Knowledge of Test Construction as a Correlate of Teacher Job Performance at the Basic Education Level in Sokoto State, Nigeria

Testing provides feedback on which educational decisions are made. These decisions may be the ones that require information about the success of learning programs or about students who have reached particular levels of skill and knowledge. Whenever teaching and assessment in basic education are properly done, the child would be in a good position to acquire the basic survival skills. Against this background, the study examined knowledge of test construction as correlates of teacher job performance at the basic education level in Sokoto State: implications for quality education. With 4 research questions, objectives, and hypotheses, descriptive research of correlational types was used in the study. 280 basic education teachers were sampled from all the teachers in Sokoto state. 2 researchers' designed instrument was used in collecting data for the study. Frequency, percentages, and Pearson product moment correlation coefficient were used in analysing the data generated in the study. The findings revealed that basic education teachers with NCE are more represented in the study because participants who are NCE holders are 135, representing 48.2%. There is a significant relationship between knowledge of test construction and teacher job performance at lower basic education (280) = .243, p = .000), knowledge of test construction and teacher job performance at middle basic education (280) = .214, p = .000), and knowledge of test construction and teacher job performance at upper basic education (280) = .270, p = .002) in Sokoto state. Conclusions and recommendations were made to include the following: Training of teachers at the basic education level should be intensified, especially in the area of the test construction and validation process, and the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education in Sokoto State should come up with a special training package for basic education teachers on different aspects of test construction.