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TITLE PAGE
INFLUENCE OF FAMILY BACKGROUND ON THE ACADEMIC
ACHIEVEMENT OF SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN
NSUKKA EDUCATIONAL ZONE OF ENUGU STATE
A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATIONS, FACULTY OF EDUCATION,
UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA, NSUKKA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE AWARD OF MASTERS DEGREE IN SOCIOLOGY OF
EDUCATION
BY
OMEH GABRIEL UGWUJA
PG/M.ED/08/49146
SUPERVISOR: DR. (MRS.) A.N. OKOLO
MAY, 2010.
ii
APPROVAL PAGE
This thesis has been approved for the department of educational
foundations, faculty of education, Universities of Nigeria Nsukka.
By
-------------------------------- --------------------------------- DR. (MRS.) A.N. OKOLO PROF. J.C. OMEJE
SUPERVISOR INTERNAL EXAMINER
------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------
PROF. I.C.S. IFELUNNI PROF. G.C. UNACHUKWU
HEAD OF DEPARTMENT EXTERNAL EXAMINER
--------------------------------------- PROF. S.A. EZEUDU
DEAN, FACULTY OF EDUCATION
iii
CERTIFICATION
Omeh Gabriel Ugwuja, a postgraduate student in the Department of Education
Foundation with Registration Number: PG/Med/08/49146 has satisfactorily completed
the requirement for research work for the Masters Degree in Sociology of Education
in the Department of Educational Foundations, faculty of Education, University of
Nigeria, Nsukka.
The work as contained in this project is original and has not been submitted in
part or full for any other diploma or degree programme of this University or other
institution of learning.
--------------------------------------- ---------------------------------
Omeh Gabriel Ugwuja Dr. (Mrs.) A.N. Okolo
(Student) (Supervisor)
iv
DEDICATION
This work is dedicated to God almighty for his mercy, guidance, and protection
throughout the period of this work and to my family members for their support and
understanding.
v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The researcher thanks God Almighty who made this work possible. He is
greatly indebted to his project Supervisor, Dr. (Mrs) A.N. Okolo who accommodate
him and painstakingly read through the research work. Only God can compensate her
adequately.
He also grateful to Dr. E.N. Nwosu, Dr. (Mrs.) Oforka, Mr. Ezema S.A. and
Dr. (Mrs.) G.T.U. Chiaha, who sometimes left their private and official duties to assist
him in this work.
He is equally indebted to be following people for their counseling and
encouragement during the period of this research work. Dr. J. Uroko, Dr. Uche
Asogwa, Prof. Uche, Eze, Prof. J.O. Ugwuanyi, Prof. J.C. Omeje, Mr. Abah Godwin.
The researcher is also grateful to Mr. Odobe who helped him to sorce some of the
material for this research work.
The researcher gives special thanks to his wife Mrs. Omeh M.O. for her moral
encouragement and his children, Ejike, Nnenna, Chiamaka and Chigozie for their
prayer and support through out the period of the study. May almighty God compensate
everybody who helped in one way or the other to make this work possible.
vi
TABLE OF CONTENT
Title page --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- i
Approval page --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ii
Certification --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- iii
Dedication --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- iv
Acknowledgment --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- v
Table of contents --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- vi
List of tables --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- vii
Abstract --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- viii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 1
Statement of the problem --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 11
Purpose of the study --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 12
Significance of the study --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 12
Scope of the study --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 14
Research questions --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 15
Research Hypotheses --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 15
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF LITERATURE --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 17
Conceptual framework --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 17
Concept of family --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 17
Concept of family Background --- --- --- --- --- --- 19
Concept of achievement --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 20
Concept of academic achievement --- --- --- --- --- --- 20
Theoretical framework --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 21
Parental attachment theory --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 22
Self Determination theory --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 22
Maslow’s Motivational theory --- --- --- --- --- --- 23
Review of Empirical Studies --- --- --- --- --- --- 24
vii
Summary of related literature reviewed --- --- --- --- --- 26
CHAPTER THREE:
RESEARCH METHOD --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 29
Research Design --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 29
Area of study --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 29
Population of the study --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 30
Sample and sampling technique --- --- --- --- --- --- 30
Instrument for data collection --- --- --- --- --- --- 31
Validation of the instrument --- --- --- --- --- --- 32
Reliability of the instrument --- --- --- --- --- --- 32
Method of data collection --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 33
Method of data analysis --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 33
CHAPTER FOUR:
RESULT --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 35
Research question one --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 35
Research question two --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 36
Research question three --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 37
Research question four --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 38
Research question five --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 39
Hypothesis one --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 40
Hypothesis two --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 41
Hypothesis three --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 43
Hypothesis four --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 44
Hypothesis five --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 45
CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION AND INTERPRETATION OF RESULT
Discussion of the findings --- --- --- --- --- --- 49
Influence of parental level of education on students’
academic achievement --- --- --- --- --- 49
viii
Influence of parental occupation on students’ academic achievement - 50
Influence of parental income on students’ academic achievement - 51
Influence of family size on students’ academic achievement --- 51
Influence of parental motivation on students’ academic achievement 54
Educational implication of the study --- --- --- --- --- 54
Recommendations --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 57
Limitation of the study --- --- --- --- --- --- 58
Suggestion for further the study --- --- --- --- --- 59
Summary of the study --- --- --- --- --- --- 59
References --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 61-64
Appendices
I. Request for validation of instrument --- --- --- --- 65
II. Instrument – Questionnaire for the study --- --- --- 68
III. Population of SS2 Students in Nsukka Education in
2011/2012 Session --- --- --- --- --- --- 72
IV. Population of SS2 students in the Sampled Schools --- --- 74
V. Reliability analysis --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 76
ix
LIST OF TABLES
Table
1 Parental educational level and its influence on students’ academic achievement. 35
2 Influence of parental occupation on students’ academic achievement 36
3 Influence of parental income on students’ academic achievement 37
4 Influence of family size on students’ academic achievement 38
5 Influence of parental motivation on students’ academic achievement. 39
6 The mean ratings of Urban and Rural students on the influence of parental
level of education 40
7 The mean ratings of urban and rural students on the influence of parents’ occupation
on students’ academic achievement. 41
8 The mean ratings of urban and rural students on influence of parental income on
students’ academic achievement.
43
9 The mean ratings of urban and rural students on influence of family size on students’
academic achievement. 44
10 The mean ratings of urban and rural students’ on influence of parental motivation on
students’ academic achievement. 45
x
ABSTRACT
This study was aimed at investigating the family background factors that can influence
students’ academic achievement in Senior Secondary School in Nsukka Education
Zone in Enugu State. To guide the study, five research purpose, five research
questions and five research hypotheses were formulated. The design adopted for this
study was Ex-post Facto design. The population of the study consists of all senior
Secondary students from the fifty three secondary schools in the three local
government areas in Nsukka Education Zone. The fifty three secondary schools in the
zone have a population of seven thousand, nine hundred and forty five senior
secondary students. Out of the fifty three schools, twelve schools were sampled using
proportionate random sampling technique. In the twelve schools, all SSII students
numbering eight hundred and sixteen (816) were used as the subject of the study. The
research instrument was questionnaire on family background influence (FBI),
designed by the researcher and validated by experts. The reliability of the instrument
was established using Crunbach alpha method. The data collected were analyzed using
mean and standard deviation while t-test statistics was used to test the hypotheses at
0.05 level of significance. The instrument was pilot tested in Obollo Afor Education
Zone, using 30 students. The reliability coefficient was 0.69. The finding of the study
revealed that: Students from educated parents achieve more than those from
uneducated parents in academics; students from high-income status parents enjoy
considerable advantage in academic achievement than students of low income status
parents because their parents were able to afford necessary materials and equipment
needed for effective learning in the school; parental level of motivation also
influenced students’ academic achievement because motivation and reward served as
a form of reinforcement for children’s learning at school. Based on these findings, the
study recommended among others that parents should diversify their sources of
income to be able to provide fund for their children’s schooling. Parents should
equally realize the importance of using rewards and other measures to motivate their
children.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Education is the best legacy a nation can give to her citizens especially the youths.
This is because education is very important in the development of any nation or
community. Education is the process of transmitting what is worthwhile to members of
the society. According to Okafor (1981). Education embraces all those experiences of the
individual through which knowledge is acquired and intellect enlightened. For
Nwabachili and Egbue (1993) education is what goes on from one generation to another
generation. In this context, education is the process of socializing the child to grow up as
a fulfilled member of the society through informal, formal and non-formal process.
Informal education is the process of acquiring knowledge about the environment and
beyond through living with one another. According to Nwabachili and Egbue (1993)
formal education is a consciously planned form of socialization in a formal setting such as
school. They stressed that non-formal education involve all those systematic programmes
and processes of education and training that is done outside formal education setting. All
these forms of education cannot be achieved without the influence of the family.
Family is the first social environment the child finds itself. According to Clifford
(1981) family remains the primary environment of the child. The author emphasized that
family environment has more chances of increasing or decreasing the intellectual
achievement of the child. Akubue and Okolo (2008), defined family as a small kinship
structural group with the key function of natural socialization of the new born. Similarly,
in Okunniyi (2004), family is defined as a primary social group of parents, offspring and
possibly other members of the household.
2
Family background refers to all the conditions and circumstances in the family
which influence the child physically, intellectually and emotionally Muola (2010).
Children coming from different family backgrounds are affected different by such family
conditions, that is why some children have good family background while some have
poor background. Citing fleege, Eke (1999) noted that with some families, the
background way vary from time to time for the same individuals.
Formal education therefore remains the vehicle for human development which
must start from the family. There are different categories of families. The major
categories of families according to Anderson and Taylor (2000) includes: Traditional
families–where the father is the major breadwinner and mother at home rearing children;
divorced families–families that have been reconstituted following the breaking of
marriage; single parent families–likely headed by women; step families–with new
siblings and new parents stemming from re-marriage.
A family could also be categorized as extended or nuclear. Extended families are
those in which large group of related kin in addition to parents and children live together
in the same household. This is the type of families prevalent in African countries. Nuclear
families are families where married couple resides together with their children. This type
of family is common in Western countries (Andersen and Taylor 2000).
Families are of various sizes. Family size has to do with the total number of people
in a single family which may include the father, mother, children and even the extended
members – all living in one hamlet. According to Alio (1995) family size has implication
for education. The author emphasized that the size of the family determines to a great
extent the relative amount of physical attention and time which each child gets from his
parents. Large families are more common among the lower class of the society. Children
3
in large families may suffer poverty and lack parental encouragement and stimulus which
motivate their academic achievement (Eamon, 2005). Similarly, smaller family size has
been linked with high academic achievement (Majoribank 1996) Majoribank further
stressed that students with fewer siblings are likely to receive more parental attention and
have support that leads to better school performance Family (small or large size)
remains the primary environment of every child. The families begin the process of
education and provide physical and psychological needs of the child. This supports the
view of Maduewisi (1982), that the environmental experiences from family, peer group
and school location have great influence in determining child’s intellectual ability. She
maintained that bright children from under-privileged family environment may turn dull
due to impoverished family environment. She added that mental development influence
intellectual development. This is in line with Hebb (1987) who observed that the innate
potentials of children cannot be attained without adequate stimulating family environment
because the child cannot do well intellectually. The implication is that a proper
stimulating family environment with intellectual potential and appropriate teaching
methods will definitely enhance maximum performance of the child.
