ABSTRACT

This study investigated the impact of single parental upbringing on academic performance of senior secondary school students in Government as a teaching subject in Zaria Local Government Area of Kaduna State. The purpose of this study was to appraise how academic performance of students in Government is influenced by single parental upbringing. Specifically the study sought to find out how income status, educational attainment, to asses the level at which student academic performance between those of single parent and two patents  and occupational status of single parent affects the academic performance of senior secondary school students who are learning Government. Four research questions and Hypotheses each were formulated and tested at 0.05 alpha level of significance. The research design used were partly survey and partly quasi experimental. The instrument used for data collections were questionnaire and achievement test. The population for the study consisted of teachers and students of public and private secondary schools in Zaria Local Government Area.  A sample size of twelve (12) teachers and Three Hundred and Twenty- Three (323) students were randomly drawn from the entire population of the study. While the achievement test was administered to the students, the questionnaire was filled by the teachers. Findings show that educational attainment of single parents has significant impact on students’ academic performance, the study identified that occupational status of single parents has a great impact on students academic performance, It was established that there exist significant relationship between parental income and academic performance of students from poor and wealthy single/ two- parental home . Recommendations were put forward that stigmatization of single parents and their children should be discouraged forthwith by enacting all relevant law; parents should be mindful of their children’s especial education before contemplating divorce and separation.  It was suggested that a work plan be designed to address the prevalent cases of single parenting of homes for use as policy formulation in the country. There is need to examine the judicial role of courts in the land with regards to record keeping as input for orientation of homes on the danger of divorce or separation.   

 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

        1.1         Background to the Study

 Education is of great importance to every nation.  It therefore attracts considerable attention to the family, community and to all tiers of government; education is discussed, planned and processed (Omolewa, 2001).  It is believed that education recreates both the individuals and the nation, influences values and attitudes for a worthwhile living.  The National Policy on Education (2009) is not wrong with its assertion that education is “an instrument par excellence” and the world at large had keyed into this, by recognizing education as the panacea to development and survival of man itself.  

It is not surprising therefore that the processes of education are offered by the three levels– primary, secondary and tertiary education. As a result, education is classified on the concurrent list. That is, administration, funding, policy formulation and maintenance of schools or matters relating to education can both be deliberated upon by the Federal and State governments. Over the years, there had been public outcry concerning the fate of educational system in Nigeria and the breeding of graduates with little technical know–how which has resulted in serious setbacks to the industrial and economic development of the nation and its place among comity of nations in the 21^st century.  Investigations into the factor that influence academic performance of students in and out-of-school could be trace to individual family or home.  The family or home is an integral part of the society which is a sub-system of the social structure.  It is an axiom that good homes breed a productive nation .This is the brain-child of why, every society aspires for development.

The well-being of any society is the aggregate of the well-being of the individual families that make up the society.  So, the home is a quite essential factor on the learner’s psychological, social, emotional and economic state.  Most homes are made up of father and the mother with or without siblings or extended relations.  In the African societies, some homes could be polygamous while others could take the form of monogamy.  One is not so surprised that African Traditional Religion (ATR) influences all aspect of one’s life and it is practical in nature.

The beliefs and practices of ATRs are based upon the faith of the indigenous people. Such are declining now since the arrival of Islam and Christianity at the beginning of the 20^th century (Yombi, 2011).

The educational pursuit of every child is relatively determined by the pattern of family or home he/she comes from. Be it wealthy or poor, educated or otherwise, traditional belief or aspirations. Parents who failed in their responsibilities to assist and guide their wards through every stage of development in life may likely have to contend with poor academic performance sooner or later and the development of unwholesome behaviours,  as foundation to the success or failures in any child is laid upon the home and at the initial stage in life.  Parents therefore have a great role to play in seeing to it that the students acquire the appropriate social, psychological, moral and academic development.  Those found in this category are mostly adolescents who needed to be tutored not only by the teachers but with combined efforts of the parents.

In Nigeria, there are widespread cases of single-parenthood across all regions and tribes which has become a major source of concern to the socio-economic and socio-cultural development.  Single parenting can be defined as a situation in which one of the two individuals involved in the conception of the child is being responsible for the upbringing of the child (Henshin, 1985).  This idea is relatively unknown before now in Nigeria but is fast growing family patterns both inside and outside the shores of the land (Nwachukwu, 1998).  Children from single parent homes are likely to suffer deprivation, and denial of some rights and opportunities.

They are more exposed to anti-social behaviours and poor academic records.

Divorce and separation of various kinds or death of one spouse may leave a child with no option than to have a single parent.  The benefits of a two-parents family far outweigh that of a single parent family, as mothers play the traditional role of child care and home-making while the father’s role is that of economic responsibilities and discipline of children. But in single parent families, double responsibilities are required of time, attention and money of the parent.  Hence, less attention is given to the education of the child. Invariably the cost of receiving education today is high to be financed only by a single parent who may be financially handicapped. In the case of the few wealthy single parents in the locality of the research study the task is more with the nature of their job which affects adequate supervision of a child’s growth and development.

Teachers commonly describe children from single parents as more hostile, aggressive, anxious, fearful, hyperactive and distractible than children from intact families (Nwachukwu, 1998).  The school curriculum if well-designed as the situation demands will become helpful in addressing the deficient students’ academic performance on the set-objectives of secondary education as well as analyzing the factors that affect the performance.  Although, there are no available statistics of single parent families in Nigeria, practical experience and tabloids report shows that it is increasing on a daily basis.  On the contrary, western countries have a geometric progression in the percentage of adults and children living in single parent households

(Nwachukwu, 1998).

The conditions are not palatable conducive for effective parenting of a child in most single parental families (Ortese, 1998).  This was because when the parents are overburdened by responsibilities and by their own emotional reactions to environmental situation they often become irritable, impatient and insensitive to their children’s plight.  It is against this backdrop that this study was being planned to investigate the possible impact  of single parental upbringing on the academic performance of senior secondary students in Government in Zaria Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

  1.2         Statement of the Problem

It is worthy to note that education of high quality is expensive and possibly beyond the reach of most poor single headed homes. No doubt, the National Policy on Education (2009) suggests adequate financial provision from all tiers of government for successful implementation of educational programmes. It therefore shows that access to education by the child/children of a single parent depends on their financial capability. Not too surprise, that children of single parents in the study locality attend public secondary schools. A fewer number from wealthy homes however, attend private day schools or private boarding schools as the case may be.

However, the worst scenario are witnessed in the camp of the illiterates and unskilled workers who have absolutely no plan for their wards compared to their counterparts who are not only financially buoyant but determine to provide the best for their children’s education. In other cases, those with certain level of education but at the lower class in a society encourage their wards to achieve a higher status they could not have achieved. According to Goede and Spruigt (1996), they warned of the impending danger of students’ failure caused by truancy, bad company, all forms of unethical behaviours, failure in not doing assignment and its end-result as academic backwardness. Again, most children from single well-to-do homes misuse their academic opportunities which if available for their counterparts, would be adequately utilized. They have access to educational materials at homes and attend one of the best schools but still perform below expectations.  The large population of children attending public schools from single parental homes does not have access to these facilities, resulting in mass failure in public and internal examinations due to their poor preparation.

1.3    Objectives  of the Study

The objective of this study were to examine the impact of single parenting on the academic performance of senior secondary school students in Government as a subject in Zaria Local Government ARea in Kaduna state. The study was carried out to achieve the following.

1. To find out the extent to which income status of single parents influences the academic performance of students from such homes in school.
2. To investigate the level at which educational attainment of single parents influenced their children’s/wards academic performance in School.
3. To assess the level of students’ academic performance between those of single parents and two-parents.
4. To identify if occupational status of single parenthood has an impact on children’s academic performance in schools.

      1.4     Research Questions

This study sought to provide answers to the following research questions which were formulated to guide the present investigation.

1. To what extent does income status of single parental homes influence students’ academic performance in Government as a subject in Zaria Local Government Area?
2. What is the influence of educational attainment of single parental homes on the academic performance of secondary school students’ in Government as a subject in Zaria Local Government Area?
3. Are there differences in the academic performance of students from single parents compared to those of two parents in Zaria Local Government Area?
4. To what extent does occupational status of single parental homes affect academic performance of students in Government as a subject in Zaria Local Government Area? 

        1.5          Research Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses were tested in this study at the 0.05 alpha level of significance.

Ho₁: Income status of single parents has no significant impact on the academic performance of students in Government as a subject.

Ho₂: Educational attainment of single parents has no significant impact on students’ academic performance in Government as a subject.

Ho_3: Students’ academic performance of single parents is significantly different from those of two-parents.

Ho₄: The occupational status of single parents has no significant impact on academic performance of student in government as a subject.

        1.6         Basic Assumptions

The study is based on the following assumptions.

1. A negative behaviour exhibited by a learner in or out-of-school could be premise on the family pattern of the home.
2. Most cases of single parenting of homes are premeditated on both genders.
3. Students from single parental homes are mostly found attending boarding school system.
4. Students’ performance in a particular subject is influenced by a number of variables. This could be teachers’ factor, environmental or family background.
5. Reading materials are usually provided for students’ of single parental homes as at when necessary compared to their counterparts. 

        1.7         Significance of the Study

As widely described, a child plays an important role in the acquisition of knowledge, skills, values and ideal. Unfortunately, the pattern of homes lately had been distorted for one reason or another. Thereby, affecting the academic performance of a child’s upbringing in and out-of-school. The findings anticipated in this study shall therefore assist all stakeholders (parents, students, curriculum planners, policy makers and the government to mention but a few on roles expected of them.

First, it would empower single parents and others alike to have a renewed orientation and be equipped with the necessary information to have an indivisible family. As it will help parents to build a better future for their wards and the society at large.

Secondly, the outcome of this study would serve as an input for legislation on policies relating to parenting. It is expected that the study recommendations will assist the nation’s lawmakers to have a deeper horizon of single parenting and on the need to act fast because of its consequences on the nation.

Thirdly, the study outcome would help secondary school teachers and other teachers as well, to acknowledge the importance of a stable home as a major pillar for academic success in the life of any student.

Fourthly, as curriculum planners needed to be guided with factors that could assist the curriculum planning and implementation to be successful. This study would therefore afford planners to consider learners’ family stability as a primary determinant of academic breakthrough.

Also, the outcome of this study would not exempt students in the scheme of importance it would benefit them. It would enable students to understand even though over a long period of time, that crisis is eminent everywhere they find themselves but should rather allow their conscious to guide their daily conduct and strive to achieve hard work.

Finally, the school counselors would be better equipped with the necessary tool to guide and counsel students from such homes. Such would offer them the zeal and courage to forge ahead in life especially with their studies aimed at discouraging any form of distractions.

        1.8       Scope of the Study

The study covers all the senior secondary schools located within Zaria Local Government Area of Kaduna state. It is delimited to students of S.S.2 classes in public and private schools, located in eight (8) districts in the study area namely, Birni Dekiwe, Hanwa, sabo Gari, Wuchuchi, Gyallesu, Tukurtukur, Dutsin Abba.

Both type of schools were involved in this study since there exists different socioeconomic background of homes from where there root lies. Some are poor economically while others are from wealthy homes. Because of this singular factor, academic performance of students between two types of homes were determined.

Pages:  110

Category: Project

Format:  Word & PDF               

Chapters: 1-5                                          

Source: Imsuinfo

Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the availability, adequacy and utilization of educational resources in public junior secondary schools in Delta State, Nigeria. The study was a descriptive survey research design aimed at analyzing the situation of educational resources on ground and their utilization. It is ex-post facto (after-the-fact) in nature as the variables such as material resources and human (teacher) resources are already on ground for assessment and cannot be subjected to any form of manipulation. The population of the study consisted of all the 435 public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State which were in existence at the time of the study 2014/2015 session as shown in Table 1. The sample size for the study comprised 255 Junior Secondary Schools, representing 60% of JSS in Delta State. The simple random sampling technique was applied in selecting the required sample size from each local government area. The balloting system was adopted in selecting the schools. The instrument that was used for collection of data was a Checklist titled “Education Resources Availability and Utilization Checklist” (ERAUC). The instrument that was used for the study, “the Education Resources Availability and Utilization Checklist” (ERAUC) was given to the researcher’s supervisors and two other experts in Educational Management for review and to certify its appropriateness in addressing the problem of the study. Their corrections and comments were incorporated into the final draft of the instrument.  Checklist was used in the collection of data hence there was no reliability test. However, the school records provided information for the study. The principals and other relevant agencies in charge of various records were relied upon to provide the information needed in the study. Relevant data were collected from the State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education as well as the Education Boards. The researcher trained five research assistants who are University graduates in the field and they helped to visit the selected schools to assess the education resources situation and also appropriately completed the Checklist based on what was on ground. Emphasis was placed on classrooms, furniture for students and teachers and teacher resources in English Studies, Mathematics, Basic Science and Social Studies. The data were analyzed using percentages and ratios and the results were presented using tables, charts and graphs. Findings of the study revealed that

The result of the study showed that not all physical resources were adequate in the schools and the effectiveness of the school system in achieving the established goals is dependent on adequate facilities. The study further recommended that more instructional resources should be made available.

 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

The goal of secondary education in Nigeria is to prepare the individual for useful living within the society and for higher education.  According to the Federal Republic of Nigeria (2004), secondary education is the education children receive after primary school and before the tertiary stage. The secondary education is of two levels, the junior secondary level and the senior secondary level. The policy document states that the Junior Secondary School (JSS) shall be both pre-vocational and academic in nature, and shall aim at preparing students for useful living within the society, providing high quality education to primary school graduates, equipping students to live effectively in this modern age of science and technology, raising a generation of people who can think for themselves, respect the view and feelings of others and dignity of labour and inspiring students with a desire for achievement and self-improvement both at school and in later life (FRN, 2004).

