MOTIVATIONAL STRATEGIES AND SS3 STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN GEOGRAPHY
Abstract
Motivational techniques and students’ academic achievement in geography among SS 3 pupils at Dutse Senior Secondary School in Jigawa state were investigated in this study. The study’s overall population is 200 staff members from Jigawa state’s selected secondary schools.
The researcher collected data using questionnaires as the instrument. This study used a descriptive survey research approach. The survey included 133 respondents who were principals, teachers, senior staff, and senior staff men. The acquired data was organized into tables and evaluated using simple percentages and frequencies.
chapter One
Introduction
The study’s context
Education is a fundamental human right, and providing education to a country’s population is the key to long-term prosperity, peace, and stability within and between countries. In the discipline of geography teaching and learning, the learning environment and teachers’ motivation for knowledge acquisition require relatively more attention.
What transpires in the classroom between teachers’ psychological implications on their motivation and students’ capacity to study well has an impact on students’ ability to learn. The activities in the classroom, the recurrent behaviors in which students and teachers participate while they learn, are significant because they comprise the knowledge produced.
The availability of teaching/learning materials and the motivation of teachers improves school effectiveness because these are basic factors that might lead to strong academic performance in pupils. The educational endeavor that will be beneficial in generating the necessary human resources is not given much emphasis. Low-quality geography education, in particular, is an essential issue that must be addressed.
According to Maicibi (2003), all institutions or organizations are comprised of human beings (workers) and other non-human resources. He goes on to say that when the correct amount and quality of human resources are brought together, they can influence other resources to achieve institutional aims and objectives. As a result, every organization should endeavor to attract and retain the best human resources.
The upshot of these views is that highly-trained and motivated geography teachers, if properly deployed in secondary schools, will produce well-rounded students who will perform academically well in geography. Most teachers are trained and have clear goals to guide their instruction, yet good teacher motivation and teaching/learning materials appear to be insufficient. As a result, there has been a public outcry regarding low secondary school geography results.
Geography is a compulsory subject in Nigeria up to the secondary school level. Performance in Geography in National Examinations has declined dramatically in recent years, which has been a major source of concern for society. The West African Examination Council has maintained its concern over the poor performance in the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination.
As a result of a lack of motivation and incentives, many teachers have left public school teaching for greener pastures in higher-paying private schools. Most public school students face disadvantages since their classes are overcrowded and they lack proper learning resources. In some cases, they lack sufficient textbooks and laboratory equipment. As a result, pupils may lose hope in their academic performance.
This is in stark contrast to private schools, where there are adequate facilities and teachers are willing to go the extra mile to ensure that the students perform well in examinations. However, the willingness to go the extra mile to ensure good student performance may be frustrated when there is motivation and encouragement on the teachers’ side.
Although it is thought that the reward for teachers is in heaven, there is no doubt that if teachers are not motivated in terms of incentives and creativity, their morale will suffer, which will have a detrimental impact on student achievement in geography. Because the few teachers on the government payroll are underpaid, the majority of them work part-time or run their own businesses to make ends meet.
This significantly diminishes their dedication to geography education (which demands for sacrifice). However, a lack of motivation for instructors may have an impact on their dedication to their teaching task. Poor student performance in geography may also be a result of professors who are not dedicated to their duties, which may have an impact on student academic goal setting, affecting individuals who have set lower goals for themselves.
1.2 THE PROBLEM’S STATEMENT
Globally, pupils’ academic performance in geography has been dismal due to certain motivational problems.
Internal and external factors influencing student motivation
The inability of a teacher to motivate his or her students sufficiently in the classroom, as well as the problems that arise as a result of a student’s lack of motivation.
1.3 THE STUDY’S OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study is to investigate students’ motivational methods and academic performance in geography among SS 3 pupils.
The precise goals are to
Investigate the significance of motivation in classroom learning.
Describe the aspects that influence a student’s motivation.
Provide ideas for teachers to boost student motivation.
Determine the impact of motivational tactics on student academic achievement in geography.
HYPOTHESES FOR RESEARCH
The researcher developed the following research hypotheses in order to successfully complete the study:
H0: Motivational tactics have little effect on student academic achievement in geography.
H1: Motivational techniques have an effect on student academic achievement in geography.
H02: There are no strategies available to teachers to increase student motivation.
H2: There are ways that teachers can use to increase student motivation.
THE STUDY’S IMPORTANCE
The following are the study’s implications:
It contributed to the understanding of the impacts of motivation on students’ academic performance in geography.
It highlighted how far the application of motivation has improved geography teaching and learning.
It explains how motivation can increase the quality of schooling.
It also provided potential answers to the obstacles and problems that teachers encounter in motivating their students.
THE STUDY’S SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS
The study’s scope includes motivational tactics and students’ academic achievement in geography among SS 3 students at Dutse Senior Secondary School in Jigawa state. The researcher comes upon a constraint that limits the scope of the investigation;
a) RESEARCH MATERIAL AVAILABILITY: The researcher’s research material is insufficient, restricting the scope of the investigation.
b) TIME: The study’s time frame does not allow for broader coverage because the researcher must balance other academic activities and examinations with the study.
1.7 TERM DEFINITION
MOTIVATION: The sense of desire or aversion is referred to as motivation. As a result, motivation has both an objective and an internal or subjective component.
STRATEGY: A strategy (from the Greek strategia, “art of troop leader; office of general, command, and generalship) is a high-level plan to achieve one or more goals under uncertain conditions.
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MOTIVATIONAL STRATEGIES AND SS3 STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN GEOGRAPHY