MST-Department of Educational Management Policy & Curriculum Studies

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Browsing MST-Department of Educational Management Policy & Curriculum Studies by Subject "academic performance"

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    Influence of continuous assessment on academic performance in primary schools in Mogotio Division, Baringo County, Kenya
    (Kenyatta university, 2023-06) Cheruiyot, Gladys; Charles M. Magoma
    Continuous Assessment (CA) offers indicators for pupils’ performance, thereby testing and evaluation are deemed as critical components of teaching and learning. Continuous Assessments are an educational policy for examining students continuously. The Continuous Assessment results assist in guidance of the learners. The purpose of the study was to assess the influence of Continuous Assessment on academic performance of primary schools within Mogotio Division, Baringo County, Kenya. The specific objectives of the study were: to find out the teachers’ rationale and understanding for using CA in teaching; to identify types of Continuous Assessment used by teachers in teaching; to establish challenges faced by the teachers while using CA in teaching and; to determine the strategies used by teachers in coping with the challenges faced in using of CA. This study used a descriptive design which enabled the researcher in gathering quantitative data from a large number of respondents. The targeted population of the study was teachers teaching in the 36 primary schools within Mogotio Division. Eighteen (18) primary schools were selected using stratified random sampling based on the location and 18 head teachers, 18 deputy head teachers, 18 exam officers and 54 teachers were purposively selected. Data collection instruments comprised of interview schedules for head teachers and questionnaires for the teachers. Cronbach alpha was used to calculate the reliability index giving a =0 7.142 and which was satisfactory for the study and as for validity, after the pilot, the researcher utilized from the supervisors to sharpen the instruments. The data collected was organized and analysis was done using descriptive statistics which included percentage, simple linear regression in Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Tables and figures were used to present the findings of the study. The study established that 97% of teachers were using CA as required by Ministry of Education. Sixty one per cent of the teachers reported that CA followed school examinations timetable, with 58.3% of the examinations being self-set by the subject teachers. With R2=0.3 and P<0.05, the study noted that 30% of academic performance in primary schools were attributable to using CA in teaching. The main challenge faced by teachers during use of CA was time lapse before pupils completed the examinations (58.3%) while other challenges faced by the teachers included: inadequate stationary (29.2%), large class sizes (11.1%) and copying of exams by pupils (1.4%). The strategies that had been adopted for coping with the challenges of using CA within primary schools included: advance notification of CA dates, increased supervision of examinations, motivation of pupils, and parents/stakeholders’ participation. The results of the study will be helpful in enabling teachers to better make use of Continuous Assessments on their learners as well as contributing to the already existing literature on utilizing Continuous Assessments in teaching.