EFFECT OF METALINGUISTIC LEARNING APPROACH ON STUDENTS’

KNOWLEDGE AND RETENTION IN STATISTICS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN

MAKURDI METROPOLIS OF BENUE STATE
Agbo-Egwu, A.O. and Iji, C.O.
aagboegwu@gmail.com
Department of Science Education, College of Agricultural and Science Education
Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract
This study examined the effect of metalinguistic learning approach on senior secondary
school students’ knowledge retention in statistics. The study employs quasi-experimental
design of non randomized pre-test post-test control group type. A sample of 350 SS2
students was drawn from a population of 2,665 SS2 students in Makurdi Metropolis.
Three research questions and three hypotheses guided the study. In each of the four
secondary schools, intact classes were used. Two sets of lesson plans under the study
were developed for the experimental and control groups respectively. Data were
collected using Statistics Retention Test (SRT). Research questions were answered using
means and standard deviations while the hypotheses were tested using Analysis of
Covariance (ANCOVA) at 0.05 level of significance. Findings among others include that
metalinguistic learning approach improved students’ knowledge retention in statistics
and that MLA has not significantly differentiated between male and female students’
knowledge retention scores in statistics. Based on the findings of this study, it was
recommended that mathematics teachers should be encouraged to use MLA in their
mathematics classroom among others.
Key words: Metalinguistic, Learning Approach, Students’ Retention, Statistics,
Mathematics Teachers.

