THE EFFECTS OF SCHOOL FACTORS ON STUDENT PERFORMANCE IN AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN IDO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, IBADAN
ABSTRACT
The study’s focus is on the influence of school factors on junior secondary school student performance. Agricultural science in Ibadan’s Ido Local Government Area. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of school factors on student performance in junior secondary schools. Agricultural science in Ido Local Government Area, Ibadan, was compared to high performing schools in the same area.
A descriptive survey research method was used to conduct the study. The study focused on the Ido Local Government Area. The study’s population consists of 5000 students and 67 teachers from secondary schools in the Ido Local Government Area. The study’s basic size was (133) respondents. The data for the study was gathered from primary sources via questionnaires, and it was analyzed using basic percentages.
This investigation yielded the following results: Class size has a significant impact on student success in agricultural science. the same as the learning environment Recommendation of the findings: It was suggested, among other things, that there is a need to improve parents’ “attitude, enhance teacher monitoring.” Construction of a decent school building for adequate government study, resulting in good student achievement.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 The Study’s Background
Without a question, education is the key to economic and technical growth, as well as a means of reducing poverty and improving people’s lifestyles. In acknowledgement of this, the federal government of Nigeria has outlined how education might be used to bring about the essential transformation in its national policies on education in 1977, 1981, 1998 (and updated in 2004).
Secondary schools, as the foundation of the educational system, are supposed to generate graduates who can hold high and sensitive positions in order for the desired goals to be accomplished. Unfortunately, the products of this learning fortress can no longer compete favorably with their counterparts from other regions of the world. The rationale behind this is not implausible.
It is obvious that educational quality has declined. To illustrate this point, (Esu in Mba 2018) stated that there is a near national outcry against the low quality of education in Nigeria, particularly in the Ido local government region. In addition, it is noted that some students’ scripts in external exams such as junior WAEC were unreadable and far beyond comprehension because some students find it difficult to take notes during teacher and many are unable to have a firm grasp of material taught even after repeated explanations by the teacher.
Education is the key to development since it has the ability to improve both teaching effectiveness and learner efficiency. School officials have taken efforts to improve the performance of public secondary school students. Classrooms, libraries, technical workshops, labs, teachers’ quality, school management, instructional methods, classmates, and so on are all aspects that influence students’ academic progress (Ajayi, and Oluchukwu, in Mba 2018). As a result, the school environment continues to be an important area that must be investigated and carefully handled in order to improve kids’ academic performance.
Academic performance, according to Jam (2009), is the ability to learn and recall things, as well as the ability to transmit your knowledge vocally or on paper. In other words, academic performance relates to how students manage their studies and cope with or complete the duties assigned to them by their teachers. Academic performance mainly refers to a student’s ability to complete tasks or studies. A variety of factors influence the degree and quality of pupils’ academic performance. Scottk (2002)
According to Hussain (2006), secondary school students in public schools frequently come from low-income and middle-income families. These families are dealing with a variety of issues that are causing emotional distress in their children. This unique element has severely harmed secondary school pupils’ achievement level.
Achievement is a pedagogical phrase that is used to determine learners’ progress in formal education and is measured by reports, examinations, research, and ratings with a variety of variables exerting effect. Essentially, the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s National Policy on Education (Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2004) has determined school accomplishment contents based on school topics categorised as core or elective.
Despite several research on the causal and predictive impact of study habit elements on students’ academic progress. All elements or variables tend to focus on bad study habits, while the impacts on the nation’s educational progress have yet to be fully realized.
The issue of poor academic performance among Nigerian children has piqued the interest of the government, parents, instructors, and even students themselves. The quality of education is determined not only by the instructors’ execution of their tasks, but also by the successful coordination of the school environment (Ajao 2001). The topic of poor academic achievement among Nigerian pupils has piqued the interest of many.
The problem is so severe that it has resulted in a generally acknowledged deterioration in the caliber of education in Delta State and throughout Nigeria. The quality of education is determined by the instructors’ execution of their jobs. Over time, students’ academic achievement in both internal and external assessments was utilized to determine instructor and teaching excellence (Ajao 2001).
