ABSTRACT
The study
basically examined the relationship between social problems in schools and
academic performance of students in selected secondary schools in Mushin Local
Government Area of Lagos State. Seven research objectives leading to seven
research questions and hypotheses were stated to guide the study. A total
number of 250 teachers were carefully selected from the entire population
through the method of stratified and simple random strategy. The research
design was descriptive survey in nature where questionnaire was developed to
gather the data used for the study. The Pearson Correlation Statistics was
employed to test the null hypotheses stated for the study using 0.05 Levels of
Significance in order to accept or reject them. Findings of the study showed a
significant relationship between age and promotion of maladaptive behavior that
lead to poor academic performance; there is a significant relationship between
school entry age and academic performance; Equally, results also showed
significant relationship exists between cult activities and academic
performance; significant relationship between examination malpractice and
academic performance. Other findings of the study showed a significant
relationship exists between deviancy/delinquency and academic performance of
students; significant relationship exists between truancy to school and
academic performance of students, Recommendations were made following the
outcomes of the research findings. They include. need for counseling services in Secondary
Schools in Mushin Local Government Area of Lagos State; Children should be
exposed to reading and writing at very early age; Government should place
indefinite ban all form of associations in secondary schools that are not
promoting students’ knowledge, skill and attitude; Government should also
continue in the fight against corruption in all its ramifications and punish
offenders to show deterrent to others; It was also recommended that maladjusted students in secondary
schools in Mushin Local Government Area should be given psycho- socio therapy.
Also, parents should ensure that their children get to school early every day,
and that the present curriculum on religion and national values should be
properly implemented
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGES
Title Page i
Certification ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement iv
Abstract v
Table of Contents vi
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study 1
Theoretical Framework 5
Statement of the Problem 10
Purpose of the Study 11
Research
Questions 12
Research Hypotheses 12
Significance of
the Study 13
Scope
of the Study 13
Limitation
of the Research 13
Operational
Definition of Terms 14
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
Concept
of social problem 15
Concept
of Academic Performance 18
Age and Promotion
of Maladaptive behaviour in school causing low Academic 20
Performance
School
Entry Age and Academic Performance 22
Cult activities and Academic Performance 24
Examination Malpractices and Academic Performance 25
Truancy and Academic Students’ Performance 26
Deviant / Delinquency and Academic
Performance 29
Social Problem and Academic Performance 31
Appraisal of Literature Reviewed. 32
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOOGY
Research Design 33
Area of Study 33
Population of the Study 34
Sample and Sampling Procedure 35
Research Instrument 35
Validity of Research Instruments 35
Reliability of Research Instrument 36
Methods of Data Collection 37
Administration of Research Instruments 37
Procedure for Data Analysis 37
Scoring of Research Instruments 37
CHAPTER
FOUR: RESULT AND DISCUSION
Demographic Data 38
Testing of hypotheses 41
Summary of findings 47
Discussion of findings 47
CHAPTER
FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Summary of the Study 53
Conclusion 54
Recommendations 54
Suggestions for further Research 55
REFERENCES 56
APPENDIX 61
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Sex Distribution of Respondents 38
Table 2: Age Distribution of Respondents 39
Table 3: Religion Distribution of Respondents 40
Table 4.1: Testing Hypothesis 1 41
Table 4.2: Testing
Hypothesis 2 42
Table 4.3: Testing
Hypothesis 3 43
Table 4.4: Testing
Hypothesis 4 44
Table 4.5: Testing
Hypothesis 5 45
Table 4.6: Testing
Hypothesis 6 46
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Sex Distribution of Respondents 38
Figure 2: Age Distribution of Respondents 39
Figure 3: Religion Distribution of
Respondents 40
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the study
Social problems are issues happenings
which are frequently occurring in the society in recent times. They are the
issues that affect everybody in the society. The issues are of great concern to
both the young and adults. They are not personal or individualized issues but
general issues and as such require general solution. Some of the social issues
that pervade the length and breadth of our country such as corruption, social
inequality, ethnicity, limited resources, poverty, criminality, and other socio-economic
crises have manifested in different dimensions in secondary school levels of
our education system and appear to be taking alarming proportions. It is
important to consider the effect social problems have on students’ academic
performance. Although several socio-economic and psychological variables like
hard work and discipline, family income, parent’s education, ability, interest
and aptitude have been identified to impact on academic performance, often lost
in this inquiry, however, is consideration of adolescent biological age, school
entry age, cult activities, examination malpractice, truancy/ deviancy and
late-coming to school which are some of the social issues happening in
secondary school students. The relative lack of attention to these prevalent
social problems in secondary schools is unfortunate given the academic and
behavioural performance problems noticeable in our country.