In order to achieve the above stated objectives, a conducive teaching and learning environment is indispensable. Teaching and learning environment include educational facilities and equipment, infrastructure, class size, teachers and other environmental factors. The importance of educational facilities in the accomplishment of desired educational goals cannot be overemphasized. No matter the efforts expended in the pursuance of desired educational goals, whether through improved funding or qualified and professionally trained teachers, little or nothing may be achieved in the absence of essential school facilities. School facilities are the material resources that facilitate effective teaching and learning in the school. They include school buildings such as classrooms, assembly halls, laboratories and workshops, libraries, textbooks, desks and chairs. Others include teaching aids and devices such as modern educational hardware and software in the form of magnetic tapes, films and transparencies. Costald (1977) describes educational facilities as those things of education which enable a skillful teacher to achieve a level of instructional effectiveness that far exceeds what is possible when they are not provided.

School resources are of two major categories, namely, direct teaching facilities and non-direct teaching facilities. Direct teaching facilities are facilities that have direct relevance to the educative process while non-direct teaching facilities are those that have an indirect relevance to the educative process.  Special record books like diaries, log books, admission and attendance registers and tangible structures which serve as shelter for educational activities and furniture and equipment are all essential ingredients of school facilities. The availability, adequacy and utilization of school facilities contribute to the effectiveness of the teaching and learning process. A study by Oni (1992) found out that there was a relationship between utilization of school facilities and academic performance in the Junior Secondary School Certificate Examinations (JSSCE) in three pre-vocational subjects, namely:  Introductory Technology, Business Studies and Home Economics.

Availability and effective utilization of school resources are essential to the achievement of school goals. As a social system engaged in production, schools need adequate facilities, equipment, materials, education personnel, finance and students to function effectively. Invariably, adequate provision and effective utilization of educational facilities play a vital role in enhancing the achievement of educational objectives. School facilities are the operational inputs of every instructional programme. More than anything else, school facilities are necessary for utmost learning achievement. Every Instructional programme has its specific demands of facilities. As a result, the educational process requires facilities that are at their utmost workable state in order to achieve quality output production.

Availability of school resources and their effective utilization are important factors that cannot be undermined if the desired educational output is to be achieved. In educational production, facilities are elements that are necessary for effective teaching and learning. They are required by the system for effective and efficient delivery of educational services. As observed by Mgbodile and Onuorah (2000), physical appearance and adequacy of school facilities are striking bases upon which stakeholders of any educational institution make their initial judgment about the quality of what goes on in a school. This they say is not to underplay the paramount role of the human factor in properly harnessing and manipulating these facilities in order to bring about effective learning in schools.

Resources utilization is a measure of the extent to which allocated resources (inputs) are being processed through school production mechanism to ensure optimum performance by reducing wastage to the barest minimum. It is the relationship between the learning inputs and the learning achievement (outputs) of the school system. As a production function, the quality and quantity of inputs as well as ability and capability of the school system to comply with the set standard would to a large extent determine its outputs and the efficiency of the production process.

Adequate resources provision is a precursor to effective utilization as there cannot be utilization without availability of resources. There are expectations of adequate resource provision to schools because resources are inevitable component of the teaching – learning process, like is popularly acclaimed that the benefits of providing functional education far outweigh the investment in the sector. The World Bank (1999) stated that the stakes of providing functional education are high and the choices nations make will lead to divergent outcomes. Thus, countries that respond positively to the provision of functional education would experience progress while those who treat functional education with levity would risk stagnation and even slip backwards, widening the already existing socio-economic gaps, and consequently sowing the seeds of unrest.

Schools require adequate and standard materials demanded by the school curriculum for effective teaching and learning to take place. This is necessary because the present secondary school curriculum is comprehensive and diversified, catering for individual interests and talents, covering an array of arts, social science, science and vocational subjects, that require varying materials. Where the recommended school resources are not adequately provided, the teaching – learning environment will not be conducive and students’ interest may not be sufficiently aroused. This could lead to low rate of attainment of educational objectives and high rate of educational wastage.

The success of any education system depends largely on effective utilization of available resources. Central to effective resource utilization is adequate provision of teachers both in quantity and quality. This is particularly crucial in secondary schools because each subject in the system requires a qualified and specialized teacher. As an important variable in education production, the teacher factor transcends mere availability; it includes adequate quality distribution, utilization and retention. Teacher retention is a crucial factor in effective utilization of teacher resources. However, teacher retention is faced with different problems that lead to constant teacher attrition. Some of these problems include retrenchments, forced or voluntary retirements, deaths, teachers proceeding on further studies, and teachers changing jobs. These problems make the available stock of teachers to vary constantly in number, quality, subject specialty and experience. The Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, (SEDL, 2009) said that although placement of effective and high quality teachers in every school is a critical factor in improving student learning, educational authorities must also focus on supporting and retaining these teachers so that they stay motivated and committed.

Closely related to teacher utilization is effective teacher distribution to schools based on qualification, subject specialization and experience. Achieving effective teacher distribution is often made difficult because many teachers prefer postings and transfers to schools in urban locations at the detriment and neglect of schools in rural locations. The refusal to accept postings to schools in rural areas is often attributed to lack of basic social amenities in rural areas and the request of female teachers that they want to be with their husbands who work in urban towns.

Another important determinant in the ability to provide educational resources is finance. Going by the present 13% derivation formula for revenue allocation in Nigeria, Delta State is thought to be rich being an oil producing state. Ordinarily, the expectation will be that education will have reasonable budgetary allocation, especially secondary education, which is a major responsibility of State governments. The expectations are that increased education funding would positively impact on the resources situation in secondary schools, but it is known that funds allocated to education are redistributed to education sub-sectors such as the Ministry of Education, Basic Education Board, Scholarship Board, Library Board, Agency for Adult/Non-formal Education, Education for Migrant Fishermen, Higher Education, among others. As posited by the World Bank (2003), lack of accountability, arbitrary allocation of education resources and limited and inaccurate data for decision making are major problems hindering education resources situation in Nigeria.

The assessment of educational resources situation in secondary schools in Delta State was based on recommended standards in order to make the results of this investigation relevant for decision making. The recommended standards are based on the Federal Ministry of Education (2002) guidelines on minimum standards in schools nationwide as accepted standards for establishment and operation of secondary schools. Areas, such as quantity of each piece of science equipment needed in a standard secondary school laboratory, not explicitly spelt out in the prescribed national minimum standards are spelt out by the appropriate departments of the Delta State Ministry of Education, and are by implication adopted as the recommended standards. This investigation relied on these set standards as the basis for assessment of the educational resources situation in secondary schools in Delta State.

Statement of the Problem 

The issue of falling standards of education, at all levels, has been a source of concern to Nigerians. Schools are faced with the challenges of providing functional and qualitative education that will prepare students for useful living in a rapidly changing world of science and technology. Presently, secondary schools in Nigeria seem to exist in the shadow of their glorious past. The secondary school system is characterized by inadequacies in funding, manpower, facilities and equipment and a general decline in standards and quality. The system is plagued by inadequate infrastructural resources, overcrowded classrooms, obsolete equipment, enrolment explosion, shortage of personnel, gross under funding and general neglect. This has manifested in the poor academic performance of students at both internal and external examinations. (Source: Delta State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education manual 2004)

Education in Nigeria seems not to be receiving enough attention.  Although efforts have been made to improve the quality of education in Nigeria since independence, yet the system seems not to have been able to achieve its goal of providing functional education for Nigerian citizens (Bajah, 2001).  Secondary schools in Nigeria, especially public secondary schools, have the problem of inadequate and decaying facilities, as well as high rate of student drop out. The situation is even more pathetic as some few schools that have sizable number of facilities seem not to be putting them into effective use due to insufficient teachers in some subject areas, to take the students through the process of learning. This could account for the reason why many school children are seen roaming the streets during school hours. There seems to be a high rate of repetitions and dropouts in public secondary schools. This may be attributed to ineffective utilization of available educational resources.

There have been outcries by parents, media and all stakeholders in the educational sector over the decline in standards of operation of the educational system in the country and the quality of the products.  For quite some times now, the performance of students in West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) and the National Examination Council (NECO) examination in Delta State has not been encouraging (Statistics from PRS Department, Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Delta State). This has created lots of fears in the minds of stakeholders in the education sector especially the government, parents, school authorities and educational managers.  As the downward slide seems to continue unabated, reasons have been advanced by stakeholders on what could possibly be responsible for this decline, which to many has nosedived to a pathetic level. While some are of the opinion that the slide may not be unconnected with inadequate or non-availability of learning facilities, ineffectiveness and unqualified teachers, others are of the view that the reading habits of students have declined considerably. This situation is even made worse by the ever increasing students’ population which makes available learning facilities over stretched thereby putting teachers and students under stress (Utulu 2012).  It is against this backdrop that this study gives the situation analysis of the educational resources availability, adequacy and utilization in public junior secondary schools in Delta State, Nigeria.

Research Questions

The following research questions guided the study:

1. What is the level of availability of educational resources in public junior secondary schools in Delta State?
2. What is the level of adequacy of physical resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
3. What is the level of adequacy of instructional material resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
4. What is the state of teaching personnel in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
5. What is the state of academic qualification of teaching personnel in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
6. What is the distribution pattern of teaching personnel in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
7. What is the experience of teaching personnel in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
8. What is the level of adequacy of teachers in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
9. What is the level of utilization of physical resources in public junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
10. What the level of utilization of teachers resources in public junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
11. What is the situation of education resources in public junior Secondary Schools in rural areas and those in urban areas in Delta State?

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study was to assess the state of material and human resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study sought to:

1. ascertain the situation of education resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;
2. ascertain the adequacy of physical facilities in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;

• ascertain the adequacy of material resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;

1. ascertain the state of teacher resources (qualification, distribution and experience) in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;
2. ascertain the rate of utilization of physical facilities in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;
3. ascertain the level of utilization of teaching/learning material resources in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;

• determine the level of utilization of teacher resources in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State; and
• find the difference in the situation of education resources between schools in rural areas and schools in urban areas in Delta State.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study in addition to contributing to the body of literature on education facilities availability and utilization, would benefit government, school management agencies, school heads and parents.  Ultimately, the students would benefit from the research especially when the findings are implemented

The result of the findings would provide the government and school management agencies with information on resource availability, adequacy and utilization in schools, as well as internal efficiency and how these affect the academic achievement of students.  This would help them to provide the needed resources for schools with dearth of infrastructure with a view to shore up students performance in such schools.

Also, the finding would be beneficial to parents of secondary school students in Delta State as the study would make parents understand the situation of educational facilities in secondary schools, and this can assists them in choice of school for their children.  Apart from this, the wealthy parents could also assist some schools in some areas of needs

The findings of the study would provide relevant information to school heads on facilities availability and utilization so that they can make decisions on how best to put into use available education resources in their schools.  It would also contribute to the existing body of theoretical knowledge on the availability, adequacy and utilization of material and human resources in the junior secondary schools and finally, the study would serve as a reservoir of information to future researchers in the area of educational resources availability and utilization in public junior secondary schools in Delta State, in particular, and Nigeria in general.

Scope of the Study

The study covered the situation analysis of educational resources in public junior secondary schools in Delta State.

The study was limited to the availability, adequacy and utilization of resources in junior secondary schools because this particular level of education is jointly funded by the three tiers of government, that is, local government, State government and Federal government. Therefore, the expectations were that educational resources would be adequately provided and utilized in junior secondary schools.  It also compared educational resources in schools located in rural areas with that of schools located in urban areas.

Operational Definition of Terms

            The following terms are operationally defined as used in the study: –  

1. Education Resources: These are the physical, material and human assets required to achieve education production function. In this study, education resources are limited to physical facilities such as school buildings, classrooms, library, playfields, toilets; material resources such as tables and chairs, students’ desks and chairs, laboratory equipment, other teaching and learning aids and teacher resource.
2. Education Resources Situation: This refers to the state or position of the physical and human assets required to achieve education production function. In this study, education resources are limited to physical resources and teacher resources as these form the major determinant of the output in education
3. Distribution: This refers to the posting of the teachers between the schools and between the rural and urban locations.
4. Physical resources: These are the materials that actually exist or are present or seen in the school. They include classrooms, chairs, tables, library, laboratory/workshops etc.
5. Teacher Resources: As used in this study, teacher resources include number of teachers, their academic and professional qualification, specialization, teaching experience and distribution in schools.
6. Resource Availability: This refers to the differences between the expected and the available facilities
7. Resource Adequacy: This refers  to the provision of the required educational resources in the standard quantity and quality in relation to Federal Ministry of Education minimum standard
8. Resources Utilization: This refers to the application of the resources provided for schools in teaching learning process.
9. Material Resources Utilization: As used in this study, material resource utilization refers to the practical use of available instructional materials and equipment by students and teachers in the teaching learning process. Teachers’ tables and chairs, student desk and chairs, library equipment, etc
10. Physical Resources Utilization: In this sense, physical resources utilization is the putting to use of available physical facilities in the teaching learning process. i.e, building, classrooms, library, etc, whether they are optimally utilized.
11. Human Resources Utilization: This is the assignment of duties to teachers to execute the school programmes. It include teacher workload which is number of teaching periods per week, number of classes taught and number of subjects taught
12. Experience: This implies the number of years the individual/teacher has spent in the teaching profession. Experienced (0-5) years, moderate experienced 6 – 10 years, Highly experienced 10 years an above
13. Qualification: This is the academic attainment of the teacher. They include National Diploma, Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE), BA(Ed), B.Sc (Ed), B.Ed and Post Graduate Degrees without specialization in education, Degrees or Post graduate degrees with specialization in Education.
    

