The Influence of School Environment on Student Academic Performance in Public School Taraba State
CHAPTER ONE
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The study is to examine The Influence of School Environment on Students Academic Performance in Public Secondary Schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State
Specifically the study intends to:
- Determine and describe the demographic characteristics of the students of public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State
- Determine extent of laboratory, library and sporting facilities in public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State
- Determine and describe the characteristics of the physical environment in terms of locations of public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State
- Determine the extent at which the qualities of the physical school environment with regard to school building affect students performance in public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State.
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT
Human beings are always immersed in social environment, which not only changes the very structure of the individual or just compels to recognize facts but also provides with a readymade system of signs. Two environments home and school 2 share an influential space in child‟s life (Tucker et al., 1979). The school is the most important experience in the process of child development next to home. When the child enters the school area, s/he is presented with new opportunities in terms of socialization and cognitive development. These opportunities are provided in different measures in school and may have a direct impact on cognitive and affective development of students. The concept of organizational climate of an educational institution for the first time came into existence in 1954, when the idea of organizational climate of schools was discussed. It is a concept which describes the role of participants interacting within the sociological and psychological framework of school interaction that take place within the school family. The school is the most dynamic institution which should keep pace with the changing needs of the society. It should also develop in each individual the knowledge, interest, ideals, attitudes, habits, skills and powers, whereby s/he will find his/her right place in the social order and use that position to shape him/her and the society both towards the higher and nobler ends. The attainment of such objectives require proper school environment. The school is a social-psychological system i.e. principal and teachers working in a school constitute socially and psychologically interacting units and through their interactions, school acquires a land of distinct personality or a distinct atmosphere. The school administration should work towards the improvement of school climate, so that a better output from school could be expected. O. Neil (1987) defined school climate as a combination of eight variables:
- Clear school mission.
- Safe and well ordered learning environment.
- Expectation for success.
- Classroom interaction.
- High morale.
- Effective instructional leadership.
- Monitoring of student progress.
- Positive home school relationship.
Lindelow (1989) suggested that school climate was defined as the feelings as individual got from experiences within a school system. More specifically, climate was the competitive of norms, expectations and belief characterizing the school social system as perceived by its members. It is an average of perceptions that individual has of their daily work environment (Deer, 1990). Owen (2000) defined organizational climate as the study of perceptions that individuals have of various aspects of the environment in the organization. So, majority of researches considered organizational climate as an attribute of an organizational perceptual in nature which is caused as a result of interaction over a period of time. However, some have used it to denote a combination of physical and psychological climate; very few have considered it as totality of all organizational variables.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we described the research procedure for this study. A research methodology is a research process adopted or employed to systematically and scientifically present the results of a study to the research audience viz. a vis, the study beneficiaries.
RESEARCH DESIGN
Research designs are perceived to be an overall strategy adopted by the researcher whereby different components of the study are integrated in a logical manner to effectively address a research problem. In this study, the researcher employed the survey research design. This is due to the nature of the study whereby the opinion and views of people are sampled. According to Singleton & Straits, (2009), Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behaviour, surveys are therefore frequently used in social and psychological research.
POPULATION OF THE STUDY
According to Udoyen (2019), a study population is a group of elements or individuals as the case may be, who share similar characteristics. These similar features can include location, gender, age, sex or specific interest. The emphasis on study population is that it constitutes of individuals or elements that are homogeneous in description.
This study was carried to examine the influence of school environment on student academic performance in public school. Selected secondary schools in Taraba State form the population of the study.
SAMPLE SIZE DETERMINATION
A study sample is simply a systematic selected part of a population that infers its result on the population. In essence, it is that part of a whole that represents the whole and its members share characteristics in like similitude (Udoyen, 2019). In this study, the researcher adopted the convenient sampling method to determine the sample size.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered. A total of eighty (80) questionnaires were administered to respondents of which only seventy-seven (77) were returned and validated. This was due to irregular, incomplete and inappropriate responses to some questionnaire. For this study a total of 77 was validated for the analysis.
TEST OF HYPOTHESIS
HO1: There is no significant relationship between allocation of funds and the depth at which school facility is maintained in public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State
HO2: There is no significant relationship between school location and students academic performance in public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to ascertain the influence of school environment on student academic performance in public school. In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing the challenges of the influence of school environment on student academic performance in public school
Summary
This study was on influence of school environment on student academic performance in public school. Five objectives were raised which included: Determine and describe the demographic characteristics of the students of public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State, determine extent of laboratory, library and sporting facilities in public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State, determine and describe the characteristics of the physical environment in terms of locations of public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State and determine the extent at which the qualities of the physical school environment with regard to school building affect students performance in public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State. A total of 77 responses were received and validated from the enrolled participants where all respondents were drawn from selected public secondary schools in Jalingo Local Government Area of Taraba State. Hypothesis was tested using Chi-Square statistical tool (SPSS).
Conclusion
The findings also identified seats/desks, current reading material, current books for lending and the presence of library assistants in the schools as critical areas that to a great extent affect the academic achievement of students of public schools with regard to library services
Recommendation
This study recommend that parents and teachers should take care of the kind of peers group their students and children belongs to, as this have a great influence towards their academic achievements. Positive peer influence can bring about high academic achievement as shown in this study. Therefore it is possible that negative peer influence can also affect negatively
Government and communities to ensure that students have access to the schools nearest to their areas of residence.
Efforts should be made by stakeholders to provide schools with functional libraries, well equipped with current reading reference materials
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