Teacher Quality Indicators as Predictors of Instructional Assessment Practices in Science Classrooms in Secondary Schools in Barbados

Abstract

This study investigated the self-reported instructional assessment practices of a selected sample of secondary school science teachers in Barbados. The study sought to determine if there were statistically significant differences in the instructional assessment practices of teachers based on their sex and teacher quality (teaching experience, professional qualification and teacher academic qualification). It also sought to determine the extent to which each of these four selected variables individually and jointly affected the teachers’ report of their instructional assessment practices. A sample of 55 science teachers from nine secondary schools in Barbados was randomly selected to participate in this study. Data was collected by means of a survey and was analyzed using the means and standard deviations of the instructional assessment practices scores and linear, multiple and binary logistic regression. The results of the study were such that the majority of the sample reported good overall instructional assessment practices while only a few participants reported moderate assessment practices. The instructional assessment practices in the area of student knowledge were mostly moderate as indicated by the sample. There were no statistically significant differences between or among the mean scores of the teachers’ reported instructional assessment practices based on sex ( t = 0.10; df = 53; p = 0.992), teaching experience ( F[4,50] = 1.766; p = 0.150), the level of professional qualification (F[3,45] = 0.2117; p = 0.111) or the level of academic qualification (F[2,52] = 0.504; p = 0.607). The independent variables (teacher sex, teaching experience, teacher professional qualification or teacher academic qualification) were not significant predictors of the instructional assessment practices scores. However, teacher sex was a significant predictor of the teachers’ report of good instructional assessment practices. The study also found that the joint effect of the variables teacher sex, teaching experience, teacher professional qualification and teacher academic qualification was not significant in predicting the instructional assessment practices scores of the science teachers. However, the joint effect of these variables was statistically significant (X2 = 18.482; df = 10; p = 0.047) in predicting the teachers’ reported use of good instructional assessment practices. The best predictor of teachers’ report of good instructional assessment practices, though not statistically significant, was the diploma in education professional qualification.