CHAPTER ONE
1.1 Introduction
It is quite obvious that continuous assessment plays an important role in our education system. The roles are enormous in teaching and learning process.
The advent of Western Education in Nigeria gave birth to formalized modes of examination that were conducted internally within the schools and externally by agencies, external to the student. Hence we can state briefly that previously we have been used to two form of assessment internal and external examination.
The usually practice is the usage of internal examination to prepare students for the end of schooling examinations, in these situation records of students performance in internal examination are not usually kept beyond a particular year or class. Once notable feature of the external examinations is that they are one shot examination. The result form it is used to pass summary judgement on the student learning and achievement.
As these one-shot examinations are used for assessment of the success of an educational programme and of the learner in the teaching learning situation, they acquired a very threatening and anxiety provoking flavour (Ohoche 1983). A lot of opposition have been laid against the previous system of assessment. It is on these basis that we have our new procedure.
The Nigeria Government wanted to help our teachers to become more effective in teaching and finding out what their students have learnt.
That is why the idea of continuous assessment throughout our educational system was introduced continuous assessment is an integral part of the New National Policy on Education, known as the 6-3-3-4, which was introduced in 1976. Under this policy or system of schooling for basic Education, Secondary Education is aimed at preparing the student or child to become useful to the social and to prepare him or her for higher education, especially if he or she is willing and able.
This higher education is to last for a minimum of four years according to the new policy. Educational assessment and evaluation should be free by basing them in whole or in part on continuous assessment of the progress of the individual. Besides, if the final grade of a child of the end of an educational programme includes all his performance throughout the period, this will give a tune picture of the study or child ability than a single examination set by an external agency such as the West African Examination Council, WAEC, and the Ministry of Education, does not gave an opportunity to the teachers to take part on the final assessment. Even in a totally comprehensive education system, there is need to make judgement about individuals and hence to evaluate is to appraise or determine the value of something (Federal Ministry Education 1985).
This involves an estimation of worth and a quantitative comparison of values and these are essential elements of assessment. Teaching itself is impossible without evaluation every time a response is given, evaluation and assessment takes place (Federal Ministry Education 1985).
There are some problems that are facing continuous assessment in Nigeria. Such as scarcity of teachers, unqualified teachers, lack of record keeping and continuity of records and problems of large class size etc.
These problem had make so many teacher in our secondary schools lack the basic skills needed in constructing and making use of most instruments for continuous assessment, it requires the objective observation of students and the preparation of questionnaires for gathering personal data and defining a construct or variable that is being investigated. These tasks are very difficult for some teachers to perform (Federal Ministry Education 2005).
Also, the new National Policy on Education (N.P.E Rev 1981) began its journey from the first National Curriculum Conference in September 1967 through the 1972 committee seminar under the chairmanship of Chief S.O Adesbo which deliberated and presented recommendation in the outcomes of the curriculum headed by professor S.D Ohaborin. The Federal Government wrote paper on the blue print of the implementation committee constitutes the National Policy on Education.
Apart from the introduction of a myriad of new subjects in the schools, another major and revolutionary aspect of policy is the emphasis that is place on continuous assessment. The application of the emphasis on this mode of assessment in several sections of the policy document underscores the point. The various sections and sub-section of the document where continuo’s assessments include;
1. Philosophy
2. Primary Education
3. Secondary Education
4. High Education
5. Teacher Education
6. Administration and Planning
The repeated emphasis is a clear indication of the importance attached to continuous assessment by policy maker, which are government and educationists.
A further evidence of the seriousness in which government viewed the matter was the publication of a booklet by the Federal Ministry of Education with the title “A handbook on continuo’s assessment”. The Federal Ministry of Education also organized a series of workshops on continuous assessment throughout the country in 1992 to ensure that official sound State Government including inspectors, principals, and teachers were aware of the implication of the proposed continuous assessment scheme at all level of the education system, Tunto (1983)
It is difficult to know if the standards of assessment are the same. Some teachers set difficult ones. The test and other instruments of assessment may not cover the same topics. Different teachers may use different system of grading the performance of their students, thus the same work in two different schools may mean different things.
Also, the performance of each student which covers a long period needs to be combined to get the final cumulative assessment.
Accurate records need to be kept up to date records. They also find it difficult to diagnose and guide the students in learning. Records such as school record student cumulative record books and the transcript of students are not properly kept and in some cases students who need transfer to other schools find it very difficult to collect up to data records of their assessments.
In view of the explanation of problems of continuous assessment mention above, due to lack of basic skills and non-availability of adequate test or instruments in an area being tested affect test result and performance.
