The pedagogical role of anecdotal record keeping: exploring alternative approaches to the assessment of students’ learning

Abstract

The study highlights the necessity of going beyond traditional pencil-and-paper assessments which predominantly assess only the cognitive domain. It emphasises the importance of evaluating learners’ holistic development, including their health, lifestyle, and attitudes, using anecdotal record keeping. Against this backdrop, the article focuses on examining teachers’ knowledge and use of anecdotal record keeping as a relevant assessment strategy. The study investigated teachers’ level of knowledge and utilisation of anecdotal record keeping among primary school teachers in Ibadan North Local Government Area of Oyo State, Nigeria. A descriptive survey research design of the correlational type was adopted. The population comprised all primary school teachers in Ibadan North Local Government Area. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 210 teachers for the study. A self-developed questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.74 (Cronbach alpha) was used for data collection. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics (frequency counts and simple percentages) and inferential statistics (Pearson Product Moment Correlation). Findings revealed that teachers demonstrated a poor level of knowledge regarding anecdotal record keeping. The study also found a strong positive relationship between teachers’ knowledge and their actual use of anecdotal records. The study concludes that to achieve an objective assessment of pupils’ holistic development, there is a need to strengthen teachers’ knowledge and practical use of anecdotal record keeping in schools. It recommends that teacher preparation programmes be refocused to emphasise anecdotal record keeping as a relevant assessment tool for evaluating learners’ overall development, including aspects such as wellbeing, lifestyle, disposition to violence, and classroom behaviour. Educational policy makers should also prioritise the incorporation of anecdotal record keeping into assessment policy frameworks. Furthermore, additional research should be conducted on the use of anecdotal record keeping across various educational levels and geographical contexts.