Investigating gender-base performance in mathematics of senior high school students in selected schools in Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis

Abstract

The study sought to determine the overall mathematics performance of boys and girls in the selected schools and to identify factors that contribute to gender-based performance in mathematics among Senior High School students and finally to proffer a possible workable idea to enhance teaching and learning of mathematics to attain gender-based performance parity. The research designed employed was a cross sectional survey design with quantitative and qualitative approach. The targeted population for the study was 500 final year students of which the accessible population was 200 senior high school final year students and 5 mathematics teachers selected from the 5 senior high schools in Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis. The study employed convenient sampling to easily reach out to students because the distance between them were not so wide apart. Stratified sampling was also used to obtain gender balance as well as simple random sampling was used to employ 200 final year senior high school students which comprise of 107 males and 93 females, as well as 5 mathematics teachers in the metropolis. The instruments employed in this study were mathematics test, questionnaire and interview. The results from the independent sample t-test revealed that there was no significance difference in mathematics performance of boys and girls in the selected schools. Furthermore, the students had a negative perception on the factors that contribute to gender-based performance in mathematics as well as proffering a possible workable idea to enhance teaching and learning of mathematics to attain gender-based performance parity. It was recommended that Mathematics teaching and evaluation strategies should be gender bias free. Also in drawing school achievement plans, teachers should endeavor to add exchange programs internally to help increase the depth and quality of mathematics learning.