Weaving numeracy: The effect of indigenous basketry resources on kindergarten learners’ achievement and observed competencies in pre-number concepts

Emmanuel Teku, Yarhands Dissou Arthur and Emmanuel Akweittey

African Educational Research Journal
Published: August 14 2026
Volume 14, Issue 3
Pages 596-604
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21935004

Abstract

Weak foundational numeracy remains a persistent concern in Ghanaian early-grade education, where abstract, verbal methods dominate instruction despite a curriculum that mandates play-based learning with locally available materials. This study examined the effect of integrating indigenous basketry resources into the teaching of pre-number concepts on the academic achievement and observed competencies of Kindergarten Two (KG2) learners. The primary estimand was the total effect of basketry-integrated instruction relative to conventional instruction without manipulatives; the study did not seek to isolate the specifically cultural contribution of the materials. A quasi-experimental, non-equivalent groups pre-test–post-test design was employed with 335 learners in intact classes (181 experimental; 154 control) drawn from public kindergartens across the twelve districts of the Bono Region. The experimental group was taught matching, sorting, comparing, ordering and patterning through structured activities with basketry artefacts for six weeks, while the control group received conventional instruction. Data were collected using parallel performance-based achievement tests and an eleven-item structured observational checklist completed by two trained observers, and analysed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with pre-test scores as a covariate, independent-samples t-tests, supplemented by a cluster-aware sensitivity analysis. The intervention had a statistically significant effect on achievement, F(1, 332) = 428.00, p < 0.001, partial η² = 0.563 (adjusted means: experimental 7.78, control 4.08), and the experimental group was rated significantly higher on all eleven observed competencies (d = 2.14 to 2.49), with the largest differences on mathematical vocabulary, self-correction and unprompted participation. Smaller experimental-group variance descriptively indicated that the benefit extended across the ability range. Culturally grounded manipulative instruction with free, familiar, locally obtainable artefacts substantially outperformed conventional instruction; implications for curriculum provision and teacher preparation are discussed.

Keywords: Ethnomathematics, pre-number concepts, kindergarten, Ghana.

Full Text PDF

This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0