Durosaro and Durosaro (1990) in their study attempted to investigate the
relationship between students’ family size and their academic achievement; they found
out that family size influenced academic achievement. Their study reveals that children
from small size families performed better at school than their counterparts from both
average size and large size families. Furthermore, Yoloye (1989) conducted a study to see
if the family background variables might be useful in explaining their academic
achievement. Some aspects of family background variables examined in the study include
family size and parents’ educational status. His findings were that the polygamous family
4
sizes which were naturally large, reduces the chances of children going to school in the
first instance. In addition, children from such backgrounds who are in schools have
reduced chances of achieving their goals. Thirdly, parents of such families are mostly
illiterate and incapable of providing adequate motivation for their children in schools as
compare with the literate nuclear families.
The economic implication of large family size is better explained in Okunyi
(2004) who observed from his study that as families get larger, parents cannot give their
children the same amount of individual attention. They could not afford to provide them
with so many of the things which will help them to make the best possible use of their
years at school such as educational aids, and quiet comfortable rooms in which to do
home work undisturbed by the television, outings to places of interest, leisure time
pursuits, and opportunities for traveling. What is most probably important of all,
according to him is the fact that the parents of large families were found not to talk with
their children to the same extent as parents of small families.
Another aspect of family environmental factor is the structure of the family.
Structurally, a family is either broken or intact. A broken family in this context is one that
is not structurally intact for various reasons; such as death of a parent, divorce, separation,
desertion and illegitimacy in which case, the family was never completed (Coukline
1996). Life in a single parent family can be stressful for both the child and the parent and
such families are faced with the challenges of diminished financial resources,
assumptions of new roles and responsibilities, establishment of new pattern in intra-
familial interactions and reorganization or routines and schedules, (Agulanna 1999).
In single parent families, children may suffer some psychological and social
problems which affect their academic performance. Danesy and Okedian (2002), in their
5
study, lamented that street hawking among secondary school students have
psychologically imposed other problems, such as sex networking behaviour, juvenile
delinquent behaviour, which take much of the student school time that necessitated the
poor academic performance and drop out syndrome noticed among young school
students. They also lamented that the maternal and paternal deprivation of essential needs
of the young students have promoted their poor performance in public examinations, such
as JSCE, WASSCE and NECO. Similarly, (Okunniyi 2004) asserted that a child who
suffer maternal and paternal deprivation may experience academic problems including
truancy in the school. This is because the child may lack some necessities like school
fees, books and uniforms. These conditions, according to the authors, are not conducive
for effective parenting because when the single parents are overburdened by
responsibilities and by the own, emotional, reaction to their situation, they often become
irritable, impatient and insensitive to their children’s needs.
Apart from the structural pattern of the family, another powerful variable in the
family that determines the students academic achievement is the family socio-economic
status (SES). According to (Jeynes 2002), the socio-economic status (SES) of a child is
most commonly determined by combining portent’s educational level, occupational
status, and income level. Social class and economic status of the parents determine the
type of school and the standard of training they desire for their children. The occupation
or profession of the parents, the educational level and whether the mothers are working or
non-working mothers places them at an advantage or disadvantage to evaluate their
children’s academic work and monitor their progress.
Status is often determined by the individuals economic attainment, though it is sometimes
ascribed on the individual. Okunniyi (2004), identified three distinct socio-economic
6
groups or status which are common in many countries. They are: upper class- which is
made up of rich business men and top government officials among others; middle class-
which consists of skilled workers, professionals and middle ranked government workers
and the lower class- which is made up of manual workers, petty traders and low income
government officials.
Francis (2007) opines that the lower income families may be aware of the
importance of education in the society, but at the same time, they are also aware of their
limited resources to measure up with such educational demands. According to the author,
a family that can scarcely provide for the basic needs of the family which include food,
shelters and clothing will hardly motivate the academic excellence of their children,
instead they will pressurize their children so seek for job opportunities with the little
education they acquired so far to support the family. The implication of the agreement is
that for families are likely to give their children poor academic background because of
lack of financial support.
The socio-economic status of a family is capable of affecting the behaviour of
the children and determine their aspiration. Families with high socio-economic status
often have more success in preparing their children for school because they typically have
access to wide range of providing their young children with high quality child-care, books
and encourage children in various learning activities at home. They also have easy access
to information regarding their children’s health, as well as social, emotional and cognitive
development (Ojo and Yilma 2010),
Ojo and Yilma also noted that in all socio-economic groups, parents face major
challenges when it comes to providing optimal care and education for their children and
these challenges are more pronounced in poor families. This, according to them, is
7
because sometimes, when the basic necessities are lacking, parents must place top priority
on housing, food, clothing and health care, regarding education materials and books as
luxuries. They added that poor families may also have inadequate or limited access to
community resources that promote and support children’s development and school
readiness. They further asserted that these disadvantages can negatively affect families
decisions regarding their children development and learning. This situation, according to
Ojo and Yilma, may also expose the infants in poor families to a greater risk of entering
kindergarten schools unprepared, unlike their peers from rich families.
Parents’ motivation is another family background factor which influence the
academic achievement of students. Students under motivated condition, exhibits
purposeful behaviour aimed at achieving academic set goals. The achievement of these
goals determines the motive. Hickey and Lindsey (1995) clearly distinguished two
perspectives of motivation; these are situational and dispositional perspectives. According
to them, disposition perspective asks questions about students’ general orientation to
learning which relates the students’ priority and students’ nature. The situational
perspective according to the scholars focuses on learning context. These scholars further
identified to factors that greatly influence students’ motivation. These are: interpersonal
factors such as curiosity, perseverance, and autonomy (intrinsic-factors) and
environmental factors such as parents, peers and sibling (extrinsic factors).
Research shows that supportive and attentive parenting practices positively affect
academic achievement (Eamon, 2005). In addition, high parental aspirations have been
associated with increasing students’ interest in education (Majoribanks, 2005). The effect
of parental motivation and involvement in their children’s school has on academic
achievement is less clear (Domina 2005), parental motivation and involvement in school
8
has been linked to both positive and negative influences on academic achievement
(McNeal, 2001, Domina, 2005). Explanations for this discrepancy are not conclusive. It is
thought that the type of involvement and motivation may make a difference and that in
some cases parents become involved after their child has already had academic
difficulties (Domina, 2005, McNeal, 2001). Other recent research has found more
conclusively that while parental motivation may not help academic achievement, it does
help prevent behaviorual problems (Domina, 2005).
Students with fewer siblings are likely to receive more parental attention and
motivation and thus have more access to resources than children from large families. The
additional attention and motivation leads to better school performance (Majoribanks,
1996, Thondike, 1997 and Samon, 2005).
Thondike reorganized seven ways of motivating students viz:
awareness on the part of the parents of the value of education whether such parents are
literature of illiterate; existence of books, newspapers, comic books; good nutrition and
sleeping habit; adequate facilities for sleep, for study and for rest; satisfaction of physical
needs like food, shelter and clothing; objects in the home which challenges the child’s
curiosity.
Douglas (1984) established a positive correlation between children’s academic
achievement and motivation. The author laid considerable emphasis upon parental
interest as a factor governing children’s chances of being awarded grammar school
admissions. For the author, the simple most important factor that influence educational
attainment of children appears to be the degree of parents interest in their children’s
education. Douglas further stated that middle class parents express great interest in their
children’s education as indicated by more frequent visits to school to discuss children’s
9
progress, buying relevant textbooks and other necessary materials needed in the school
for their children. The author also found from his study that parental interest and
encouragement become increasingly important as a spur to high attainment as the children
grow older. He also attached importance to the child’s early years, since in many cases,
performance during the first years of school is reflected throughout the secondary school.
He suggested that during primary socialization, middle-class children receive greater
attention and stimulus from their parents. This forms basis for high achievement in the
educational system.
Students from low socio-economic status families may not be strongly motivated
to do well in school and may not be knowledgeable about techniques of being successful
in school. High socio-economic status parents who have benefited in a variety of ways
from education serves as effective and enthusiastic advocate of schooling (Carlson,
2003). In line with this Okwulanya (2003) opines that motivation from educated parents
strengthens the academic aspiration and language development in their children to
perform better in their academic work. According to the scholar, some children may come
from homes were academic is much valued, where there are books around them and most
of the time, they see their parents reading. Their parents may give them books as
Christmas presents. They encourage them to read many books wither by organizing mini
library for them at home or by encourage to use the state library. The author went further
to emphasize that some children may come from illiterate homes, where no importance is
attached to books. In such families children scarcely see their parents at home.
In all, the researcher’s conclusion is that motivated students are likely to engage in
an activity more vigorously and more effectively than unmotivated one. Motivation is
always goal orientated.
10
The importance of parental level of education to academic achievement of students
cannot be over emphasized. Students from professional and to a lesser extent managerial
occupational backgrounds exhibit higher academic performance (Gary, 2001). In support
of this view, Onochie and Okpalla (1985) opined that educational level of parents which
is an indicator of socio-economic status has direct influence on child’s values and
academic achievement in the school. They mentioned that children from illiterate families
may learn little or nothing from home that can help them develop interest in academics.
This is in contrast to what is obtainable from children from literature families where
parents provide atmosphere conducive for the formation of good study habits (Qeca,
1980).
Parental occupation is also an important family background variable. The
occupation of one’s parents may determine to a large extent one’s opportunity to attend
secondary school or not. Ezeji (2001) noted that parents like their children to take to their
occupation, like parents who are lawyers, doctors, musicians among others. Examples of
such people in the country include Gani faweiheni, the prominent human right lawyer,
Oliver Akalite (Oliver De coque) and Osita Osadebe who were famous musicians each of
these great men had one or more of his children in his type of occupation. Uwaoma
(2066) asserted that most vocational students were children whose parents were farmer or
craftmen. In Nigeria most children whose parents cannot afford to pay for high cost of
formal education enroll into apprenticeship programmes such as carpentry, brick laying,
petting trading and others. In the study area, there is a seeming general poor performance
among secondary school students. Evidences of the poor performances are seen in both
students’ internal and external examination. For instance, the available records of WAEC
result analyses from 2005 to 2011 indicate downward trends in students’ academic
11
achievement. According to the analyses, the achievement levels of students are as
follows: 2005-27.53%, 2006-15.56%, 2007-25.54%, 2008-13.76%, 2009-25.99%,
2010-24.94% and 2011 -30.99% (source: WAEC Lagos).
It is against this background that the researcher is interested investigating the
influence of family background on students academic achievement in Nsukka education
zone of Enugu state. The researcher intends to investigate the variables in the family
background with a view of assessing their relative influence on academic achievement of
senior secondary school student in Nsukka education zone.
Statement of the Problem
Most students in Nigerian secondary schools are in greater risk of poor academic
achievement in both internal and external examinations (WAEC and NECO). For
instance, the available records of WAEC result analysis from 2005- 2011 show a
continuous decline in students overall performance in school certificate examinations.
Government, parents, teachers and students blame one another for students’ poor
performance in schools. Parents blame teachers for lack of dedication to duties. The
teachers blame government for poor salaries hence they are poorly motivated, parents
also accuse government for not equipping the schools with learning materials,
government blame parents for not doing good home work and the students are blamed for
lack of discipline and dedication to their studies.
