Abstract
This study developed and validated Computer Aided Testing Module for Technical Drawing, (CATMTD). Adopting instrumentation design, a personal home page (php) software was written for test management and administration. Four specific purpose-based research questions were posed and three hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. A random sample of 10 teachers and 81 students of Technical Drawing was selected from public secondary schools in Akwa-Ibom State, Nigeria in 2012/13 session for furthering the work. Modular web-based CATMTD php software compilation in local host (computer) comprised 435 resourced, peer-trialed and psychometric analyzed objective test items for handy deployment and data collection from the students. Also, structured software functionality assessment questionnaire (CATMTDFAQ) was administered to the teachers under study. Content-specified tests were as well administered to subjects for five consecutive weeks based on Item Response Theory of Testing IRT – Rash Model. The data collected were analyzed and interpreted using descriptive statistics: mean ( ) (and at 3.50 acceptance level). Also, analysis of variance, ANOVA and t-test statistic were used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 levels of significance. Results obtained from the analyses revealed that neither school location nor gender had significant influence on technical drawing students’ learning achievement. However, technical drawing students’ learning achievement increased with increased periodic tests. Adopting this innovative testing technique, workshop/seminar retraining of teachers on test item construction and analysis, test management and administration were recommended.
Background of the Study
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION
Over the years, classroom assessment has followed traditional paper-based testing. Through this manual approach, related testing processes including item preparation; test management and administration were undertaken as paper and pencil work. In that dispensation, test item baking was also paper-based. Such vast resources were difficult to extract for handy usage in classroom situation as needs arise. This in turn contributed to negative teacher-attitude as technical drawing teachers minimized frequent/regular testing. In extreme cases, such teachers evade tests or embark on haphazard testing to fulfill duty demands with its attendant poor education system productivity.
The prevailing situation reflected in poor senior secondary school certificate examination candidates’ performances. This as well is depicted in low technical drawing school-leaver quality to a growing public concern. In this regard, Akaigwe (2012), stated that senior secondary school certificate examination (SSSCE) bodies (the West Africa Examinations Council-WAEC, and National Examinations Council-NECO) have been recording 90 per cent failure rates in recent years. Reiterating, WAEC (2003-2007), reports indicated general poor performance in most subjects of their SSSCE and particularly in technical drawing.
Preliminary survey probed poor senior secondary school certificate examination performance in technical drawing between 2001 and 2010. The investigation identified near-absent development/adoption of computer-based technology (CBT) for test management and administration (integrating raw scores
reporting) as well as haphazard testing among other related factors. A good test
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should be conceived of as a teaching device which offers feedback for directional instruction, objective-based learning for progression and remediation occasioned by failure to meet up presented objectives.
A test is an instrument for measuring learning achievement and other related influences such as school location, gender, and periodic testing rates of individuals involved in an educational or training programme. Tests often precede examination and such cumulative scores form the total performance on the subject for a period of study. Tests are useful for motivating and structuring students’ morality in their preparation for examinations. Examination is test in a broader sense prescribed for regular periods and the terminal certification for completion of an educational programme. According to Fasasi (2006), examination is an instrument for decision-making. Consequent upon examination performance, admission into an education programme, advancement in an ongoing education course or certification of programme completion is conferred on the affected individual. This work considers test by extension to mean examination administered to individuals
participating in learning to monitor related achievement as well as factor such as school location, gender and number of periodic tests influencing learning. Tests have their educational values when used frequently in learning situation and in prescribed form such as objective test.
