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This research was conducted to find out whether or not there exist a relationship between the variableslevels of testwiseness and performance in mathematics among secondary school students in Bauchi metropolis. The study which used survey and correlational research designs was guided by two research questions and three hypotheses. The instruments for data collection were the results of the Stateadministered mock SSCE Mathematics examination and a Students’ Testwiseness Questionnaire.Percentages, Pearson Product-Moment Correlation, Chi-square test and the t-test for independent samples were used for the data analysis. Findings revealed that more than half the numbers of students have low and moderate level of testwiseness;a positive relationship exists between level of testwiseness and students’ performance while no relationship was found between gender and level of testwiseness. It was recommended that mathematics teachers in secondary schools in the metropolis need to consciously make instruction in test-taking skills part of their teaching sessions especially among femalestudents and students who are not resident in the schools,if they are to help them to maximize their performance in the subject. I. Background of the Study Mathematics as a subject is important in the technological development of every nation and its place in the advancement of knowledge especially Science-based courses cannot be overemphasized. However, over the years, performance of candidates in Mathematics in Nigeria has been on a downward trend especially at the secondary school level (Ozigbo, 1992).For example, Mustapha, 2012 posited that performancein WAEC/SSCE Mathematics for the period 2010 – 2012 shows that performance was poor with only 15.4% passes at credit level on the average while failure rate within the same period was as high as 72.8% (p.2). Also, Ayodele (2001, p.6) documented the trend of performance from 1996 to 1999 for English Language, Mathematics, Agricultural Science, Biology, Government and Economics using bar graphs and established that “the bar for F9 in English and Mathematics was much higher than those for other subjects combined”. Some factors that could be held responsible for the dismal state of performance of students in Mathematics include difficult nature of subject-matter, poor teaching methods, and attitude of both teachers and students to the subject (Attah, 2007). However, issues which bother around nature of the Mathematics tests and examinations and conditions of testees at the time of examinations are often neglected. Such issues include the level of skills possessed by the student taking the test and the presence or absence of anxiety among the students. These factors have been found to have significant effect on students’ performance in Mathematics tests.Mathematics teachers at the secondary school level often neglect the issue of the extents to which students possess the requisite test taking skills to take tests and examinations in Mathematics. Testwiseness (variously called test-taking skills, test expertise or test sophistication) emanates from testees regular taking of examinations and can confer a significant advantage to the experienced testees over those that are not experienced.It was Thorndike (1951) who first brought forth the concept of testwiseness as a variable in test performance. He sees it as a prominent source of score variance on cognitive tests second in influenced only to individual’s cognitive ability. Millman, Bishop and Ebel (1965, p.707) see testwiseness as the “subjects’ ability to utilize the characteristics and formats of the test and/or the test taking situation to receive high score”. They are also of the view that testwiseness is logically independent of the examinee’s knowledge of the subject-matter for which the items supposedly measures. Mustapha (2001) had found out in a study that the nature and level of possession of test-taking skills is an important factor in the performance of students especially in Mathematics tests. Apart from the usual awareness that a test is approaching and a general idea of what to expect in such test, a student need to be able to give a good account of himself/ herself in the test otherwise they may not be able to maximize their performance in the test. Testwiseness is that quality possessed by a student at a particular period which enhances his/her performance in a test. The issue of possession of these skills has however, not been given considerable attention in Nigeria (Mustapha, 2009). Some students have good understanding of Relationship between Secondary School Students’Level of Testwiseness and their Performance in www.iosrjournals.org 42 | Page subject-matter, good reading ability but cannot manage their testing time wisely. Some other students are not able to interpret test instructions while some others generally cannot give a good account of themselves in a test. Also, while some are anxious in examination halls, some others do not know how to prepare for test. There are also technical skills which students need to possess in order to improve their performance.The needsfor testees to be conversant with those skills that will help them maximize their performance in tests/examinations have been emphasized by writers (Mueller & Wasser, 1977; Oosterhof, 1990; Mustapha, 2006& 2012). Before now, early researchers (Leonard, 1968 &Merlin, 1968) in their individual studies have found evidence to accept the hypothesis that testwiseness may be an important source of variance in test performance.More recently, Marshall (1997) found out that testwiseness scores were related to performance on both multiple-choice and non-multiple-choice portions of the examinations that was administered to one hundred and fifty business students. Bauchi metropolis is located at the southern fringes of Bauchi State, Nigeria and is made up of a number of densely populated settlements with over sixty-eight secondary schools in the metropolis. While most of the schools are government owned, private individuals and organizations also own and run a few schools. The schools are either boarding or day with over eighty percent been single-sexed schools. Since the students take the Junior Secondary School Certificate Examinations (JSCE) and Senior School Certificate Examinations (SSCE) conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) respectively like their counterparts in other secondary schools in Nigeria, the students are expected to be testwise so that they canmaximize their performance school subjects especially in Mathematics examinations.The problem of this study therefore, is to find out the effects oftestwiseness on secondary school students’ performance in Mathematics examination in Bauchi metropolis of Bauchi State, Nigeria.

iosr journal of humanities and social science

Relationship between Secondary School Students’Level of Testwiseness and their Performance in Mathematics in Bauchi Metropolis of Bauchi State, Nigeria