For instance, a class teacher can simply add result from different subject with other subjects and this can lead to interpretation errors. In order words, biology teacher may be liberal with the awards of marks to students, while a chemistry teacher may score the same students very poorly, if the two results are calculated and the average scores computed interpretation, may be confounding, and thereby causing some problems in the teaching-learning process.
In addition, much will not be achieved unless teachers become more enlightened and competent in assessment, and have the understanding that continuous assessment is an integral and important part of the professional work and therefore devote more attention to it as it deserves.
This study attempts to examine the attitude of secondary school teachers towards continuous assessment.
1.2 Statements of Problem
For many years now, student’s continuous assessment in our secondary school encounters some difficulties. Due to negligence and lack of knowledge of implementing continuous assessment, teachers handles it carelessly and thereby achieve no significant result. This research work becomes very important due to the problems that face continuous assessment in our secondary school system. Many teachers do not know why the evaluate students with this; they handle it the way that suit themselves. A stated or mentioned above the major uses to which the result of continuous assessment could be put are evaluation, selection, predication, placement and grading. It is only a teacher that is properly grounded in continuous assessment that will be familiar with the above uses and purposes. This will therefore show his/her attitude towards continuous assessment. In this study, the following problems will be investigated whether the teachers in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State have a positive or negative attitude towards continuous assessment.
Also, the effects of this positive or negative attitude on students performance.
1.3 Purpose of Study
The purpose of this study is to survey the teacher’s attitude continuous assessment practice in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State. It meant finding out that whether the teacher’s attitude in this regard affects the student’s performance.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The significance of this study lies in the fact that it will provide the Government with useful information about teachers attitude towards continuous assessment in secondary school and then stress the importance of continuous assessment practices to teacher by educating them so as to have a positive attitude towards it with this teachers will carry out continuous assessment of their students effectively, because it was conducted at the time when 6-3-3-4 system of education made an adequate provision for continuous assessment in our schools.
With this, the individual students would be seen in his totality. The sits (that is the Head, Heart and Hand) relating to cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains.
In this regard the study seeks to consider continuous assessment in secondary schools. It is hopefully believed that the study will, enable the schools to maintain records of continuous assessment of secondary school student performance. Provide useful information to policy makers and planners in formulating good policies and drawing effective plans for continuous assessment practices in secondary schools serve us useful literature for researchers in the field of study.
1.1 Introduction
It is quite obvious that continuous assessment plays an important role in our education system. The roles are enormous in teaching and learning process.
The advent of Western Education in Nigeria gave birth to formalized modes of examination that were conducted internally within the schools and externally by agencies, external to the student. Hence we can state briefly that previously we have been used to two form of assessment internal and external examination.
The usually practice is the usage of internal examination to prepare students for the end of schooling examinations, in these situation records of students performance in internal examination are not usually kept beyond a particular year or class. Once notable feature of the external examinations is that they are one shot examination. The result form it is used to pass summary judgement on the student learning and achievement.
As these one-shot examinations are used for assessment of the success of an educational programme and of the learner in the teaching learning situation, they acquired a very threatening and anxiety provoking flavour (Ohoche 1983). A lot of opposition have been laid against the previous system of assessment. It is on these basis that we have our new procedure.
The Nigeria Government wanted to help our teachers to become more effective in teaching and finding out what their students have learnt.
That is why the idea of continuous assessment throughout our educational system was introduced continuous assessment is an integral part of the New National Policy on Education, known as the 6-3-3-4, which was introduced in 1976. Under this policy or system of schooling for basic Education, Secondary Education is aimed at preparing the student or child to become useful to the social and to prepare him or her for higher education, especially if he or she is willing and able.
This higher education is to last for a minimum of four years according to the new policy. Educational assessment and evaluation should be free by basing them in whole or in part on continuous assessment of the progress of the individual. Besides, if the final grade of a child of the end of an educational programme includes all his performance throughout the period, this will give a tune picture of the study or child ability than a single examination set by an external agency such as the West African Examination Council, WAEC, and the Ministry of Education, does not gave an opportunity to the teachers to take part on the final assessment. Even in a totally comprehensive education system, there is need to make judgement about individuals and hence to evaluate is to appraise or determine the value of something (Federal Ministry Education 1985).
This involves an estimation of worth and a quantitative comparison of values and these are essential elements of assessment. Teaching itself is impossible without evaluation every time a response is given, evaluation and assessment takes place (Federal Ministry Education 1985).
There are some problems that are facing continuous assessment in Nigeria. Such as scarcity of teachers, unqualified teachers, lack of record keeping and continuity of records and problems of large class size etc.
