GENDER DIFFERENCES IN STUDENTS’ INTEREST IN ECONOMICS UNDER FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT WITH FEEDBACK IN JOS – SOUTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF PLATEAU STATE

Abstract

Gender-related differences in students’ interest and engagement in Economics have remained a persistent concern within secondary school education, particularly in contexts where instructional practices are predominantly teacher-centred and examination-driven. This study examined whether formative assessment with feedback (FAF) differentially influences male and female secondary school students’ interest in Economics. A quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design was employed, focusing on an experimental group exposed to FAF over a twelve-week instructional period. The sample comprised 47 Senior Secondary School II (SS II) students (28 males and 19 females) drawn from a co-educational secondary school in Jos-South Local Government Area of Plateau State, Nigeria. Data were collected using the Economics Interest Scale (EIS), a validated 20-item Likert-type instrument, and analysed using mean, standard deviation, and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) at the 0.05 level of significance. Results revealed substantial gains in interest for both male and female students following exposure to formative assessment with feedback. Although male students recorded marginally higher posttest interest mean scores, the observed difference was not statistically significant (F(1,51) =56.181, p > 0.05, η² = 0.524). The findings indicate that formative assessment with feedback is gender-neutral in its effectiveness and supports equitable interest development in Economics education. The study concludes that feedback-oriented formative assessment practices can mitigate perceived gender disparities in Economics classrooms and recommends their systematic integration into secondary school instructional practices.