In light of the above issues, the outstanding and relevant question is: what is the
influence of family background on academic achievement of secondary school students?
12
Purpose of the Study
Generally, the purpose of the study was to find out the influence of family background
on students’ academic achievement among senior secondary school students in Nsukka
Education zone.
Specifically, the purpose of the study is to find out:
1. The influence of parental level of education on academic achievement of
senior secondary school students.
2. The influence of parental occupation on students’ academic achievement.
3. The influence of parental income on students’ academic achievement.
4. The influence of family size on students’ academic achievement.
5. The influence of parental motivation on students’ academic achievement.
Significance of the study
Theoretically, the findings of this study are considered significant because it can
help in providing empirical information in identifying and explaining the various family
background variables and the influence of the variables on students’ academic
achievement. This will help in better understanding of the phenomenon. Moreover, it is
expected that the findings will help to explain the functionality of the theoretical
postulations Maslow’s motivational theory. According to Maslow, motivation is very
important in learning, and a learner under motivated condition, exhibits purposeful
behaivour aimed to achieving the set goal. The students is motivated to learn when their
physiological need like shelter, food, water, rest and safety needs like love and belonging.
The satisfaction of these needs leads to the quest to satisfy higher needs which boarder on
self esteem and self actualization. The understanding of this theory especially as it relates
13
to students teachers and parents would be of particular significance to researchers in the
field of education and family studies.
Practically, the finding of this study will be useful to the following: the teachers,
students, parents, school guidance counselors, Parents Teachers Association (PTA),
educational administrators and the society at large.
The finding of the study will be of immense help to the teachers. The teachers will realize
the necessity of individualizing their teaching by structuring their teaching methods and
instructional resources to take care of the divergent parental backgrounds of the students.
This method may yield more positive result than the traditional system which assumes
that all children have similar family background. The findings of the study will also help
teachers to exercise patience with slow-learners as they vary methods of instruction to
accommodate divergent family background.
The findings will be of immense importance to students. The students will realize
that their poor performance might not necessarily be their fault alone, especially those
from low status families. Such knowledge will go a long way to reduce frustration in the
students and also reduce drop-outs which occur as a result of frustration. Rather, the
students should be made to adjust and help themselves by studying hard at home and also
make proper of the books and materials that are provided for them at the school library.
Through the findings of this study, parents will realize the importance of
improving their educational standard so as to influence their children’s academic
performance. Parents will also understand the need for them to improve their socio-
economic status so as to be able to provide the necessary motivation in form of learning
materials and other things which will enhance their children’s learning and their academic
performance. They will equally acknowledge the importance of positive motivations and
14
encouragement and provide some, by making the family environment more conducive for
their children.
The school guidance counselors will also benefit from the findings of this study.
They will be in position to guide and counsel students in the area of personal social
interactions, academic performance and career choice.
The findings of the study will help Parents Teacher Associations (PTA) of schools
in promoting the academic performance of student. This is because at PTA meetings,
parents know their functions and responsibilities at home, to help solve their children’s
problems both home and school environment.
The findings of the study will be of immense help to educational administrators.
They will use the findings in the formulation of policy that will regulate equal educational
opportunities for all children irrespective of their family background in the distribution of
equipment, facilities and amenities to schools.
The findings of this study will help the society at large in identifying how family
environmental variables such as what parents’ level of education, parents’ income,
parents’ occupation, parents’ motivation and family size on student’s academic
performance. This will act as a check on increasing low academic performance among
students, occasioned by the fact that some parents, teachers and counselors do not have
adequate knowledge/input required of them.
Scope of Study
The study is limited to secondary schools in Nsukka education Zone of Enugu
state. The context scope of this study is limited to finding the influence of family
background on academic achievement of students with particular regards to parental level
of education; parental occupation, parental income, family size and parental motivation.
15
Research Questions
The study will provide answers to the following research questions:
1. What is the influence of parental level of education on students’ academic
achievement?
2. What influence does parental occupation have on students’ academic
achievement?
3. What is the influence of parents’ income on students’ academic achievement?
4. What is the influence of family size on students’ academic achievement?
5. What influence does parental motivation have on students’ academic
achievement?
Research Hypotheses
The following hypotheses will guide the studying and will be tested at 0.5 level of
significance.
1. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban and
Rural Schools on the influence of parental level of education on students’
academic achievement
2. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and
Rural Schools on the influence of parental occupation on students’ academic
achievement.
3. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and
Rural Schools on the influence of parents’ income on student’s academic
achievement.
16
4. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and
Rural Schools on the influence of family size on students’ academic
achievement.
5. There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of Students in Urban and
Rural Schools on the influence of parental motivation on students’ academic
achievement.
17
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
The chapter presents a review of related literature under the following sub-
headings.
• Conceptual Framework
- Concept of family
- Concept of family background
- Concept of achievement
- Concept of academic achievement
•••• Theoretical Framework
- Parental attachment theory
- Self-determination theory
- Maslow’s motivational theory
• Empirical Studies on family background and academic achievement
• Summary of related literature.
Conceptual Framework
Concept of Family
Family has been described at the smallest, most personal and not intimate of social
groups. It is the most important primary group and the smallest social unit in the society.
Odo (1990:10) defined family as “a social group sharing a common residence and co-
operating economically”. The author went further to assert that the institutions of the
family is usually based on the marriage of one or more sexually co-habiting couples and
usually there is the expectation of having children for whom the adults of the family
accept responsibility. Alio (1995) observed that the family is also the most personal social
18
organization, for nothing is more personal than the interaction and relationship between
members of a family. He further said that married couple without children, though bound
by the strongest personal ties do not constitute a family for such ties can conceivably exist
among couples who are not married. For him, what gives a family its character are
children, for only in such a family can that intimate, personal relationship be established
by which the family can perform its functions of rearing, protecting and educating the
children, transmitting to them the social values it has inherited and a special bond
between all the members. This kind of family setting is similar to the Nigerian traditional
idea of family. Traditionally, it is believed that it is the children that cement the union of a
man and a woman together and makes it a lasting and a intimate one. The primary aim of
this union is procreation.
Family can be classified into nuclear and extended form. Nuclear family is basic
form of family organization. It is made up of the father (husband), mother (wife) and
children. The children may be the biological offspring; of the couple or/and the adopted
members of the family. According to Okafor (1992), the adoption of a child into the
family is a common culture in the British society, but less so in Nigerian society. He
added that nuclear family is found common among the urban city elites in Nigerian
society or as a component in both extended, nuclear and compound family in Nigerian
rural areas. The author maintained that one of the characteristics of the nuclear family is
that is tends to break up when the children marry, when the parents die or at any point in
human cycle. According to him, the male raised in a nuclear family usually begins his life
in house hold headed by his parents and concluded his life in a family that he himself
heads.
19
Extended family is the type of family that comprises of the father (husband) his
wife (mother), their children, the husbands and the wife’s relations etc. Alio (1995)
pointed out that the extended system is a dispersal version of the joint family and the
members of the constituent groups do not all live together in one dwelling. To him, the
extended kin-group includes a span of three or four generations within the total household
or closely adjacent households. The extended family system is commonly a
characteristics of most African society. Many Nigerian societies do not believe in nuclear
family but in modern times, urbanization and economic pressures are discouraging
extended family ties. However, extended family system is the popular and most common
type of family arrangement in the Nigerian society. Anybody who fails to practice or
show interest in the extended relations is regarded as a wicked and hopeless human being
by members of the society.
Concept of Family Background
Family background plays a very big role on a child’s life. Family background
refers to all the objects, forces and conditions in the family which influence the child
physically, intellectually and emotionally (Muola 2010). Children coming from different
family backgrounds are affected differently by such variations and that is why some
children have good family background while the family background of others are poor.
Citing Fleege, Eke (1999) noted that with some families, the background may vary from
time to time for the same individuals. The author further stated that because it is parents
who are primarily responsible for establishing the family and exercise control over it, they
are responsible for the type of family background that exists. This means that parental
attitudes are very important in promoting healthy family background, and healthy family
20
background is possible when parents adapt to the culturally defined roles of parents to the
needs of the changing young generation.
Concept of achievement
Achievement could be seen as something which was carried out successfully. It is
a product of effort or series of efforts. Achievement is usually good but in most cases
difficult. Eze (2009) described achievement as something which has been accomplished
successfully, especially by means of exertion, skill practice or perseverance. She sees
achievement as a test for the measurement and comparison of skills in various fields of
academic study. Ifeako (1999.30) regards achievement as a change in behaviour exhibited
at the end of a given period of time or within a given time range. Nwagu 1992:71) cited in
Eze (2009) defined achievement as “a systematic and purposeful quantification of
learning outcomes”. He explained that achievement involves the determination of the
degree of attainment on individuals in tasks, courses or programmes of which the
individuals were sufficiently exposed.
Achievement tests result in academics have many functions which include: to
enable us determine the relative position or rank of individual student with respect to their
test performance. It also enables us to obtain information on the extent to which a student
has attained the criterion performance.
Students, teachers, parents and the entire society are much concerned about the
academic achievement of students.
Concept of Academic Achievement
Academic achievement has to do with what a learn is able to accomplish by
execution of class work in the school. Stiggings (2001) sees academic achievement as
21
something a learner do or achieve at school, college or university, in class, in a laboratory
or field work. went ling (2000) said that academic achievement refers to achievement of
individuals’ objective to various types of knowledge and skills. According to the author
the objective are established based on the age, prior learning and capacity of individuals
with regards to education, socialization and qualification.
Some of the purposes of academic achievement measurement are enumerated in
Ukwuije (1989: 22) as follows: to determine the relative effectiveness of a programme in
terms of students’ behavioural outputs; to identify students growth or lack of growth in
acquiring desirable knowledge skills, attitudes and social values; to held teachers
determine the effectiveness of their teaching technique and learning material; to help
motivate students to learn as they discover their progress or lack of progress in given task;
to encourage students to develop a sense of discipline and systematic study habits; to
acquaint parents or guardians with their children performance ; to predict the general
trend in the development of teaching learning process; to make reliable decision about
education planning and to provide educational administrators with adequate information
about teachers effectiveness and school need.
In summary, academic achievement measurement is very important, is schools
colleges and universities. It is relevant instructional, administrative, guidance and
counseling and research purposes.
Theoretical Framework
For the research work to be intellectually sound, it must include a scientifically
based theoretical framework with which a systematic analysis will be carried out.
Therefore, the following theories are adopted for the study: parental attachment theory,
self determination theory and Mashow’s motivational theory.
22
Parental Attachment Theory
Parental attachment theory was proposed by Bowlby (1980). The theory states that
the child forms a strong emotional bond with anther person (caregiver) during childhood
with lifelong consequences. According to the theorist, sensitive and emotionally available
parenting helps the child to form a secure attachment style which foster a child’s socio-
emotional development and well being. Less sensitive and emotionally available
parenting or neglect of the child’s needs may result in insecure forms of attachment style,
which is a risk factor for many mental health problems.
The theory is relevant to this study in view of the fact that the proponent provides
clues in emotional development of children. He also made reasonable suggestions for
parents and guardians. Parents and guardians can now see the necessity of forming secure
attachment bond with their children. Such bonds will enable the children to end up with
secure attachment and secure state of mind later in life. Parents will learn to understand
the biological and psychological needs of the children, and to avoid unrealistic
expectations of the child behaviour. In this way, parents may seek to avoid frustration that
occurs when they expect things beyond the child’s capability.