These problem had make so many teacher in our secondary schools lack the basic skills needed in constructing and making use of most instruments for continuous assessment, it requires the objective observation of students and the preparation of questionnaires for gathering personal data and defining a construct or variable that is being investigated. These tasks are very difficult for some teachers to perform (Federal Ministry Education 2005).
Also, the new National Policy on Education (N.P.E Rev 1981) began its journey from the first National Curriculum Conference in September 1967 through the 1972 committee seminar under the chairmanship of Chief S.O Adesbo which deliberated and presented recommendation in the outcomes of the curriculum headed by professor S.D Ohaborin. The Federal Government wrote paper on the blue print of the implementation committee constitutes the National Policy on Education.
Apart from the introduction of a myriad of new subjects in the schools, another major and revolutionary aspect of policy is the emphasis that is place on continuous assessment. The application of the emphasis on this mode of assessment in several sections of the policy document underscores the point. The various sections and sub-section of the document where continuo’s assessments include;
1. Philosophy
2. Primary Education
3. Secondary Education
4. High Education
5. Teacher Education
6. Administration and Planning
The repeated emphasis is a clear indication of the importance attached to continuous assessment by policy maker, which are government and educationists.
A further evidence of the seriousness in which government viewed the matter was the publication of a booklet by the Federal Ministry of Education with the title “A handbook on continuo’s assessment”. The Federal Ministry of Education also organized a series of workshops on continuous assessment throughout the country in 1992 to ensure that official sound State Government including inspectors, principals, and teachers were aware of the implication of the proposed continuous assessment scheme at all level of the education system, Tunto (1983)
It is difficult to know if the standards of assessment are the same. Some teachers set difficult ones. The test and other instruments of assessment may not cover the same topics. Different teachers may use different system of grading the performance of their students, thus the same work in two different schools may mean different things.
Also, the performance of each student which covers a long period needs to be combined to get the final cumulative assessment.
Accurate records need to be kept up to date records. They also find it difficult to diagnose and guide the students in learning. Records such as school record student cumulative record books and the transcript of students are not properly kept and in some cases students who need transfer to other schools find it very difficult to collect up to data records of their assessments.
In view of the explanation of problems of continuous assessment mention above, due to lack of basic skills and non-availability of adequate test or instruments in an area being tested affect test result and performance.
For instance, a class teacher can simply add result from different subject with other subjects and this can lead to interpretation errors. In order words, biology teacher may be liberal with the awards of marks to students, while a chemistry teacher may score the same students very poorly, if the two results are calculated and the average scores computed interpretation, may be confounding, and thereby causing some problems in the teaching-learning process.
In addition, much will not be achieved unless teachers become more enlightened and competent in assessment, and have the understanding that continuous assessment is an integral and important part of the professional work and therefore devote more attention to it as it deserves.
This study attempts to examine the attitude of secondary school teachers towards continuous assessment.
1.2 Statements of Problem
For many years now, student’s continuous assessment in our secondary school encounters some difficulties. Due to negligence and lack of knowledge of implementing continuous assessment, teachers handles it carelessly and thereby achieve no significant result. This research work becomes very important due to the problems that face continuous assessment in our secondary school system. Many teachers do not know why the evaluate students with this; they handle it the way that suit themselves. A stated or mentioned above the major uses to which the result of continuous assessment could be put are evaluation, selection, predication, placement and grading. It is only a teacher that is properly grounded in continuous assessment that will be familiar with the above uses and purposes. This will therefore show his/her attitude towards continuous assessment. In this study, the following problems will be investigated whether the teachers in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State have a positive or negative attitude towards continuous assessment.
Also, the effects of this positive or negative attitude on students performance.
1.3 Purpose of Study
The purpose of this study is to survey the teacher’s attitude continuous assessment practice in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State. It meant finding out that whether the teacher’s attitude in this regard affects the student’s performance.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The significance of this study lies in the fact that it will provide the Government with useful information about teachers attitude towards continuous assessment in secondary school and then stress the importance of continuous assessment practices to teacher by educating them so as to have a positive attitude towards it with this teachers will carry out continuous assessment of their students effectively, because it was conducted at the time when 6-3-3-4 system of education made an adequate provision for continuous assessment in our schools.
With this, the individual students would be seen in his totality. The sits (that is the Head, Heart and Hand) relating to cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains.
In this regard the study seeks to consider continuous assessment in secondary schools. It is hopefully believed that the study will, enable the schools to maintain records of continuous assessment of secondary school student performance. Provide useful information to policy makers and planners in formulating good policies and drawing effective plans for continuous assessment practices in secondary schools serve us useful literature for researchers in the field of study.
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