An Investigation Of The Impact Of Periodic Testing On The Academic Performance Of Secondary School Students

An Investigation Of The Impact Of Periodic Testing On The Academic Performance Of Secondary School Students

Chapter One

Preface

Background Of Study

Assessment of scholars’ progress and eventual position of achievement is a critical element of every educational system. Constructive testing is used in the tutoring and literacy process by breaking down subject matter content or a course into lower hierarchical units for instruction; specifying objects for each unit; designing and administering validated constructive tests; offering group- grounded remediation in areas where scholars are deficient before moving on to the coming unit; and eventually, administering a summative test at the conclusion of all units( Kolawole, 2010). Ajogbeje( 2010) asserts that segmenting a subject or course into lower units helps scholars to effectively prepare for periodic tests. also, these periodic tests encourage scholars to come more interested and married to the tutoring- literacy process, thus perfecting their performance. therefore, the frequent assessment of scholars’ chops, as needed by the” 6-3-3-4″ system of education, aids significantly in determining scholars’ performance and may also be employed to promote literacy. As Alonge( 2004) asserts, the purpose of administering tests and other assessment instruments throughout the educational process is to lead, direct, and examiner scholars’ literacy and progress toward course pretensions. also, preceptors and learners can not serve efficiently or successfully without access to accurate information about a pupil’s current achievement and progress toward achieving educational pretensions. therefore, periodic tests, appertained to as nonstop assessment tests, are intended to alleviate the threatening consequences of a single test( summative test), which is frequently administered at the conclusion of a course of study( Kolawole, 2010).

also, several aspects of nonstop assessment that are critical to tutoring- learning issues include the frequence with which schoolteacher- learner achievements are reported, the emphasis on furnishing immediate feedback on results in the tutoring- learning situation, and the demand that the results of these in- course assessments be combined with those of terminal assessments when effecting the individual learner’s final affair. According to Bardwell( 1981), feedback is the information that a schoolteacher delivers to a pupil on his or her performance on a certain assignment or test. He continued by arguing that when similar information is presented, the pupil has a lesser mindfulness of his or her chops and may indeed develop a different view of himself or herself. Feedback has been proven in studies to give both underpinning and corrective information( Gronlund & Linn, 1990).( Bardwell, 1981; Gronlund & Linn, 1990). In light of this, Ajogbeje( 2012a) said that the constructive assessment process included furnishing scholars with feedback on their test results or performance. According to Kulharvy( 1977), there are two circumstances in which feedback doesn’t execute its facilitative function. To begin, if the learner has access to feedback previous to responding, and secondly, if the content being studied is veritably grueling for the learner, He continued by stating that in the absence of these circumstances, one may infer that studies grounded on both propositions agree that performance feedback assists in attesting accurate replies as well as relating and correcting miscalculations. This corrective part is nearly clearly the most critical point of feedback, and if given the option, feedback after incorrect replies would nearly clearly have the largest salutary impact. therefore, feedback was employed in this exploration to effect correction and support scholars’ literacy.

A great system to start a discussion among preceptors is to dissect the advantages and disadvantages of any certain testing procedure. In an age of unequaled change in the educational geography, inventions in class, new styles to tutoring and assessment, and a focus on process enhancement have contributed to the development of an terrain that’s occasionally appertained to as literacy- centered( Ramaley & Leskes, 2002).

also, the growth of remote education and the vacuity of genuine online degree and instrument programs have heightened pupil interest and provocation. There has also been an increase in assessment concerning testing methodologies, addressing literacy objects, and assessing pupil performance in this dynamic educational terrain( Yang & Cornelious, 2005). These realities, combined with the ineluctable transition from traditional pencil- and- paper examinations to computer- intermediated examinations, have urged authors to examine a variety of different aspects of colorful new testing protocols, including test anxiety, medication, and scholars’ comprehensions of colorful test modes( Alltizer & Clausen, 2008). There are frequently worries about cheating and plagiarism with indispensable educational systems( Damast, 2007), and debate on how to break them( Williams, 2006) continues as well. These transformational demands have also urged preceptors to probe into a number of enhancement openings, including testing, assessment, and learning assurance. We believe that reviewing open- book examinations and making the findings available would inspire preceptors to probe exploration and discover openings for educational process enhancement. ’

Statement Of The Problem

Ajogbeje( 2010) asserts that segmenting a subject or course into lower units helps scholars to effectively prepare for periodic tests. also, these periodic tests encourage scholars to come more interested and married to the tutoring- literacy process, thus perfecting their performance. therefore, this exploration is motivated by the inadequacy of secondary academy scholars in certain subjects as a consequence of the system used to educate similar subjects. Second, the maturity of exploration has concentrated on indispensable styles of tutoring, but not a single study has examined the effect of periodic testing on the academic performance of secondary academy scholars.

Objects Of Study

The overall end of this study is to critically probe the impact of periodic testing on the academic performance of secondary academy scholars. Hence, the study will be conducted to the following specific objects;

1. Ascertain whether periodic testing improves scholars study habit.

2. Determine whether periodic testing enhance scholars appreciation in tutoring process.

3. Ascertain whether there’s a significance relationship between periodic testing system and bettered academic performance and periodic testing system.

4. Determine whether there’s a significant difference between scholars academic performance under periodic testing system and other system of tutoring.

Exploration Questions

The study will be guided by the following questions

1) Does periodic testing ameliorate scholars study habit?

2) Does periodic testing enhance scholars appreciation in tutoring process?

3) Is there a significance relationship between periodic testing system and bettered academic performance and periodic testing system?

Is there any significant difference between scholars academic performance under periodic testing system and other system of tutoring?

Significance Of Study

The study on the effect of periodic testing on pupil academic achievement in studying economics in elderly secondary seminaries will be of immense benefit to the entire secondary seminaries in Illorin. The findings will reveal the factors affecting journal testing system of tutoring and also will educate the preceptors to use other system of tutoring to enhance a good academic achievement of scholars of economics. Eventually the study will contribute to the body of being literature and knowledge in this field of study and give a base for farther exploration.

Compass Of Study

This study is structured to generally probe the impact of periodic testing on the academic performance of secondary academy scholars. still, the study will further

ascertain whether periodic testing improves scholars study habit, determine whether periodic testing enhance scholars appreciation in tutoring process, ascertain whether there’s a significance relationship between periodic testing system and bettered academic performance and periodic testing system, and determine whether there’s a significant difference between scholars academic performance under periodic testing system and other system of tutoring.

The study will be demarcated to some named secondary seminaries in Illorin, Kwara State.

Limitation Of The Study

Like in every mortal bid, the experimenter encountered slight constraints while carrying out the study. inadequate finances tend to stymie the effectiveness of the experimenter in sourcing for the applicable accoutrements , literature, or information and in the process of data collection, which is why the experimenter resorted to a limited choice of sample size. More so, the experimenter contemporaneously engaged in this study with other academic work. As a result, the quantum of time spent on exploration will be reduced.

Description Of Terms

Periodic Appearing or being at intervals.

Testing An assessment intended to measure the repliers’ knowledge or other capacities.

Pupil A learner or someone who attends an educational institution.

Academic Achievement Is the extent to which a pupil, schoolteacher or institution has achieved their short or long- term educational pretensions.