Self-Determination Theory
Self-determination theory was propounded by Deci and Ryan (1985). The
proponents stated that people are active organisms, with the growing tendencies geared
towards mastering ambient challenges, and integrating new experiences into a coherent
sense of self. They stressed that these natural development tendencies do not operate
automatically, but rather requires on-going social nutriments and supports. According
them, the social context can either support or thwart the natural tendencies towards active
engagement and psychological growth furthermore the social context can catalyze to lack
23
of integration, defense, and fulfillment of need-substitutes. The proponents remarked that
the dialectic between the active organism and the social context is the basis for
predictions about behaviour, experience, and development.
Self-determination theory is applicable to this study, based on the fact individuals
or groups need to be self determined to achieve a set goal. The habit of determination can
help children in their academic achievement.
Maslow’s Motivational Theory.
This is another important theory that is relevant to this study. The theory was
developed by Abraham Maslow (1970) and popularized by many researchers including
Onyi (2007). According to Maslow, motivation is constant and never ending, fluctuating
and complex. He asserted that man always has needs to satisfy. These needs, according to
him are arranged in a hierarchical order starting from the basic or lower order needs to
higher order needs. The hierarchy is categorized into two, namely Deficit needs
(physiological, safety, belonging and self esteem) and growth needs (self-actualization).
Maslow explained that once a particular need is satisfied, it ceases to be a motivator of
behaviour and another need emerges.
The above theory relates to this study because motivation is very important in
learning. It is necessary at home and in school. One of the major problems confronting
teachers and parents is that of motivating learners to perform assigned tasks to meet or
even excel predetermined standards. Motivation energize and sustain behaviour, direct
and regulate behaviour and even enhance selective behaviour.
A learner under motivated condition, exhibits purposeful behaviour aimed at
achieving the set goals. The students are motivated to learn by their satisfaction of needs
like physiological: Shelter, food, water, rest etc. Safety: materials love and belonging.
24
The satisfaction of these needs leads to the quest to satisfy higher ones which are self
esteem and self-actualization needs.
Empirical Studies
This section reviews some empirical works that have been done on areas related
to the study.
Okunniyi (2004) carried out a research on how the family background influence
students introductory technology achievement among Junior secondary school students in
Abeokuta south local government of Ogun state. The study design was a survey which
involved the use of questionnaire in gathering data. The researcher use 500 students as
sample for the study. The data collected were analyzed using frequency table, percentage,
mean, standard deviation and t-test statistics. The researcher found, among other things
that social class of parents determines the students academic achievement.
Although this study was directed towards finding out how family background
influences the students academic performance, it is more concerned with how the family
background affect the students performance in introductory technology. However, it is
related to the present study as both are interested in finding our the influence of family
background factors on student academic outcome.
Izundu (2005), conducted a research on relationship between Home environmental
factors and academic performance of secondary school students in Onitsha local
government area of Anambra state. The design for the study was correlation design, while
the major instrument for gathering data was questionnaire. The sample for the study was
450 students. The data collected were analyzed through the use of mean, and standard
deviation while the null hypotheses were tested using ‘regressional analysis’. The finding
of the study was that most students in secondary schools in Anambra state come from low
25
socio-economic families but it does not affect their academic performance adversely. The
study also revealed that family size does not influence the students academic
performance. However, the study found that there is significant relationship between the
level of parents education and the academic performance of the students. The above
study relates with the present study as both are discussing about the home
variables/factors that affect students academic performance.
In another related study, Onyi (2002) conducted a research on the influence of
home on the academic performance of students in Enugu East local government area of
Enugu state. The researcher used survey design for the study. The sample for the study
consists of 240 students. The instrument used by the researcher for data collection was a
structured likert type questionnaire. The researcher used weighted means in analyzing the
data. The findings of this study are: home environment influences the academic
performance of the students, it was also found that students from peaceful homes share
their academic problems with their parents. It was also found that there is positive
correlation between parents encouragement and students academic performance. This
study is related to the present study in that it is geared towards exploring how home
environmental factors influence students academic performance.
In a similar work, Eke (1999) conducted a study on the relationship between home
environmental factors and academic performance of secondary school students in Gboko
local government are of Benue state. The purpose of the study specifically was to
examine how home environmental factors affect students academic performance. The
study design was correctional survey which sought to discover or clarify relationships
through the use of correlation coefficient to determine the extent to which home
environment mental factors relate with academic performance of students in schools. A
26
sample of 200 students was used for the study. He analysis the of data using conducted
using the Peason’s product moment correlation method. It was revealed from the study
that the socio-economic background of parents is not significantly related to the academic
performance of students in Gboko local government area of Benue state. Another finding
of that study was that parental occupation does not significantly affect academic
performance of students. The study also found that parental educational background is not
significantly related to academic performance of secondary school students in Gboko
local government of Benue state. The study is related to this present study because it
discussed some of the home related variables that influence students academic
achievement.
Agu (2010) carried out a study titled “relationship between motivational patterns
and students academic achievement schools in Enugu education zone were used. The
design for the study was correlation survey design. The instrument for data collection was
question. The sample of the study was 459 students.
The researcher analyzed the data using Pearson Product moment correlation
coefficient. The result of the study revealed that motivational patterns relate to students
academic achievement. They study further revealed that motivation is an integral aspect
of learning indicating that different motivational construct are correlated with effective
classroom learning and achievement. The above study relates with the present study since
it embarks on examining motivational factors that enhance students academic
achievement.
Summary of Literature Review
The literature for this study focused on three main headings: the conceptual
framework, theoretical framework and the empirical studies. Under the conceptual
27
framework, concepts such as family, family background, achievement and influence were
reviewed. Family has been described as the smallest, most personal and most intimate of
social groups. It is the most important primary group and the smallest social unit in the
society is usually based on the marriage of one or more sexually co-habiting couples, and
usually there is expectation of having children for whom the adults of the family accept
responsibility. Family background connotes all the objects, forces and conditions in the
family which influence the child physically, intellectually and emotionally. Education is
seen as the sum total of the experiences, whether formal or informal which as man comes
across in his journey to life. It is also seen as the transmission of what is worthwhile to
individuals to make them knowledgeable and contributing members of the society.
Achievement is as something which is carried out successfully, a product of effort or
series of efforts which is usually good but in most cases difficult. It is described as
something which has been accomplished successfully, especially by means of exertion,
skill, practice or perseverance. Influence is the capacity or power of persons or things to
be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behaviour, opinions of others.
Under theoretical framework such theories as parental attachment theory, self
determination theory and Maslow’s motivational theory were reviewed. Parental
attachment theory argues that a child has a tendency to seek closes to another person
(care-giver) and feel secured when that person is present. Self-determination theory states
that people are active organisms, with the growing tendencies geared towards mastering
ambient challenges, and integrating new experiences into a coherent sense of self.
Maslow’s motivational theory emphasizes that man always has needs to satisfy and these
needs are arranged in a hierarchical order staring from the basic or lower order needs to
higher order needs when one needs is met another will emerge.
28
Finally, although some empirical studies indicated the influence of family
background on students’ academic achievement, a major problem that was evident from
literature was a general dearth of such research studies in Nigeria especially in the study
area (Nsukka Education zone). Most of the available research studies were conducted in
the western countries. Therefore, there is the need to carry out the study in Nigerian
environment. It is the bid to fill this gap that motivated the study.
29
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHOD
This chapter discusses the procedure that is adopted in carrying out this study. It
focuses on the research design, area of the study, population of the study, sample and
sampling technique, instrument for data collection, validation of the instrument, reliability
of the instrument, method of data collection and method of data analysis.
Research Design
The study was carried out using ex-post facto method in examining the influence
of family background on student’s academic achievement in senior secondary schools in
Nsukka education zone. Ex-post facto research design according Ngwagu (2005) is a
systematic empirical inquiry in which the researcher does not have direct control on
independent variables because they are inherently not easy to manipulate. The purpose of
ex-post facto research design is to find out factors that seem to be closely associated with
certain behaviours, occurrences, prevalence or conditions. Ex-post facto design is
considered suitable for this study because it is practical and versatile. The design enables
the researcher to collect original data from the respondents themselves and describes the
present conditions as they exist in their natural family settings.
Area of the Study
The study was carried out in Nsukka education zone of Enugu state. Nsukka
education zone is one of the six education zone in the state. There are three Local
Government areas in the zone, namely: Nsukka, Igbo Etiti and Uzo Uwani Local
Government Areas. Nsukka education zone is chosen for this study since it has a
30
representative sample of the target population. Again literature indicates high incidence of
poor academic achievement among students in the study area.
Population of the Study
The population of the study consists of all the senior secondary class two (SS 2) students
in fifty three public secondary schools in Nsukka education zone. These fifty three
schools have a population of seven thousand, Nine hundred and forthy five (7945) ss2
students. (see appendix- source: PPSMB Nsukka Zone) these schools are distributed
across three Local Government according to the statistical records available in the Post
Primary Schools Management Board (PPSMB) Nsukka Zone - see appendix for details.
Sample and Sampling Technique
The sample size for the study comprised eight hundred and sixteen (816) students
from the public secondary schools in the study area. The schools for the study were
classified along Local Government Areas. For even representation, non-proportionate
stratified random sampling procedure was used to draw four schools from each of the
Local Government Area in the zone. This is to accommodate Local Government areas
with few schools. (see appendix for details). A total of twelve (12) schools were drawn. In
each of the sample school the entire Senior Secondary Two (SS 2) students was used
giving a total of eight hundred and sixteen students (816). The schools were further
stratified into urban and rural schools with a population of 408 respondents in each strata,
giving a total of 816 respondents in both urban and rural schools.
The researcher purposely used to use SS II students as the respondents,
considering the facts that students at that level have been academically exposed and may
be able to handle the questionnaire. Students in SS I are still new in senior secondary
31
level, while those in SS III are preparing for their terminal examinations (WAEC to
NECO).
Instrument for Data Collection
The Instruments for data collection was questionnaire. The questionnaire was
developed by the researcher and is titled: Family background influence questionnaire
(FBIQ). This questionnaire is constructed on the basis of research questions on a four
point likert amended scale. The instrument (questionnaire) is made up of twenty six (26)
items on influence of parental education, parental occupation, parental income, family
size and parental motivation. The questionnaire has three parts. Part one provides
demographic data of the respondents, part two provides information on students’ family
background. Part three has five clusters (A-E). cluster ‘A’ contains questionnaire items
concerning the influence of education level of parents, cluster ‘B’ contains questionnaire
items concerning the influence of parental occupation, cluster ‘C’ has item statements that
seek information on the influence of parental level of income, cluster ‘D’ contains item
statements concerning the influence of family size while cluster ‘E’ contains
questionnaire items concerning the influence of parental motivation.
The questionnaire was structured in form of four –point likert scale coded as
follows:
Strongly agree (SA)--- 4
Agree (A)----3
Disagree (D)---2
Strongly disagree (SD)----1
The study compared the responses of students from urban and rural school. In this
study students from schools located very close to Nsukka township (the zonal
32
Headquarters) are categorized as urban students. The students from schools that were not
close to Nsukka zonal headquarters are regarded as Rural students.
Validation of the Instrument
The instrument for data collection was face validated. The initial drafts of the
instrument were submitted to three experts: two in sociology of education, one in
measurement and evaluation-all in the department of educational foundation in University
of Nigeria, Nsukka. These experts subjected instrument to rigorous scrutiny in order to
ascertain the clarity, relevance, adequacy and other attributes which a good research
instrument should possess. The researcher reconstructed the instrument based on the
suggestions of the experts
Reliability of the Instrument
The FBIQ questionnaire was trial- tested using 30 students at Obollo Afor
educational zone which is entirely outside the geographical scope of the study. This area
is considered to have similar characteristics with the study area. For example the two
zones (Nsukka and Obollo Afor Zones) share similar cultural background and even share
the same curriculum.
To determine the reliability of the FBIQ questionnaire, the scores from 30
respondents in the trial testing of the instrument were used in establishing the internal
consistency using the Cronbach Alpha procedure. The internal consistency reliability
estimate yielded 0.69 for influence of parental education, 0.66 for influence of parents
occupation, 0.61 for influence of parents income, 0.70 for influence of family size and
0.84 for the influence of parental motivation (see appendix). These results showed that
the instrument was fairly reliable, which means it good for the study.
33
Method of Data Collection
In view of the large population of the respondents for the study, the researcher
made the use of two research assistants for each of the three local governments in the
zone namely: Nsukka, Igbo Etiti and Uzo-Uwani. The research assistants were recruited
from among secondary school teachers in the study area.
The researcher briefed the researcher assistants on the objective of the study. This
enabled them explain certain items on the questionnaire to the respondents so that the
questionnaire would be properly filled. The questionnaire was administered by the
researcher and the research assistants face to face to the respondents and collected on the
sport. This method ensured correct completion and high percentage return of completed
questionnaire. However, out of eight hundred and sixteen (816) questionnaire distributed
to the respondent, sixteen (16) were not recovered. The researcher had to work with eight
hundred (800) questionnaire.
Method of Data Analysis
The data collected were analyzed using mean, standard deviation and t-test
statistics. The mean was used to answer the research questions while the t-test statistics
was used to test the Null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance.
A mean of 3.50 – 4.49 was accepted as strongly agree, 2.50 – 2.49 was accepted as
Agree while 1.50 – 2.49 was accepted as disagree and 0.05 – 1.49 showed strongly
disagree
The upper limit and the lower limit becomes 3.00 and 2.00 respectively, used the
interval scaling of 0.50. Any mean response of 3.00 and above was considered positive
while any mean response below 3.00 was considered negative.
34
For the test of hypotheses, the null hypothesis was accepted if the calculated t-test
is less than the t-table, and rejected if the calculated t-test was greater than t-table value at
0.05 level of significance.
35
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS
In this chapter, data were presented on the basis of the research questions and
hypotheses that guided the study.
Research Question 1
What is the influence of parental level of education on students’ academic
achievement?
Table 1: Parental educational level and its influences on students’ academic
achievement
Urban Students Rural Students
S/N Items on parental education level X1 SD1 Deci
sion
X2 SD2 Deci
sion
1 Educated parents always want their children
to be educated.
3.69
1.41
A
3.44
1.48
A
2 Parents who all educated provide most of the
recommended textbooks and other learning
aids for their children.
3.80
1.05
A
3.82
1.02
A
3 Parents who are educated encourage their
children to study subjects which are pivotal
for good university courses.
3.71
1.28
A
3.40
1.30
A
4 In homes of educated parents, there are
conducive environment for studies.
3.97
1.06
A
3.20
1.60
A
5 Educated parents arrange for supportive
teachers for the subject/subjects which their
words/children find difficult in the school.
3.60
1.45
A
3.10
1.71
A
6 Parents who are educated guide their children
in school assignments and home work.
3.43
1.61
A
3.31
1.52
A
7 Educated parents always demand for progress
reports of their children to know the
children’s academic and social progress.
4.00
0.97
A
3.66
1.12
A
N1 = 400, N2 = 400
A = Agree, D = Disagree,
Table 1(one) reveals that items 1-7 have mean scores that are above the cut-off
mark of 3.00 that was regarded as acceptable limit as indicated by the researcher.
36
Therefore, all items under parental level of education were considered acceptable. This is
an indication that the respondents considered that parental level of education influenced
students’ academic achievement.
Research Question 2:
What influence has parents’ occupation on students’ academic achievement?
Urban Students Rural Students
S/N Items on parental occupation X1 SD1 Deci
sion
X2 SD2 Deci
sion
8 Parents on prestigious occupation want their
children to take up the same type of
occupation.
2.61
1.04
D
2.44
1.08
D
9 Some occupations do not give parents time
to attend to their children’s academic needs.
2.34
.786
D
2.29
1.15
D
10 Parents on poor occupations find it difficult
to provide learning aids for their children.
2.29
1.03
D
2.32
1.12
D
11 Parents who are poor farmers can only
enroll their children into minor
apprenticeship programmes.
2.50
.760
D
2.35
1.10
D
D = Disagree
The result presented on table 2(two) above showed that all items under the
influence of parental occupation had mean scores below the cut off mark of 3.00. This
shows that parents occupation do not necessarily influence students’ academic
achievement.
37
Research Question 3:
What is the influence of parents’ income on students’ academic achievement?
Table 3:
The influence of parents’ income on students’ academic achievement.
Urban Students Rural Students
S/N Items on parental occupation X1 SD1 Deci
sion
X2 SD2 Deci
sion
12 Children from high-income status parents
achieve better academically than those from
low-income status parents.
3.89
1.15
A
3.40
1.25
A
13 Parents on high-income can afford to
provide the basic necessities required for
their children’s education.
3.70
1.26
A
3.51
1.14
A
14 Children from upper-working class homes
perform better academically than those from
lower-working class homes.
4.00
0.90
A
3.91
1.02
A
15 Children whose parents are on high-income
status have higher career aspiration than
children whose parents are on low-income
status.
3.96
0.94
A
3.59
1.13
A
16 Only parents who are on high-income status
can train their children beyond secondary
school level.
2.36
1.96
A
2.11
1.17
D
The result presented on the above table shows that only one item (item 16) had a
mean score below the cut off mark of 3.00, while the remaining items have mean scores
above the cut off point. This shows that all the respondents considered that parental level
of income influenced students, achievement but disagree that only parents who are on
high income status can train their children beyond secondary school level.
38
Research Question 4:
What is the influence of family-size on students’ academic achievement?
Table 4:
The influence of family-size on students’ academic achievement
Urban Students Rural Students
S/N Items on family size X1 SD1 Deci
sion
X2 SD2 Deci
sion
17 Students from small size families enjoy
more parental attention than those from
large size families.
2.80
0.740
D
2.75
0.76
D
18 Students from small-size families achieve
better academically than those from large
size families.
2.84
0.738
D
2.72
0.78
D
19 Small size families facilitate the provision
of recommended textbooks and equipments
for effective learning.
2.28
1.15
D
2.86
0.70
D
The result on table 4 showed that all the items on influence of family size had
mean scores below the cut off mark of 3.00. This showed that family size did not
influence students’ academic achievement.
39
Research Question 5
What influence does parental level of motivation have on students academic
achievement?
Table 5:
The influence of parental level of motivation on students’ academic
achievement.
Urban Students Rural Students
S/N Items on parental motivation X1 SD1 Deci
sion
X2 SD2 Deci
sion
20 Students perform better academically when
their parents provide basic educational aids
and equipment for their studies.
4.03
0.98
A
4.00
0.75
A
21 Students harder when their parents reinforce
them for good academic performance.
4.27
0.71
A
4.00
0.75
A
22 Parents’ concern about students’ grades and
performances motivates students’ academic
achievement.
4.25
0.75
A
3.92
0.72
A
23 Home libraries and books motivate students
for better performance in the school.
3.91
1.06
A
3.96
0.70
A
24 Students feel happy and motivated when
their parents discuss their academic career
with them.
4.04
1.04
A
3.28
0.99
A
25 Students perform better academically when
their school fees and other school levies are
paid promptly.
3.98
1.02
A
3.60
0.96
A
26 Parents motivates students by paying for
their school field trips and excursions.
4.30
0.86
A
3.26
1.02
A
The result presented on table 5 showed that all items had mean scores which were
above the cut off of 3.00. This is an indication that the respondents considered parental
motivation as capable of influencing students’ academic achievement.
40
Hypothesis I:
There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and rural schools based on the influence of parental level of education on students’
academic achievement.
Table 6:
The mean ratings of Urban and Rural students on the influence of parental
level of education on students’ academic achievement.
df = N1 + N2 – 2, N1 = 400, N2 = 400
Stu
den
ts
in U
rban
sch
oo
ls.
Stu
den
ts
in
Ru
ral
sch
oo
ls
S/N Items on parental education X1 SD1 X2 SD2 Prob.
level
t-cal df t-
crit
Rmk
1 Educated parents always want
their children to be educated.
3.69
1.41
4.00
0.19
0.05
3.26
798
1.96
S
2 Parents who all educated
provide most of the
recommended textbooks and
other learning aids for their
children.
3.80
1.05
3.92
1.12
0.05
5.25
798
1.96
S
3 Parents who are educated
encourage their children to
study subjects which are pivotal
for good university courses.
3.71
1.33
4.00
0.10
0.05
13.14
798
1.96
S
4 In homes of educated parents,
there are conducive
environment for studies.
3.97
1.06
3.99
1.13
0.05
7.43
798
1.96
S
5 Educated parents arrange for
supportive teachers for the
subject/subjects which their
words/children find difficult in
the school.
3.60
1.45
3.72
1.25
0.05
12.10
798
1.96
S
6 Parents who are educated guide
their children in school
assignments and home work.
3.43
1.61
3.38
1.02
0.05
2.13
798
1.96
S
7 Educated parents always demand
for progress reports of their
children to know the children’s
academic and social progress.
3.22
0.97
3.36
1.06
0.05
1.13
798
1.96
S
S= significant; NS = Not significant; RMK = Remark
41
The t-calculated value of each item in table 6 (influence of parental level of
education) was obtained. The degree of freedom for all the items was 798, while the
critical t-value of 1.96 was obtained at 0.05 level of significance. From the table, it can be
seen that the t-calculated values for all items were more than the t-table values. Hence,
the Null hypothesis was rejected. That reveals that there is significant difference in the
opinion of Urban and Rural students on the influence of parental level of education on
students’ academic achievement.
Hypothesis II:
There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in urban and
rural schools on the influence of parental occupations on students’ academic
achievement.
Table 7:
The mean responses of Urban and Rural students on the influence of parental
occupation on students’ academic achievement.
Stu
den
ts
in U
rban
sch
ools
.
Stu
den
ts
in
Ru
ral
sch
oo
ls
S/N Items on parental occupation X1 SD1 X2 SD2 Prob.
level
t-cal df t-
crit
Rmk
8 Parents on prestigious
occupation want their children
to take up the same occupation.
2.60 1.04 2.00 0.91 0.05 0.62 798 1.96 NS
9 Some occupations do not give
parents time to attend to their
children’s academic needs.
2.34 0.78 2.15 0.82 0.05 0.51 798 1.96 NS
10 Parents on poor occupations
find it difficult to provide
learning aids for their children.
2.29 1.13 2.29 1.02 0.05 0.66 798 1.96 NS
11 Parents who are poor farmers
can only enroll their children
into minor apprenticeship
programmes.
2.50 0.76 2.60 1.03 0.05 0.43 798 1.96 NS
42
In the above table, the t-calculated value of each item was obtained, the degree of
freedom of all items was 798, while the critical t-table of 1.96 was obtained at 0.05 level
of significance. From the table, it can be seen that the t-calculated values for all items
were less than the critical t-value. Therefore, the Null hypothesis of no significance
difference between the responses of Urban and Rural students on influence of parental
occupation on students’ academic achievement was upheld.
43
Hypothesis III:
There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and Rural schools on the influence of parents’ income on students’ academic
achievement.
Table 8:
The mean ratings of Urban and Rural students on the influence of parental
income on students’ academic achievement
S
tud
ents
in U
rban
sch
oo
ls.
Stu
den
ts
in
Ru
ral
sch
oo
ls
S/N Items on parental income X1 SD1 X2 SD2 Prob.
level
t-cal df t-
crit
Rmk
12 Children from high-income
status parents achieve better
academically than those from
low-income status parents.
3.89 1.33 3.51 1.52 0.05 8.43 798 1.96 S
13 Parents on high-income can
afford to provide the basic
necessities required for their
children’s education.
3.70 1.26 3.80 1.06 0.05 12.45 798 1.96 S
14 Children from upper-working
class homes perform better
academically than those from
lower-working class homes.
3.75 1.08 3.28 0.85 0.05 12.45 798 1.96 S
15 Children whose parents are on
high-income status have higher
career aspiration than children
whose parents are on low-
income status.
3.96 0.94 3.78 0.85 0.05 11.80 798 1.96 S
16 Only parents who are on high-
income status can train their
children beyond secondary
school level.
2.96 1.94 2.40 1.72 0.05 1.13 798 1.96 NS
In table 8 above, the t-calculated value of each item was obtained. The degree of
freedom for all the items was 789, while the t-table of 1.96 was obtained at 0.05 level of
significance. From the table, it can be seen that the t-calculated value of item sixteen (16)
44
is less than the critical t-value. Therefore, the Null hypothesis of no significant difference
in the responses of Urban and Rural students was upheld for the item (16), while the Null
hypothesis of no significant in the responses of Urban and Rural students was rejected for
the remaining four items (items 12, 13, 14 and 15).
Hypothesis IV
There is no significant different in the mean ratings of students in Urban and
Rural schools on the influence of family size on students’ academic achievement.
Table 9
The mean ratings of urban and rural students on influence of family size on
students’ academic achievement.
Stu
den
ts
fro
m
Urb
an
sch
oo
ls.
Stu
den
ts
fro
m
rura
l
sch
oo
ls
S/N Items on family size X1 SD1 X2 SD2 Prob.
level
t-cal df t-
crit
Rmk
17 Students from small size
families enjoy more parental
attention than those from large
size families.
2.80
0.74
2.92
0.62
0.05
0.15
798
1.96
NS
18 Students from small-size
families achieve better
academically than those from
large size families.
2.84
0.73
2.85
0.81
0.05
0.18
798
1.96
NS
19 Small size families facilitate the
provision of recommended
textbooks and equipments for
effective learning.
2.28
1.03
2.32
1.01
0.05
0.25
798
1.96
NS
In table 9 above, the t-calculated values of each item was obtained. The degree of
freedom (DF) for all the items (items 17, 18 and 19) was 798. The t-calculated values for
all the items were less than their critical table values. Hence the Null hypothesis of no
significant difference was accepted for all the items. That reveals that there is no
45
significant difference in the opinions of Rural and Urban on the influence of family size
on student academic achievement.
Hypothesis V:
There is no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and Rural schools on the influence of parental motivation on students’ academic
achievement.
Table 10:
The mean ratings of Urban and Rural student on the influence of parental
motivation on students’ academic achievement
Stu
den
ts
in U
rban
sch
oo
ls.
Stu
den
ts
in
Ru
ral
sch
oo
ls
S/N Items on Family Size X1 SD1 X2 SD2 Prob.
level
t-cal df t-
crit
Rmk
20 Your parents provide the basic
educational aids and equipment
which you need for studies.
3.80
0.98
4.00
0.75
0.05
4.05
798
1.96
S
21 You are always positively re-
enforced by your parents for
your good academic
performance.
33.95
0.77
4.00
0.75
0.05
4.02
798
1.96
S
22 Your parents are always
concerned about your grades
and academic performance in
the school.
3.92
0.78
3.81
0.99
0.05
4.83
798
1.96
S
23 You have private libraries and
books for studies at home.
3.91
0.66
3.00
1.02
0.05
3.49
798
1.96
S
24 Your parents always discuss
your future academic career
with you.
4.00
0.75
3.28
1.03
0.05
7.98
798
1.96
S
25 Your school fees and other
school levies are paid
promptly.
3.18
0.05
3.60
0.96
0.05
7.12
798
1.96
S
26 Your parents pay for your field
trips and excursions organized
in the school.
3.10
0.86
3.26
1.04
0.05
5.00
798
1.96
S
S = Significant, NS = Not Significant
46
The result presented in table 10 showed that the items have their t-calculated
values obtained. The degree of freedom for all items was 798, while the critical t-value of
1.96 was obtained at 0.05 level of significance. From the table it can be seen that the t-
calculated values of the seven items were greater than the critical t-value. Hence the Null
hypothesis of no significant difference was rejected. This reveals that there is significant
difference in the opinions of Urban and Rural students on the influence of parental
motivation on students’ academic achievement.
Summary of the Findings
Based on the data analyzed, the findings of the study are presented and
summarized in the same order in which the research questions and hypotheses are
arranged.
A) Influence of parental level of education on students’ academic achievement
The findings of the study showed that:
i. Parents who are educated want their children to be educated.
ii. Educated parents provide most of the recommended text books and other learning aids
for their children.
iii. Educated parents provide conducive atmosphere for their children’s studies at home.
B) Influence of parental occupation on students academic achievement.
The findings of the study showed that:
i. Parents’ occupation does not necessarily influence students’ academic achievement.
ii. The respondents (students) did not agree that parents’ on prestigious occupations like
lawyers and doctors want their children to take up the same type of occupation.
iii. There was no agreement among the respondents that parents who are poor farmers can
only enroll their children into minor apprenticeship.
47
C) Influence of parental level of income on students’ academic achievement.
The findings of the study showed that:
i. Students from high-income status parents achieve better academically.
ii. Parents on high income status can afford to provide the basic necessities required for
students’ education.
iii. Students whose parents are on high-income status have higher career aspiration.
D) Influence of family size on students’ academic achievement
The findings of the study include:
i. Students from small size families are not always better achievers in
academics.
ii. The size of the family does not determine the ability of the parents to provide
books and learning materials for their children’s education.
E) Influence of parental level of motivation on students’ academic achievement.
The findings revealed that:
i. Parents motivate their children by supervising their home work and
assignments.
ii. Parents use positive reinforcement to encourage their children to study hard.
iii. Students agreed that they were motivated by prompt payment of school fees
and other school levies.
HYPOTHESES TESTING
Hypothesis one indicates that there is significant difference between the mean
ratings of Urban and Rural students on the influence of parental education of student
academic achievement. This shows that parental level of education determines students’
academic achievement.
48
Hypothesis two indicates that parental occupation does not necessarily influence
students’ academic achievement.
Hypothesis three indicates that there is significant difference in the mean ratings of
Rural and Urban student in four of the items. Here, the students agreed that parents
income influence students academic achievement. However, one of the items (item 16)
shows that there is no significant difference between the mean responses of the students.
That indicates that parents income has no influence on students’ academic achievement.
Hypothesis four shows that there is no significant difference between the mean
ratings of the Urban and Rural students on the influence of family size on students’
academic achievement.
The implication of no significant difference in the mean ratings to all items is that
family sizes do not necessarily influence students’ academic achievement.
Hypothesis five indicates significant difference in the mean ratings of Rural and
Urban students in all the items. The implication is that parental motivation influences
students’ academic achievement.
Finally, having tested the hypotheses stated for this study, it become clearer that
educational level of parents, income and level of motivation do have influence on the
academic achievement of students in Nsukka Education Zone. However, the occupation
of the parents and family size were found out as non-contributory factors that influence
students’ academic achievement.
49
CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION AND INTERPRETATION OF RESULT
In this chapter, data presented in the previous chapter are discussed under the
following sub-heading: Discussion and interpretation of findings, Implication of the
Study, Recommendation of study, Limitation of the study, Areas for further studies,
Summary and Conclusion.
Discussion of the Findings
The findings of this study are discussed and compared with empirical studies done
previously by other researchers. These discussions are carried out based on the issues
relevant with the research question and null hypotheses that guided the study.
Influence of parental level of education on students’ academic achievement.
The focus of this research question was to establish the influence of parental level
of education on students’ academic achievement. The result of these findings as
summarized in table 1 (one) showed that students (respondents) overwhelmingly agree
that parental level of education is a contributory factor in students’ academic
achievement. The findings of this study tend to agree with the opinions expressed by
Onochie and Okpalla (1985) that educational level of parents which is an indicator of
socio-economic status has direct influence on child’s value and academic achievement in
the school. The scholars further maintained that children from illiterate families may learn
little or nothing from home that can help them to develop interest in academics.
The result of the study also indicates that educated parents provide conducive
atmosphere for studies at home. This is in line with Qeca (1980) who asserted that
children from literate families where parents provide atmosphere conducive for the
formation of good study habit are in better chance of performing well in schools. Again
50
the result also agrees with Izundu (2005) who asserted that there is significant
relationship between the level of parents’ education and the academic achievement of the
students. Again, Gary (2001) said that the importance of parental level of education to
academic achievement of students cannot be over emphasized. Accordingly the scholar,
students from professional and to a less extent managerial occupational backgrounds
exhibit higher academic performance.
Influence of Parental Occupation on Students’ Academic Achievement
With reference to research question two, it is the view of students (respondents)
that parental occupation is not a contributory factor in students academic achievement.
This finding is contrary to the view of Ezeji (2001) who noted that parents like their
children to take to their occupations. Such parents include lawyers, doctors, musicians
among others. Uwoma (2006) in her study was also the opinion that most vocational
students were children whose parents were farmers or craftsmen. However the findings
do not agree with Eke (1999) who observed that parental occupation does not
significantly influence academic achievement of students. The difference in the findings
of this scholars and others may be as a result of data analysis. For example, while Eke
(1999) used product moment correlation coefficient method, other researchers (Uwoma
2006 and Ezeji 2001) use t-test for data analysis.
The researcher do not agree that parental occupation can determine students’
academic achievement. This is because of the fact that variables that determine one’s
occupation may not be the same in parents and children. For instance a child may not be
as brilliant as his/her parents who are doctors or lawyers and vice versa.
51
Influence of Parental Income on Students’ Academic Achievement
With regard to the third research question, the students (respondents) agreed that
parental level of income influence students’ academic achievement. This is in conformity
with Francis (2007) who opines that the lower income families may be aware of the
importance of education in the society, but at the same time they are also aware of their
limited resources to measure up with such educational demands. According to the author,
a family that can scarcely provide for the basic needs of the family which include food,
shelter and clothing will hardly motivate the academic excellence of their children.
