Teachers’ Attitudinal Variables In The Implementation Of The Further-Mathematics Curriculum As Correlates Of Students’ Learning Outcomes

Abstract

The study was designed to obtain empirical evidence on the teachers’ perception of the contents o f the Further-Mathematics curriculum and their attitudes toward instructional and assessment practices in its implementation. The extent to which these teacher variables influence the students’ perception of their Further-Mathematics lessons and their achievement in the subject was also examined. The study adopted an ex-post facto design involving 32 teachers and 349 students selected from 32 out o f % schools offering the subject in Ogun State, Nigeria. Each teacher responded to a questionnaire while each student responded to a questionnaire and an achievement test. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, multiple regression, and path analysis. The study revealed that the influence of the teachers’ perception of the curriculum on the student variables is positive and significant but mostly indirect via the teachers’ attitudes toward instructional practices. The teachers’ attitudes toward instructional practices exert both direct and indirect influence on the student variables, whereas the teachers’ attitudes toward assessment practices appeared to have no significant influence either directly or indirectly on the students’ learning outcomes. Of all the variables in the study, the students’ perception of their lessons have the highest direct influence on the students’ achievement in Further-Mathematics.