Guided Discovery and Students’ Attitudes toward Mathematics: Evidence from a Quasi-Experimental Study in Nigerian Secondary Schools

Students’ attitudes toward mathematics remain a persistent concern in mathematics education, particularly in contexts where teacher-centred instructional practices dominate. This study examined the effect of Guided Discovery Strategy (GDS) on students’ attitudes toward mathematics in Nigerian secondary schools. A nonrandomized control group pretest–posttest quasi-experimental design was employed. The population comprised Senior Secondary II students in public schools in Kaduna State, from which a sample of 142 students was selected using a multi-stage sampling technique and assigned to experimental (n = 72) and control (n = 70) groups. Data were collected using an adapted 19-item Mathematics Attitude Questionnaire (MAQ) whose psychometric structure was examined through confirmatory factor analysis, which demonstrated acceptable internal consistency (coefficient omega = .787). Data were analysed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) at the 0.05 level of significance. Results showed that students exposed to GDS had higher mean attitude scores (M = 67.61, SD = 7.99) than those taught using conventional lecture method (M = 60.80, SD = 7.64). However, the difference was not statistically significant, F(1, 139) = 3.813, p = .053, partial η² = .027. The findings indicate that short-term implementation of GDS may not significantly influence students’ attitudes, suggesting the need for sustained and context-sensitive instructional approaches in mathematics education.