First, adolescents’ age has been
identified as identity crises. They are faced with so many questions about life
‘what’,’ how’, ‘where’ and ‘when’. They are anxious to get quick result; a
situation that exposes them to different dangers. Our mass media are filled
with different reports of social evils perpetrated by adolescent students in
schools. Equally, school entry age may be a cause or benefit to child’s
education. In this way, parents’ socio-economic development dictates the time a
child will be exposed to learning in school. Research findings on the
relationship between school entry age and academic performance are in mix.
There is a need to strike a balance between these mixed results.
Second, cult activities among secondary
school students were a thing unheard of in recent past. Today cultism has taken
a center stage in the secondary schools. When cults strike, chances are that
there is some disruption in the stability of the academic calendars (Olusakin,
2004). Students who are not serious with their academic work, whose bulk are
found (if not all) in the secret cults, usually precipitate confusion capable
of leading the closure of schools. The cultist disturbs the peace of the
academic environment through their violent activities. The violent activities
that happened at secondary schools in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State and Adamawa
State in 2012 were reported in the daily Newspapers (Nation Newspaper, 2012;
the Nigerian Tribune, 2012). This situation may lead to closure of schools
thereby keeping students home for very long time which may affect their
education. Some of the cultist when caught may face suspension or outright
dismissal from schools. Whatever may be the case, cultism among students in
secondary schools is necessary evil that affect students’ outcomes in schools
since those who engage in it pay less attention to reading and studying in
schools.
Third, students get involved in
examination malpractice because of their desire to get best scores without the
corresponding efforts in preparation. Corruption in private and public places
and the twin sister, Nigeria orientations on certificate have not helped
matter. Every high school student knows that examination malpractice is evil
and corrupt, but many of them still get involved. Today, the situation is so
bad that some parents, teachers, proprietors / proprietresses, and examination
officials, who should champion the campaign against examination malpractice,
are also aiding it. In any case, students are less likely to adhere to formal
examination regulations where they perceive that rewards are based on personal
rather than professional criteria, where they perceive widespread corruption in
national and local government than in societies where high levels of integrity
are perceived to prevail (Okolie, 2004).
Third, it is not uncommon to see students
reacting aggressively when teachers try to control them when they make noise
and distract other students in class. In similar vein, rape or sexual
promiscuity, arson and wanton destructions of buildings and properties and
copying of foreign ways of life seem to be the way of lives of many adolescent
students. It should be borne in mind that when students set buildings ablaze
and destroy properties, the resultant effect is the closing of the school.
Hence, deviant and delinquent activities among secondary school students are
social issues prevalent in school that have become so rampant. This affects
students’ learning and invariably the academic performance.
Four, the situation in our secondary
schools regarding the issue of absenteeism and truancy is pathetic. Absenteeism
and truancy are presently major problems facing our schools, and the damaging
effects to students’ academic performances have largely been overlooked.
