A STUDY OF DIFFICULTY LEVELS OF TOPICS IN SECONDARY SCHOOL MATHEMATICS

1.1 Introduction

Mathematics is applicable in our regular activities, scientific innovations, research, business, and others. It is a compulsory subject in the school level of Nepal. Different digital resources can be used in mathematics teaching as instructional materials. Gender differences in academic performance in mathematics have been an issue of controversy and generated a considerable interest in the field of educational research over the years. The socialization patterns in Nigeria and most African setting which places enormous restrictions and a higher input of daily domestic labour on the female than male automatically schemes female out from any consideration for serious professional discipline, even in cases where the female appears to be more brilliant than her male counterpart (Alordiah et al., 2015).

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.

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1.2 Background of Study

Nigeria aspires to be a modern industrial society and a developing society desiring this attribute should according to Animalu (2000), possess the ability to acquire knowledge, in service-oriented and innovative. It is obvious that this can only be achieved with a proper and solid foundation in mathematical knowledge. Many of the scientist like Archimedes and Galileo who came up with striking innovations in science were exposed to the best mathematics education in their days. Investment in the training of scientific and technological manpower will enhance the economic and political development of the nation and proper mathematical education at all levels will go a long way in realizing the objective of promotion of science and technology.

The importance of mathematics to everyday life justifies the inclusion in the curricula at all the levels of education. There is hardly any human being whether literate or non-literate who does not apply mathematical concepts in everyday life, even though he may not be aware of it. Mathematics can simply be defined as those aspects of human experience and knowledge that involve the concept of number, quantity and space. Over the years mathematicians in formal educational setting have been able to construct abstract concepts into logical, systematic and symbolic terms that involve pattern and precision. Physical observations are often better expressed in mathematical expressions thereby enhancing understanding. There is no doubt that mathematics has come to stay in the educational plan of nations in the world.

It is greatly disturbing, especially to the implementers of mathematics education that despite the prominence and importance of mathematics in all areas of human endeavours, students’ cognitive, affective and psychomotor outcomes in mathematics at all levels of the educational system fall below expectation. The poor performances of students in mathematics at external examinations like Cambridge, senior school certificate (organized by WAEC and NECO), Universities Matriculation Examination (UME), and Polytechnic and Colleges of Education Examination has been on the increase. Many factors have been identified by mathematics educators for the poor students’ achievement in mathematics.

Efforts to improve students’ outcomes in mathematics have led to several studies to determine the predictors of academic performance in mathematics among various groups of individuals. Some of the predictors are learning strategies, age, gender and school location (Christian, 2014), gender, school location and socio-economic status (Alordiah et al., 2015), gender and socio-economic status (Ewumi, 2012), age and gender (Abubakar et al., 2011), sex, age and course of study (Salifu et al., 2017).

Students’ academic performance at all levels of education is not only a barometer for measuring the effectiveness or otherwise of the school system, but a major determinant of the attainment of a nation’s educational goals. The medium through which the attainment of individuals and the nation’s educational goals can be achieved is learning (Ewumi, 2012). This is why learning outcomes have become a phenomenon of interest to all and also account for the reason why scholars have been working hard to unravel factors that militate against good academic performance (Aremu & Sokan, 2002 as cited in Ewumi, 2012).

Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Difficulty Levels of Topics in Secondary School Mathematics.

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1.3 Statement of Problems

Investigation revealed that the students do not find examination in those topics easy to solve, few students attempt such questions; the few that attempt them usually score low; high achiever in mathematics experience a little difficulty in solving questions on such topics when compared with other topics; Students are prone to various errors in solving such topics; they consist mostly of abstract topics; they are usually found in part two of theory paper and carry more marks and are usually responsible for the general poor performance in mathematics and if properly taught students will discover that they are not difficult as they suppose.

Problem of students developing low self-efficacies in math is complex and that it requires solutions on multiple dimensions (Clark Blickenstaff, 2005). Both parents and teachers have a vital role to play since they are primary sources of the four types of information. Another important implication of this study results from the congruence between the findings obtained here and the findings obtained by studies performed in different countries (Huang, 2013).

These views seem to be related to the preference students have for some topics in mathematics while in the secondary school. Therefore, based on this the study sought to posses the difficulty levels of topics in secondary school mathematics.

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1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study

The aim of the study is to examine the difficulty levels of topics in secondary school mathematics. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:

1. To find out whether gender difference existed in the students’ perception of difficult topics in mathematics at senior secondary schools;
2. To identify the mathematics topics perceived as difficult by senior secondary school students; and
3. To determine whether difference existed between boarding and day schools’ students on their perception of difficult topics in mathematics at senior secondary schools in Delta State.

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1.5 Research Questions

The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:

• Does the students’ perception of difficult topics in mathematics syllabus differ between boarding and day schools?
• Is there any gender difference in students’ perception of difficult topics in mathematics syllabus?
• Which topics in the senior secondary school mathematics syllabus do students perceive as difficult?

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1.6 Research Hypothesis

In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.

Hypothesis One

• H0: There is no significant gender difference in students’ perception of difficult topics in mathematics at senior secondary schools in Delta State.
• H1: There is significant gender difference in students’ perception of difficult topics in mathematics at senior secondary schools in Delta State.

Hypothesis Two

• H0: There is no significant difference between boarding and day schools students in their perception of difficult topics in mathematics at the senior secondary schools in Delta State.
• H1: There is significant difference between boarding and day schools students in their perception of difficult topics in mathematics at the senior secondary schools in Delta State.

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1.7 Significance of Study

This study will be of benefit students, teachers, parents and the society at large.

1. It will assist school counsellors in exposing their students to the relevance of these so called “difficult subjects” to their future careers and the need to master them by organizing career talks for them.
2. It will also be found useful to authors of mathematics in using pictures that are ‘gender friendly’ and using objects found in the home and school every day.
3. It will also bring to the notice of the government in assisting or supporting mathematics experts by providing necessary instructional materials for teaching those identified difficult topics.
4. It will also bring to the awareness of parents or enlighten parents and the community not to look down their female children but she them as able as their male children.

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

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1.8 Scope of Study

The scope of the research is focused on the Study of Difficulty Levels of Topics in Secondary School Mathematics using Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State as a case study.

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1.9 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
2. Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
3. Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
4. Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

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1.10 Definition of Terms

Teaching: The act of imparting knowledge.

Learning: It is a relatively permanent change in behavior that results from teaching.

Academic: Academic is connected with education, especially in schools and universities.

Secondary Education: secondary education normally takes place in secondary school, taking place after primary education and may be followed by higher education or vocational training.

Examination: A test of capacity and knowledge. It is a determinant of a learner’s strength and weakness necessary for his/her academic adjustment and work life.

Academic: Academic is connected with education, especially in schools and universities.