Effect of Metalinguistic Learning Approach on Senior Secondary School Students’ Interest in Statistics in Makurdi

This study examined the effects of meta-linguistic learning approach on senior secondary school students’ interest in statistics. The study employs quasi-experimental design of non- randomized pretest posttest control group type. Two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. A sample of 350 SS2 students was drawn from a population of 2,665 SS2 students in Makurdi Metropolis. In each of the four sampled secondary schools, intact classes were used. Two sets of lesson plans on the topics under study were developed for the experimental and control groups respectively. Data were collected using Statistics Interest Inventory (SII). 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 (MLA) improved students’ interest in statistics and that MLA did not significantly differentiate between male and female students’ interest 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.

Keywords: Improving, Metalinguistics, Learning Approach, Interest, Statistics, Mathematics Teachers.