Teachers have been found to have a significant impact on students’ academic progress, as well as a critical role in educational attainment, because the teacher is ultimately accountable for turning policy into action and principles based on practice during interactions with students (Afe 2001).
Teachers are responsible for both teaching and learning, which is why an effective teacher has been defined as one who achieves the intended results while doing his or her duties as a teacher (Uchefuna 2001). Despite governments’ large investments in public education, its output in terms of student quality has been found to be unequal to government expenditure.
There are numerous aspects in Nigeria that influence students’ capacity to build productive and efficient study habits. Ozmert (2005) stressed the significance of environmental influence in the development of students’ studying habits. In the same spirit, Adetunji and Oladeji (2007) argue that most children’s environments are not conducive to learning; it is in light of this that some parents want their children to attend boarding school for good discipline and to instill a better reading habit.
The quality of education accessible to inhabitants determines the development of any nation or society. It is widely assumed that the foundation for any meaningful progress must begin with the development of human resources. As a result, in any community, formal education remains the vehicle for socioeconomic progress and social mobilization.
Secondary education serves as the foundation for subsequent education. Secondary education serves two (2) primary functions. The first goal is to create a literate and numerate populace capable of dealing with difficulties at home and at work. It also provides as a foundation for subsequent education (Akanle, 2013).
Secondary school students’ academic performance has been declining in both internal and external examinations. Okeye (2009) describes poor academic performance of an individual or candidate in a learning scenario as failing to meet a predetermined standard of performance in a specific evaluation exercise such as a test, examination, or series of continuous assessments.
Typically, that standard is based on a set of objectives and other educational activities. A candidate who scores less than or below the standard is considered to have poor academic achievement in school. Some blame kids, others blame the government, and still others blame teachers.
As a result, Nwana (2010) noted that one may hear older parents, retired public workers, and individuals claim that today’s school leavers are unable to speak proper and fluent English, cannot answer simple math problems, and do not know their basic time tables.
Teachers, students, parents, and the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology are all contributing to the significant rise in low academic performance in schools today. Teachers, for example, believe that the following factors contribute to poor performance: poor attendance at lessons, bad teaching methods, teacher workload, emotional difficulties, study habits, teacher consultation, poor interpersonal relationships, self-esteem, and motivation orientation.
While students view low motivation, student effort, abilities and qualities, and role perception as causes of poor performance. Parents attributed poor performance to low income, illiteracy, nutrition kind of discipline at home, lack of role model, finance, poor parenting, and inadequate instruction. Finally, the ministry of education believes that the following factors contribute to bad performance:
teachers’ attitudes toward their jobs, poor teaching methods, poor attendance at lessons, poor performance, failure to provide assistance and counseling to pupils, and poor management. This became a source of concern for the researcher, prompting him to conduct research on school factors influencing poor academic performance in agricultural science among junior secondary students in the Ido local government region.
According to Aremu (2003), poor academic performance is defined as performance that is judged by the examiner/tester and others to be below an expected standard. Poor academic performance in school subjects, particularly mathematics and English language, has been documented among primary school students (Adesemowo, 2005). According to Aremu (2000), academic failure is not only frustrating for students and parents, but it also has serious consequences for society in terms of a lack of people in all sectors of the economy and politics.
Junior secondary school education is considered to provide the base and foundation for greater knowledge in university schools. It is both an investment and a tool that can be utilized to accelerate the country’s economic, social, political, technical, scientific, and cultural development.
According to the National Policy on Education (2004), primary education is a tool for national development that promotes the worth and development of the individual for further education and development, the general development of society, and the equality of educational opportunities for all Nigerian children, regardless of real or marginal disabilities.
Primary education’s function is to lay the groundwork for later education, and if a sound foundation is laid at this level, there should be no problems at subsequent levels. However, at various times, different people have assigned blame for poor primary school performance to students due to low retention, parental circumstances, association with the wrong peers, low achievement, low retention, and other variables (Aremu & Sokan, 2003; Aremu & Oluwole 2001; Aremu, 2000).