However, academic performance in the
context of this study is students’ ability to do well, fairly or poorly in an
examination. The evaluation for determining students’ academic performance is
carried out through various forms of standardized tests and examination. It is
worthy of mention that academic performance, including academic failure is
often viewed in narrow terms, as an individual behavior limited to the early
life course. In essence, academic
performance has implications that play out across life stages and on multiple
levels. It is pointed out that academic struggles predict individual’s
short-term problem behavior and dropout, and can derail educational and
occupational trajectories of well into adulthood. It can also create disorder
and undermine the general mission of schools, and more so, widespread academic
failure has influence on rates of fertility, mortality, marriage, and
unemployment through its relation to educational attainment and the development
of human capital (Egenti, 2005). Thus, what appears merely to be an aspect of
the adolescent experience actually has far-reaching consequences across a
variety of social phenomena. This further justifies the need to examine how
social problems among students are related to their academic performance in
secondary schools.
Furthermore, despite the law put against
examination malpractices and the teaching of Civic Education, Social Studies
and Christian Religion / Islamic Religion at the junior and senior secondary
schools in Nigeria in order to promote good values among students, yet social
issues in secondary schools still persist. There is therefore, the need to
continue making inquiry on these problem areas among secondary school students
to stem the tide of circumstances.
Most undeniably, the present Nigeria
generation has been generation of youth restiveness and moral decadence,
corruption, arson and looting, kidnapping, and terrorism among others are on
the rise in deteriorated neighborhoods and large cities like Lagos. Student
participation in such activities is on a steady rise and poses a serious threat
to achieving our education objectives.
Undeniably, academic and maladaptive
behavior performance of students in the secondary schools deserves a study of
this nature. The impetus towards a research in this direction is further reinforced
by the trend in poor performance of the secondary school students in their West
African School Certificate Examinations, and students’ emotional life. It
therefore becomes a major part of the educator’s responsibilities to be able to
identify sources of emotional stress in students to appropriate areas of
professional and adult guidance in school.
It is against this background information that this research seeks to
examine the relationship between social issues in school and students’ academic
performance in Mushin Local Government Area of Lagos State.
1.2 Theoretical Framework of the Research
The theoretical background for this study
stems from four theories. These theories are:
i. The
Social Control by Hirschi (1978)
ii. Labeling
and conflict theories by Howard Becker (1963) and Karl Marx (1867)
iii. Functional
and interactionism theories by Daphend of (1959), and
iv. Social
cognitive theory by Albert Bandura (1977 - 1986)
Social
control theory by Hirschi (1978)
The theory asserts that ties to family,
school and other aspects of society serve to diminish one’s propensity for
deviant behaviour. As such, social control theory posits that crime occurs when
such bonds are weakened or are not well established. Control theorists argue
that without such bonds, crime is an inevitable outcome. Unlike other theories
that seek to explain why people engage in deviant behaviour, control theories
take the opposite approach, questioning why people refrain from offending. As a
result, criminality is seen as a possibility for all individuals within
society, avoided only by those who seek to maintain familial and social
bonds. Hirschi, believes that these
bonds are based on attachment to those both within and outside of the family,
including friends, teachers, and co-workers; commitment to activities in which
an individual has invested time and energy, such as educational or career
goals; involvement in activities that serve to both further bond an individual
to others and leave limited time to become involved in deviant activities; and
finally, belief in wider social values. These four aspects of social control
are thought to interact to insulate an individual from criminal involvement
(Siegel and McCormick, 2006). Researchers have closely examined bonds, schools,
community and religion to determine the strength of social control theory as it
specifically relates to young people. It
is proposed that for young people, a key aspect of social control is found
within the family, particularly through interactions with and feelings towards
parents. Of the studies that have examined the impact of social control on
delinquency, a large proportion has found a negative relationship between
parental attachment and delinquency. As such, it has been found that the
greater the attachment to parents, the lower the likelihood of involvement in
delinquent behaviour. Empirical evidence supports the notion that parenting
practices and parental support can impact violent offending by youth. In
conjunction with parental attachment, adolescent attachment to school is seen
by Hirschi’s social control theory as a fundamental means of establishing
social control. A significant number of studies pertaining to social control
theory include measures of the role of school attachment and school support in
the lives of young people. It is to be noted, however, that strong attachment
to school was associated with less violent offending. The role of the community
and neighborhood as agents of social control has also been assessed in the
social control literature. In light of the fore-going, this theory is relevant
in explaining the relationship between social issues happening in secondary
schools in Mushin Local Government Area of Lagos State and students’ academic
performance.