Objective tests are of selected response classification. They consist of the question body, labeled answers/options of which one is correct to select from. Typically, such test offer the advantage of objectivity (among examiners always scoring the correct answers right) and easy scoring with allocated mark to each question. According to Tumba (2011), objective test is made up of test instruction called the stem and labeled responses called distracters, of which one correctly answers the question known as the key. This is based on the items right scoring principle of item response theory of testing, IRT, Rasch model (1966). Objective and appropriate testing engenders good teaching and learning leading to good academic performance as much as certify school-leaver quality (Nebuchukwu
2011)). It is widely accepted in technical education circle that appropriate and adequate testing would cater for better performance in technical drawing examinations. However, it is of increasing concern that high-criteria-based promotion to higher senior secondary school classes do not replicate in senior secondary schools certificate examination results. This might depend on classroom test-related challenges faced by technical drawing teachers among others. Manual
stenciling of objective items with graphics is labourious. And a booklet of such items is most often depleted with many diagrams. The irony is that hard copies (paper prints) produced by these procedures are to be repeated each time test preparation for administration is required. Such paper-based resources are difficult to organize in topical modules for easy access and retrieval of fit-for re-use items for subsequent test administration amidst other challenges. Test item preparation, item banking, test management and administration with result (raw score) reporting can be actualized using computer software. The application of software in getting tasks done is becoming common. According to Gupta (2010), software is a set of programmes compiled for carrying out operations of a specified task. This is system approach. In this regard, system approach is the harnessing of human and material resources to the solution of problems (Adeniran, 2008). Such are combined resources aimed at: instrumentation development through software to serve technical drawing objective test management and administration with prompt raw score reporting including extended purposes.
Development is products (items or systems) process-based to achieve desired operational functionality. This relates to designing during which ideas, knowledge, resources, system programming, trial running and debugging among others are combined in pursuit of technology for the solution of an identified problem. In this relation, Ochonogor (2007), stated that development is process-
like: including knowledge of bringing up, creating, constructing and making items or systems. It implies that design-development relationship involves purpose- driven, planning, arrangement of features, decisions on the functioning of the desired object or system ensured by validation.
Validation is an integral aspect of development as a researcher involves experts to ensure that the instrument items and/or systems for generating items would yield accurate data and for the projects functionality through trial tests. Anyanwu (2011), viewed validation in relation to classroom achievement tests, and asserted that content validity evidence is at the core of appropriate testing. It is a systematic examination of set items in an entire test to ascertain adequacy of representative sample of specified subject content to be measured. This work viewed validation as quality control and assurance process. Validation includes qualitative and quantitative procedures required for ascertaining the appropriateness (validity and reliability), acceptability of instrument items as well as functionality assessment of the developed system for study data collection from the field. In this relation, Ali (2006) and Azuka (2011), accord that the validity of a test is the degree of accuracy with which the test measures what it is intended to measure. According to the authors, a valid test for instance, ensures that questions are set from all parts or sections representative of the syllabus, adequately covering content, instructional objectives and ensuring reliability of such instrument.
Reliability is another measure of a test. According to Nworgu (2004), reliability of a test is the measure of consistency or stability indicating the extent to which the test result is reproducible when the measurement is repeated on different occasions or retested with an identical test. The above mentioned explain the plan, implement and evaluated principle (PIEP) on which the instrumentation: computer aided testing module for technical drawing (written in the web-based personal home page, (php) programming scripting language was based.
Module is innovative learning programme plan, with the total curriculum divided into equal content objective-based units to be achieved by an average student. A module according to Olaitan and Ali (1997) is a unit of the curriculum. Such division of the total curriculum content into learning units of specified equal content that will take approximately commensurate duration of instruction to be achieved by an average student. Further highlighting on this, Dumbiri (2011), stated that a module is made up of objectives, contents, instructional strategies, learning experiences, facilities and evaluation technique. Computer aided testing module for technical drawing (CATMTD) is the researcher developed evaluation technique enabling a system enhanced assessment.
Computer aided testing is the use of computer to effect testing processes through software. Computer aided testing module for technical drawing, (CATMTD) is the researcher-developed software package for measuring learning
achievement and studying associated factors based on related units of the subject’s curriculum content. The system enhanced technique is organized as topical units for measuring technical drawing learning achievement deploying series of objective tests. This technique allows for a representative coverage of the subject and caters for measuring cognitive (factual), affective (interest, attitude) and psychomotor (performance related skills) aspects of the subject. It is compiled with php programming language hosting 435 psychometric analyzed subject-based objective test instructions. With this technique, test could be drawn based on specified content for individual testing with a local host computer or group test administration up to 253 terminals/candidates via a Local Area Network (LAN) facility. Multimedia projection of a test is a flexibility option for dual-based (computer-paper) test administration. The developed computer aided testing module for technical drawing has potential for remote network test administration on internet hosted web-site. This technological innovation is to enhance objective assessment of technical drawing.
