TEACHER’S ATTITUDES TO THE USE OF CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT IN SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN IJEBU-NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OGUN STATE.

ABSTRACT

This research is on the Effective Utilisation of Continuous Assessment in secondary schools. The National Policy on Education prescribes that students’ progress should be based on continuous assessment plus examination throughout the study in the secondary schools. This has become an integral part of the final certification of students at the secondary school level. However, of all the factors that may contribute to the failure or otherwise of the continuous assessment policy in the educational system, the attitudes of teachers towards its administration has been identified as the most critical. Hence, the study set out to investigate the attitude of teachers towards continous assessment in selected secondary schools in Ijebu North Local Government of Ogun State.

Meanwhile, the descriptive research design technique was used and simple tabulation, percentage analysis as well as t test statistics were used to analyse the research data. Also, the researcher used the self administered questionnaire as the major instrument while the conventional survey research was the method adopted.

At the end, the researcher was able to conclude that male and female. Low and high experience, junior and senior teachers in the local government have a positive attitudinal disposition towards the use of continuous assessment in secondary school. It is therefore recommended that efforts should be made that assessment of the students is made continuous to enable them perform better academically.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     Background to the study

The educative process is an evolving one, so also is the process for assessment of the learning outcomes resulting from it. Assessments in Africa and indeed in Nigeria have developed along the same line of that formalised education.

Continuous assessment is not a new experience in the school system in some parts of the country from the time immemorial instructions were given to schools pertaining evidence of continuous assessment, it has usually been insisted upon by supervisors as a pre-condition for government assistance. This gave rise to the fortnightly tests which were conducted and whose results were recorded in report cards the students take home to show their parents.

However, there was usually a conspicuous display of the performance of each student on a chart called ‘Progress Chart’ in each classroom. Continuous Assessment provides the necessary feedback we require in order to maximize the outcomes of educational effort. The assessment of learners’ learning provides objective evidence necessary in the decision making process in education. As correctly pointed out by Cone and Foster (1991),’good measurement resulting in accurate data is the foundation of sound decision making’.

Education various functions among which, is to bring about modification in the behaviour of the learner in his cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains. The cognitive domain is the aspect that deals with the amount of knowledge a learner is able to acquire mentally during the course of an instruction. The affective domain is the aspect where the development of the personality lies.

Continuous assessment is an important tool for the successful implementation of the policy on education. It is therefore a matter of concern that many teachers do not understand what the concept means, its purpose and how best to practice it in the new education system to achieve the stated objectives of education.

Majority of our teachers in our school today do not understand the assessment test mark and analysts of the results. Even when they do give test

occasionally, they hardly analyze the scores of their students in order to get the  required information there from. It is no exaggeration that some teachers do not even mark the scripts of their students in such tests.

It is pertinent to note that some of our teachers because of the ignorance of the meaning and purpose of Continuous Assessment, see it as an introduction capable of wasting their time and materials away Such teachers give tests to their students in order to satisfy the demands of their principals and the inspectors of education, who may breeze into their school at any time. The effect which Continuous Assessment is capable of producing is not being derived from the exercise because it is not operated in the manner it should be operated in many of our schools.

Surely, if the teachers accept the challenges which teaching imposes on them by adapting themselves to the new situation, and if they are desirous of using 20th century technique outcome to teach their children and to assess their teaching outcomes. Comprehensively, they will be able to discover the latest interests of individual learners to function effectively in the scientific and the technological age in which the teachers and learners live. Such tests will allow the teachers and the parents to know the progress their students and children are making respectively. In any organisation, for any innovation to succeed, the attitudes of the workers are very crucial. Therefore, for Continuous Assessment and evaluation system to succeed, teachers must work towards its implementation.

Where teachers exhibit positive attitudes, it is to be expected that Continuous Assessment and evaluation will have greater chance of being properly implemented. On the other hand, negative attitude displayed by teachers will affect the implementation of the Continuous Assessment programme in the school setting.

Today, in most junior secondary schools, parents in most cases are finding it difficult to instructional materials especially recommended textbooks and writing materials for their children. This in turn, affects the educational achievement of the students and objectives of the secondary education.

Hence, this project is focused on the attitude of teachers towards the implementation of the continuous assessment administration in the selected secondary schools in Ijebu North Local Government Area of Ogun State.