Labeling
and Conflict theory by Howard Becker (1963) and Karl Marx (1867)
This
is another theory that strengthens the research investigation. As propounded by
Howard Becker (1963), this theorist viewed deviance as the creation of social
groups and not the quality of some act or behavior. He believed that social
groups create deviance by making rules whose infraction creates deviance, and
by applying those roles to particular people and labeling them as outsiders.
From this point of view, deviance is not a quality of the act the person
commits, but rather a consequence of the application of rules and sanctions to
an’ offender’. The deviant is one to whom the label has been successfully
attached.
The
conflict theorists reject the idea that social problems can be solved by
reforming major contradictions in the way society is organized; contradiction
that lead to large-scale conflict between those who have access to the “good
life” and those who do not.. In “The communist Manifesto” and “capital” and
other works, Marx attempted to prove that social problems like unemployment,
poverty, crime, corruption, conflict and violence, and so forth, are not
usually the fault of individuals or of poorly functioning organizations. An
evitable outcome of capitalism is class conflict, especially conflict between
those who own the means of production and those who sell their labour for
wages. Conflict is a fact of life in modern industrial societies.
Functionalist
and Interactionism Theories by Dahpendorf (1959) and Thomas (1923)
The functionalist theory looks at the way
social institutions like the family, education, economy, polity, religion and
their sub-systems function. Functionalist sociologist do not focus on the
behaviour and problems of individuals, instead they see social problems as
arising out of the failure of institutions of society, like the family,
education, economy, polity, and religion to adapt to changing social
conditions. Every part or institution of society is seen as having a function
in the sense that it contributes to the smooth running of the society. Hence,
when one part of the society is out of the line with the others, there is
pressure for its reintegration with the other related parts. In this way,
stability in society, by and large, prevails. It is not only stability based on
functional necessity but stability based on consensus of values. Individuals in
society, according to this theory, share the same basic values and are thus
agreed on the way they behave towards each other as individuals or as members
of groups.
The functionalist theory of
deviance-disorganization can be fruitfully used in the study of such current
problematic condition in Nigeria as, examination malpractice, cultism, deviant
and delinquent activities among students in secondary school that affect academic
performance as well as society’s criminality, violence, as well as, poverty,
unemployment, population problem, problem families, environmental degradation
and pollution, and homelessness, and insecurity.
Interactionism theory offers an
explanation which gets us closer to the individual level of behaviour. Research
based on this perspective looks at the processes whereby different people
become part of a situation that the larger society defines as a social problem.
The interactionism approach focuses on the ways in which people actually take
on the values of the group of which they are members. It also explore how
different groups define their situation and in so doing “construct” a version
of life that promote certain values and behaviours and discourages others. From
the interactionism perspective, an individual or a group’s definition of the
situation is central to understanding the action of that individual or group:
“situation people define as real are real in their consequences (Thomas, 1923).
Above all, labeling theory as discussed earlier is a major application of the
interactionism perspective that offers an explanation for certain kinds of
social problems. The interactionism perspective of the “definition of the
situation”, peer group interactions and labeling can be related or applied to
the understanding of some current problems in Nigeria , which include: crime
and delinquency, violence, human trafficking, prostitution, drug abuse , child
abuse, prejudice and discrimination, corruption, and insecurity that affect
student’s academic performance..
Social
cognitive theory by Albert Bandura (1977-1986)
Social cognitive theory rests on several
basic assumptions about learning and behaviour. One assumption concern triadic
reciprocality or the view that personal behavioural and environmental factors
influence one another, a bidirectional and reciprocal fashioning is a product
of a continuous interaction between cognitive behavioural and contextual
factors. For instance, classroom learning is shaped by factors within academic
environment experienced by oneself and by another. At the time learning is
affected by student’s own thoughts and self belief and their interpretation of
the classroom context.
