INFLUENCE OF SCHOOL BASED ASSESSMENT ON PERFORMANCE IN PRIMARY TEACHER EDUCATION EXAMINATION IN KENYA

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of School Based Assessment (SBA) on performance of students in Primary Teacher Education (PTE) examination in public colleges in Kenya. The study adopted a nonexperimental research method combining survey and secondary data analysis designs. The PTE examination results of the years 2008 and 2010 were used. In addition, 721 students and 132 teachers constituted the sample survey of the study. The study objectives were to establish: 1) the relationship between students’ SBA and final examination scores; 2) the effect of students’ SBA scores on their overall performance in the examination and; 3) the views of students and teachers on integration of SBA and final examination scores for purposes of certification. Results indicated a weak relationship between SBA and final examination scores, with the mean of SBA scores being higher than those of final examination scores in majority of subjects. Weak and moderate Pearson correlations were found between SBA and final examination scores, with Mathematics having the highest correlation coefficients between the scores. The study results also indicated that - in majority of cases - inclusion of SBA scores had a positive effect on the students’ grades, with the effect increasing as the weighting of SBA - as a component of the total examination- was increased.