Introduction
The knowledge of statistics is important not only for scientific progress and
development but also for its day-to-day application in social sciences, arts, government,
business, management studies and household chores. It is an important aspect of school
mathematics that has various applications in the life of a learner especially in planning,
decision making and research.
Statistics as a branch of mathematics is a body of theories and methodologies
employed in analyzing data and using numerical evidence to choose among several
alternatives, decisions and actions when not all relevant facts are known (National
Teachers’ Institute, 2009). It is thus a science comprising rules and procedures for
collecting, organizing, summarizing, describing, analyzing and interpreting numerical
data which are used in making decisions, valid estimates, prediction and generalizations
(Salami, 2001). Stressing the importance of statistics for educational effectiveness
Kolawole and Oluwatayo (2005) maintained that statistics enables the education manager
to determine the cost-analysis of funding, pupil-teacher ratio, number of school age,
pupils enrolment ratio, geographical inequality, sex-ratio, number of dropouts and predict
the outcome of educational programmes.
In recognition of the enormous importance of statistics, it is studied as an aspect
of Senior Secondary School Mathematics. Mathematics as a secondary school subject
thus comprises five main areas namely: Algebra, Geometry, Number and Numeration,
Introductory Calculus and Statistics. Statistics is a branch of mathematics involving the
study of data presentation, measures of central tendency, measures of dispersion,
graphical presentation of data and probability (Federal Ministry of Education, 2007).
Despite the importance of mathematics to students and society at large, the
general achievement in school mathematics has more often than not been affected by
students’ poor performance in the statistics section of public mathematics examinations
over the years in Nigeria. The Annual Reports of the Chief Examiner of the West African
Examination Council (WAEC, 2002 & 2007) have indicated that achievement in the
statistics section of the public mathematics paper is low among the secondary school
students.
The WAEC Chief Examiner`s Report (2004) specifically advanced reasons for
students’ poor achievement in Mathematics to include:
- Shallow knowledge of basic principles, concepts and appropriate application of
laws and formulae;
- Confusion between similar and related topics, for instance bar chart and
histogram, dependent and independent events, numerator and reciprocal factors;
- Lack of mastery of the subject language, resulting in misinterpretation of facts.
This position alludes to the fact that concepts in mathematics should be properly
explained to the learners in order to improve upon their overall achievement in
mathematics. The Chief Examiner’s Report is evidence that students have problems in
understanding and interrelating symbols and peculiar language used in Statistics.
According to Salami (2001), statistics like any other subject has its own technical
language. He pointed out that it is always good and beneficial for students who will use
the language of statistics in their various examinations to acquaint themselves with the
commonly used vocabularies, notations and symbols. The poor acquaintance of
mathematics students with the commonly used terminologies, notations, formulae and
symbols in statistics may result in poor achievement and retention in mathematics. Their
inability to differentiate and establish relationships between vocabularies, notations and
symbols in statistics could be an obstacle to their statistical achievement and knowledge
retention. Many of the students may not be able to reflect on the language of statistics and
how to use the knowledge of the language to solve problems. The cause of students’ poor
achievement and retention in statistics may be therefore traceable to the low level of
students’ metalinguistic knowledge of statistics.
Metalinguistics is a compound word made up of ‘meta’ and ‘linguistic’. Meta
which is an ancient Greek term meaning ‘beyond’ can be interpreted in the context of
language learning as going beyond communication and meaning ,and to instead focusing
attention on the underlying structures (Dekemel, 2003). Linguistic on the other hand
refers to language and in this case, the language of statistics. The language of statistics
has structure, and an implicit knowledge of this structure is essential to the students’
achievement and retention in the subject. Metalinguistics is therefore the ability of the
students to reflect on oral and written language and how it is used (Wallach, 2008).
In this study, metalinguistics is considered as the ability of the students to reflect
on the use of the language of statistics since metalinguistics deals with the conscious
knowledge of forms and meanings of relationships in a language. Metalinguistics can
therefore be determined from students’ ability to perceive and apply various notations,
symbols, formulae and vocabularies in statistical language, judge the appropriateness of
their usage, define terminologies, substitute symbols, apply formulae and understand
arbitrary language. Students of mathematics who study statistics therefore, need
Metalinguistic Learning Approach (MLA) that may enable them comprehend the
statistics language and subsequently retain statistics knowledge at high rate.
Knowledge retention which may serve as a prerequisite to good achievement is
considered simply as having the power of recalling statistical concepts (Zakarriya, 2002).
It is therefore measured in collaboration with achievement. This means that closely
related to achievement is retention. Hornby (2006) defines retention as the ability to
remember experiences and things learnt. Similarly, Kundu and Tutoo (2002) posited that
retention is the preservation of mind. These imply that the amount of knowledge learnt
and kept, skills maintained or problem-solving behaviors manifested consistently reflects
what is retained. Thus, retention of statistical knowledge is the ability of a learner to keep
and remember as well as recall or reproduce the acquired knowledge or some part of the
knowledge after some period of time must have elapsed. It is thus the ability of the
working memory of an individual to retrieve stored information from long- term-
memory for processing. Clair (2004) has observed that long term memory retention is a
significant goal of education. In his very words:
“The very existence of school rests on the assumption that people learn something of
what is taught and later remember some part of it”(p.39).
Knowledge retention therefore means recalling pieces of knowledge, processes
and skills that were learned earlier in time. The existence of academic institutions is
based, in large part, on the belief that students remember what they learn (Connie, David,
Heather, Hilda & Paulsen, 2006). Students may pass an examination following an intense
study session but fail to retain much of these materials in long-term memory. This may be
the experience of the Nigerian candidates who become qualified for SSCE at the end of
Senior Secondary programme. Therefore, to improve students’ achievement level in
statistics in particular and mathematics in general, implies to improve the level at which
they retain the concepts of statistics learnt.
 On the development of students’ knowledge retention, Steyn (2003) argues that
knowledge retention is related to the way the concept is taught to the learners and that the
teacher’s method of teaching may be responsible to guide students in the process of
learning. Hence, the researchers see the need to find out if metalinguistic learning
approach to the teaching of statistics could improve the knowledge retention of students
in senior secondary statistics. Moreover, Iji (2002) studied the efficacy of Logo and
BASIC programmes on junior secondary school students’ knowledge and retention in
geometry. The study was quasi-experimental of the pre-test, post-test and control group
design. A sample of 285 JSS One students from three secondary schools formed the
subjects of the study. Two streams and one stream for each school were randomly
assigned into experimental and control groups using simple balloting. A total of 184
students formed the experimental groups while 101 students were in the control group.
Lesson plans were formed in (i) conventional method (ii) Logo, and (iii) Basic
Programmes covering the following topics:
i. Identifying common three-dimensional figures
ii. Drawing shapes and identification of plane shapes
iii. Perimeter and area of plane shapes
iv. Identification of adjacent, alternate, corresponding and vertically opposite angles
The experiment lasted for six weeks. The test instrument was Geometry Retention
Test (GRT). The internal consistency reliability coefficient of pre-GRT was 0.68
using the Cronbach-alpha (α). ANCOVA was used to test the hypotheses. The
result of the study reveals that there is a significant difference in GRT in favour of
the experimental group.
Furthermore, Achor, Imoko and Uloko (2009) determined the effectiveness
of ethno-mathematics teaching approach on students’ achievement and retention
in locus. A sample size of 253 Secondary School 2 (SS2) students from education
zone B of Benue State of Nigeria was used. It was a non-equivalent quasi-
experimental study which was guided by two research questions and hypotheses.
Locus Achievement Test (LAT) instrument which was a set of questions
constructed by researchers in locus was used as pre-test, post-test and delayed
test through reshuffled each time. Its reliability coefficient was 0.78. Mean and
 standard deviation were used to answer the research questions while the
hypotheses were tested at 0.05 significant levels using a 2-way analysis of
covariance(ANCOVA). Results from the analysis revealed that students exposed
to Ethnomathematics Teaching Approach (ETA) were superior in retention to
those taught with conventional method.
Also, Ifmuyiwa and Ajilogba (2012) researched on the problem solving
model as a strategy for improving secondary school students’ retention in Further
Mathematics in Ogun State, Nigeria. The moderating effect of gender on
dependent measures was also investigated. Eighty senior secondary two (SS2)
students from two purposely selected schools participated in the study. Three
instruments namely; Teachers’ Instructional Guide (TIG), Further Mathematics
Achievement Test (FMAT) and Student Retention Test (SRT) were used. Data
collected were analyzed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) at the 0.05
level of significance. Findings showed that problems solving strategy had
significant effect on students’ retention in Further Mathematics. The findings
further indicated that there is no significant interaction effect of treatment and
gender on the students’ retention in Further Mathematics.