A
closely related assumption within social cognitive theory is that people have
an agency or ability to influence their own behaviour and the environment in a
purposeful, good-directed fashion (Bandura, 2001). This belief conflicts with
earlier form of behaviourism that advocated a more rigorous form of environment
determinism. Social cognitive theory does not deny the importance of the
environment in determining behaviour, but it does argue that people can also,
through forethought self-reflection and self-regulatory processes, exert
substantial influence over their own outcomes and the environment more broadly.
A
third assumption within social cognitive theory is that learning can occur
without an immediate change in behaviour or more broadly that learning the
demonstration of what has been learned and distinct processes. One reason for
this separation is that social cognitive theory also assumes that learning involves
not just the acquisition of new behaviour, but also that of knowledge and
cognitive skills, concepts, abstract rules, values and other cognitive
constructs. This division of learning and behaviour is a shift from the
position advocated by behavioural theories that students can learn but not
demonstrate the learning until motivated to do so.
This
theory emphasizes cognitive compression as the cornerstone of adolescent
behaviour. The adolescents here acquires the mental activity to deal with the
world around him, with this developed mental capacity, he perceives and
examines his environment, form ideas and make inferences. The basic explanation
of deviant behaviour or delinquency is on mentality. Jean Piaget brought about
the stage concept of cognitive development, when people go through series of
moral stages beginning early in childhood and continuing through the adult
years. Each stage of development assumes a relatively a variant order in the
course of development. Also each stage is marked by a different view of right
and wrong.
1.3 Statement of the Problem
The problem that necessitated this
research is students’ indiscipline which could be seen in their poor academic
and behaviour performance in various secondary schools in Mushin Local Government
Area of Lagos State.
The rate of late coming to schools and
absents from schools among students is very disturbing which appear to make
students to miss some topics taught in schools. The end result may be too
devastating to the students and parents.
Most students nowadays are too stubborn
and don’t seem to take corrections. Rather than reading and studying hard for
their school works, they students tend to distract while teaching is going on
in classroom, fight and act in a manner calculated to disrupt the teaching and
learning process. All these down facing attitudes among students are threat to
achieving better students’ outcomes in schools.
Today’s students see shortcut as a means
of passing examination. Every year, several students’ results are cancelled and
withheld in some examination centers where cases of examination malpractice are
reported. This causes gear deal of damage to the students, parents schools and
government in terms of repeating the examinations, paying the school and
examination fees all over again. The destructive effect this may have on our
country’s image is such that this menace should be fought at all vehemence.
More problems arise from students’ cult
activities, deviancy / delinquency which make students to resort to violent
means in achieving their academic ends.
Every now and then, we experience disruption of academic activities
because of students’ cult activities, and other violent crises happening in our
secondary schools. At times, human lives are lost and school properties
destroyed. This leads to closing of schools for months and when schools
eventually re-open, students may likely forget what they have learnt. It may
also cause high school dropouts among students who can’t cope with academic
learning. This is a great threat to our country’s education system in training
the right personnel that will occupy in various sectors of our economy and
provide solution to socio-economic development of our country.
In an attempt to find lasting solutions to
myriads of social problems in the country, government has tailored the
curriculum of our compulsory education with a view to solving some of the
problems and also towards achieving the objectives of the Millennium
Development Goals (MGDs) policy initiatives. One of the major outcomes of the
committee was the integration of social studies, civic education, Christian and
Islamic religion and security education into Religion and National Values. The
innovation carried out was both national and pedagogical in nature.
It
is not certain whether efforts taken by government to curbing these behaviours
have yielded any fruits in the past. Student participation in anti-social
behaviors is on a steady rise. At same time, the alarming effect of this
behavior constitutes a major challenge to teachers, parents, guardians, and the
government, the stake-holders in the educational sector and even among the
well- meaning Nigerians at large.
