Abstract:
Purpose:The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of demographic factors on
the learning achievement of Educational Statistics of the student teachers.
Methodology:Eighty-two participants were selected through purposive sampling from
the students of the Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) - Full-Time course of the
University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka. This study employed a cross-sectional survey design. The
normality was checked by Sapiro- Wilk's test, and parametric test: independent sample
t-test was used to examine whether there is any significant difference.
Findings: The results of the study showed, that among these demographic factors only
the nature of the Degree and the subject they teach are statistically significant in
affecting the achievement of Educational Statistics. Although other demographic factors
showed little differences, they were not significant.
Research limitation:This study was confined to the student teachers of the PGDE-Full Time course of the University of Jaffna. And among the factors that affect learning
achievement, only demographic factorshave been taken into account for this study.
Implications: Knowledge of Educational Statistics is deemed an essential requirement
for the teachers in the present Education scenario. To carry out research and remedial
teaching-learning activities, basic knowledge of educational statistics is necessary.
Therefore, basic statistical knowledge should be developed for all teachers during the
service period. Thus, it has been included as a core subject in most of the teacher
education courses. Based on the results of the above study the following
recommendation is put forward to improve their knowledge in the subject of
educational Statistics and to develop the skills to use it in the educational context in their
career cycle. Teacher professional development institutions should introduce basic
Mathematics and Science as a core course unit in their curriculum.
