Effect of Gender on Students’ Academic Performance and Retention in Financial Accounting in Technical Colleges

Controversial reports on gender and academic performance of students necessitated the study to determine the effect of gender on students’ academic performance and retention in financial accounting in technical colleges. Technical colleges in Anambra State were chosen for the study. Four research questions guided the study and two null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. Quasi-experimental design of pretest, posttest non-randomized control group was adopted for the study. Population was all the 168 National Business Certificate (NBC) year II students from all the 11 state owned technical colleges in the area. A sample of 138 was purposively selected to compose the experimental and control groups based on schools that offer accounting and have both male and female students. Experimental groups were exposed to Problem-based teaching method (PBTM) while the control groups were exposed to lecture teaching method. Instrument for data collection was Accounting Achievement Test (AAT) validated by three experts with a reliability coefficient of 0.83. Arithmetic mean was used to analyze data relating to research questions while analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the null hypotheses. Findings revealed that male and female students taught financial accounting using PBTM performed better with higher post test scores than those taught with lecture teaching method. Also the findings revealed that there was no significant difference in the post test mean scores and also in the mean retention scores of male and female students taught financial accounting using PBTM. Based on the findings, it was concluded that adoption of PBTM in the teaching of financial accounting would enhance the performance and retention of both male and female students in the subject. Consequently, it was recommended among others that accounting teachers at post basic education level should use PBTM which is more practical and stimulating involving all students to enhance students’ academic performance and retention in the subject.