EFFECTS OF THE HOME AND SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT AS FACTORS AFFECTING STUDENTS’ LEARNING OUTCOMES IN MATHEMATICS (EDUCATION PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS)
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Mathematics has been the bedrock of knowledge and technology advancement in the whole universe. Mathematics has gained more attention and importance with rapid advancement in information and communication technologies. It has become a necessity for people of all ages to reach, analyze and apply the mathematical knowledge affectively andefficiently.
Despite the importance of mathematics, achievement of students at all levels of education is far from being satisfactory, because of this it is important and necessary to study all possible factors that can have effect on students’ achievement in mathematics.
Caygill and Kirkham (2008) conducted an in-depth study to find out the relationship between school environmental factors and home education resources and achievement in mathematics. They found that students with greater number of mathematics books in the home have higher achievement in mathematics.
Research also shows that educational qualifications of the parents also impact upon the achievement of their wards in mathematics. Majority of the literature on parent’s education pertains to the direct, positive influence of the child in mathematics. It was found that the expectation of the parents from their children varied according to their education and income levels.
According to Aiken (1970) who observed that there was a complex interaction among students and teachers characteristics, course content and the method of instruction. An important conclusion that requires further attention was the adoption of suitable statistical techniques in studying this complex interaction. Aiken also observe that for all learning in general, a positive attitude of the students is necessary. Since learning is a mental process, the psychological concept of the student about the subject may either facilitate or hinder the learning process depending on whether it is positive or negative.