Statement of the Problem

If secondary students are to improve their performance in mathematics at SSCE,

the level of the metalinguistic knowledge of the students must appreciate. Their inability

to differentiate and establish relationships between vocabularies, notations, formulae and

symbols as well as their lack of understanding and ability to interrelate the symbols and

special language structure as used in statistics may have all contributed to their poor

knowledge retention and achievement in mathematics (WAEC Chief Examiners` Report,

2007)

Although secondary school students are frequently required to write terminal

examinations and other tests to constitute their continuous assessment, they typically
have limited experience in communicating the language of statistics especially in the

written form. This has resulted in low mathematics achievement and retention among

secondary school students.

Metalinguistic Learning Approach (MLA) has been proved to be effective and a

good teaching approach that has increased students’ achievement in English Language

(Claire & Heidi, 1997). But mathematics and statistics educators are yet to take full

advantage of the potentials of this approach; yet the understanding of the language of

statistics is fundamental to the students’ high retention. The issue then is, will the

adoption of MLA improve the students’ retention in statistics? Will it equally improve

male and female students’ retention in statistics? Moreover, students tend to put more

effort to retain knowledge in the subject they find interesting to them.

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which the adoption of

Metalinguistic Learning Approach will affect the knowledge retention of senior

secondary school students in statistics. Specifically the study sought to:

1 Examine the influence of MLA on students’ knowledge retention in statistics.

2 Determine the mean retention scores of male and female students of MLA

group.

3 Ascertain interaction effect of MLA and gender on students’ knowledge

retention in statistics.

Research Questions

The following research questions were raised to guide the study:

1. What are the mean retention scores in Statistics Retention Test (SRT) of students

taught statistics in experimental and control groups?

2. What are the mean retention scores in SRT of male and female students in the

experimental group?

3. What is the interaction effect of MLA and gender on students’ mean retention

scores in SRT?

Research Hypotheses

The following research hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of

significance:

1. There is no significant difference between the mean retention scores in SRT of the

SS2 students taught Statistics in experimental and control groups.

2. There is no significant difference between the mean retention scores in SRT of the

male and female SS2 students taught statistics in experimental group.

3. There is no interaction effect of the MLA and gender on students’ mean rating

scores in SRT.

Methodology

The design used for this study was quasi-experimental of pre-test and post-test

non-randomized group design. The population consisted of all the 2665 senior

secondary school two (SS2) students in all the 21 government grant-aided senior

secondary schools in Makurdi metropolis of Benue State, Nigeria. The instrument

used for the study was Statistics Retention Test (SRT) that had a 50 multiple choice

objective items with four options. This instrument was validated by one expert each

from mathematics education, educational psychology and educational measurement

 and evaluation Departments, University of Agriculture, Makurdi. Pre-test was

formally administered to the subjects of study before the commencement of the study.

