates were selected from a population of 15,258 candidates who sat for the examination in 2015 from 20 selected schools in Southern Ghana. The instrument for the study was the 50 multiple-choice core mathematics items. The findings showed that there was 43 significant gender differential item functioning items of which 9 were uniform and 34 non-uniform. Also, the content analysis revealed that items that favoured males were mainly number and numeration, algebraic processes, probability and statistics and mensuration whiles plane geometry and coordinate geometry revealed DIF in favour of females. It was concluded that test items used were not free from gender DIF. It was recommended that DIF studies should be conducted by test developers in order to be review or exclude DIF items to enhance fairness in assessment.
Viewing from the psychometric models of modern assessment, it is imperative to note that assessment has been undergoing major constructive modifications. One of the main modifications is the transition from the use of classical test theory (CTT) to modern test models (IRT) as well as methods used in test construction. This is to say that the pendulum swing in test construction techniques is from CTT to IRT. Clearly, the properties of IRT create several benefits in the area of test design and item banking over CTT. This paper estimated the IRT psychometric proprieties (difficulty-1PL, discrimination-2PL and guessing indices-3PL) of West African Examinations Council (WAEC) 2020 core mathematics objectives test examination in Ghana within the remit of IRT. The study revealed that averagely, the 2020 core mathematics objectives test examination were within the difficulty level (1PL) of the examines. In terms of discrimination level (2PL), the psychometric properties indicated that most of the items discriminated among the examinees. However, on the Pseudo-guessing parameter (3PL), it was found that most items were subjected to pseudo-guessing. Theoretically and practically, the way items are constructed could have influenced outcome. Therefore, we strongly advocate and recommend that item writers for examination body like West African Examinations Council (WAEC) should rigorously be trained to be more conscious of theoretical and practical implications of the guessing parameter. This will help in avoiding test items that are prone to pseudo-guessing.
<p>This paper investigated the causes and possible strategies to minimize examination malpractices in Senior High Schools (SHSs) in Ghana. A descriptive survey design with a quantitative approach was used for the study. Proportional stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to select a sample of 335 respondents which comprised 302 students and 33 teachers. Frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations were used to analyse the data gathered. The findings revealed that the leading cause of examination malpractices was ‘insufficient students’ preparation for WASSCE and Public education on effects of examination malpractices has also emerged as the number one strategy to minimize the menace. It was concluded that in schools where a conducive environment and teaching/ learning materials are not provided for effective academic work, performance falls below what is expected, to achieve academic success, students and teachers engage in examination malpractices to raise the academic image of the school. It was recommended that school authorities provide a conducive teaching and learning environment to ensure effective academic work in schools to minimize the menace.</p><p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0896/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.