Technical drawing is one of the subject offerings in Nigerian secondary schools. It is offered as integral component of upper basic school or junior secondary school (JSS) basic technology’, and as an elective vocational subject in the senior secondary school (SSS). According to Foster (2001), technical drawing is a useful, powerful and widely recognized graphic (use of lines and symbols)
language accepted for communicating production requirement. Foster (2001) and Nsima (2001), accord that a sound knowledge of technical drawing relates positively to the understanding of other vocational subjects like building construction, electricity, metal work, wood work and so on. Being a type of language, affected students need to master its detail to enhance achieving skills competencies; improved performance at prescribed examinations extending to the world of work.
Improvement in senior secondary school certificate technical drawing examination performance is hinged on teacher-ability to develop and/or resource quality learning achievement test items. Moreover, setting up and maintaining a system supportive item bank populated with psychometric quality items for optimal benefits should be a priority. McAlpine (2002b), posited for adoption of item banks: large collection of test items, as Afemikhe (2011), reiterated. This would serve as a means of countering test-related challenges including labourious manual drafting of items, fairness, validity, reliability, security, quality assurance, for handy test (database) management and administration with prompt raw score reporting.
Setting up and maintaining item database is instrumental to testing best practice. Relating to database resource management, UNESCO, (2003), identified computer’s versatility with its web-page dynamism to communicate its content in
multimedia with cost effectiveness. One of such modalities is the developed computer aided testing module for technical drawing. It is a set of developed objective-based learning activities guaranteeing that students pass through similar experiences irrespective of school location. It consists of objectives, pre-requisites, pre-assessment, instrument (testing) activities, post-assessment and remediation.
The web based programme hosts technical drawing objective test instructions enabling measuring students learning achievement thereby provide data for studying related influences. With regards to the pursuit of this innovation, Conole and Warbuton (2003), asserted that development or adoption of a system for vocational technical education must target achieving synergy of interoperability with other software for flexible multimedia application. However, literature revealed that the state of development and adoption of technology to promote educational best practice in Nigeria needs up-scaling (Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN), (2004)). Against this backdrop, converting a “redefined classroom” (beyond the constraints of its traditional four walls); developing and adopting a system-enhanced test management and administration (software) for measuring technical drawing learning achievement and studying related parameters becomes imperative.
Statement of the Problem
Technical drawing teachers owe a duty to service delivery with across the board performance and school-leaver quality indicative to their proficiency. However, to meet up increasing duty demands, teachers have continued in haphazard development/ assemblage of test items for measuring students learning achievement in senior secondary school technical drawing (SSSTD) among others. Sadly, prevailing manual (paper-based) test processes, management and administration contribute to keep performance records a near-all time low to a growing public concern.
Preliminary survey showed that teacher-developed instrument items for measuring students learning achievement in senior secondary school technical drawing (SSSTD) have lesser psychometric quality due to deficient validation. Moreso, difficulty in paper-based test resource extraction (or management) for handy usage in classroom situations, near-absent development and non-adopting computer-based technique compound school-based learning achievement testing problems of SSSTD.
Consequently, teachers and students lose test-related benefits including monitoring teaching and learning progress to ensure rounded performance. The students are deprived of associated benefits including monitoring their skills acquisition ratings as well as gained confidence to practice learned skills after graduation. Teachers on the other hand, forfeit the usefulness of appropriate testing
as a teaching device which offers feed-back: the basis for informed/tailored (remedial) instruction. Testing at different stages of instruction can serve formative function (when test outcome provided the basis for building next lesson, progress monitoring/feedback, during on-going instruction, as well as summative function to evaluate the lesson or concluded learning programme/stage including promotion, placement/selection and certification, instruction and student guidance. An unwritten tradition is that teachers teach their content but relegate testing to the external examiners including the West African Examinations Council, (WAEC) and National Examinations Council (NECO). By so doing, students learning achievement are not monitored nor their performance predicted to show those at risk of failure to remediate and those in top readiness to facilitate their performance advantage respectively. One of this work’s contentions was to achieve functionality of the module (software) and the synergy of its interoperability with other software for optimal benefits.
Based on instituting best practice, enhancing test management and administration with prompt result reporting (raw score delivery) beyond Nigerian “traditional classroom”, need gap exists to develop and validate computer aided testing module for technical drawing.
Purpose of the Study
The general purpose of the study was to develop a computer aided testing module (software) for measuring students’ technical drawing learning achievement in Nigerian senior secondary schools. Specifically, the study intends to:
1. Develop and validate a computer aided testing module for technical drawing in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.