The SRT reliability coefficient was found to be 0.82 using Kuder-Richardson, K R-20

formula. The data collected were analyzed using means and standard deviations to

answer the research questions while Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to

test the hypotheses formulated.

Results

The results of this study were presented according to research questions and their

corresponding hypotheses.

Research Question One

1. What are the mean retention scores in Statistics Retention Test (SRT) of students

taught statistics in experimental and control groups?

The answer to this research question is presented in Table 1.

TABLE 1: Mean Retention Scores and Standard Deviations of Students Taught

Statistics in Experimental and Control Groups.
Group N Post-SAT Std. SRT Std.
(x) Deviation (x) Deviation

Experimental 175 58.64 10.92 57.65 11.03

Control 175 52.77 9.64 47.98 11.25
Mean Difference 5.69 9.67
Total 350

The result in Table 1 shows that the mean retention scores in Post-SAT of

experimental and control groups are 54.46 and 52.77 respectively with their standard

deviations of 10.92 and 9.64. This indicates a mean difference of 5.69 in their means.
 The mean retention scores in SRT of experimental and control groups as indicated on

the table are 57.65 and 47.98 respectively with their standard deviations of 11.03 and

11.25. Their mean difference is 9.67 in favor of the experimental group.

Research Hypothesis One

1. There is no significant difference between the mean retention scores in SRT of the

students taught statistics in experimental and control groups.

The result to this hypothesis is presented in Table 2.

TABLE 2: Summary of ANCOVA Test on Students’ Mean Retention Scores of

Experimental and Control Groups.

Source Type III Sum Df Mean F Sig.

of Squares Square
Corrected
15962.24 2 7981.12 78.24 .00
Model
Intercept 8592.58 1 8592.58 84.23 .00
Post-SAT 7782.63 1 7782.63 76.29 .00
Group 4045.79 1 4045.79 39.66 .00
Error 35399.32 347 102.02
Total 1027528.00 350
Corrected
51361.55 349
Total
P = .00 < .05
The result in Table 2 shows that F (1,349) = 39.65, P = .00<0.05 level of

significance. This implies that there is a significant difference in the mean

retention scores of the two groups. Thus, the null hypothesis of no significant

difference between the mean retention scores in SRT of the students taught

statistics in experimental and control groups is rejected. Therefore, the use of

 MLA enhanced higher retention of statistics knowledge of students taught

statistics during the period of this study.

Research Question Two

1. What are the mean retention scores in SRT of male and female students in the

experimental group?

The answer to this question is presented in Table 3.

TABLE 3: Mean Retention Sores and Standard Deviations of Male and Female
Students Taught Statistics in Experimental Group.

Group N Post-SAT Std. SRT Std.

(x) Deviation (x) Deviation

Male 94 60.93 10.66 60.26 10.77

Female 81 55.60 10.58 54.62 10.60
Mean difference 55.33 5.64
Total 175

The result in Table 3 reveals that the mean retention scores and standard

deviations in Post-SAT of male and female students are 60.93 and 55.60 respectively

with their standard deviations of 10.66 and 10.58. Their mean retention difference is 5.33

in favour of males. On the other hand, the male and female students obtained mean

retention scores of 60.26 and 54.62 in the SRT respectively with their standard deviations

of 10.77 and 10.60. This again shows a mean retention difference of 5.64 in favour of

male students in SRT.

Hypothesis Two

1. There is no significant difference between the mean retention scores in the

SRT of the male and female students taught statistics in experimental group.
TABLE 4: Summary of ANCOVA Test on Mean Retention Scores and Standard Deviations
of Male and Female Students Taught Statistics in Experimental Group.

Source Type III Sum Df Mean F Sig.

of Squares Square
Corrected
20240.13 2 10120.07 1863.85 .00
Model
Intercept .18 1 .18 .03 .86
Post-SAT 18857.10 1 18857.10 3472.97 .00
Sex 6.87 1 6.87 1.27 .26
Error 933.90 172 5.43
Total 602704.00 175
Corrected
21174.03 174
Total
P = .26 > .05
From Table 4, F (1,174) =1.27, P=0.26>0.05 of significance level. This means

that the null hypothesis of no significant difference in the mean retention scores of

the male and female students taught statistics with MLA is accepted. Thus, the

male and female students taught statistics in this study exhibited similar statistics

knowledge retention.

