Academic Performance of First-Year Architecture Students (NDI)

Foundation for Guidance, Instruction and Learning Improvement in Kaduna Polytechnic

Abstract

The study was carried out to identify possible impediments to the learning of architecture by first-year polytechnic students and to tackle setbacks which students may encounter towards producing more beneficial learning results. The identified setbacks were elements that emerged during teaching, such as the instructional approach employed by the lecturer, as well as aspects related to students' pre-instruction planning, with mathematical skills being the predominant component. The sample consisted of 50 first-year polytechnic students studying architecture in Kaduna Polytechnic randomly selected from a population of 85 students in the 2021/2022 academic session. The performance indicators used were students' performance on tests that required them to solve some related mathematical problems in architecture. The study investigates the relationship between students' computational abilities and their initial conceptual knowledge as potential factors influencing variations in student learning. Test findings for both formative and summative evaluations gave vital information that could be the basis for counselling, improvement in teaching strategies for better outcomes and assessing the efficiency of particular instructional techniques. The performance of students was found to be significantly impacted by the students’ pre-instruction readiness in Mathematics as well as the teaching methodology adopted by the lecturers.