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    Pages:  162

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF               

    Chapters: 1-5                                          

    Source: Imsuinfo

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the availability, adequacy and utilization of educational resources in public junior secondary schools in Delta State, Nigeria. The study was a descriptive survey research design aimed at analyzing the situation of educational resources on ground and their utilization. It is ex-post facto (after-the-fact) in nature as the variables such as material resources and human (teacher) resources are already on ground for assessment and cannot be subjected to any form of manipulation. The population of the study consisted of all the 435 public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State which were in existence at the time of the study 2014/2015 session as shown in Table 1. The sample size for the study comprised 255 Junior Secondary Schools, representing 60% of JSS in Delta State. The simple random sampling technique was applied in selecting the required sample size from each local government area. The balloting system was adopted in selecting the schools. The instrument that was used for collection of data was a Checklist titled “Education Resources Availability and Utilization Checklist” (ERAUC). The instrument that was used for the study, “the Education Resources Availability and Utilization Checklist” (ERAUC) was given to the researcher’s supervisors and two other experts in Educational Management for review and to certify its appropriateness in addressing the problem of the study. Their corrections and comments were incorporated into the final draft of the instrument.  Checklist was used in the collection of data hence there was no reliability test. However, the school records provided information for the study. The principals and other relevant agencies in charge of various records were relied upon to provide the information needed in the study. Relevant data were collected from the State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education as well as the Education Boards. The researcher trained five research assistants who are University graduates in the field and they helped to visit the selected schools to assess the education resources situation and also appropriately completed the Checklist based on what was on ground. Emphasis was placed on classrooms, furniture for students and teachers and teacher resources in English Studies, Mathematics, Basic Science and Social Studies. The data were analyzed using percentages and ratios and the results were presented using tables, charts and graphs. Findings of the study revealed that

The result of the study showed that not all physical resources were adequate in the schools and the effectiveness of the school system in achieving the established goals is dependent on adequate facilities. The study further recommended that more instructional resources should be made available.

 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

The goal of secondary education in Nigeria is to prepare the individual for useful living within the society and for higher education.  According to the Federal Republic of Nigeria (2004), secondary education is the education children receive after primary school and before the tertiary stage. The secondary education is of two levels, the junior secondary level and the senior secondary level. The policy document states that the Junior Secondary School (JSS) shall be both pre-vocational and academic in nature, and shall aim at preparing students for useful living within the society, providing high quality education to primary school graduates, equipping students to live effectively in this modern age of science and technology, raising a generation of people who can think for themselves, respect the view and feelings of others and dignity of labour and inspiring students with a desire for achievement and self-improvement both at school and in later life (FRN, 2004).

In order to achieve the above stated objectives, a conducive teaching and learning environment is indispensable. Teaching and learning environment include educational facilities and equipment, infrastructure, class size, teachers and other environmental factors. The importance of educational facilities in the accomplishment of desired educational goals cannot be overemphasized. No matter the efforts expended in the pursuance of desired educational goals, whether through improved funding or qualified and professionally trained teachers, little or nothing may be achieved in the absence of essential school facilities. School facilities are the material resources that facilitate effective teaching and learning in the school. They include school buildings such as classrooms, assembly halls, laboratories and workshops, libraries, textbooks, desks and chairs. Others include teaching aids and devices such as modern educational hardware and software in the form of magnetic tapes, films and transparencies. Costald (1977) describes educational facilities as those things of education which enable a skillful teacher to achieve a level of instructional effectiveness that far exceeds what is possible when they are not provided.

School resources are of two major categories, namely, direct teaching facilities and non-direct teaching facilities. Direct teaching facilities are facilities that have direct relevance to the educative process while non-direct teaching facilities are those that have an indirect relevance to the educative process.  Special record books like diaries, log books, admission and attendance registers and tangible structures which serve as shelter for educational activities and furniture and equipment are all essential ingredients of school facilities. The availability, adequacy and utilization of school facilities contribute to the effectiveness of the teaching and learning process. A study by Oni (1992) found out that there was a relationship between utilization of school facilities and academic performance in the Junior Secondary School Certificate Examinations (JSSCE) in three pre-vocational subjects, namely:  Introductory Technology, Business Studies and Home Economics.

Availability and effective utilization of school resources are essential to the achievement of school goals. As a social system engaged in production, schools need adequate facilities, equipment, materials, education personnel, finance and students to function effectively. Invariably, adequate provision and effective utilization of educational facilities play a vital role in enhancing the achievement of educational objectives. School facilities are the operational inputs of every instructional programme. More than anything else, school facilities are necessary for utmost learning achievement. Every Instructional programme has its specific demands of facilities. As a result, the educational process requires facilities that are at their utmost workable state in order to achieve quality output production.

Availability of school resources and their effective utilization are important factors that cannot be undermined if the desired educational output is to be achieved. In educational production, facilities are elements that are necessary for effective teaching and learning. They are required by the system for effective and efficient delivery of educational services. As observed by Mgbodile and Onuorah (2000), physical appearance and adequacy of school facilities are striking bases upon which stakeholders of any educational institution make their initial judgment about the quality of what goes on in a school. This they say is not to underplay the paramount role of the human factor in properly harnessing and manipulating these facilities in order to bring about effective learning in schools.

Resources utilization is a measure of the extent to which allocated resources (inputs) are being processed through school production mechanism to ensure optimum performance by reducing wastage to the barest minimum. It is the relationship between the learning inputs and the learning achievement (outputs) of the school system. As a production function, the quality and quantity of inputs as well as ability and capability of the school system to comply with the set standard would to a large extent determine its outputs and the efficiency of the production process.

Adequate resources provision is a precursor to effective utilization as there cannot be utilization without availability of resources. There are expectations of adequate resource provision to schools because resources are inevitable component of the teaching – learning process, like is popularly acclaimed that the benefits of providing functional education far outweigh the investment in the sector. The World Bank (1999) stated that the stakes of providing functional education are high and the choices nations make will lead to divergent outcomes. Thus, countries that respond positively to the provision of functional education would experience progress while those who treat functional education with levity would risk stagnation and even slip backwards, widening the already existing socio-economic gaps, and consequently sowing the seeds of unrest.

Schools require adequate and standard materials demanded by the school curriculum for effective teaching and learning to take place. This is necessary because the present secondary school curriculum is comprehensive and diversified, catering for individual interests and talents, covering an array of arts, social science, science and vocational subjects, that require varying materials. Where the recommended school resources are not adequately provided, the teaching – learning environment will not be conducive and students’ interest may not be sufficiently aroused. This could lead to low rate of attainment of educational objectives and high rate of educational wastage.

The success of any education system depends largely on effective utilization of available resources. Central to effective resource utilization is adequate provision of teachers both in quantity and quality. This is particularly crucial in secondary schools because each subject in the system requires a qualified and specialized teacher. As an important variable in education production, the teacher factor transcends mere availability; it includes adequate quality distribution, utilization and retention. Teacher retention is a crucial factor in effective utilization of teacher resources. However, teacher retention is faced with different problems that lead to constant teacher attrition. Some of these problems include retrenchments, forced or voluntary retirements, deaths, teachers proceeding on further studies, and teachers changing jobs. These problems make the available stock of teachers to vary constantly in number, quality, subject specialty and experience. The Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, (SEDL, 2009) said that although placement of effective and high quality teachers in every school is a critical factor in improving student learning, educational authorities must also focus on supporting and retaining these teachers so that they stay motivated and committed.

Closely related to teacher utilization is effective teacher distribution to schools based on qualification, subject specialization and experience. Achieving effective teacher distribution is often made difficult because many teachers prefer postings and transfers to schools in urban locations at the detriment and neglect of schools in rural locations. The refusal to accept postings to schools in rural areas is often attributed to lack of basic social amenities in rural areas and the request of female teachers that they want to be with their husbands who work in urban towns.

Another important determinant in the ability to provide educational resources is finance. Going by the present 13% derivation formula for revenue allocation in Nigeria, Delta State is thought to be rich being an oil producing state. Ordinarily, the expectation will be that education will have reasonable budgetary allocation, especially secondary education, which is a major responsibility of State governments. The expectations are that increased education funding would positively impact on the resources situation in secondary schools, but it is known that funds allocated to education are redistributed to education sub-sectors such as the Ministry of Education, Basic Education Board, Scholarship Board, Library Board, Agency for Adult/Non-formal Education, Education for Migrant Fishermen, Higher Education, among others. As posited by the World Bank (2003), lack of accountability, arbitrary allocation of education resources and limited and inaccurate data for decision making are major problems hindering education resources situation in Nigeria.

The assessment of educational resources situation in secondary schools in Delta State was based on recommended standards in order to make the results of this investigation relevant for decision making. The recommended standards are based on the Federal Ministry of Education (2002) guidelines on minimum standards in schools nationwide as accepted standards for establishment and operation of secondary schools. Areas, such as quantity of each piece of science equipment needed in a standard secondary school laboratory, not explicitly spelt out in the prescribed national minimum standards are spelt out by the appropriate departments of the Delta State Ministry of Education, and are by implication adopted as the recommended standards. This investigation relied on these set standards as the basis for assessment of the educational resources situation in secondary schools in Delta State.

Statement of the Problem 

The issue of falling standards of education, at all levels, has been a source of concern to Nigerians. Schools are faced with the challenges of providing functional and qualitative education that will prepare students for useful living in a rapidly changing world of science and technology. Presently, secondary schools in Nigeria seem to exist in the shadow of their glorious past. The secondary school system is characterized by inadequacies in funding, manpower, facilities and equipment and a general decline in standards and quality. The system is plagued by inadequate infrastructural resources, overcrowded classrooms, obsolete equipment, enrolment explosion, shortage of personnel, gross under funding and general neglect. This has manifested in the poor academic performance of students at both internal and external examinations. (Source: Delta State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education manual 2004)

Education in Nigeria seems not to be receiving enough attention.  Although efforts have been made to improve the quality of education in Nigeria since independence, yet the system seems not to have been able to achieve its goal of providing functional education for Nigerian citizens (Bajah, 2001).  Secondary schools in Nigeria, especially public secondary schools, have the problem of inadequate and decaying facilities, as well as high rate of student drop out. The situation is even more pathetic as some few schools that have sizable number of facilities seem not to be putting them into effective use due to insufficient teachers in some subject areas, to take the students through the process of learning. This could account for the reason why many school children are seen roaming the streets during school hours. There seems to be a high rate of repetitions and dropouts in public secondary schools. This may be attributed to ineffective utilization of available educational resources.

There have been outcries by parents, media and all stakeholders in the educational sector over the decline in standards of operation of the educational system in the country and the quality of the products.  For quite some times now, the performance of students in West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) and the National Examination Council (NECO) examination in Delta State has not been encouraging (Statistics from PRS Department, Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Delta State). This has created lots of fears in the minds of stakeholders in the education sector especially the government, parents, school authorities and educational managers.  As the downward slide seems to continue unabated, reasons have been advanced by stakeholders on what could possibly be responsible for this decline, which to many has nosedived to a pathetic level. While some are of the opinion that the slide may not be unconnected with inadequate or non-availability of learning facilities, ineffectiveness and unqualified teachers, others are of the view that the reading habits of students have declined considerably. This situation is even made worse by the ever increasing students’ population which makes available learning facilities over stretched thereby putting teachers and students under stress (Utulu 2012).  It is against this backdrop that this study gives the situation analysis of the educational resources availability, adequacy and utilization in public junior secondary schools in Delta State, Nigeria.

Research Questions

The following research questions guided the study:

1. What is the level of availability of educational resources in public junior secondary schools in Delta State?
2. What is the level of adequacy of physical resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
3. What is the level of adequacy of instructional material resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
4. What is the state of teaching personnel in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
5. What is the state of academic qualification of teaching personnel in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
6. What is the distribution pattern of teaching personnel in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
7. What is the experience of teaching personnel in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
8. What is the level of adequacy of teachers in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
9. What is the level of utilization of physical resources in public junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
10. What the level of utilization of teachers resources in public junior Secondary Schools in Delta State?
11. What is the situation of education resources in public junior Secondary Schools in rural areas and those in urban areas in Delta State?

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study was to assess the state of material and human resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study sought to:

1. ascertain the situation of education resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;
2. ascertain the adequacy of physical facilities in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;

• ascertain the adequacy of material resources in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;

1. ascertain the state of teacher resources (qualification, distribution and experience) in public Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;
2. ascertain the rate of utilization of physical facilities in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;
3. ascertain the level of utilization of teaching/learning material resources in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State;

• determine the level of utilization of teacher resources in Junior Secondary Schools in Delta State; and
• find the difference in the situation of education resources between schools in rural areas and schools in urban areas in Delta State.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study in addition to contributing to the body of literature on education facilities availability and utilization, would benefit government, school management agencies, school heads and parents.  Ultimately, the students would benefit from the research especially when the findings are implemented

The result of the findings would provide the government and school management agencies with information on resource availability, adequacy and utilization in schools, as well as internal efficiency and how these affect the academic achievement of students.  This would help them to provide the needed resources for schools with dearth of infrastructure with a view to shore up students performance in such schools.

Also, the finding would be beneficial to parents of secondary school students in Delta State as the study would make parents understand the situation of educational facilities in secondary schools, and this can assists them in choice of school for their children.  Apart from this, the wealthy parents could also assist some schools in some areas of needs

The findings of the study would provide relevant information to school heads on facilities availability and utilization so that they can make decisions on how best to put into use available education resources in their schools.  It would also contribute to the existing body of theoretical knowledge on the availability, adequacy and utilization of material and human resources in the junior secondary schools and finally, the study would serve as a reservoir of information to future researchers in the area of educational resources availability and utilization in public junior secondary schools in Delta State, in particular, and Nigeria in general.

Scope of the Study

The study covered the situation analysis of educational resources in public junior secondary schools in Delta State.

The study was limited to the availability, adequacy and utilization of resources in junior secondary schools because this particular level of education is jointly funded by the three tiers of government, that is, local government, State government and Federal government. Therefore, the expectations were that educational resources would be adequately provided and utilized in junior secondary schools.  It also compared educational resources in schools located in rural areas with that of schools located in urban areas.

Operational Definition of Terms

            The following terms are operationally defined as used in the study: –  

1. Education Resources: These are the physical, material and human assets required to achieve education production function. In this study, education resources are limited to physical facilities such as school buildings, classrooms, library, playfields, toilets; material resources such as tables and chairs, students’ desks and chairs, laboratory equipment, other teaching and learning aids and teacher resource.
2. Education Resources Situation: This refers to the state or position of the physical and human assets required to achieve education production function. In this study, education resources are limited to physical resources and teacher resources as these form the major determinant of the output in education
3. Distribution: This refers to the posting of the teachers between the schools and between the rural and urban locations.
4. Physical resources: These are the materials that actually exist or are present or seen in the school. They include classrooms, chairs, tables, library, laboratory/workshops etc.
5. Teacher Resources: As used in this study, teacher resources include number of teachers, their academic and professional qualification, specialization, teaching experience and distribution in schools.
6. Resource Availability: This refers to the differences between the expected and the available facilities
7. Resource Adequacy: This refers  to the provision of the required educational resources in the standard quantity and quality in relation to Federal Ministry of Education minimum standard
8. Resources Utilization: This refers to the application of the resources provided for schools in teaching learning process.
9. Material Resources Utilization: As used in this study, material resource utilization refers to the practical use of available instructional materials and equipment by students and teachers in the teaching learning process. Teachers’ tables and chairs, student desk and chairs, library equipment, etc
10. Physical Resources Utilization: In this sense, physical resources utilization is the putting to use of available physical facilities in the teaching learning process. i.e, building, classrooms, library, etc, whether they are optimally utilized.
11. Human Resources Utilization: This is the assignment of duties to teachers to execute the school programmes. It include teacher workload which is number of teaching periods per week, number of classes taught and number of subjects taught
12. Experience: This implies the number of years the individual/teacher has spent in the teaching profession. Experienced (0-5) years, moderate experienced 6 – 10 years, Highly experienced 10 years an above
13. Qualification: This is the academic attainment of the teacher. They include National Diploma, Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE), BA(Ed), B.Sc (Ed), B.Ed and Post Graduate Degrees without specialization in education, Degrees or Post graduate degrees with specialization in Education.
    

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    Pages:  160

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF               

    Chapters: 1-5                                          

    Source: Imsuinfo

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

ABSTRACT

This study was designed in order to find out the impact of supervision on the management of primary schools in Northern Kaduna State. The designed objectives were to determine the impact of supervision on the management of instructional work, school records, school environment, school and community relationship, school funding, and staff development. These were properly achieved by descriptive research method. Data were collected with the use of questionnaire. A total of 234 supervisors and teachers responded to the questionnaire, the data were analysed and interpreted through the use of t-test statistics. There was hypothesis testing where p>0.05, means that any t – value that is below 0.05 was rejected. The research discovered that there is need for more provision of facilities for teaching and learning; record keeping needs to be improved. There is need for constant supervision of instructional work. This helps in achieving primary school aims and objectives. It is recommended among others that workshops and conferences be organized to teachers from time to time. School facilities must be provided to school and more percentages be given to State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB).

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

             1.1     Background to the Study

Kaduna State is in the northern part of Nigeria; and it shares boarders with

Katsina State by the north, Kano and Plateau by the east and Federal Capital Abuja, Niger, Nasarawa states by the South. Education is the bedrock of any developing country, and Nigeria is not an exception. It is a formal system with a special design which is called the school. The Nigerian educational system is designed based on levels, according to the current educational reform; the levels consist of primary, secondary and tertiary. The basic level is made up of primary and junior secondary level. There are both private and public schools. The primary schools were supported by public funds (i.e by government) with other support from nongovernmental organizations.

Public primary schools are for all the children in various communities. Primary school is a social system as it is a collection of people with contribution towards the achievement of self and the country goals. The children at that level are between six to seven years of age, whom are expected to be taught for at least six years in the schools. Teachers, head teachers and other none teaching staff are provided in such schools.  School supervision was provided by the government to the schools in order to monitor, assess, guide, improve and help stimulate the teachers in order to perform their duties for the achievement of primary educational aims and objectives.

Primary schools are the basic step taken by all the Nigerian children in order to be trained and prepared for the next step of educational level. Therefore, it is very necessary to make primary school organized since it is the educational foundation for all Nigerian children. It is very important to make sure that primary schools are run the way it supposed to be. In order to achieve the aims and objectives of primary schools, school supervision must be constant and proper, so that the teacher will be motivated and work harder. School supervisors do not only monitor teachers but it also give them chance to discuss their problems and provide ways to handle them. In addition, it gives room to improve teachers’ development in terms of promotion issues by identifying those that are due for promotion or those that are supposed to go for studies, workshop and conferences. School supervision is very important for the benefit of both teachers and pupils.

Supervision is a way of stimulating, guiding, refreshing, encouraging teachers with the hope of achieving the educational set goals. Supervision is an age-long device for improving teachers’ skills (Ogunsaju, 1993). Supervision is one among the many responsibilities of an educational administration performed by school heads, teachers and pupils. Since education is very necessary in our country, supervision must be given a high priority. This is because supervision deals with the basic needs of schools and it helps in provision, maintenance, assisting and proper placement of both human and nonhuman materials in schools.

Areas where supervisors assess in school include, the resources (fund), environment, school and community development, records, staff development, and school instructional material. All these areas are vital which such schools will not remain as schools without them. Therefore, these are areas which if much attention is not given to; the educational goals will never be achieved or cannot be realized. Thus, this research attempts to study if there is any impact on the management of these areas.

             1.2     Statement of the Problem

As a result of inadequate and improper supervision, education lacks its quality, rather schools are graduating half-baked graduates, because there are inadequate facilities, no harmony and good relationship between school and the community, no proper maintenance and availability of school records and also the instructional works were not given maximum attention. A careful observation of current trends in Nigeria, in terms of teaching and learning issues in schools shows that there is need for this research in order to study whether school supervision has impact on the school management. It appears that schools are facing a lot of problems which cause the backwardness in educational sector. There is need for this research so as to find out if lack of proper school supervision is one factor among others which cause the school problems.

In Nigeria, Local Education Authority takes charge of primary education supervision and inspection. The most alarming area is that of the personnel. Trained supervisors and inspectors are the most bottle neck in the school system. These trained personnel are not only inadequate, but in some cases do not exist. The few that exist are never trained on the skills of supervision and inspection. This certainly could be the beginning of no control on the available resources (both human and material). Cases of inspectors attempting to use personal interest are many. This indicates lack of knowledge and technical knowhow of the aim of the school inspection.

Related to the above, is the non-availability of facilities supervision. Facilities such as vehicles, writing materials and allowances are inadequate in most inspection division in Kaduna state. This is also found within the school inspection. The school head masters mostly complain of equipment such as files, papers and other materials that aid their effort in an internal supervision of both human and material resources.  More so, in some schools where there is the availability of some of the materials, the maintenance culture is mostly lacking. Some of these equipment help in review of the last supervision and inspection. There could be document for teachers’ evaluation, pupil’s records, school inventory records to mention but a few. These document help to trace the past supervision for improvement and decision making. Unfortunately, these could hardly be found in most schools today due to inadequate maintenance of facilities. In fact, in some schools, the erring school head keeps records in his personal house, which is never correct in a normal situation.

The most powerful force be deviling education as a system is funding. This cankerworm did not spare school supervision. As mentioned above, an inadequate fund disallows school to conduct several of its activities and programmes. For example inspection suffers due to non staff development, most school heads supervise school activities on the basis of tacit knowledge, in other words, supervision is made on the basis of unconscious experience not through formal training. Also, a problem made by inadequate funds is the inability of schools to procure facilities for record storage. In many schools files are inadequate let alone shelves for documenting records for future uses and decision making. This results to several fake results and claims by nonexistent students.

In relation to supervision of school environment; schools nowadays are in court with their host communities for claim and disclaim of lands. Most school territorial lands are not known, may be due to lose of records and inadequate supervision of the lands. This problem has resulted to several disagreements and conflict which result to having bad school-community relationship. The bad schoolcommunity relationship result to hostility and affect students’ moral control. In fact, in some cases result to theft of the school’s properties. Moreover, inadequate environmental supervision results to schools becoming bushy, thereby making the school prone to fire disaster and snake bite. Most of these problems are associated with the inadequate school managerial skills and funds for managing primary schools in Kaduna State.

In a study conducted in Lagos State schools, Adesina (1971) finds that out of the 38 schools surveyed, only 7 were within the preceding five years and one the preceding two years; the rest had no record of inspectional visitors. All these problems arise because of the exceeding pupils’ population. And also the new introduced basic system of education does not function properly. In order to attain the educational aims and objectives in the country, school supervision must be given more attention on the aspect of instructional work because it is the heart of the school. Teachers’ activities and class activities will be assessed to find out the teachers level of skills, knowledge and ideas. And also to observe the pupils’ capacity on learning activities and to realize whether the instruments provided by the government were adequate and used by both the pupils and the teachers.

Supervisors will make sure that there is provision of proper school environment with good surroundings, proper cites and area, play ground equipments and garden with good colorful flowers that will beautify the school, proper arrangement of water devices. All these and many more make and encourage teaching and learning in schools.

Another area to be well supervised is the school facilities, the supervisors were expected to investigate the provision, maintenance and functioning of school facilities provided by the school management. School facilities involve; library equipments, tables, chairs, lab equipments, play ground facilities, toilets, and urinary materials. The supervisors help in the provision of school facilities and maintenance.

The last but not the least area is the inspection of school records. This is a very important way of having the historical, references, documentation and evaluation of teachers, head teachers and the pupils of the school. School records involves functioning, availability, and maintenance of the school records. If there is proper and regular supervision in this mentioned areas, in our primary school basically, education in Nigeria will be improved and the aims and objectives will be attained not only in primary school but also in the higher academic level of education and the output or the graduates will be more qualitative in terms of skills and knowledge, because primary school is the foundation of any knowledge if there is concrete foundation.

   1.3     Objectives of the Study

The study was set to achieve the following objectives:

1. determine the impact of supervision on the management of instructional work in primary school of northern part of Kaduna State; ii. assess the impact of supervision on the management of school funding of primary schools in northern Kaduna State; iii. determine the impact of supervision on the management of staff development in the schools of northern part of Kaduna state; iv. determine the impact of supervision on the management of school and community relationship in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State;
2. Determine the impact of supervision on the management of school

environment in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State; vi. determine the impact of supervision on the management of school facilities in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State; and vii. determine the impact of supervision on the management of school records in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.

             1.4     Research Questions

1. What is the impact of supervision on the management of instructional materials in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State?
2. What is the impact of supervision on the management of school funding in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State?
3. What is the impact of supervision on the management of staff development in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State?
4. What is the impact of supervision on the management of school & community relationship in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State?
5. What is the impact of supervision on the management of school environment in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State?
6. What is the impact of supervision on the management of school facilities in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State? What is the impact of supervision on the management of school records in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State?

             1.5     Research Hypotheses

The study formulated the following hypotheses:

1. There is no significant difference in the opinions of head teachers and supervisors on the impact of supervision on the management of instructional materials in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.
2. There is no significant difference in the opinions of head teachers and supervisors on the impact of supervision on the management of school funding in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.

• There is no significant difference in the opinions of head teachers and supervisors on the impact of supervision on the management of staff development in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.

1. There is no significant difference in the opinions of head teachers and supervisors on the impact of supervision on the management of school and community relationship in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.
2. There is no significant difference in the opinions of head teachers and supervisors on the impact of supervision on the management of school environment in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.
3. There is no significant difference in the opinions of head teachers and supervisors on the impact of supervision on the management of school facilities in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.
4. There is no significant difference in the opinions of head teachers and supervisors on the impact of supervision on the management of school records in primary schools of northern part of Kaduna State.

             1.6     Basic Assumptions

The study was based on the following assumptions:

1. Supervision has no impact on the management of instructional work in primary schools of northern Kaduna State.
2. Supervision has no impact on the management of school funding in primary schools of northern Kaduna State.
3. Supervision has impact on the management of staff development in primary schools of northern Kaduna State.
4. Supervision has great impact on the management of school and community relationship of primary schools of northern Kaduna State.
5. Supervision has impact on the management of school environment in primary schools in northern Kaduna State.
6. Supervision has impact on the management of school facilities of primary schools in northern Kaduna State.
7. Supervision of school records has impact on the management of primary schools in northern part of Kaduna State.

             1.7     Significance of the Study

1. It is expected to contribute to knowledge as a reference material for scholars in the research field.
2. It is expected to draw the government attention toward the funding of schools and assessing the resource management.
3. It is expected to draw the supervisor’s attention to the needs for proper supervision.
4. It expected that the management of primary schools will be able to realize the level in which school supervision has impact on them.
5. It is expected that the government will be able to realize the need for constant and proper supervisions in primary schools It is expected that the primary school government will be able to realize the effect of primary schools as the basic and foundation of all the educational levels  vii.  It is expected that supervision will be regards as an engine for moving education either supervisions and teachers backwardness or there lapses.

             1.8      Delimitation of the Study

The study was designed on impact of school supervision on the management of primary schools in north Kaduna State only. The research is limited to the primary schools located at the northern part which involve eight local government S/Gari with

55 primary schools, Lere with 166 primary schools, Kabau with 242 primary schools, Ikara with 122 primary schools Kudan with 81 primary school, Zaria with 114 primary schools, Sabo with 230, and Makarfi with 116 primary schools. The study will focus on the respondent of head teachers and supervisors of the schools.

Pages:  145

Category: Project

Format:  Word & PDF               

Chapters: 1-5                                          

Source: Imsuinfo

Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

ABSTRACT

This study was aimed at investigating the family background factors that can influence students’ academic achievement in Senior Secondary School in Nsukka Education Zone in Enugu State. To guide the study, five research purpose, five research questions and five research hypotheses were formulated. The design adopted for this study was Ex-post Facto design. The population of the study consists of all senior Secondary students from the fifty three secondary schools in the three local government areas in Nsukka Education Zone. The fifty three secondary schools in the zone have a population of seven thousand, nine hundred and forty five senior secondary students. Out of the fifty three schools, twelve schools were sampled using proportionate random sampling technique. In the twelve schools, all SSII students numbering eight hundred and sixteen (816) were used as the subject of the study. The research instrument was questionnaire on family background influence (FBI), designed by the researcher and validated by experts. The reliability of the instrument was established using Crunbach alpha method. The data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation while t-test statistics was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The instrument was pilot tested in Obollo Afor Education Zone, using 30 students. The reliability coefficient was 0.69. The finding of the study revealed that: Students from educated parents achieve more than those from uneducated parents in academics; students from high-income status parents enjoy considerable advantage in academic achievement than students of low income status parents because their parents were able to afford necessary materials and equipment needed for effective learning in the school; parental level of motivation also influenced students’ academic achievement because motivation and reward served as a form of reinforcement for children’s learning at school. Based on these findings, the study recommended among others that parents should diversify their sources of income to be able to provide fund for their children’s schooling. Parents should equally realize the importance of using rewards and other measures to motivate their children.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Education is the best legacy a nation can give to her citizens especially the youths. This is because education is very important in the development of any nation or community. Education is the process of transmitting what is worthwhile to members of the society. According to Okafor (1981). Education embraces all those experiences of the individual through which knowledge is acquired and intellect enlightened. For Nwabachili and Egbue (1993) education is what goes on from one generation to another generation. In this context, education is the process of socializing the child to grow up as a fulfilled member of the society through informal, formal and non-formal process. Informal education is the process of acquiring knowledge about the environment and beyond through living with one another. According to Nwabachili and Egbue (1993) formal education is a consciously planned form of socialization in a formal setting such as school. They stressed that non-formal education involve all those systematic programmes and processes of education and training that is done outside formal education setting. All these forms of education cannot be achieved without the influence of the family.

Family is the first social environment the child finds itself. According to Clifford (1981) family remains the primary environment of the child. The author emphasized that family environment has more chances of increasing or decreasing the intellectual achievement of the child. Akubue and Okolo (2008), defined family as a small kinship structural group with the key function of natural socialization of the new born. Similarly, in Okunniyi (2004), family is defined as a primary social group of parents, offspring and possibly other members of the household.

Family background refers to all the conditions and circumstances in the family which influence the child physically, intellectually and emotionally Muola (2010). Children coming from different family backgrounds are affected different by such family conditions, that is why some children have good family background while some have poor background. Citing fleege, Eke (1999) noted that with some families, the background way vary from time to time for the same individuals.

Formal education therefore remains the vehicle for human development which must start from the family. There are different categories of families. The major categories of families according to Anderson and Taylor (2000) includes: Traditional families–where the father is the major breadwinner and mother at home rearing children; divorced families–families that have been reconstituted following the breaking of marriage; single parent families–likely headed by women; step families–with new siblings and new parents stemming from re-marriage.

A family could also be categorized as extended or nuclear. Extended families are those in which large group of related kin in addition to parents and children live together in the same household. This is the type of families prevalent in African countries. Nuclear families are families where married couple resides together with their children. This type of family is common in Western countries (Andersen and Taylor 2000).

Families are of various sizes. Family size has to do with the total number of people in a single family which may include the father, mother, children and even the extended members – all living in one hamlet. According to Alio (1995) family size has implication for education. The author emphasized that the size of the family determines to a great extent the relative amount of physical attention and time which each child gets from his parents. Large families are more common among the lower class of the society. Children in large families may suffer poverty and lack parental encouragement and stimulus which motivate their academic achievement (Eamon, 2005). Similarly, smaller family size has been linked with high academic achievement (Majoribank 1996) Majoribank further stressed that students with fewer siblings are likely to receive more parental attention and have support that leads to better school performance Family (small or large size) remains the primary environment of every child. The families begin the process of education and provide physical and psychological needs of the child. This supports the view of Maduewisi (1982), that the environmental experiences from family, peer group and school location have great influence in determining child’s intellectual ability. She maintained that bright children from under-privileged family environment may turn dull due to impoverished family environment. She added that mental development influence intellectual development. This is in line with Hebb (1987) who observed that the innate potentials of children cannot be attained without adequate stimulating family environment because the child cannot do well intellectually. The implication is that a proper stimulating family environment with intellectual potential and appropriate teaching methods will definitely enhance maximum performance of the child.

Durosaro and Durosaro (1990) in their study attempted to investigate the relationship between students’ family size and their academic achievement; they found out that family size influenced academic achievement. Their study reveals that children from small size families performed better at school than their counterparts from both average size and large size families. Furthermore, Yoloye (1989) conducted a study to see if the family background variables might be useful in explaining their academic achievement. Some aspects of family background variables examined in the study include family size and parents’ educational status. His findings were that the polygamous family sizes which were naturally large, reduces the chances of children going to school in the first instance. In addition, children from such backgrounds who are in schools have reduced chances of achieving their goals. Thirdly, parents of such families are mostly illiterate and incapable of providing adequate motivation for their children in schools as compare with the literate nuclear families.

The economic implication of large family size is better explained in Okunyi (2004) who observed from his study that as families get larger, parents cannot give their children the same amount of individual attention. They could not afford to provide them with so many of the things which will help them to make the best possible use of their years at school such as educational aids, and quiet comfortable rooms in which to do home work undisturbed by the television, outings to places of interest, leisure time pursuits, and opportunities for traveling. What is most probably important of all, according to him is the fact that the parents of large families were found not to talk with their children to the same extent as parents of small families.

Another aspect of family environmental factor is the structure of the family. Structurally, a family is either broken or intact. A broken family in this context is one that is not structurally intact for various reasons; such as death of a parent, divorce, separation, desertion and illegitimacy in which case, the family was never completed (Coukline 1996). Life in a single parent family can be stressful for both the child and the parent and such families are faced with the challenges of diminished financial resources, assumptions of new roles and responsibilities, establishment of new pattern in intra-familial interactions and reorganization or routines and schedules, (Agulanna 1999).

In single parent families, children may suffer some psychological and social problems which affect their academic performance. Danesy and Okedian (2002), in their study, lamented that street hawking among secondary school students have psychologically imposed other problems, such as sex networking behaviour, juvenile delinquent behaviour, which take much of the student school time that necessitated the poor academic performance and drop out syndrome noticed among young school students. They also lamented that the maternal and paternal deprivation of essential needs of the young students have promoted their poor performance in public examinations, such as JSCE, WASSCE and NECO. Similarly, (Okunniyi 2004) asserted that a child who suffer maternal and paternal deprivation may experience academic problems including truancy in the school. This is because the child may lack some necessities like school fees, books and uniforms. These conditions, according to the authors, are not conducive for effective parenting because when the single parents are overburdened by responsibilities and by the own, emotional, reaction to their situation, they often become irritable, impatient and insensitive to their children’s needs.

Apart from the structural pattern of the family, another powerful variable in the family that determines the students academic achievement is the family socio-economic status (SES). According to (Jeynes 2002), the socio-economic status (SES) of a child is most commonly determined by combining portent’s educational level, occupational status, and income level. Social class and economic status of the parents determine the type of school and the standard of training they desire for their children. The occupation or profession of the parents, the educational level and whether the mothers are working or non-working mothers places them at an advantage or disadvantage to evaluate their children’s academic work and monitor their progress.

Status is often determined by the individuals economic attainment, though it is sometimes ascribed on the individual. Okunniyi (2004), identified three distinct socio-economic groups or status which are common in many countries. They are: upper class- which is made up of rich business men and top government officials among others; middle class-which consists of skilled workers, professionals and middle ranked government workers and the lower class- which is made up of manual workers, petty traders and low income government officials.

Francis (2007) opines that the lower income families may be aware of the importance of education in the society, but at the same time, they are also aware of their limited resources to measure up with such educational demands. According to the author, a family that can scarcely provide for the basic needs of the family which include food, shelters and clothing will hardly motivate the academic excellence of their children, instead they will pressurize their children so seek for job opportunities with the little education they acquired so far to support the family. The implication of the agreement is that for families are likely to give their children poor academic background because of lack of financial support.

The socio-economic status of a family is capable of affecting the behaviour of the children and determine their aspiration. Families with high socio-economic status often have more success in preparing their children for school because they typically have access to wide range of providing their young children with high quality child-care, books and encourage children in various learning activities at home. They also have easy access to information regarding their children’s health, as well as social, emotional and cognitive development (Ojo and Yilma 2010),

Ojo and Yilma also noted that in all socio-economic groups, parents face major challenges when it comes to providing optimal care and education for their children and these challenges are more pronounced in poor families. This, according to them, is because sometimes, when the basic necessities are lacking, parents must place top priority on housing, food, clothing and health care, regarding education materials and books as luxuries. They added that poor families may also have inadequate or limited access to community resources that promote and support children’s development and school readiness. They further asserted that these disadvantages can negatively affect families decisions regarding their children development and learning. This situation, according to Ojo and Yilma, may also expose the infants in poor families to a greater risk of entering kindergarten schools unprepared, unlike their peers from rich families.

Parents’ motivation is another family background factor which influence the academic achievement of students. Students under motivated condition, exhibits purposeful behaviour aimed at achieving academic set goals. The achievement of these goals determines the motive. Hickey and Lindsey (1995) clearly distinguished two perspectives of motivation; these are situational and dispositional perspectives. According to them, disposition perspective asks questions about students’ general orientation to learning which relates the students’ priority and students’ nature. The situational perspective according to the scholars focuses on learning context. These scholars further identified to factors that greatly influence students’ motivation. These are: interpersonal factors such as curiosity, perseverance, and autonomy (intrinsic-factors) and environmental factors such as parents, peers and sibling (extrinsic factors).

Research shows that supportive and attentive parenting practices positively affect academic achievement (Eamon, 2005). In addition, high parental aspirations have been associated with increasing students’ interest in education (Majoribanks, 2005). The effect of parental motivation and involvement in their children’s school has on academic achievement is less clear (Domina 2005), parental motivation and involvement in school has been linked to both positive and negative influences on academic achievement (McNeal, 2001, Domina, 2005). Explanations for this discrepancy are not conclusive. It is thought that the type of involvement and motivation may make a difference and that in some cases parents become involved after their child has already had academic difficulties (Domina, 2005, McNeal, 2001). Other recent research has found more conclusively that while parental motivation may not help academic achievement, it does help prevent behaviorual problems (Domina, 2005).

Students with fewer siblings are likely to receive more parental attention and motivation and thus have more access to resources than children from large families. The additional attention and motivation leads to better school performance (Majoribanks, 1996, Thondike, 1997 and Samon, 2005).

Thondike reorganized seven ways of motivating students viz:

awareness on the part of the parents of the value of education whether such parents are literature of illiterate; existence of books, newspapers, comic books; good nutrition and sleeping habit; adequate facilities for sleep, for study and for rest; satisfaction of physical needs like food, shelter and clothing; objects in the home which challenges the child’s curiosity.

Douglas (1984) established a positive correlation between children’s academic achievement and motivation. The author laid considerable emphasis upon parental interest as a factor governing children’s chances of being awarded grammar school admissions. For the author, the simple most important factor that influence educational attainment of children appears to be the degree of parents interest in their children’s education. Douglas further stated that middle class parents express great interest in their children’s education as indicated by more frequent visits to school to discuss children’s progress, buying relevant textbooks and other necessary materials needed in the school for their children. The author also found from his study that parental interest and encouragement become increasingly important as a spur to high attainment as the children grow older. He also attached importance to the child’s early years, since in many cases, performance during the first years of school is reflected throughout the secondary school. He suggested that during primary socialization, middle-class children receive greater attention and stimulus from their parents. This forms basis for high achievement in the educational system.

Students from low socio-economic status families may not be strongly motivated to do well in school and may not be knowledgeable about techniques of being successful in school. High socio-economic status parents who have benefited in a variety of ways from education serves as effective and enthusiastic advocate of schooling (Carlson, 2003). In line with this Okwulanya (2003) opines that motivation from educated parents strengthens the academic aspiration and language development in their children to perform better in their academic work. According to the scholar, some children may come from homes were academic is much valued, where there are books around them and most of the time, they see their parents reading. Their parents may give them books as Christmas presents. They encourage them to read many books wither by organizing mini library for them at home or by encourage to use the state library. The author went further to emphasize that some children may come from illiterate homes, where no importance is attached to books. In such families children scarcely see their parents at home.

In all, the researcher’s conclusion is that motivated students are likely to engage in an activity more vigorously and more effectively than unmotivated one. Motivation is always goal orientated.

The importance of parental level of education to academic achievement of students cannot be over emphasized. Students from professional and to a lesser extent managerial occupational backgrounds exhibit higher academic performance (Gary, 2001). In support of this view, Onochie and Okpalla (1985) opined that educational level of parents which is an indicator of socio-economic status has direct influence on child’s values and academic achievement in the school. They mentioned that children from illiterate families may learn little or nothing from home that can help them develop interest in academics. This is in contrast to what is obtainable from children from literature families where parents provide atmosphere conducive for the formation of good study habits (Qeca, 1980).

Parental occupation is also an important family background variable. The occupation of one’s parents may determine to a large extent one’s opportunity to attend secondary school or not. Ezeji (2001) noted that parents like their children to take to their occupation, like parents who are lawyers, doctors, musicians among others. Examples of such people in the country include Gani faweiheni, the prominent human right lawyer, Oliver Akalite (Oliver De coque) and Osita Osadebe who were famous musicians each of these great men had one or more of his children in his type of occupation. Uwaoma (2066) asserted that most vocational students were children whose parents were farmer or craftmen. In Nigeria most children whose parents cannot afford to pay for high cost of formal education enroll into apprenticeship programmes such as carpentry, brick laying, petting trading and others. In the study area, there is a seeming general poor performance among secondary school students. Evidences of the poor performances are seen in both students’ internal and external examination. For instance, the available records of WAEC result analyses from 2005 to 2011 indicate downward trends in students’ academic achievement. According to the analyses, the achievement levels of students are as follows: 2005-27.53%, 2006-15.56%, 2007-25.54%, 2008-13.76%, 2009-25.99%, 2010-24.94% and 2011 -30.99% (source: WAEC Lagos).

It is against this background that the researcher is interested investigating the influence of family background on students academic achievement in Nsukka education zone of Enugu state. The researcher intends to investigate the variables in the family background with a view of assessing their relative influence on academic achievement of senior secondary school student in Nsukka education zone.

Statement of the Problem

Most students in Nigerian secondary schools are in greater risk of poor academic achievement in both internal and external examinations (WAEC and NECO). For instance, the available records of WAEC result analysis from 2005- 2011 show a continuous decline in students overall performance in school certificate examinations.

Government, parents, teachers and students blame one another for students’ poor performance in schools. Parents blame teachers for lack of dedication to duties. The teachers blame government for poor salaries hence they are poorly motivated, parents also accuse government for not equipping the schools with learning materials, government blame parents for not doing good home work and the students are blamed for lack of discipline and dedication to their studies.

In light of the above issues, the outstanding and relevant question is: what is the influence of family background on academic achievement of secondary school students?

Purpose of the Study

Generally, the purpose of the study was to find out the influence of family background on students’ academic achievement among senior secondary school students in Nsukka Education zone.

Specifically, the purpose of the study is to find out:

1. The influence of parental level of education on academic achievement of senior secondary school students.

2. The influence of parental occupation on students’ academic achievement.

3. The influence of parental income on students’ academic achievement.

4. The influence of family size on students’ academic achievement.

5. The influence of parental motivation on students’ academic achievement.

Significance of the study

Theoretically, the findings of this study are considered significant because it can help in providing empirical information in identifying and explaining the various family background variables and the influence of the variables on students’ academic achievement. This will help in better understanding of the phenomenon. Moreover, it is expected that the findings will help to explain the functionality of the theoretical postulations Maslow’s motivational theory. According to Maslow, motivation is very important in learning, and a learner under motivated condition, exhibits purposeful behaivour aimed to achieving the set goal. The students is motivated to learn when their physiological need like shelter, food, water, rest and safety needs like love and belonging. The satisfaction of these needs leads to the quest to satisfy higher needs which boarder on self esteem and self actualization. The understanding of this theory especially as it relates to students teachers and parents would be of particular significance to researchers in the field of education and family studies.

Practically, the finding of this study will be useful to the following: the teachers, students, parents, school guidance counselors, Parents Teachers Association (PTA), educational administrators and the society at large.

The finding of the study will be of immense help to the teachers. The teachers will realize the necessity of individualizing their teaching by structuring their teaching methods and instructional resources to take care of the divergent parental backgrounds of the students. This method may yield more positive result than the traditional system which assumes that all children have similar family background. The findings of the study will also help teachers to exercise patience with slow-learners as they vary methods of instruction to accommodate divergent family background.

The findings will be of immense importance to students. The students will realize that their poor performance might not necessarily be their fault alone, especially those from low status families. Such knowledge will go a long way to reduce frustration in the students and also reduce drop-outs which occur as a result of frustration. Rather, the students should be made to adjust and help themselves by studying hard at home and also make proper of the books and materials that are provided for them at the school library.

Through the findings of this study, parents will realize the importance of improving their educational standard so as to influence their children’s academic performance. Parents will also understand the need for them to improve their socio-economic status so as to be able to provide the necessary motivation in form of learning materials and other things which will enhance their children’s learning and their academic performance. They will equally acknowledge the importance of positive motivations and encouragement and provide some, by making the family environment more conducive for their children.

The school guidance counselors will also benefit from the findings of this study. They will be in position to guide and counsel students in the area of personal social interactions, academic performance and career choice.

The findings of the study will help Parents Teacher Associations (PTA) of schools in promoting the academic performance of student. This is because at PTA meetings, parents know their functions and responsibilities at home, to help solve their children’s problems both home and school environment.

The findings of the study will be of immense help to educational administrators. They will use the findings in the formulation of policy that will regulate equal educational opportunities for all children irrespective of their family background in the distribution of equipment, facilities and amenities to schools.

The findings of this study will help the society at large in identifying how family environmental variables such as what parents’ level of education, parents’ income, parents’ occupation, parents’ motivation and family size on student’s academic performance. This will act as a check on increasing low academic performance among students, occasioned by the fact that some parents, teachers and counselors do not have adequate knowledge/input required of them.

Scope of Study

The study is limited to secondary schools in Nsukka education Zone of Enugu state. The context scope of this study is limited to finding the influence of family background on academic achievement of students with particular regards to parental level of education; parental occupation, parental income, family size and parental motivation.

Research Questions

The study will provide answers to the following research questions:

1. What is the influence of parental level of education on students’ academic achievement?

2. What influence does parental occupation have on students’ academic achievement?

3. What is the influence of parents’ income on students’ academic achievement?

4. What is the influence of family size on students’ academic achievement?

5. What influence does parental motivation have on students’ academic achievement?

Research Hypotheses

The following hypotheses will guide the studying and will be tested at 0.5 level of significance.

1. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban and Rural Schools on the influence of parental level of education on students’ academic achievement

2. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and Rural Schools on the influence of parental occupation on students’ academic achievement.

3. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and Rural Schools on the influence of parents’ income on student’s academic achievement.
4. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and Rural Schools on the influence of family size on students’ academic achievement.

5. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and Rural Schools on the influence of parental motivation on students’ academic achievement.
   

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   Source: Imsuinfo

   Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

Abstract

This study investigated the modalities for effective management of school resources in secondary schools in Owerri education Zone. The population of the study comprised all 308 principals and 4217 teachers in public secondary schools in Owerri education Zone. The sample was made up of 120 secondary school principals and 410 secondary school teachers drawn through a multi-phrase sampling technique. The study was a descriptive survey design. The instrument for data collection was Effective Management of School Resources Questionnaire (EMSRQ). Four research questions and four hypotheses were formulated. The research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation while t-test was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The major findings showed that ways funds can be effectively managed in secondary schools were: Education Board having financial regulations guiding the spending of funds and school budgets guiding the expenditure of principals. Procurement and maintenance of physical facilities and equipment through internally generated funds were modalities for effective management of school plant. Posting qualified teachers to schools and provision of sufficient number of teachers to handle the subjects were modalities for effective management of personnel in secondary schools. Modalities for effective staff motivation in secondary schools were regular payment of salaries and allowances, good working environment, research grants and sponsorship to conferences and workshops. The opinions of secondary school principals and secondary school teachers did not differ significantly with regard to the modalities for effective management of school resources in secondary schools. Based on the findings, it was recommended that there should be educational policies guiding the management of school resources; Government should make funds and instructional materials available to secondary schools.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Education is the process by which society through schools deliberately transmits its cultural heritage (accumulated knowledge, values and skills) from one generation to another.

Education as an instrument of change plays a very important role in both developed and developing countries of the world (Ikuemenison, 2003). Through the ages, education has been known to be the antidote to poverty and ignorance and the key for unlocking natural resources (Obaji, 2006).  This shows that the vital role of education is the transformation of the society to ensure an improved standard of living. Such crucial transformation depends mainly on the quality of instruction learners received. The learners are likely to give back what they have learnt when exposed to the world of work (Mkpa, 1989).                                                                                                                                 Therefore, if economic development in Nigeria is to be achieved and sustained, productive and sustainable education among the youths should be established and pursued vigorously.

The  Federal  Republic  of  Nigeria  in   her  National  Policy  on        Education               (2004) considers education as an instrument par excellence for affecting national development. This

National Policy on Education spelt out national educational aims and objectives as:

The inculcation of national consciousness and national unity.

The inculcation of the right type of values and attitudes for the survival of the individual and the Nigerian society.

The training of the mind in the understanding of world around and The acquisition of appropriate skills and the development of mental, physical and social abilities and competences as equipment for the individual to live in and contribute to the development of the society (Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2004: 8).

Effective implementation of the national policy therefore will enhance the success of the Nigerian educational system. Ugwu (2007) states that any policy of developing countries is viewed in terms of its contribution to national development and this does not in any way mean that all policies result in measurable and remarkable national development. Awaritefe (1988) supported this view by stating that majority of the products of Nigerian education system are not well equipped and therefore lack confidence to undertake self-employment in technical and other productive vocational careers. The above assertions mixed with the global technological advances show that there is need to take a critical look at the resources in educational system in Nigeria. This is important since the quality of instruction given to trainees depends on the quantity and quality of resources available. Osuala (1987) postulate that the indispensability of learning resources in the realization of the objectives of National Policy on Education has been emphasized in many literature.

School resources are devices, methods or experiences used for teaching purposes, including textbooks, supplementary reading materials, audio-visuals and other sensory materials used for effective teaching and learning (Onyejemezi, 1981). That is to say, school resources are those resources that enhance teaching and learning processes. They include all materials and equipment used in connection with teaching and learning.

School resources are classified into financial resources, school plant resources, personnel resources and motivational resources. Financial resources are those resources that are concerned with the planning and controlling of an organizational activities (Pandey, 1995). This shows that financial resources are concerned with decision on how to procure, expend and give account of funds provided for the implementation of the programmes of the organization. Onwurah (2004) defines school plant as the school building, the play grounds and the equipment and other material resources provided to school to facilitate teaching and learning operation. In other words school plant are material resources that facilitate effective teaching and learning in the schools. Aghenta (2000) defines personnel resources as human beings that function to aid teaching and learning including classroom teachers, subject teachers, members of administrative staff, cooks, cleaners and security personnel in the school. This implies that personnel resources are human beings that operate in the school.

Motivational resources are those phenomena which are involved in the stimulation of action towards a particular objective (Chuahan, 1988). Therefore motivational resources can be defined as those resources which energize a person to do something.

Educational management is a variety of sequential and related activities designed and carried out in order to effectively and efficiently meets the goals of teaching and learning (Nwadiani, 1998 and Adeyemi, 2004). Thus educational management is concerned with the planning and formulation of educational policies for the purpose of achieving educational goals.

Any school organization that wants to achieve its objectives should incorporate sound and effective managerial modalities for managing and utilizing its limited resources. Modalities are defined as strategies which are referred to as a general programme of action implying commitment of emphasis and resources to attain broad objectives of the organization (Inyang, 2002). Modalities can be seen as those procedures or strategies adopted for managing and organizing human and material resources to attain the goals of the organization. Modalities can be described as well planned series of action or procedures through which the available resources are managed and utilized to achieve the objectives of the organization. Such procedures include planning, organizing, co-ordinating, stimulating, evaluating, and motivation.

Management of resources is the effective and efficient use of resources in an organization in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the organization. Wikipedia (2008) defines management of resources as the efficient and effective deployment of organization’s resources when they are needed. This means that management of school resources is an intellectual demanding job of the school administrator/manager, principal and teacher therefore requires combined talent and activities of an educational management. In the management of school resources, the key players are the teachers, the principals and the government (Igboabuchi, 2007).  The principals and teachers play very important roles in the management  of  school  resources.    The  principal  should  manage  wisely  the  resources available to him to obtain the stated objectives of education.  The principal in his managerial modalities  provides  the  enabling  environment  where   teachers  operate  and                   where       the community is involved in the school affairs.  According to Egwunyenga (2002) the tasks of the   school   principal   include,    provision   of    instruction   and    Academic           leadership, responsibilities to staff, responsibility to students and financial responsibility.  The teachers represent the model before the students.       Their nature, qualifications and organizational abilities seriously affect their managerial modalities.   Igboabuchi (2007) observes that the shaping of the destines of future generations of citizens is put in their hands and this is an enormous   responsibility.   However,    it   is   pathetic   to    find    out    that   most school administrators/managers, principals and teachers do not consider it necessary to adopt proper modalities for effective management of school resources.

The researcher’s experience shows that most school resources in some secondary schools in Owerri education zone are poorly utilized for the purpose of which they were supplied. Some imported machines are found lying waste and beaten by the sun and rain where they are dumped outside for years (Agoha, 2008). Anioke (1997) also observed that in most schools, the introductory technology workshops are permanently closed down and the installation confined and left alone to rust. These installations are subjected to vandalization and theft due to non-use.

Most laboratories have been noted to be under utilized leaving the costly equipment and reagents to waste as a result of disuse, while students are constantly denied the opportunity of utilizing the resources provided by the government. As a result of wastage in resources, students pass out of schools with theoretical knowledge (half-baked knowledge) that cannot be used in the world of work (Mamah, 1999:4-5).

Dilapidated buildings, broken chairs, desks and tables, broken windows and roofs, blown off roofs and bushy surroundings and cracked walls are some common phenomena in most secondary schools in the zone. Ogbonnaya (2002) found out that most secondary schools in Abia State have dilapidated structures including broken roofs such that teachers and students do not have comfortable classroom for effective teaching and learning. Based on a close interaction between the researcher and some of the school administrators/managers, principals and teachers, it is certain that greater number of these administrators/managers, principals and teachers do not make adequate efforts to manage the existing resources due to apathy while some show concern over the deteriorating state of their school resources and the effort they have made to manage these resources. Some constraints to the management of school resources are inadequate fund, inadequate school plant, personnel related factors and lack of motivation. Inadequate fund has been the key handicap towards effective management of school resources. Odor (1995) recognized that capital resources allocation to education is low compared with the competing needs. Lack of school plant or their inadequacy constitutes a constraint to management of school resources. Ogbonnaya (2004) observed that most educational institution in Nigeria have inadequate school building, teaching aid and equipment. Personnel related factors such as lack of qualified and experienced staff hinder management of school resources. Akwam (2002) noted that lack of qualified and experienced staff hinder effective use and management of school resources. Lack of motivation hinders management of school resources. Enyi (2004) observes that people naturally hate to be ordered by their leader instead they prefer to be motivated. Based on this background, the study therefore, was undertaken to investigate the modalities for effective management of school resources in secondary schools in Owerri education zone.

Statement of the Problem

Management of school resources in secondary schools in Owerri education zone have not been looked into. To this effect, constant vandalization, wastage and disuse of educational equipment and installations, dilapidated buildings, broken chairs and tables, cracked walls, blown off roofs and bushy surroundings become some common phenomena in the secondary schools. The increasing rate of poor science and technical skill acquisition among secondary school students also tend to raise doubts in the possibility of achieving the objectives of the National Policy on Education.

Educational resources have been the indispensable tools in teaching and learning, but research efforts were not channelled toward identifying the modalities for their effective management. Although the poor management of educational resources in secondary schools are spread and quite alarming, much efforts have not been put toward the identification of the modalities for effective management of school resources. These pathetic conditions of management of school resources in secondary schools in this zone have become the major concern of school administrators, managers, principals, teachers, students and the general public. This is because if the situation is not well addressed, the school environment will become unfavourable for effective teaching and learning processes. The problem of this study, therefore was to explore the modalities for effective management of school resources in secondary schools in Owerri education zone.

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of the study was to investigate modalities for effective management of school resources in secondary schools in Owerri education zone.

Specifically, the aim of the study was to:

1. Find out ways in which funds can be effectively managed.
2. Identify modalities for effective management of school plant.
3. Investigate modalities for effective personnel management in secondary schools.
4. Determine modalities for effective staff motivation.

Significance of the Study

This study identified the modalities for effective management of school resources in secondary schools in Owerri education zone. The result of this study is of great importance to principals, teachers, government, ministry of education officials, curriculum planners, policy makers, students, all stakeholders and researchers.

The findings of the study will sensitize the principals and teachers on the need to adopt result oriented modalities towards the effective management of the existing school resources so as to ensure their maximum utilization and benefits. It will provide useful information to principals and teachers who may be ignorant in management of school resources. The knowledge and implementation of these modalities will make them competent principals and teachers.

This study will also enable government, ministry of education officials, curriculum planners, policy makers to know the modalities for effective management of school resources and device ways of improving on them. They will realize the constraints to management of school resources and organize workshops to educate newly appointed ignorant principals and teachers on how to manage their school resources.

The students will also benefit from this study. This is because they will know the advantages of using proper modalities for the management of school resources in secondary schools.

All stakeholders, the community and everybody that is associated with the school will benefit from this study. It will enable them to be aware of the modalities for effective management of school resources. This will sensitize them to participate actively in the management of school resource programmes of the school

Finally, it will serves as a poll of data for researchers whenever they are carrying out studies on effective management of school resources. This provides them direction and guideline for their study.

Scope of the Study

The study focused on the investigation of the modalities for effective management of school resources in secondary schools in Owerri education zone. The study was restricted to the content areas of investigation which include:

1. Ways in which funds can be effectively managed.
2. Modalities for effective management of school plant.
3. Modalities for effective personnel management in secondary schools.
4. Modalities for effective staff motivation.

Research Questions

The study was guided by the following research questions:

1. In what ways can funds be effectively managed in secondary schools?
2. What are the modalities for effective management of school plant in secondary schools?
3. What are the modalities for effective personnel management in secondary schools?
4. What are the modalities for effective staff motivation in secondary schools?

Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance.

1. There is no significant difference between the mean ratings of secondary school principals and secondary school teachers with regard to the ways funds can be effectively managed in secondary schools.
2. There is no significant difference between the mean ratings of secondary school principals and secondary school teachers with regard to the modalities for effective management of school plant in secondary schools.
3. There is no significant difference between the mean ratings of secondary school principals and secondary school teachers with regard to the modalities for effective management of personnel in secondary schools.
4. There is no significant difference between the mean ratings of secondary school principals and secondary school teachers with regard to the modalities for effective motivation of staff in secondary schools.

Pages:  92

Category: Project

Format:  Word & PDF        

Chapters: 1-5

Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

Abstract

The study investigated the effect of cooperative learning method on secondary school students’ achievement in French reading comprehension. The purpose of the study was to compare the cooperative learning method and the communicative language teaching method. In order to carry out the study, 3 research questions were asked and 5 hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. A quasi – experimental control group pretest – Posttest design involving four intact classes were used.  The population of the study was 1,895 Form Three students from 250 government secondary schools in North West Region Cameroon. The sample consisted of 174 Form Three students from government secondary schools selected through a multistage procedure in 4 stages including the purposive, the simple random and cluster sampling techniques. One instrument French Reading Comprehension Achievement Test (FRCAT) of 4 sections of 10 items each (total of 40 items) was used for the study. The instrument was constructed by the researcher. Three specialists validated the instrument. A reliability coefficient of 0.72 was obtained using Kudder-Richardson 20 (K-R20). The FRCAT was re -arranged, retyped and renumbered before being administered to the students to obtain the posttest scores. The results of the analysis indicated that Students taught using the cooperative learning method   achieved better in French reading comprehension than those taught using the communicative language teaching method. Students in the urban schools achieved better than those in the rural schools. Students taught French Reading Comprehension using the Cooperative Learning­­­­­ Method achieved significantly better than those taught using the Communicative Language Teaching Method. This was the same for those in the urban schools who achieved significantly better than those in the rural schools. The females achieved significantly better than the males. There was a significant interaction effect between Cooperative Learning Method and gender on students’ achievement in French Reading Comprehension; whereas there was no significant interaction effect between the Cooperative Learning Method and location on students’ achievement in French Reading Comprehension.  It is therefore recommended among others that in-service training, seminars and workshops should be organized for French language teachers and the students  sensitized  on the use of the cooperative learning method as an effective method to help in maximizing students’ achievement. Heads of institutions, such as colleges of Education, secondary  schools  and tertiary institutions should include the  cooperative learning method  as one of the methods used in teaching and learning  in their  institutions.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

          Education enables both adults and children to acquire knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that bring about behavior change.  Ivowi (2010), states that education is a basic force for the socio-economic and political transformation of any society. Quality education effects changes in the learner. However quality education is delivered by teachers who are professionally trained and one of the duties of these teachers is to use appropriate methods to teach efficiently in order to achieve educational goals. To achieve these educational goals, teachers often engage in varied forms of communication.

The use of language to achieve communication purpose in every educational system is very essential. Language is a medium of communication which helps the members of the society to communicate and interact with one another. Gray (2002) points out that language is the primary method by which people do things together. In this same direction Akudolu (2004) views language as a means through which human beings express ideas, opinions, intensions and feelings as well as establish and maintain interpersonal relationships. Anyanwu (2002) states that one characteristic of the human being and something that distinguishes him or her from other animals is the ability to use language in its most dynamic form especially speech. This is in agreement with the four main communication skills in language which are reading understanding, listening and responding.

French as a modern language is spoken, written and used like other modern languages of the world. It is used for healthy communication and diplomatic relations with Francophone countries such as Republic of Chad, Central Africa, Cameroon, Gabon, Senegal and Benin Republics. French is today the second official language of the United Nations and the European community (Orban, 2008).

Further stressing on the importance of French language, Ebi (2012) states that for Nigerians to interact effectively with French speaking countries regionally or internationally, Nigerians should be able to speak French language fluently in order to attend international workshops, seminars and conferences without language problems. In this regard, for Cameroonians to also interact with other French speaking countries in diverse domains such as the socio-economic, political and diplomatic domains without communication barriers, they should be able to understand, speak and write French language effectively.

In Cameroon, French language is one of the official languages taught at all the levels in the educational system. The language was introduced in Cameroon alongside English language. Due to political activities Cameroon was partitioned into English and French territories which were then reunited in 1961 (Ninjoh, 2014). The French and English languages were adopted as the official languages of the nation. This is clearly stated in article 1, paragraph 3 of the 1996 constitution of Cameroon as amended in 2008 as follows: “The official languages of the Republic of Cameroon shall be French and English, both languages having the same status. The state shall guarantee the promotion of bilingualism throughout the country; it shall endeavor to protect and promote national languages” (p.7).

Based on this law, Cameroon operates a bicultural educational system made up of English and French subsystems. French Language as a second official language in Cameroon is a compulsory subject taught in the English speaking regions at both the basic and secondary schools. Emphasis in the teaching and learning of this language is laid on the four skills in communication which are listening, speaking, reading and writing.  The four skills are important in the society for effective communication, they are needed and form part of the aims and objectives for studying and succeeding in French as required by the Cameroon General Certificate of Education (CGCE) Examination Board. However in this study, French reading comprehension is the skill under investigation.

Besides, French language is also offered as a course in the higher institutions of learning, as well as in Linguistic and French cultural centers in Cameroon. The Ministry of Education in Cameroon because of its importance has spelt out some of the objectives of the teaching of French at the Secondary School Level through Decision No. 030 /D/40 /MINEDUC /SG/IPG/ ESG of June 30, 1997 as follows: To

• Equip the student with both linguistic and paralinguistic means of communication in situations where French language is necessary.
• Equip the student with the ability to understand others in both spoken and written situations.
• Offer to all the students, the possibility of information choice, expression and action.
• Give the student the opportunity to acquire knowledge in diverse domains.
• diversify the network of information and training
• Equip the student for international transactions.

The teaching of French as a second official language in schools in the English speaking regions of Cameroon is done mostly by trained teachers from various Teachers Training Colleges and graduates from the Bilingual Letters of Higher Education institutions. According to Echu (2004), the teaching and learning of French at all  levels of the educational system is strictly guided by the language policy which is aimed at promoting national unity and integration among the French and English speaking citizens in both French and English speaking schools. It is on this basis that a National Bilingualism Day was instituted by Decision No 1141/B1/1464/MINEDUC/IGE/IGE/IGP/ BIL of October 28, 2002, in all the public and private schools in the country. The aim of this innovation in the educational system was to improve and reinforce the teaching and learning of the second languages.

On the part of Anglophones learning French, the main aim of Decisions No 1141/B1/1464/MINEDUC/IGE/IGE/IGP/ BIL of October 28, 2002 is that everyone who goes through the English school system in Cameroon is expected to communicate in French. In English speaking schools, French language is part of the national curriculum and the major objective stated by the Ministry of Education for the teaching of French in English speaking schools is to enable learners to acquire a mastery of the French language. Emphasis is laid on the aptitude of students to understand oral and written messages and to express themselves in writing in and out of school. To attain these objectives, the government has instituted weekly minimum and maximum teaching hours in French language, starting at level three of the primary education; a minimum of four and a maximum of eight hours per week (Ministry of National Education Cameroon MINEDUC, 2001).

Despite all the efforts made by the government to achieve the stated objectives, from personal experience and observation, a majority of students in   the secondary schools are unable to read and answer questions   appropriately in French reading comprehension. In order to attain some level of achievement in French reading comprehension which is the area under investigation, the teaching method and mode of interactions with the students during the teaching-learning processes are some of the factors that need to be looked into.

Several teaching methods are used at various levels in the teaching and learning process in Cameroon. Tambo (2003) has outlined some of the general teaching methods in Cameroon, which also include the methods in the teaching of French language as a subject. Among these French language teaching methods are the recitation, drill and practice, the lecture, the discussion, laboratory, structural and the communicative language learning methods.

The aforementioned methods are used at various levels in the teaching of French Language. For instance while  French Language is taught in primary schools using mostly the drill and practice method, secondary school teachers commonly use the communicative language teaching, the structural as well as the laboratory methods, while lecturers in tertiary institutions use the lecture, the discussion and the laboratory methods.

The conventional method currently used in the teaching of French Language in Secondary Schools in Cameroon is the communicative language teaching method. According to Ebong (2004), the method which is currently used in the teaching of French in Secondary Schools is the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) method. This conventional method of teaching French language in Cameroon was introduced in the North West Region of Cameroon on the 2^nd of February 1999, in an enlarged workshop by National Inspectors for Bilingualism. The workshop on the theme “L’approche communicative, didactique de l’enseignement du Français” was attended by a majority of French teachers of the Region.