Research Question Three

1. What is the interaction effect of MLA and gender on students’ mean retention

scores in SRT?

The answer to this question is presented in Table 5.

 TABLE 5: Interaction Effect of MLA and Gender on Students’ Retention of Statistics
Concepts.

Source Type III Sum Df Mean F Sig Partial

of Squares Square . Eta
Squared

Corrected Model 11046.20 3 3682.07 31.60 .00 .22

Intercept 970640.80 1 970640.80 8330.37 .00 .96

Group 7372.23 1 7372.23 63.27 .00 .16

Sex .93 1 .93 .00 .93 .00
Group * sex 2865.75 1 2865.75 24.60 .00 .07
Error 40315.36 346 116.52
Total 1027528.00 350

Corrected Total 51361.55 349

P = .07 > .05

Reading across the Group * Sex row heading to the Partial Eta Squared column

heading for the interaction in Table 5, the gender interaction on retention is 0.07.

Since Partial Eta Squared represents the proportion of the variance in the

dependent variable as measured by the independent variable, this implies that

gender had moderate interaction effect on the retention of male and female

students in MLA.

Research Hypothesis Three

1. There is no significant interaction effect of the MLA and gender on students

mean rating scores in SRT.

From Table 5, F (1,349) = 24.60, P = 0.00<0.05. This implies that there is a

significant interaction effect of the MLA and gender on retention. Hence, the

null hypothesis of no significant interaction effect of the MLA and gender on

 students’ mean retention scores in SRT is rejected. Thus, MLA and gender

have interacted to produce a high rate of knowledge retention in statistics

topics taught to the experimental group during the study period.

Discussion of Findings

From Table 1, the MLA class had a higher mean in the retention scores

which was statistically significant compared with those in control class. This

indicates that MLA enhanced retention of students in statistics concepts better

than the conventional teaching approach. This finding is in agreement with Achor,

Imoko and Uloko (2009) who reported a better retention in locus of students

taught using Ethno-mathematics Teaching Approach than their counter parts in

the group. This is more so as the students in experimental group were in better

command of the language of statistics concepts taught to them during the study.

MLA affords learners the opportunities to acquaint themselves with the

commonly used vocabularies, notations, symbols, terminologies and formulae in

statistics. The finding is also in consonance with Iji (2002) who found that there is

a significant difference in GRT in favour of the experimental group.

From Table 3, male and female students had improved on their statistics

retention. This implies that the MLA had brought about improvement in their

mean retention scores. The male student retained statistics knowledge taught to

them during this study more than the female students. However, the difference in

their mean retention scores is not statistically significant. The male and female

students have therefore exhibited similar statistics knowledge retention. This

finding is supported by Udousoro (2008) who found that sex had no significant

effect on students’ retention.

The study revealed that the interaction effect of MLA and gender was

statistical significant on students’ retention scores. This simply means that the

retention of male and female students in statistics concepts is affected by gender

factor. This implies that the change in retention scores of the male and female

students was not the same within the study period. This finding is in line with the

study of Ifamuyiwa and Ajibogba (2012) who found significant interaction effect

of treatment in Further Mathematics.

Conclusions

In conclusion, the study takes a cursory look at the efficacy of MLA

through experimentation. This was done through extensive review of related and

relevant literature which revealed some relevant gaps the study eventually filled.

The MLA proved to be efficient as students improved on their statistics

knowledge retention. Most importantly is the friendly nature of MLA which does

not discriminate on the basis of gender. This is because the difference between the

mean retention scores of both male and female students is not statistically

significant. The finding of this study also shows that the interaction between

MLA and gender was significant. Thus, the knowledge retention of male and

female students in statistics topics was affected by gender factor.

Recommendations

The following recommendations were made based on the findings of this

study and their implications for education:

1. Ministries of Education, State Secondary School Education Boards and other

relevant stakeholders are encouraged to promote MLA bssy organizing

regular conferences, seminars and workshops for serving teachers to acquaint

themselves with the procedures for using MLA.

2. Curriculum planners and mathematics textbook writers should be encouraged

to include MLA in their books as complementary to other teaching methods.

3. School Administrators and Inspectors in collaboration with Ministries of

Education should encourage mathematics teachers to use MLA in

mathematics classroom.
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