2. Assess the functionality of the computer aided testing module for (software)
technical drawing.
3. Find out school location influence on senior secondary school technical drawing students’ learning achievement using the developed computer aided testing module.
4. Determine gender influence on senior secondary school technical drawing students’ learning achievement using the module (software)-generated tests.
5. Determine computer aided testing module weekly test influence on senior secondary school technical drawing students’ learning achievement.
Significance of the Study
The findings of this work would be beneficial to Nigeria educational system. Findings of the study would be useful to teachers and students as well as the school management. Other prospective beneficiaries to this work would include Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Education, Akwa Ibom State Examinations Board. The
work would equally be of benefit to related examination bodies. Yet, the developed web-based software would be a further research resource.
By using the CATMTD (software), the teachers would be able to create and manage reliable test item bank. Teachers would be able to draw objectives tests for multimedia classroom or office test administration with a local host computer/local area network (LAN) (intranet) facility. This would in effect enhance their instruction, guidance and counseling to the students as well as avail themselves of the extended network benefit.
Equally, the study would help the students in their learning activities. Using the CATMTD, students would be able to have feedback on content they have learned thereby making desirable adjustment or seek the teachers counseling. It would also help students to acquire test morality as they prepare adequately for and to better their senior secondary school certificate examinations performances in technical drawing extending to posterity. Also, would enable the students to have increased interaction within the classroom especially during test revision. Students’ school-based learning of the subject in question would be motivated through the use of CATMTD.
Furthermore, it would help the school to set up and manage credible computer-based question bank. This would enable the schools’ management to achieve flexibility in multimedia test administration. It would equally enable the
schools to institute best practice in school-based assessment/continuous assessment (SBA/CA). This in turn would enable such authority to evaluate the teachers’ effective instructional delivery in relation to students learning progress.
Nevertheless, this study would be beneficial to the Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Education as the CATMTD generated data would improve their supervision, evaluation and quality assurance services. This would guide them in decision- making to improve the educational system that has left much to be desired in terms of senior secondary school-leaver quality despite state government’s huge sector investment. The software when developed and adopted would help to promote FRN (1999) SBA policy of government by providing system supported assessment regime which was lacking during the FRN (1982), 6-
3-3-4 continuous assessment,(CA), era.
The study would nonetheless, be beneficial to the examination bodies including the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), the National Examinations Council (NECO), and the equivalent National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB) and the Akwa Ibom State Examinations Board among others to improve their services, by acquiring this process enhanced software.
The software developed will help future researchers. It would be open for evaluation and verification. Data generated from its application would be useful resource for further research.
Research Questions
The following questions were formulated to guide this study:
1. To what extent is the researcher-developed computer aided testing module for technical drawing (CATMTD) functional?
2. What is the school location influence on senior secondary school technical drawing students’ learning achievement using the computer aided testing module generated tests?
3. What difference exists in senior secondary school technical drawing learning achievement between male and female using the CATMTD?
4. To what extent do weekly use of computer aided testing module tests influence senior secondary school technical drawing students’ learning achievement?
Hypotheses
The following hypotheses were formulated to also assist this study:
HO1: School location does not have significant influence on senior secondary school technical drawing students’ learning achievement using CATMTD.
HO2: Gender does not have significant influence on senior secondary school students’ technical drawing performance using CATMTD.
HO3: There is no significant difference in technical drawing students’ learning achievement mean scores among the five weeks of exposure to CATMTD.
Scope of the Study
This study is delimited to senior secondary schools in Akwa Ibom State. The senior secondary school technical drawing syllabus, WAEC (2009-2014) is the basis of this study. Hence, the major components of the subject including (a) drawing studio practice (b) geometrical constructions (c) development of geometrical solids (d) pictorial drawing (e) points and lines in space (descriptive geometry) (f) building/mechanical engineering design and drawing (g) business opportunities in drawing studio practice would be covered. This is in line with the new curriculum for Nigerian Senior Secondary Schools technical drawing; FRN (2007). The study is based on objective items. Structured items and those which require practical drawing skills such as freehand sketching, use of instruments and materials would not be deployed.
This material content is developed to serve as a GUIDE for students to conduct academic research
DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF COMPUTER AIDED TESTING MODULE FOR TECHNICAL DRAWING IN AKWA IBOM STATE NIGERIA
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