The primary aim of communicative language method is “the development of communicative competence in the learner” (Akudolu, 2004, p68). Although this method stands out as an improvement on the previous teaching methods, it is still not seen as a solution to all the problems of French Language teaching in Cameroon. According to Schaetzel and Ho (2003), difficulties in the use of the communicative language teaching method include large size classes, poor classroom design and reluctant students. Another impediment is that teachers do not often fully integrate the literature of communicative language teaching in their day to day language teaching and learning process.

This might be as a result of the teachers’ inability to apply the principles of communicative language teaching to instruction. Akudolu (1997) observes that teachers’ lack of competence in the principles of communicative method is the greatest problem facing the adoption of this method to French language teaching. There is also the problem of the clashing requirements of both the teaching and examination syllabus and the lack of a morally supportive work context which does not give teachers the time or freedom to create, initiate and motivate students towards learning French as a foreign Language (FFL) for communication (Beale, 2000).

The communicative language teaching method because of these limitations   has like other teaching methods failed to promote the teaching of various aspects of French language including French reading comprehension. According to Kibett (2002), good teaching methods should provide the learners with information to be used now or in future as well as guide learners to tackle their problems.  This therefore calls for the introduction of a viable method that could promote the teaching and learning of all aspects of French language thus leading to good performance and better achievement of the students. The cooperative learning method can be tried in this regard.

Cooperative learning is an instructional method in which students of different ability levels are put in small groups constituting learning teams in which each group member not only learns but also helps other members to learn as the group engages in various learning activities. Slavin (2011) presents cooperative learning as an instructional method in which teachers organize students in small groups, who then work together to help one another learn academic contents.  It enables students of various ability   levels to work on an academic task in groups with the spirit of team and individual success; Cooperative Learning (C L) is a method that is learner centered.

This method is interactive in nature and this not only enables the learners to take a more active role in the learning process, take responsibility for their work, become highly effective and develop cognitive skills, but also provides enjoyment to the learner (Dembo, 1994). In Cooperative Learning (CL) method, students are organized in small teams of three to five members. Each team member, from the fastest to the slowest learner, has a contribution to make (Sapon-Shevin & Schriedewind ,1990; Slavin, 2010).  In other words using the cooperative learning method as a teaching method gives students the opportunity to tutor one another and consequently acquire greater mastery of the material than in the common individual learning situation.

The learners in this method are engaged in socially based, positive interaction and the acquisition of interdependent learning skills. According to Liao (2009) and Pattanpichet (2011), Cooperative learning is of great effect in developing students’ speaking skills and also improving students’ attitudes towards learning.

Cooperative learning (CL) consists of five basic elements: Positive interdependence, promotive interaction, individual accountability, teaching of interpersonal and social skills, and group processing (Johnson & Johnson, 2009). According to Sharan (2010), teachers can get into the habit of relying on cooperative learning as a way to keep students busy.

Ning (2011) suggested that with the integration of the six key elements of Cooperative Learning (positive interdependence, individual accountability, promotive interaction, equal participation, equal opportunity for success, and group processing), the students’ communicative competence would be developed. Fostering a supportive learning atmosphere, providing more opportunities for authentic peer interaction, and generating meaningful language input and output in a cooperative teaching/learning team are conducive to improvement in social and communicative skills in both male and female learners.

One of the key variables which is important to this study is Gender. Gender is of course a classifying principle in society and culture. Okeke (2011) states that gender is a broad analytical concept which draws out women’s roles and responsibilities in relation to those of men.  Offorma (2004) observes that gender and sex are not synonymous rather; sex is an inborn physiological condition that makes individuals to be either males or females. Gender also refers to the socially culturally constructed characteristics and roles, which are ascribed to male and female. In other words the constructed characteristics are not inbuilt but learned. Lee (2001) opined that gender is ascribed social attribute that differentiates feminine from masculine. A number of studies have shown differences in students’ performance on the basis of gender. Umo (2001) reported that females performed better than males in Igbo grammar. In the same vein Omeje (2004) found that male students achieved higher than their female counterparts in Igbo letter writing.

Finally, considering the diverse nature of students in Secondary schools and based on the contentious issues of performance and achievement between male and female students especially in language learning, it is worth hypothesizing that male and female students may react differently to their exposure to various methods of teaching and learning.   In England, research findings showed that a difference occurred in mean overall performance scores between boys and girls at both the Junior Certificate Examination (J.C.E) and the Leaving Certificate examination (LCE). At both examination stages, proportionally more boys achieved lower overall performance scores than girls and there is a ‘tendency for boys to be over-represented in the group of students receiving low grades’ (Millar & Kelly 1999). Thus ‘boys clearly underachieve more often than girls’ (Millar, Farrell & Kellaghan 1998). The cause of this is “Moral panic” and lack of opportunities by boys to do well (Pyke, 1996).     Critics have suggested that the legacy of equal opportunities policies to enhance equality of access and resources has benefited girls more than boys. The revolution of girls’ education, set in motion by equal opportunities policies, has been seen to be responsible for the demoralization of boys (Francis, 2000; Judd, 1994). As a result of these and other gender related issues, gender is a variable to be considered in this study.

Similarly, location is another key variable which may affect students’ achievement. The geographical location of a school; urban or rural, has a role to play in students’ achievement. Bodunde (2010) reported that location is a significant factor in students’ achievement in oral English while Adigun and Yusuf (2010) showed that location had no influence on students’ achievement.  Students’ achievement in an urban area may not be the same as those of the students in the rural area. On school location, Bratte (2000) found out that students in urban schools are academically better than their counterparts in rural schools because urban schools have more infrastructural facilities required by students such as books and other learning materials. Some parents in the urban are also able to employ private teachers for their children at home after school hours.

In the same vein Onoyase (2015) maintained that, the reason why urban students perform better in academics than the rural students is because, urban schools attract some amenities like pipe borne water, electricity, good roads and other instructional facilities. Rural schools often lack good educational facilities for effective teaching and learning. This is in line with Mofon (2001) who stressed that many rural schools are in terrible state of despair and they lack basic learning facilities. The poor environment and poor facilities contribute immensely to poor teaching and poor academic performance and the researcher wonders whether the situation would be different when students are taught with Cooperative Learning Method (CLM). Thus, location is a variable in this study. It is therefore against the above background that this study set out to investigate the effect of Cooperative Learning Method on secondary school students’ achievement in French Reading Comprehension in the North West Region of Cameroon, taking into consideration gender and location as the only moderating variables.

Statement of the Problem

Reading comprehension in French language constitutes one of the basic language skills. It is one of the most successful means of acquiring knowledge through the reading of a written text. However from personal experience and observation, the researcher notes that a majority of the English speaking students during their secondary school studies and even after leaving school are unable to read, understand and answer questions from a comprehension passage in French language. When they are given a reading passage that is within their level of understanding, they read the passage with difficulty and in the end are not able to answer comprehension questions on the read passage. This indicates that these students have poor reading skills which give rise to poor comprehension and this negatively affects the students’ ability to be proficient in both oral and written aspects of the language. In this regard, Udosen (2009) affirms from his research findings that students with poor reading skills often achieve below expectations in their academic endeavours. This is because poor reading skills manifest in poor comprehension and this negatively affects the students’ ability to use the language or to achieve high performance in the language.

The problem of the intricacies in reading comprehension experienced by English speaking students studying French language may be as a result of teaching method adopted by the French teachers. The method of teaching various aspects of French language such as grammar, translation, reading comprehension and essay writing according to  Nkwelle, Yongabi and Fomekong (2010)  is inadequate and the teachers lack basic training in the teaching of French as a second or foreign language. This is why to them the situation needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency.

Despite the merits of the Communicative Language Teaching Method which is used in language instruction in secondary schools in Cameroon, it appears there has been no significant improvement in students’ achievement in French reading comprehension. However, considering the characteristics and merits of the Cooperative Learning Method which are well documented in literature, one wonders the extent to which this method can help in solving the problem of students’ low achievement in French language reading comprehension. This question presents the problem that necessitated the present study.

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to find out the effect of the cooperative learning method on secondary school students’ achievement in French reading comprehension in the North West Region Cameroon. Specifically, the study sought to:

1. Determine the mean achievement scores of students taught French Reading Comprehension using the cooperative learning method and those taught French Reading Comprehension using the communicative language teaching method.
2. Find out the mean achievement scores of students in French Reading Comprehension in the rural area and those in the urban area using the cooperative learning method.
3. Find out the mean achievement scores of male and female students in French reading comprehension using the cooperative learning method.
4. Determine the interaction effect of the Cooperative Learning Method and gender on students’ achievement in French Reading comprehension.
5. Determine the interaction effect of the Cooperative Learning Method and location on students’ achievement in French Reading comprehension.

 Significance of the Study

This study shall be useful to students, teachers, school administrators, publishers and writers of French textbooks, teacher educators, curriculum planners, Education Boards, the Ministry of Education as well as future researchers. The findings of this study will provide a relief for teachers by empirically providing a teaching method that would enhance students’ achievement in French Reading Comprehension and French as a whole.

If the findings of this study show the efficacy of cooperative learning method (CLM) in enhancing students’ performance in French Reading Comprehension (FRC), this will encourage teachers to use this method in teaching French and the teachers use of this method will create in the students team learning spirit and it will also increase their interest in learning French as the cooperative learning method is also learner-centered. Students using this instructional method will be able to tackle French Reading Comprehension with ease by using the principles of the cooperative learning method appropriately.

If the findings of this study indicate the superiority of CLM in enhancing students’ achievement in FRC, French teachers and teacher educators will be encouraged to acquaint themselves with the cooperative learning method and they will use it in classroom practices for the teaching and learning of French Reading Comprehension. Meanwhile Pedagogic Inspectors will also ensure adequate use of this method in the teaching and learning process through routine inspections in classrooms for improved students’ performance.

The findings of this study will provide information on the cooperative   learning method to school administrators. These administrators will propose how the school time tables could accommodate the CLM and encourage teachers to use it during French lessons for a better achievement of the learning goals.  The findings of this study will also create awareness for French textbook writers to plan the content of French textbooks based on some of the exigencies of the cooperative learning method such as teamwork activities for areas like Reading Comprehension.

The findings will provide Teacher Training Colleges (TTC), and the faculties of education of higher learning with vital information on the cooperative learning method that will facilitate its implementation in classroom practices. The results of this study will provide useful information to the Ministry of Education (MOE) on the cooperative learning method and may make the MOE to request the implementation of this method in the teacher training colleges and its use in classrooms. The curriculum planners would be encouraged to plan on how it could be inserted on the national curriculum. The examination board authorities will further organize examinations taking in consideration the exigencies of the cooperative learning method.

Theoretically the study is significant in the sense that it will make available theories   on the construction of knowledge, social cohesion and the cognitive theory to add to the existing ones. This will help researchers in their further researches on language learning method. The findings of this study will also put together literature on basic language skills, reading comprehension, methods of language teaching and learning, achievement, location, gender and on the cooperative learning method.  The findings will also provide empirical information to readers and researchers on the cooperative learning method and students’ achievement in academic disciplines especially in the area of French Reading Comprehension.

Scope of the Study

The focus of this study is on the effect of the Cooperative Learning Method on French Reading Comprehension achievement of Form Three students in North West Region of Cameroon. The study is delimited to the following topics in French Language Reading Comprehension as presented in Le Réseau du Français3. A new Secondary French Course for Cameroon.

1. La fête nationale (Expressing words and expressions referring to a feast)

Identifier et parler des différentes fêtes

2. Téléphonons à maman (Expressing modern medium  of communication)

Téléphoner et réagir aux méssages téléphoniques.

3. Une lettre à Emeka Daniel (Expressing ones thoughts through letter writing)

Exprimer sa pensée à une personne par une lettre écrite.

4. Je suis en forme (words and expressions referring to health)

Parler de la santé.

The study is further delimited to teaching methods such as the cooperative method; using strategies such as the Jigsaw, Number Heads Together, Think-Pair-Share and the Carousel Cooperative Learning Strategies and the Communicative Language Teaching Method and their effects on students’ achievement  in language teaching and learning, gender and location as variables and their interaction effects  with Cooperative Learning Method on students’ achievement in French Reading Comprehension, also formed part of the study and some selected Government Secondary Schools in the North West Region of Cameroon.  

Research Questions

The following research questions guided the study:

1. What are the mean achievement scores of students taught French Reading Comprehension using the Cooperative Learning Method and those taught French Reading Comprehension using the Communicative Language Teaching Method?
2. What are the mean achievement scores of rural and urban located secondary school students in French Reading Comprehension, taught using the Cooperative Learning Method?
3. What are the mean achievement scores of the male and female students taught French Reading Comprehension using the Cooperative Learning Method?

Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses formulated were tested at 0.05 level of significance.

HO₁   There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of         students taught French Reading Comprehension using the Cooperative Learning­­­­­ Method and those of students taught French Reading comprehension using the Communicative Language Teaching Method.

HO₂   There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of students in rural and urban secondary schools taught French Reading Comprehension using   the Cooperative Learning Method.

HO₃   There is no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of male and female students taught French Reading Comprehension using the Cooperative Learning method.

HO₄   There is no significant interaction effect of the Cooperative Learning Method and gender on students’ achievement in French Reading Comprehension.

HO₅   There is no significant interaction effect of the Cooperative Learning Method and location on students’ achievement in French Reading Comprehension.

Pages:  222

Category: Project

Format:  Word & PDF        

Chapters: 1-5

Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.