COMPARATIVE EFFECTS OF EXPLICIT INSTRUCTION AND CONCRETE REPRESENTATIONAL ABSTRACT STRATEGY ON MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT OF PRIMARY THREE PUPILS WITH DYSCALCULIA IN FCT ABUJA, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of Explicit Instruction (EI) and Concrete Representational Abstract (CRA) strategies on mathematics achievement of primary three pupils with dyscalculia in Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja. The influence of gender on the pupils’ mathematics achievement was also investigated. Two research questions were raised and two hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The study employed a quasi-experimental research design. The population for the study was all the 97 primary three pupils with dyscalculia as identified by the special education unit in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) local education authority Federal Capital Territory Abuja. Purposive sampling technique was employed to select the three inclusive public schools with a large number of children with dyscalculia. In the schools selected, three intact classes comprising 31 primary three pupils made up of 16 males and 15 females were used for the study. The instrument for data collection was a 10-item Mathematics Achievement Test (MAT). The instrument was face and content validated. The reliability index of the instrument (MAT) was established as 0.88 using the Kendall coefficient of concordance. Research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation while the hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA).The result of the study revealed that there is no significant difference between the mean achievement scores of pupils with dyscalculia in mathematics when exposed to EI and when exposed to CRA. The results further showed that there was no significant influence of gender on the mathematics achievement scores of pupils with dyscalculia, Based on the findings it was recommended that the use of EI and CRA strategy should be emphasized and integrated into the mathematics curriculum of teacher training tertiary institutions, so as to popularize the use among the teachers and that the government and stakeholders in both mathematics education and special needs education should organize workshops and seminars on the use of modern teaching techniques such as EI and CRA strategy for the in-service teachers. Article visualizations: