Modeling how fast teacher trainees master statistical concepts in verification of the learning curve theories

Abstract

This study was undertaken to model and evaluate how fast Ghanaian teacher trainees master statistical concepts, in verification of the learning curve theory. The target population was all the 2020/2021 academic year level 300 teacher trainees in Ghana. However, St. Joseph’s College of Education (JOSCO), Bechem, was selected out of proximity from the 46 colleges of education in Ghana. At JOSCO, the Science/Mathematics, Agriculture/ICT and the Social Studies classes were randomly selected from the five level 300 classes and all the students in the three classes served as the experimental units. In effect, a ten-week period experimental tuition and evaluation on Educational Statistics was conducted and the data on the percentage of statistical concepts mastered by the teacher trainees were collected for the study. Tabular and graphical analyses on the data were carried out for the verification of the learning curve theory. Ordinary differential equations were used to derive the model for the prediction of the percentage of statistical concepts mastered by the teacher trainees. Graphical and numerical residual analyses were also conducted for the model adequacy checking. In all, the learning curve was successfully verified and the derived model was also found to be adequate for the prediction of the percentage of statistical concepts mastered by the teacher trainees at any point in time. This happens to be the first time research has been successfully conducted to verify the learning curve theory in statistical concept build-up in the colleges of education in Ghana.