The use of checklists in assessing the attainment of pupils of low ability in years 4, 5 and 6 primary schools

Abstract

The aim of our research was to formulate Mathematics and Maltese checklists using the data obtained from tests administered to various low ability pupils. The purpose of these checklists is to help teachers to diagnose pupils' difficulties in these subjects. The tests were administered twice so as to measure the pupils' attainment and progress. The first time that the tests were administered the sample consisted of 482 pupils, 308 boys and 174 girls, attending Years 4, 5 and 6 in Government Primary Schools. The pupils' responses were recorded in order to compute Facility Levels for every item in the tests. Then the items were rearranged in ascending order of difficulty according to the Facility Levels. Facility Levels were also computed for the retest where the sample consisted of 263 pupils: 179 boys and 84 girls. From the results obtained, Manuals for the Mathematics and Maltese Tests were designed.