Morakinyo (2009) believes that the declining level of academic achievement is due to teachers’ failure to apply the verbal reinforcement approach. Others discovered that certain instructors’ attitudes toward their jobs are reflected in their poor attendance to lessons, tardiness to school, nasty comments about students’ performance that could hurt their ego, poor teaching methods, and the like, which impair students’ academic achievement.
In terms of the responsibilities that individuals are expected to play in the current modernization process, the content of Nigeria education must represent the past, present, and future of the dynamic Nigeria society.
The formal education system in Nigeria is the organized and structured component of education that occurs within the four walls of the school. It should be observed, however, that all focus in government budgetary allocation and general planning is normally centered on formal education. As a result, discussing Nigeria’s educational system is nearly identical with discussing the formal educational system.
As previously stated, the formal education system is made up of interconnected subsystems or levels. The major stages of education in Nigeria are primary, secondary (post primary), and tertiary (post secondary) (Mkpa:2012). Since the commencement of formal education in Nigeria, numerous conferences and seminars have been organized, and commissions have been formed to discuss critical issues in the Nigeria educational system.
The National Curriculum Conference in 1969, which reviewed old and identified new national goals for Nigeria’s educational system, and the 1973 seminar of distinguished educational experts and representatives from all segments of society, chaired by Chief S.O. Adebo, which renewed the 1969 paper and made additional recommendations, were both significant.
In addition to the several other proposals in this regard, recommendation number 8 addressed the purposes of primary education. “Specifically, the elementary school Curriculum must aim for functional permanent literacy to assure better producers and consumers of things,” it says. It should provide a solid foundation for scientific and reflective thinking; instill citizenship education and the development of a sound moral character and attitude; assist individuals in adapting and adjusting to changing society;
provide physical, emotional, and intellectual growth; enhance an individual’s sense of will power, creativity, and innovativeness; and enable them to communicate freely and effectively through mechanical vocational and manipulative skills and competencies (Fafunwa, 1974:233)
This remark, on the other hand, is the first step toward reorienting elementary education in Nigeria toward a more acceptable goal, and away from producing just church teachers and interpreters. It sparked a study of the factors at school that contribute to poor academic performance in agricultural science among junior secondary students in the Ido local government region.
1.2 Problem description
Many graduates from Ido Local Government secondary schools were intellectually sound and able to excel in various aspects of life a few years ago, contributing greatly to the nation’s progress.
The performance of children in secondary school has recently deteriorated dramatically, causing concern among all education stakeholders in Ido Local Government Area. Our educational system’s graduates can no longer compete with graduates from other regions of the world. The increasing nature of low academic performance of secondary school pupils, particularly in external tests such as junior WAEC, tends to transfer the responsibility to the teaching methods used by instructors and the government’s lack of funds to offer quality textbooks. However, these may not be the primary reasons why students perform poorly in exams because significant study evidence has yet to be gathered to indicate that it is a key component in why students fail. Stressing the significance of the classroom and learning environment on students’ academic performance.
Academic performance of secondary school students has recently gained a lot of attention in the Nigerian educational system. It is critical to recognize that the so-called academic achievement of primary school students is a Canker worm that has eaten deep into the fabric of our primary schools today.
However, in such an environment, tenacity, conflict, and anarchy set the tone of relationships between students and teachers for smooth and effective school management. Poor academic performance has been a major issue not only in schools but also in the dynamic Nigerian society.
Secondary schools in Ido Local Government have been affected by the issue, which is largely reflected in the common WAEC results. Despite millions of Naira being pushed into education in Nigeria in general and in Oyo State in particular, the issue of poor educational achievement has persisted.
So, what is the school element responsible for kids’ falling standards and poor academic achievement in secondary school? Is it solely the fault of the teacher’s instructional material, the pupils, or both? Is it true that today’s kids are underachievers because they lack an intelligence quotient and a good neutral mechanism for acting purposefully, thinking rationally, and dealing well with academic tasks?
Is it because teachers aren’t putting in as much effort as they used to? Or is it in the way teachers educate and engage with students? Is low student performance caused by parental neglect, separation, and poverty? This prompted the researchers to conduct this study in order to identify the school elements influencing secondary school students’ academic performance in Ido Local Government.
