Entry characteristics, academic achievement and teaching practices: A comparative study of two categories of newly qualified teachers in basic schools in Ghana

Figures & data

Figure 1. Entry grades in English of two groups of trainees between 2009 and 2011

Figure 2. Entry grades in mathematics of two groups of trainees between 2009 and 2011

Figure 3. Entry grades in Science of two groups of trainees between 2009 and 2011

Table 1. Mean scores in English language content (FDC 111) of the two groups of trainees by year

Year	Course	N	DfSHS		N	UTDBE
			Mean	SD		Mean	SD
2009	FDC 111	3786	45.8	8.6	9602	35.4	13.8
2010	FDC 111	2277	47.8	8.2	7083	31.2	15.5
2011	FDC 111	1195	50.1	10.1	4904	32.9	12.3

Source (Adopted from Institute of Education) Maximum score = 100.

DfSHS: direct from SHS trainees; UTDBE: Untrained Teachers’ Diploma in Basic Education trainees.

Table 2. Mean scores in mathematics content course (FDC 112) of the two groups of trainees by year

Year	Course	N	DfSHS		N	UTDBE
			Mean	SD		Mean	SD
2009	FDC 112	3770	39.6	16.5	9609	29.1	18.7
2010	FDC 112	2013	55.3	18.8	7084	29.6	18.9
2011	FDC 112	1453	54.4	17.1	4894	35.1	20.3

Source (Adopted from Institute of Education) Maximum score = 100.

FDC 112—Mathematics (numbers and basic algebra)

Table 3. Mean scores in science content course (FDC 114) of the two groups of trainees by year

Year	Course	N	DfSHS		N	UTDBE
			Mean	SD		Mean	SD
2009	FDC 114	3616	37.5	12.7	9475	28.4	15.3
2010	FDC 114	1878	41.4	12.5	7037	25.4	16.8
2011	FDC 114	1498	42.8	12.2	4847	30.2	13.8

Source (Adopted from Institute of Education) Maximum score = 100.

Figure 4. Percentage failures in content course by two groups of trainees by year

Table 4. Mean scores on teaching strategies and delivery for DfSHS and UTDBE in public schools (DfSHS = 84, UTDBE = 56)

	Teaching Practices	DfSHS		UTDBE
		Mean	SD	Mean	SD
1.	I present new topics to the class (lecture-style presentation)	2.2	1.3	2.5	1.5
2.	I review the homework the students have prepared	3.6	1.3	4.1	1.2
3.	Students work in small groups to come up with a joint solution to a problem or task	3.3	1.2	3.5	1.2
4.	I give different tasks to the students who have difficulties in learning and/or to those who can advance faster	2.5	1.4	3.2	1.6
5.	At the beginning of the lesson, I present a short summary of the previous lesson	4.6	0.8	4.6	0.9
6.	I explicitly state the learning goals at the beginning of each lesson	2.9	1.6	3.6	1.3
7.	I ask my students to remember every step in a procedure	3.5	1.3	4.1	1.2
8.	I ask my students to suggest or to help plan classroom activities or topics	2.1	1.5	2.0	1.4
9.	I check my students’ exercise books	4.8	0.5	4.6	1.0
10.	Students work on projects that require at least one week to complete	2.5	1.5	2.8	1.6
11.	I work with individual students	3.4	1.4	4.1	1.3
12.	Students work in groups according to their abilities	2.7	1.5	3.4	1.3

Table 5. Mean scores on assessment practices for DfSHS and UTDBE in public schools (DfSHS = 84, UTDBE = 56)

	Assessment practices	DfSHS		UTDBE
		Mean	SD	Mean	SD
1.	I encourage my students to use self-assessment to improve learning and understanding	3.2	1.4	4.1	1.1
2.	Students evaluate and reflect upon their own work	3.2	1.5	3.6	1.4
3.	I check, by asking questions, whether or not the subject matter has been understood	4.8	0.6	4.6	0.9
4.	Students make a product that will be used by someone else	2.1	1.3	2.9	1.5
5.	I administer a test or quiz to assess students’ learning	4.6	0.7	4.3	1.1
6.	I ask my students to write an essay in which they are expected to explain their thinking or reasoning at some length	2.9	1.4	2.7	1.5
7.	Students hold a debate and argue for a particular point of view which may not be their own	2.2	1.3	2.5	1.3
8.	Students work individually with the textbook or worksheets to practice newly taught subject matter	3.5	1.5	4.1	1.2

Table 6. Mean scores on classroom organization and management for DfSHS and UTDBE in public schools (DfSHS = 84, UTDBE = 56)

	Teaching Practices	DfSHS		UTDBE
		Mean	SD	Mean	SD
1.	When the lesson begins, I have to wait for quite a long time for the students to quieten down	2.2	1.3	2.1	1.2
2.	I lose quite a lot of time because of students interrupting the lesson	2.4	1.2	2.7	1.3
3.	I establish a learning environment during my lessons	4.7	0.5	4.3	1.0
4.	I constantly tell students what to do in my class	4.3	0.7	4.2	1.3
5.	I tell my students what to do in my class	4.2	0.8	4.5	0.7
6.	I utilize students’ active and responsible behaviors	4.4	0.6	4.1	0.8
7.	I interact with students during my lessons	4.5	1.0	4.7	0.7
8.	I use students’ ideas to develop my lessons	4.2	0.9	4.1	1.1
9.	I facilitate active and responsible cooperation in my class	4.5	0.6	4.4	0.7