In the light of the overall challenges of
social problems in schools, this study sets out to examine the relationship
between social problems and academic performance of students in secondary
school in Mushin Local Government Area of Lagos State.
1.4 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of the study is to examine the
relationship between social problems happening in schools and academic.
Specifically, the study is aimed at finding
1. The
relationship between age and students’ moral behavior in relation with academic
performance.
2. The
relationship between school entry age and academic performance.
3. The
relationship between cult activities and academic performance.
4. The
relationship between examination malpractice and academic performance.
5. The
relationship between truancy and academic performance.
6. The
relationship between deviancy/delinquency and academic performance.
1.5 The Research Questions
The following research questions will
guide the proposed study:
1. What
is the relationship between age and students’ moral behavior in relation with
academic performance?
2. How
does school entry age have relationship with academic performance?
3. Is
there a relationship between cult activities and academic performance?
4. How
is examination malpractice related with academic performance?
5. What
relationship exists between truancy and academic performance?
6. Is
there relationship between school deviancy delinquency and academic
performance?
7. Is
there relationship between social problems and academic performance of
students?
1.6 The
Research Hypotheses
The following null hypotheses will guide
the proposed study.
1. There
is no significant relationship between age and students’ moral behiour in
relation with academic performance.
2. There
is no significant relationship between school entry age and academic performance.
3. There
is no significant relationship between cult activities and academic
performance.
4. There
is no significant relationship between examination malpractice and academic
performance.
5. There
is no significant relationship between truancy and academic performance.
6. There
is no significant relationship between deviancy/delinquency and academic performance.
1.7 Significance
of the Study
This research study has implication for
addressing social problems in our society and specifically the problem of
anti-social behavior associated with urban secondary school students the Lagos
metropolis. In view of the prevailing undesirable behaviours in youths, this
study will expose the students to the harmful effects of deviance on academic
performance and thus serve as a cautionary measure for students. It will enlighten teachers and school
managers or administrators on the behavior pattern of students thereby helping
them to use education to adjust the maladjusted students in their anti-social
behaviours. This research study will equally educate parents on the associated
risk behaviours of adolescents which their children sometimes involved themselves
that contribute to their poor performance in school work. This will help
inculcate in the students the behavior pattern that the society expected of her
citizen, more so, now that the present democratic dispensation is bent on
eradication of all corrupt practices. It will also contribute to the existing
literature on social problem of among secondary school students and academic
performance in the Lagos Metropolis.
1.8 Scope
of the Study
The scope of the study is limited to the
entire secondary school student in Mushin Local Government Area of Lagos State.
1.9 Limitation
of the Study
The study examined social problems
happening in secondary schools with particular emphasis on age, school entry
age, cult activities, examination malpractice, truancy, deviancy/ delinquency
and how the relate with academic performance of students in secondary schools.
Also, obtaining materials used for the study poised some constraints.
1.10 Operational
Definitions of Terms
Academic performance: This is the behavior
of a student that can be directly observed by evaluating what he/she has learnt
during a course of study. This behavior can be measured through class work,
homework, class participation and tests.
Absenteeism: Absenteeism is regular persistent absence
from work or school.
Deviance:
This refers to possibility of an individual or group deviating from an
established norm. Any behavior which does not conform to the rules,
regulations, norms, and values of a given time is viewed as deviance.
Delinquency: this is the behavior pattern
that breaks certain rules or laws enacted by constituted authority.
Social problem: A social problem exists
when a significant number of people in a society believe that a certain
condition is in fact a problem
Examination Malpractice: a deliberate act of wrong doing contrary to
official examination rules and is designed to place a candidate at unfair
advantages and disadvantages.
Cultism:
a cult is a pattern of a devotional worship of a deity. It is a
deviation from the orthodox norms of public worshiping
Truancy:
staying away from school without any good reason. It means an act of or
practice of deliberately staying away from school without any acceptance
reason, whether or not the parents or guardians know and approve of it (Fugleman
and Richardson, 2001).
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