Instead, they will pressurize their children to seek for job opportunities with the little
education they acquired to support the family.
The result also indicate that students whose parents are on high income status
higher academic aspiration than children whose parents are on low income status. This
findings is in conformity with the view of Ojo and Yilma (2010) that the Socio-economic
status of a mainly is capable of affecting the behaviour of the children and determines
their aspiration. Families with high socio-economic status often have more success in
preparing their children for school because they typically have access to wide range of
providing their young children with high quality child care, and books. They also
encourage their children in various learning activities at home.
Research question four examines the influence of family size on students’
academic achievement. The respondents disagree in all the three items. This is an
indication that the size of family does not necessarily influence students academic
achievement. Also, children from small size families do not necessarily perform better
academically than those from large size families.
52
The above findings are contrary to the findings of Durorsaro and Durosaro (1990)
who found out in their study that family size influence students’ academic achievement.
Their study revealed that children from small size families perform better at school than
their counterparts from both average size and large size families. This is also in line with
Yoloye (1989), who concluded from his study that polygamous family sizes which were
naturally large reduces the chances of children going to school in the first instance. Again,
children from such backgrounds who were in schools have reduced chances of achieving
their goals. Parents in such families are mostly illiterates and incapable of providing
adequate motivation for their children in schools as compared with the literate nuclear
families.
The researcher attributes the varied opinions of the respondents in his study and
that of the former researchers (Durosaro and Durosaro) to difference in Areas of study.
The present study had most of its respondents who live Urban areas and parents are
wealthy and could provide their children with necessary facilities and amenities needed to
facilitate academic work despite their family size. Again there were still some other
parents in rural areas who were rich and could provide for their children in large families.
Research question five examined the influence of parental level of motivation on
students’ academic achievement. The respondents agreed on all the seven items that
parents’ level of motivation influences students’ academic achievement. This result is in
conformity with Douglas (1984) who identified motivation as the most important factor
that influence educational attainment. The scholar observed that the simple most
important factor that influence educational achievement of children appears to be the
degree of parents interest in their children’s education. Douglas further stated that middle
class parents express great interest in their children’s education as indicated by: more
53
frequent visits to school to discuss children’s progress; buying relevant text books and
other necessary materials needed in the school for their children.
In support of this view, Agu (2010) asserted that motivation is an integral aspect
of learning, indicating that different motivational constructs are correlated with effective
classroom learning and achievement. This view implies that motivational patterns relate
to students’ academic achievement.
54
CONCLUSION
From the findings of the study, it was concluded that family background factor
influence academic achievement of students in schools. Prominent among the family
background factors include parental educational level, parental income and parental
motivation. Educational statuses of the parents and students’ academic achievement have
a close relationship between them. This is because parents themselves having being to
school realized the importance of being educated. They stand better chance to support
their children for better academic achievement.
On parental motivation, it was found that students who received encouragement
and motivation from the family perform better in schools than their counterparts from non
encouraging families. The major reasons for the observed difference in performance are
the motivation and positive attitude of the parents towards their children’s academic
progress.
The acceptance of hypotheses two and four was based on the result of statistical
data from the field. Personal observation equally showed that parental occupation cannot
determine student academic achievement. This is because education which is the major
determinant of occupation may not be the same in the parents and children. Again, a child
from large family size, who has strong determination can compete favorably with another
child from small family size. Moreover, most children from small families are over
pampered and undetermined.
Educational Implication of the Findings of the STUDY
The findings of this study have some implications for the parents, students and the
teachers.
55
The first hypothesis revealed that students from educated parents perform better in
academics than students from uneducated parents. This phenomenon is as a result of
intellectual stimulation and direct involvement of educated parents in their children’s
education. This helps students from such background perform better than those from
uneducated parents.
This phenomenon can be corrected by stimulating school environment and
teachers’ positive reinforcement strategy which can compensate for non stimulating and
negative reinforcement prevalent in an uneducated families. For students from
uneducated families, this school situation aids to maintain the same home conducive
atmosphere for academic career and facilitates learning and academic achievement.
Another major finding revealed that students from parents of high income status
posses most of the necessary materials for their learning, unlike students from parents of
low income status. This is an indication that children come to school from different
background and these backgrounds presents their own problems for the children. The
teacher having realized this condition should be conscious when dealing with the
students. Students who came from low income class parents should not be mocked or
compared with their counterpart from high income status parents when they failed to meet
up in providing most of the materials needed for their studies. If such comparison occurs
the students from low income status parents would feel inferior and that will affect their
academic performance the more, and may even lead to the exhibition of abnormal
behaviour trait.
All the above facts not withstanding, more efforts are still required from the
parents, especially from the low income group in ensuring that adequate facilities are
provided for the students. Students from low income parents requires virtues like
56
dedication, honesty, determination, integrity and tolerance to pursue their career by
making use of school facilities during and after school hours to enable them attain high
academic performance.
Findings of the study also revealed that parental motivation is one of the major
determinants of students’ academic achievement. Therefore, the need for parents to learn
how to encourage their children cannot be overemphasized. There is equally the need for
parents to be involved in the teaching-learning process of their children, particularly this
period where most of the students come to school from their respective homes.
There is also the need for teachers to be more motivational in their teaching. This
is possible when they vary their method of teaching and teaching aids to take cognizance
of the individual differences inherent in the students from their different family
backgrounds. Teachers can ameliorate through filling the parental motivational needs by
individualizing instruction and taking special interest in the slow learners who suffer from
deficient parental motivational pattern.
Another vital implication from this study is that school authorities should try to
avoid grouping or streaming the school children especially according to ability and
intelligence. Since the student come from different family background, there is every
tendency that they differ in many respects. To have balanced and competitive class, the
students should be randomly distributed, avoiding grouping intelligent ones one side and
dull ones the other side.
This study equally implies that there is a greater need for more literacy and
awareness campaign than before to awaken illiterate parents and instill awareness in
literate parents who seem to attach much importance to education. The programme should
be extended to rural areas where it is needed most.
57
Recommendations
Education is an important instrument of change in modern societies. Provision of
adequate and relevant education is the best thing a nation can do for its citizens. This is
more so, because education is a virile weapon against ignorance, disease, poverty and as a
means of producing enlightened, responsible and industrious citizenry and prosperous
nation.
Based on this background, the researcher makes the following recommendations:
1) One of the major findings of this study is that parental income level has a great
influence on students’ academic achievement. For example, most cases, parental
income is proportional to students finding which also determine to a large extent, the
level of academic achievement of students. In this case, it is recommended that
parents as a matter of importance should diversify their sources of income so that
they can be able to provide fund their children in school for better academic
achievement.
2) Parents should be made to realize the importance of motivation in determining their
children academic achievement in schools, especially the realization that most of the
male students are abandoning school for business. Parents should be actively
involved in encouraging students to learn and also in supervising students academic
work at home
3) Students’ should give serious attention to studies at home, in addition to other
various works done, since the amount of effort they put in their studies influence
their academic achievement.
4) Teachers should understand that teaching is a job of conscience. Teachers should
handle the students as their own children; try by all means to meet the students’
58
academic social and psychological needs. They should be motivational in their
teaching and use different teaching methods so as to go along with all categories of
students. This will help bridge deficiencies from negative family background.
5) The state and Federal Governments should legislate against examination
malpractices. Such situation will force students to sit up and take their studies
serious. Again, the various governments should create employment opportunities for
the graduate of various institutions of higher learning. Lack of job opportunities
contributes to the loss of interest and zeal for education by students. The current
situation in Nigeria where graduates are left with little or no hope of employment
gives no encouragement to the secondary school students for further education.
Rather, the students see going to school is a waste of time.
Limitation of the Study
Like any other human endeavour, this study faced certain limitations.
Some of these limitations include:
1. Choosing the topic for this study, constructing and administering the instrument and
getting it validated were not easy exercise.
2. The researcher paid repeated visits to some schools before he was permitted to
interact with the students (respondents).
3. Although the researcher and the research assistants gave the students adequate
instructions and guidance for completing the questionnaire, some of the students
awarded scores arbitrarily to the questionnaire items.
4. The study was carried out in three local government areas that made up Nsukka
Education Zone. It was assumed in the study that the schools sampled in Nsukka
Township where the zonal headquarters were located constitute the Urban schools and
59
the students from those schools were regarded as Urban students as used in the study.
This poses a limitation to the study as this does not portray a pure or ideal
representation of Urban students.
5. The researcher’s zeal for the study was initially seriously undermined by the
intermittent strikes of secondary school teachers and university lecturers.
Suggestions for Further Research
Research work remains an important exercise as far as human existence on earth
continues. Such being the case, the following areas have been suggested for further
research work:
1. Influence of peer pressure on academic achievement of senior secondary school
students.
2. Academic and environmental stress affecting academic achievement of secondary
school students.
3. Gender and Age as predictors of academic achievement in secondary school.
4. Influence of poverty on students’ academic aspiration.
5. A similar study should be carried out in other parts of the country to compare the
findings.
Summary of the Study
The problem of this research is whether there is influence of family background on
students’ academic achievement among senior secondary school students in Nsukka
education zone of Enugu state. Although many think that students perform poorly in
academic because the teachers did not teach well, some other people believe that this
problem is not caused by teachers. They traced the problem to the family background of
students which has the capacity to promote or retard students’ achievement.
60
Bearing this problem in mind, the focus of this study is to find out whether there is
any influence of family background on students’ academic achievement by examining the
influence family background variables like parental education level, parental occupation,
parental income level, family size and parental motivation on students’ academic
achievement.
To Achieve the Objectives:
This study was carried out on fifty three (53) public secondary schools in Nsukka
education zone with a total population of Seven thousand, nine hundred and forty five
(7945) students. However, proportionate random sampling was used to draw four schools
each from the three local government areas in the education zone. In this respect, twelve
(12) schools were sampled for the study. In each of the twelve schools, senior secondary
two (SS2) students formed the subject for the study giving a sample size of eight hundred
and sixteen (816) respondents (subjects).
Five research questions and five research hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of
significance were used. The instrument for data collection was questionnaire designed by
the researcher through the review of related literature and validated by experts. The
questionnaire contained twenty six (26) items. Likert-type of scale was used to rate the
responses. The reliability of the instrument was established using trial test method.
The data were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research
question and t-test statistics to test the null hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. The
results showed that: Students’ academic achievement is influenced by parental level of
education, parental level of income and parental motivation while parental occupation and
family size are not significant determinants of students’ academic achievement.
61
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65
APPENDIX I
School of Postgraduate Studies,
Department of Educational Foundational,
University of Nigeria, Nsukka
5th September, 2011.
Sir/Madam,
REQUEST FOR VALIDATION OF INSTRUMENT
I am a postgraduate student of the Department of Educational Foundations
(Sociology of Education Unit) of the University of Nigeria Nsukka. I am currently
carrying out a study on “Influence of Family Background Variables on the Academic
Achievement of Senior Secondary School Students in Nsukka Education Zone Enugu
State
Your assistance to this research work will be of immense help. I am soliciting your
co-operation to help in correcting, modifying or restructuring, the items of the instrument,
attached here.
Yours Student
Omeh Gabriel U.
Reg. No: PG/M.Ed/08/49146.