1.2     Aims and Objectives of this Study

The essential purpose of teaching is to produce changes in the learners. Any programme of instruction must be based upon and be guarded with information concerning learner’s aptitude, interest and achievement. Hence for a successful accomplishment of his task, a teacher should be guided by the continuous e Information about learner’s aptitude, interest and progress.

The broad aim of the study is to investigate and measure the attitudes of teachers towards the implementation of continuous assessment in their various schools. The study also seek to investigate the problems that hinder the progress and proper administration of the system with a view of providing suggestions to the weaknesses associated with it. The study also seek to determine what is expected in their roles as assessors and also to determine the extent to which their classroom practices are aligned to their knowledge of assessment reforms. It also seeks to open light to the continuous assessment procedure.

It also gives effective administration of the system and guides the teachers in their teaching preparation, innovation and implementation to attain the optimal level of learning outcomes.

It makes the assessment becomes valid and indicative of the student’s overall learning ability. The study looks at the integral part of teaching and learning process; hence the teachers should be involved in the final decision making on the student’s learning outcome.

Finally, the study helps to break down what is to be taught in manageable units to enable the children to learn at their own pace. It also enables the teachers to be more flexible and innovative in their instructions.

1.3     Statement of Research Problems/Questions

As any research effort would necessarily be designed to solve some problems, the major problems addressed in this study include:

v Teacher’s perception and understanding of continuous assessment.

v How relevant, valid and effective are these assessment test?

v Teachers’ knowledge of skills of test construction and administration.

v Teachers’ attitudes and behaviour towards the programme.

v The relationship between continuous assessment scores and the final scores in the Secondary Certificate Examination.

v What are the problems that hinder the preparation and proper implementation of the continuous assessment and its administration in secondary schools?

1.4     Statement of Research Hypothesis

The following null hypotheses are to be tested;

a)       There is no significant differences in the attitudes of teachers with low experience and high experience towards continuous assessment.

b)      There is no significant differences in the attitudes of male and female secondary school teachers towards continuous assessment.

c)       There is no significant differences between the attitudes of junior secondary school teachers and the senior secondary school teachers towards continuous assessment in Ijebu north local government, Ogun state.

1.5     Significance of the Study

Teachers pay a crucial role in the outcome of assessment innovation. The role of the teacher is challenged by the new assessment scheme; the co-existence of assessment and learning requires a significant change in the teacher’s pedagogy.

For the teacher to implement the new scheme, their existing understanding and beliefs concerning assessment must be challenged and opportunities provided for them to come to terms with the philosophy of the new assessment scheme.

Continuous assessment going by the National Policy on Education is a new method of assessment introduced into the education system of the country. In the 1960s or before there were no such assessments. It is hoped that the findings of this study would contribute to the positive change of attitudes among the Secondary School, teachers in Ijebu North Local Government Area concerning the proper implementation of the continuous assessment programmes and teaching in their schools.

1.6     Scope and Limitations of the Study

The scope of this research was limited to the secondary schools teachers in Ijebu North Local Government Area. The study covered both male and female teachers as well as old and young teachers.

1.7     Definitions of Terms

For the purpose of this study, the following important terms are defined thus;

Attitude: attitude in this study refers to the way or feeling, thinking or behaving particularly in the manner teachers carry out the activities, which relate to the implementation of continuous assessment of students.

Attitudes: are regarded as predispositions to respond favourably or unfavourably to specific situations, concepts, objectives, instructions or persons. People always think about attitudes towards something.

Continuous Assessment: in this study, the term “Continuous Assessment” is defined as a mechanism whereby the final grading of learners in the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains of learning systematically takes account of all their performances during a given period of schooling (Falayalo 1986).

Another definition by Airasian (1991) describes continuous assessment as an assessment approach which should depict the full range of sources and methods teachers use to gather, interpret and synthesize information about learners; information that is used to help teachers understand their learners, plan and monitor instruction and establish a viable classroom culture.

According to Hudson 1973, continuous assessment seems to be seen as a new method of assessment in Nigeria but development in some other parts of the world tends to confirm that continuous assessment has been a well known mode of assessment in some western countries.

Lastly, continuous assessment according to Rogers in Macintosh (1974) is defined as a continuous updating of teachers’ judgement about learners performance in relation to specific criteria which will allow at any time, a cumulative judgement to be made about performance upon these same criteria.