THE EFFECTS OF POVERTY ON STUDENT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 THE STUDY’S BACKGROUND
The unfortunate reality is that the income gap between Nigerian families has widened over the last few decades. Family income has a significant impact on educational outcomes. Children from low-income families frequently start school later than their more affluent peers.
Poverty incidence, depth, duration, and timing all have an impact on a child’s educational performance, as do community characteristics and social networks (Evan, 2004). However, both Nigerian and international organizations have demonstrated that the effects of poverty can be mitigated through long-term interventions.
Meanwhile, even in developed countries, poverty is a persistent reality. According to Harris (2006), the complex web of social relationships that students have with their peers, adults at school, and family members has a much greater impact on their academic performance.
This process begins with the student’s core relationship with their parents or primary caregivers, which shapes a personality that is either secure and attached or insecure and unattached. Children who are securely attached perform better in school (Bali, Granger, Kivlighan, Mills-Koonce, Willongby & Greeberg, 2008). Once in school, the dual factors of socialization and social status have a significant impact on academic achievement.
The school socialization process typically pressures students to be like their peers or risk social rejection, whereas the pursuit of high social status drives students to attempt to differentiate themselves in some areas, such as socioeconomic status. Children raised in poverty rarely choose to behave differently, but they face daily challenges that affluent children do not, and their brains have adapted to suboptimal conditions in ways that undermine good school performance.
Poverty has a long history with many interpretations; these conditions are influenced by a variety of factors such as resources, contemporary standards, and public perceptions of what is minimally acceptable (Evans, 2004).
Emotional trauma is one of the social issues that poor students face. The emotional climate is frequently stressful and emotionally draining. Feelings of alienation, inadequacy, depression, and anxiety can result from a lack of emotional nurturing. Aggressive or impulsive behavior, as well as social withdrawal, can occur, affecting academic performance. The overall goal of this study, however, is to provide insight into the impact of poverty on student academic performance.
1.2 THE PROBLEM’S STATEMENT
Strong, secure relationships free of poverty and lack help children emotionally stabilize and provide the core guidance needed to develop lifelong social skills. Children raised in such homes develop healthy, appropriate emotional responses to everyday situations. However, children raised in low-income households frequently fail to learn these responses, which negatively impacts their academic performance.
Students with emotional instability, for example, may become so easily frustrated that they abandon a task when success was just moments away. Social dysfunction can impair students’ ability to work well in cooperative groups, potentially leading to exclusion by group members who believe they aren’t “doing their part” or “pulling their fair share of the load.”
This exclusion, as well as the resulting decrease in collaboration and information exchange, exacerbates at-risk students’ already shaky academic performance. The researcher, on the other hand, is looking into the effects of poverty on the academic performance of students at Gushegu Midwivery College.
1.3 THE STUDY’S OBJECTIVES
The following are the study’s objectives:
1. To investigate the effects of poverty on the academic performance of Gushegu Midwivery College students.
2. To identify other factors influencing the academic performance of Gushegu Midwivery College students.
3. To identify the factors that contribute to poverty in society.
1.4 QUESTIONS FOR RESEARCH
1. How does poverty affect the academic performance of students at Gushegu Midwivery College?
2. What other factors influence the academic performance of Gushegu Midwivery College students?
3. What are the social factors that contribute to poverty?
1.5 HYPOTHESIS
HO: There is no significant relationship between poverty and academic performance in students.
HA: There is a significant relationship between poverty and academic performance in students.
1.6 THE STUDY’S SIGNIFICANCE
The following are the study’s implications:
1. The findings of this study will educate the general public about the effects of poverty on student performance.
2. This study will contribute to the body of literature on the effect of personality traits on student academic performance, forming the empirical literature for future research in the field.
1.7 STUDY SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS
This research will look at poverty and its impact on the performance of students at Gushegu Midwifery College.
STUDY LIMITATIONS
Financial constraint- Inadequate funding tends to impede the researcher’s efficiency in locating relevant materials, literature, or information, as well as in the data collection process (internet, questionnaire and interview).
Time constraint- The researcher will conduct this study alongside other academic work. As a result, the amount of time spent on research will be reduced.
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