66
TOPIC
INFLUENCE OF FAMILY BACKGROUND ON THE ACADEMIC
ACHIEVEMENT OF SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENT IN NSUKKA
EDUCATION ZONE OF ENUGU STATE
Purpose of the study
Generally, the purpose of the study is to find out the influence of family background
on students’ academic achievement among senior secondary school students in Nsukka
Education zone.
Specifically, the purpose of the study is to:
1. The influence of parental level of education on academic achievement
of senior secondary school students.
2. The influence of parental occupation on students’ academic achievement.
3 The influence of parental income on students’ academic achievement.
4. The influence of family size on students’ academic achievement.
5. The influence of parental motivation on students’ academic achievement.
Research Questions
The study will provide answers to the following research questions:
1. What is the influence of parental level of education on students’ academic
achievement?
2. What influence does parental occupation have on students’ academic achievement?
3. What is the influence of parents’ income on students’ academic achievement?
4. What is the influence of family size on students’ academic achievement?
5. What influence does parental motivation have on students’ academic achievement?
67
Research Hypotheses
The following hypotheses will guide the studying and will be tested at 0.5 level of
significance.
1 There will be no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and Rural schools on the influence of parental level of education on students’
academic achievement.
2 There will be no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and Rural schools on the influence of parental occupation on students’ academic
achievement.
3 There will be no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and Rural schools on the influence of parental income on students’ academic
achievement.
4 There will be no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and Rural schools on the influence of family size on students’ academic
achievement.
5 There will be no significant difference in the mean ratings of students in Urban
and Rural schools on the influence of parental motivation on students’ academic
achievement.
68
APPENDIX II
Department of Educational Foundations
University of Nigeria,
Nsukka.
31st August, 2011.
Dear students,
REQUEST FOR CO-OPERATION
I am a postgraduate student in the Department of Educational foundations of the
University of Nigeria, Nsukka. May I solicit your co-operation in the study I am
conducting. The study titled influence of family background on students’ academic
achievement. The result of the study may help to reveal how best to improve your
academic achievement.
In recent years, there have been reports of poor achievement among large number
of students in senior school certificate examination (SSCE). Several factors may have
been responsible for it. To enable concrete factors to be discovered in order to tackle the
problem, I am enclosing herewith, a questionnaire in which a variety of information is
requested from you.
I would be grateful to you if your could supply true perception of what the
problems are. I wish to assure you that the information you supply will be treated with
strict confidence. It will be used only for the above study.
Thanks you.
Yours sincerely
Omeh Gabriel U.
Student.
PG/M.ED/08/49146
69
QUESTIONNAIRE ON FAMILY BACKGROUND INFLUENCE (FBIQ)
PART ONE
PERSONAL DATA OF STUDENTS
1. Your school roll Number---------------------------------------------------
2. Name of your school --------------------------------------------------------
3. Number of years in the above school -------------------------------------
4. Your present Class------------------------------------------------------------
PART TWO
FAMILY BACKGROUND OF STUDENTS
Please mark ‘X’ where applicable and supply other information where necessary
5. Indicate your family type: Nuclear [ ], Polygamous [ ]
6. How many children are there in your family 1-4 [ ], 5-8 [ ]
9 and above [ ]
7. Are your parents living in: Urban [ ], Rural [ ], Area
8. Indicate your father highest literacy level
I. Below primary school level [ ],
II. FSLC [ ], III. Junior Secondary [ ], IV. WASC/GCE [ ],
V. TC II [ ], VI. NCE/OND [ ], VII. First Degree VIII.
Masters Degree IX. Ph.D [ ], X. Others --------------------------(Please specify).
9. What is the occupation of you parent /guardian?
I. Petty Trader [ ], II. Trader [ ], III. Lawyer [ ], IV.
Medical Doctor [ ], V. Pharmacist [ ], VI. Farmer [ ],
VII. Engineer [ ], VII. Teacher [ ], IX. Civil Servant [ ],
X. Driver [ ], X. Contractor [ ], (XI) Lecturer
XII. Others -------------------------------------------- (Please specify).
10. What is the average monthly income of your parents/guardian?
I. Below N10,000.00 [ ], II. N10,000-20,000.00 [ ],
III. N30,000.00-N40,000.00 [ ], IV. N50,000-60,000 [ ],
V. N70,000.00-N80,000.00[ ]. VI. N90,000 and above
11. Indicate your family structure I. Two Parents [ ],
II Single parents [ ].
70
PART THREE
QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS
This section is made up of questions with response coded as follows:
Strongly Agree – (SA), Agree- (A), Disagree (D), Strongly Disagree (SD).
Please read the respond carefully and indicate with a tick (√) the items you believe
to be obtainable in your families.
Cluster A: The influence of parents education level on
students’ academic achievement
SA A D SD
1 Educated parents always want their children to be educated
2 Parents who are educated provide most of the recommended
textbooks and other learning aids for their children.
3 Parents who are educated encourage their children to study
subjects which are pivotal for good university courses.
4 In homes of educated parents, there are conducive environment
for studies.
5 Educated parents arrange for supportive teachers for the
subject/subjects which their words/children find difficult in the
school.
6 Parents who are educated guide their children in school
assignments and home work.
7 Educated parents always demand for progress reports of their
children to know the children’s academic and social progress.
Cluster B influence of parents occupation on students
academic achievement
8 Parents on prestigious occupation want their children to take up
the same type of occupation.
9. Some occupations do not give parents time to attend to their
children’s academic needs.
10 Parents on poor occupations find it difficult to provide learning
aids for their children.
11 Parents who are poor farmers can only enroll their children into
minor apprenticeship programmes.
71
Cluster C: influence of parents level of income on students
academic achievement
12 Children from high-income status parents achieve better
academically than those from low-income status parents.
13 Parents on high-income can afford to provide the basic
necessities required for their children’s education.
14 Children from upper-working class homes perform better
academically than those from lower-working class homes.
15 Children whose parents are on high-income status have higher
career aspiration than children whose parents are on low-income
status.
16 Only parents who are on high-income status can train their
children beyond secondary school level.
Cluster D: influence of family size on students’ academic
achievement.
17 Students from small size families enjoy more parental attention
than those from large size families.
18 Students from small-size families achieve better academically
than those from large size families.
19 Small size families facilitate the provision of recommended
textbooks and equipments for effective learning.
Cluster E: Influence of parental level of motivation on
student academic achievement
20 Students perform better academically when their parents provide
basic educational aids and equipment for their studies.
21 Students harder when their parents reinforce them for good
academic performance.
22 Parents’ concern about students’ grades and performances
motivates students’ academic achievement.
23 Home libraries and books motivate students for better
performance in the school.
24 Students feel happy and motivated when their parents discuss
their academic career with them.
25 Students perform better academically when their school fees and
other school levies are paid promptly.
26 Parents motivates students by paying for their school field trips
and excursions.
72
APPENDEX III
POPULATION OF SS II IN NSUKKA IN 2011/2012 SESSION
NSUKKA L.G.A
S/N Name of school Population of SS II Students
1 Community Secondary School Isi Enu Nsukka 141
2 Opi High School Opi 150
3 Opi Girls Secondary School Opi 91
4 Community Secondary School Opi Agu 20
5 Model Secondary School Nsukka 175
6 Urban Girls Secondary School Nsukka 131
7 Community Secondary School Alor Uno 75
8 Community Secondary School Akpotoro Obimo 52
9 Community Secondary School Nru Nsukka 172
10 Community Secondary School Obimo 62
11 Community Secondary School Obukpa 120
12 Community Secondary School I Ede Oballa 189
13 Community Secondary School II Ede Oballa 150
14 Community Secondary School Edem Ani 115
15 Edem Ani High School Edem Ani 157
16 Community Secondary School Lejja 53
17 Lejja High School Lejja 70
18 Community Secondary School Ibagwa Ani 83
19 Community Secondary School Okpuje 60
20 Community Secondary School Okutu 35
73
21 Community Secondary School Umabor 157
22 Community Secondary School Agu Umabor 157
23 Community Secondary School Eha Ndiagu 42
24 Community Secondary School Breme Eha Alumona 42
25 Community Secondary School Ezebinagu 50
26 Community High Ejona Obimo 52
IGBO ETITI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA
S/n Name of school Population of SS II Students
1 Girls Secondary School Aku 125
2 Community Secondary School Aku 54
3 Premier Secondary School Ukehe 195
4 Community High School Ukehe 78
5 Orinandu Community Secondary School Ukehe 83
6 Community High School Ekwebge 162
7 Community Secondary School Opi 43
8 Community Secondary School Ohodo 62
9 Community Secondary School Umunna 88
10 Community Secondary School Ozalla 67
11 Community Secondary School Ohebe dim 115
12 Community Secondary School Umunko 140
13 Igbo Etiti Community Secondary School Ikolo 86
14 Aku utara Community Secondary School Ohodo 29
74
UZO-UWANI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA
s/n Name of school Population of SS II Students
1 Community Secondary School Nkpologu 31
2 Uzo Uwani Secondary School Ada Ani 46
3 Community Secondary School Abi Ugbene 83
4 Community Secondary School Nhobo 40
5 Model Secondary School Ukpata 26
6 Urban Girls Secondary School Nimbo 87
7 Community Secondary School Ogwurugu 41
8 Community Secondary School Akayi Umuluokpa 34
9 Community Secondary School Umuluokpa 34
10 Attah Memorial High School 06
11 Welfare Secondary School Opanda 120
12 Uvuru Secondary School Uvuru 45
13 Community Secondary School Ajima 36
APPENDIX IV
LIST OF SAMPLED SCHOOLS AND POPULATION OF SS2 STUDENTS IN
2011/2012 SESSION.
S/No Name of School Local Govt.
Area
Locatio
n
No of SS2
Student
1 Urban girls secondary School Nsukka Nsukka Urban 131
2 Orinandu Community Secondary School
Ukehe
Igbo-Etiti Rural 83
3 Community Secondary School Obimo Nsukka Rural 62
4 Uvuru Scondary School Uvuru Uzo-Uwani Rural 45
75
5 Community Secondary School Isi Enu
Nsukka
Nsukka Urban 102
6 Adada Secondary School Nkpologu Nsukka Rural 31
7 Community Secondary School Ugbene
Ajima
Uzo-Uwani Rural 36
8 Model Secondary School Nsukka Nsukka Urban 175
9 Community Secondary School Aku Igbo-Etiti Rural 54
10 Community Secondary SchoolOhodo Igbo-Etiti Rural 62
11 Community Secondary School Umunna Igbo-Etiti Rural 88
12 Community Secondary School Ogwurugwu Uzo-Uwani Rural 53
Total 816
76
APPENDIX V
RELIABILITY ANALYSIS
Case processing summary
Cases N %
Valid 30 100.0
Excluded 0 0
Total 30 100.0
Listwise deletion based on all variables in the procedure.
Reliability statistic for cluster A
Cronbach’s Alpha No. of items
.688 7
Reliability Statistic for cluster B
Cronbach’s Alpha No. of items
.661 4
Reliability Statistic for cluster C
Cronbach’s Alpha No. of items
.612 5
Reliability Statistic for cluster D
Cronbach’s Alpha No. of items
.703 3
Reliability Statistic for cluster E
Cronbach’s Alpha No. of items
.835 7
Reliability
Scale: ALL VARIABLES
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach’s Alpha No. of items
0717 26