INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY AND READING INTEREST OF SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN IKOT EKPENE SENATORIAL DISTRICT OF AKWA IBOM STATE
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study
According to Ekpo (1995), for effective learning to take place, the teacher must first of all arouse the interest of the learners in the subject he intends to teach .Such tendency is motivation. Motivation of students interest must always precede teaching since this arousal will prepare the minds for attending to what is to be taught. In the teaching of social studies at secondary school level, a student should be motivated by the teacher through instructional materials and other motivational variables. Lucas (1990) maintained that passivity dampens students motivation and curiosity. The source also opined that students learn by doing, making, designing, creating and solving problems.
Tracy (2000) defined motivation as all those inner striving conditions, described as wishes, desires, urges that stimulate the interest of a person in an activity. It is therefore an inner state that stimulates and triggers behaviour. The relative incidence of specific behaviour such as teaching and learning, discipline and control in schools could be undermined if teachers and students are not motivated. Tolman (1998) referred to it as an intervening variable, whileKelinger, (1999) identified it as an internal and psychological process that were not directly observable but which is an accounted for behaviour. According to Cole (2000), motivation is a term used to describe those processes, both initiative and rational by which people seek to satisfy the basic drives, perceived needs and personal goals, which trigger off human behaviour.
Rezabek ( 1995) found a significant correlation between intrinsic academic motivation and academic performance,Wigfieldand Guthrine(1997) in their research revealed that children with higher intrinsic motivation read more and with more breathe than students with lower intrinsic motivation. Lepper (1990) observed that when intrinsically motivated, students tend to employ more efforts and that enable them to process information more deeply. Present researches on students motivation have been centered on the classroom where majority of learning takes place and where students are more likely to acquire a strong motivation to gain new knowledge. Making the classroom a place that naturally motivates students to learn is much easier when students and teachers function in an atmosphere where academic success and motivation to learn are expected and rewarded.
Teachers can influence students level of motivation by shaping the school instructional climate,which in turn shapes the attitude of teachers, parents and the community at large towards education.Classroom climate is important,Brophy (1996) stressed that what takes place in the classroom is critical but classroom is not an island. Therefore, to support motivation to learn, school level policies and practices should stress learning, task mastery, and effort rather than relative performance and competition.
The National Policy on Education in Nigeria emphasizes that our children should be properly taught to acquire skills and competencies that would enable them function well and solve problems in the society (FRN 2004). The accomplishment and realization of these important educational goals in Nigeria lie in the new trend in educational approaches. To this end, different ways of teaching and learning have emerged. Emphasis tends to shift from teacher-centered to student centered educational approach. These new approaches to learning and instruction expose the students to conceptualize and effectively manage their own learning and thus reinforce their learning and transfer their training in practical situations.
Motivation in education can have several effects on how students learn and their behavior towards subject matter. Ormond (2003)opined that motivation of students in learning process can direct behavior towards particular goals and lead to increase effort and better academic performance. But without an empirical evaluation of the impact of motivational variables on students’ academic performance there exists little basis for improving anyprogramme curriculum. Teachers would have great reluctance to change the status quo of their teaching approach without adequate proof of need. Hence, the need to investigate motivational variables (teachers’ evaluation practice, career aspiration, student – teacher relationship and teachers’ lesson presentation) vis – a- vis secondary school students academic performance in social studies.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The mere articulation of the importance of social studies in the educational system does not of itself ensure the achievement of the purpose. Without knowledge of how students motivation contributes to their teaching – learning processvis- a –vis their academic performance, the educational process of curriculum implementation may be misdirected or incomplete.
The need to investigate how students academic performance in social studies may be differentiated by motivational variables become pertinent since it is a common knowledge that students performance in the subject still remains low at the junior secondary certificate examination level. Many factors could be attributed to the poor state of students’academic performance in Nigerian junior secondary classes. Such factors may be traced to school, the home and the students motivational variables.Students have many responsibilities with regard to their learning. Students who make the effort required to succeed in school and whoare able to apply themselves often discover that there is a direct relationship between the effort and their achievement and will therefore be more motivated to work.
It has been established that motivation plays important role in students academic achievement. The task of this research study therefore was to investigate the role of motivational variables typified by teachers evaluation practice, career aspiration of students, student-teacher relationships and teachers’ lesson presentation in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies.
1.3Purpose of the Study
The study investigates motivational variables andstudentsacademic performance in social studies in secondary schools in IkotEkpene Local Government Area of AkwaIbom State. Specifically the study aims at the following objectives:
- To assess the difference in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies based on teachers evaluation practice.
