Effectiveness of Frequency of Testing on Students’ Study Habits in Mathematics among Senior Secondary Schools in Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract

Mathematics plays a vital role in the scientific and technological advancement of every
nation, and Nigeria is no exception. Besides its importance as a school subject, it is
associated with more academic and career opportunities. However, students’ poor
achievement in mathematics may have led to questioning students’ study habits. Constant
practice and repeated reading is expected to enhance students’ understanding and
knowledge of mathematics. Thus, this study seeks to examine the effectiveness of
frequency of testing on students’ study habits in mathematics among secondary schools in
Ogun State, Nigeria. The study employed a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control
group design. The population of the study comprised all senior secondary school students
in Ogun State, Nigeria. A sample size of 157 students was selected through the multistage sampling process. The research instrument titled Study Habits Inventory was used
to collect relevant data for the study. Two hypotheses were tested using descriptive
statistics and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The hypotheses were tested at 0.05
level of significance. The study revealed that students tested most frequently developed
impactful study habits towards the learning and practices of mathematics. In addition, the
study revealed that gender was not a significant factor when trying to improve students’
study habits via testing frequency. It was recommended, based on the findings from this
study, that frequency of testing of every week should be adopted in the teaching, learning
and mastery of mathematics concepts and exercises.