Influence Of Summative Assessment On Learner Motivation Among Primary School Pupils In West Pokot County, Kenya

Abstract

The project purposed to ascertain the influence of summative assessment towards learner motivation among primary school pupils in the county of West Pokot within Kenya. Objectives here comprised of: to analyze the effect of high-stake assessment on student motivation; to examine the impact of final examinations on pupil motivation; to ascertain the influence of Annual Examination on pupil motivation; and to find out the extent to which repeated practice tests influence learner motivation. The study embraced descriptive survey design and the target population for the research encompassed primary schools of the government within West Pokot County in Kenya. It involved 12 public primary schools in West Pokot County including two public primary schools for pilot study and applied simple random selection method to get the respondents for the questionnaires. Main instrument for collecting data utilized was questionnaire. Instrument was authenticated in terms of face and content validity. Test re-test technique was applied in estimating reliability of the instrument. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 11.5) was employed for data analysis. Tables, graphs and pie-charts were utilized in presenting results. The research revealed that high-stake testing motivate pupils to learn. 70% of the respondents supported the idea that it motivates the learners. The study also found out that final examinations motivate the pupils to learn. Most of the respondents (1= 288 degrees) supported the idea that final examinations motivate their learners. Similarly, the research established that annual examination motivates the pupils. Repeated practice tests were also found to motivate them. In overall, the study revealed that summative assessment motivates pupils to learn. The research suggested that the government of Kenya should continue with the use of summative assessment since the study reveals that it motivates the learners to study. Furthermore, it is recommended that more resources and teachers are needed to implement summative assessment in primary schools. This is because the study shows learners like it. Therefore it is worth invested into.