- To examine the difference in the secondary schools students’ academic performance in social studies based on career aspiration.
- To determine the difference in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies based on student- teacher relationships.
- To ascertain the difference in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies based on teachers’ lesson presentation.
1.4 Significance of The Study
The findings of this study would be significant to teachers and teacher educators who need to understand the factors that affectstudents academic performance in school subjects especially social studies. It will help them work toward providing learning experiences that are motivating to students. This will thereby contribute to their interest, effective learning and higher achievement output in social studies. Students will be motivated to learn better when they understand therelevance of what they are studying.
Chauhan (2000) posited that there is a link between motivation and academic achievement in school. It would be worthwhile if the students themselves are objectively evaluated to ascertain such findings in social studies. Such findings would then add to the existing body of knowledge on the relationship between motivational differences and students’ performance in social studies. The findings of this study would be of immence value to the school counselors as they offer career counseling, vocational guidance and occupational information to students.
Understanding the role of the identified motivational variables in the academic achievement differences of students would lead to or even create deeper insight into how such variables could be manipulated to improve academic achievement.Identifying variables that could explain differences in secondary school students performance in social studies can aid experts who may wish to undertake studies on curriculum innovation.
1.5 Research Questions
The following research questions were formulated to guide the research study.
- How doesteachers’evaluation practice differentiate secondary school students academic performance in social studies?
- What difference does career aspiration make in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies?
- To what extent does the student – teacher relationshipdifferentiate the secondary school students academic performance in social studies?
- What role does lesson presentation play in differentiating the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies?
1.6 Hypotheses
The following null hypotheses emanated from the research questions in Section 1.5 and they will be tested at the 0.05 level of significance.
- There is no significant difference in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies based on teachers’ evaluation practice.
- There is no significant difference in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies based on career aspiration.
- There is no significant difference in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies based on student- teacher relationship.
- There is no significant difference in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies based on teachers’ lesson presentation.
1.7 Basic Assumptions of The Study
In this research study, the following assumptions are made:
- All junior secondary schools in AkwaIbom state implement the same social studies curriculum.
- There are observable activities andbehavioridentifiable as motivational variables and these can be measured.
- Evaluation instruments can be developed which will measure secondary school students academic performance in social studies.
- The selected motivational variables (teachers’evaluation practice, career aspiration, student- teacher relationship and teachers’ lesson presentation) do play roles in the secondary school students’ academic performance in social studies.
- Students involved in this study will provide objective answers to the questionnaire items.
1.8 Delimitation of The Study
The study was delimited to the assessment of the role of motivational variables on the academic performance in social studies in junior secondary classes in IkotEkpene Local Government Area ofAkwaIbomState.Many factors could contribute tostudents’ academic performance in social studies but for the purpose of this study, only teachers’ evaluation practice, career aspiration, student – teacher relationship and teachers’ lesson presentation were selected for investigation. Spatially, the scope of the study covered only sample of Junior Secondary Three (Js-3) students in IkotEkpene Local Government Area of AkwaIbom State during the 2014/15 academic session.
1.9 Limitation of The Study
Time factor was one of the major limitations in this study,. Another limitation was in respect of the development and administration of the research instrument as well as the collation of data from the participating schools which took many days. The motivational variables covered four main areas and many items. Whethertheparticipants would spare the needed time to complete the instrument was a concern.
The data used in the analysis were based on the students perception rating(with exception of the academic performance data.)They did not involve teachers reports or direct classroom observation. Without additional data, it is difficult to equate students’personaljudgement with potential motivational benefits using questionnaire.Hence, the validity of the participants’ perception of the selected motivational variables vis –a –vis academic performance becomes doubtful.
Finally, the approaches to the data collection and data analyses here cannot yield definitive conclusions.While the ex-post facto design allows fortesting of hypotheses based on constructs of the independent variable which had already occurred and are studied retrospectively, only with caution should the findings be interpreted as causal.
- Definition of Terms
Certain terms owing to their specialized use in this study required definition. Such terms are defined below.
Motivational Variables
This is defined as the external stimuli towards a situation such as teachers evaluation practice, career aspiration, student- teacher relationship and teachers’ lesson presentation which promote and arouse seeking behaviour.
Evaluation Practice
This refers to the way and manner the teacher reacts to the students work including but not limited to tests, assignments and examinations.
Career Aspiration
This is defined as individual’s ambition in respect of occupational choice of “professional” or “non- professional” .
Students – Teacher Relationship
This refers to students perception of the relationship between students and teachers regarding creating and maintaining a positive and warm classroom atmosphere conducive to learning
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