CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Mathematics can be defined as the science of numbers and space and the language of science and technology. It is an essential requirement by every field of intellectual endeavour and human development to cope with the challenges of life, mathematics can also be defined as the queen and servant of all the school subject since it cut across the school curricula. It is equally seen as the language used to describe the problems arising in technology. It relates other school subjects in area like number and numeration, variations, graphs, fruitions, solutions of equation, and area and volumes. Brief history of the found teaching of mathematics in Nigeria started with arithmetic’s of component of mathematics at the primary and post primary schools. Fajemidagba (1999) according to him, arithmetic’s was compulsory for every primary school pupils and must be passed before a pupil could obtain the primary school leaving certificate, the same condition hold for the Teacher Training Colleges either grade II or III. Aer the launching of the spulink the first earth satellite in space in November, 1957 by the Russians, which according to Griiths and Howson (1974) has an enormous effects on American complacency about superiority in engineering capability over that of Russians. The result of the doubt were series of hot debates and arguments on the suitability or otherwise of the school mathematics and curricular.
This occurrence were called “Issues and forces” behind the reformation of school mathematics curricular contents, which also affect various reforms in school mathematics curricula has continued to evolve considering its enormous importance to the development of the world. Mathematics still remains one of the core and compulsory subjects for the Nigeria students at both primary and post primary schools. Recently, mathematics has become a determining factor to gaining admission into most Nigeria universities as it must be passed up to credit level before one gain admission. In spite of its importance to the student’s advancement in academics many students dread mathematics. Given the right to choose, many secondary school students would out rightly avoid mathematics, this is because many of them have developed some element of fears about the suspect, may be as a result of long time negative information they get every year about the poor and low level performance n WAEC examinations in mathematics or other factors. This research work sets out to unravel.
According to Ajagun (2000) the performance of students in junior secondary science in Nigeria has remain an issue of concern to all stakeholders. Dwelling more on the fear of mathematics, by the secondary school students (junior) psychology today.com defined fear as a vital response to physical and emotional danger if we didn’t feel it, we couldn’t protect ourselves from the legitimate threats. Toscany Academy (2012) this quote can be translated in the context of threat posed by mathematics to the candidate preparing for the examination. Since most of these students has lost hope and psychologically defeated due to fear, this aect their level of interest and passion in the subject and the greater percentage of students opt for examination malpractices and resort to external help. We all know that fear is learnt “a burnt child dreads fire” is a saying we oen use showing that a child learns from his/her experiences. Fear is also contagious as children learn fear from observing other show fears. Children also learn fear from their contemporaries. Phobia on the other hand is a clinical or pathologically intense fear oen irrational leading to a compulsive need to avoid a thing or event. The team phobia in an everyday life can be used to refer to fears which have rational origin. When fear reaches an extreme pitch, it becomes a phobia. The implication of the above in a child is, if failure is greeted with schooling and corporal punishment with little attention to motivation, clarity and relevance, students will dislike to harm a particular subject. When experience of learning becomes so unpleasant, it creates the emotions of fear and boredom. In such situation even the brightest pupils will fail to profit from learning. It is therefore worthwhile to take a look at the causes of student’s poor performance in mathematics in junior secondary school in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo State.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The lackadaisical attitude of the students towards mathematics in our secondary school has reach such an extreme pitch, that every lover of education, growth and development of Nigeria cannot aord to keep mute on the happenings in the automatics education. Ajagun (2000) decried “the performance of students in secondary (junior) science has remain an issue of concern to all the stakeholders. The overwhelming personal observation on the types of student and teacher found in science classes of out-today secondary schools in Nigeria can be better imagined than to engage as ones study. In the past we used to have brilliant students in science, if that is true, it implies that something has gone wrong somewhere, either that our students do not work hard again, or they have been overtaken by fear of some of these subjects. Fear as we all know is learnt and it contagious and dangerous. It may have be struck our students into avoidance or poor performance in mathematics. This below statement can contribute to the poor performance of mathematics in secondary schools (junior) in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo State. 1. The lackadaisical attitude of the students towards mathematics such as fear. 2. The attitude of the teachers as well as their professional qualification contributed to student’s poor performance in mathematics. 3. Deficiency in some instructional materials to teach and learn. 4. Socio-economic background of the students (environmental factors).
