Title: Gender Differences in Mathematics Performance among Students Taught Using Guided Discovery and Conventional Teaching Methods in Delta Central Senatorial District
Authors: ORIGBO
Efe Salvation
ONOMUOPHU
Okiemute
ERAVWODOKE
Patricia
Volume: 10
Issue: 7
Pages: 468-475
Publication Date: 2026/07/28
Abstract:
This research examined the effect of gender on students' achievement in Mathematics when taught using guided discovery and conventional teaching methods in Delta Central Senatorial District. A quasi-experimental design was adopted for the study. The target population comprised 20,327 SSII students in public secondary schools across the district. Through a multistage sampling technique, 160 students drawn from four schools were selected as the sample for the study. Data were gathered using the Mathematics Achievement Test (MAT), a 25-item multiple-choice instrument constructed from Algebra and Probability topics. Experts in Mathematics Education together with specialists in Measurement and Evaluation validated the instrument. Its reliability was determined using the Kuder-Richardson Formula 21 (KR-21), which yielded a reliability index of 0.96, indicating high consistency. Mean and standard deviation were applied in addressing the research questions, while ANCOVA was utilised to test the hypotheses at a 0.05 significance level. The outcome of the study showed that students who were instructed through the guided discovery approach obtained better mean achievement scores than their counterparts exposed to the conventional teaching method. The findings also demonstrated that there was no statistically significant difference between the achievement of male and female students taught with the guided discovery strategy. Consequently, the study concluded that guided discovery teaching strategy is effective in improving students' academic performance and promotes gender equity in Mathematics learning. In view of these findings, the study recommended that Mathematics teachers should integrate guided discovery strategy into classroom teaching to enhance students' achievement regardless of gender.