1.3 The study’s purpose
This study investigates the influence of school characteristics on student performance in agricultural science in junior secondary schools in Ido Local Government Area, Ibadan.
The following are the study’s particular objectives:
To ascertain the effect of class size on student academic achievement.
To investigate the impact of instructional material availability on student academic achievement.
To assess the impact of the learning environment on student academic achievement.
1.4 Importance of the Research
Students, researchers, scholars, educationists, parents, educators, and school administrators will find this study beneficial for future research. It is believed that this study would provide information for parents, educators, and school officials to consider numerous elements that aid kids in meeting their academic objectives. In doing so, they can look into the possibilities of incorporating those elements into their school, which could lead to improved educational outcomes for kids.
This study provides a good reference for other schools to reflect on the school environment as it affects secondary school students’ academic achievement. It will be used as a resource for people who desire to conduct study in a relevant topic.
The knowledge acquired from this study will allow future school administrators, examiners, authors, and students to understand numerous reasons why pupils perform badly academically and develop strategies to solve the problems.
This research will aid in determining the role that school environment elements play in students’ poor academic performance in government at senior secondary school in the Ido local government area. It will also aid in determining educational administration flaws that contributed to students’ poor performance in Ido local government.
This study gives further light on the causal relationship between the variables under inquiry (school environment, home, teacher, educational administration, and student related variables) and student accomplishment. The study’s findings are expected to assist all stakeholders in the district, particularly those involved in basic education, in developing appropriate strategies to improve performance. Additionally, the study will be useful to secondary schools in the Ido local government area in analyzing the causes of poor performance in both internal and external examinations.
Finally, the importance of this study is to combat the factors that impede secondary students’ academic performance in government in Oyo state, with a particular focus on Ido local government.
1.5 Research Issue
The study will be guided by the following research question:
To what extent does class size effect student academic achievement in Agricultural Science Junior Secondary Schools in Ido Local Government, Ibadan?
To what extent does the availability of instructional resources effect student academic achievement in Ido Local Government Area Junior Secondary Schools Agricultural Science?
How much influence does the learning environment have on student academic performance?
1.6 Hypothesis of Research
The hypotheses listed below were developed and tested.
1st Hypothesis
H0: There is no association between classroom size and academic performance in secondary school.
H1: There is a link between classroom size and academic success in secondary school.
2nd Hypothesis
H0: There is no substantial relationship between the learning environment and secondary school pupils’ academic achievement in the Ido Local Government Area.
H1: The learning environment has a major impact on the academic achievement of junior secondary school students in the Ido Local Government Area.
1.7 Study scope/limitations
The research will focus on the effects of school factors on students’ performance in government in junior secondary school in Ido Local Government.
There are numerous students in this local government with over 40 secondary schools, but three (3) were chosen for this study: Apata Grammar School, Logudu Apata, Leo Community High School Elere, Apata Ibadan, and St Michaels Grammar School, Owode, Apata Ibadan. Each school has roughly 1000 students, however 10% will be drawn from each school’s population.
The reason for focusing this study in three secondary schools was due to high poor performance in agricultural science as a subject that is more pronounced without reservation and has typically become a barrier to science students in the school and development in terms of their individual personality development.
The scope of this study was limited to students’ performance in agricultural science in junior secondary schools in Ido LGA.
1.8 Significant Terms Definition
Academic performance refers to the grades obtained by pupils in examinations.
Financial resources refer to the school’s ability to cater to all of the purchases that are required for the school’s operations to run smoothly.
Human resources refer to a school’s labor force that assists in the operation of school activities.
Internal efficiency refers to a school system’s ability to use educational resources to maximize benefit.
Physical resources are the school infrastructures that students and teachers employ in their regular school activities.
Physical, human, and financial resources employed by schools to promote academic success are referred to as school-based factors.
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THE EFFECTS OF SCHOOL FACTORS ON STUDENT PERFORMANCE IN AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN IDO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, IBADAN