EFFECT OF SOCIO ECONOMIC STATUS OF PARENTS AND DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR OF FEMALE STUDENTS IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS

EFFECT OF SOCIO ECONOMIC STATUS OF PARENTS AND DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR OF FEMALE STUDENTS IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     BACKGROUND OF STUDY

Academic performance (most especially of senior secondary school students) has been largely associated with many factors. Most students in senior secondary schools in Nigeria are daily confronted with challenges of coping with academic under serious emotional strains occasioned by long walk to school, poor school environment, and being taught by unmotivated teachers. Couple with this, is an uncooperative-to-study attitude of parents who more often toil to provide for the needs of the family. These would definitely not augur well for academic success.

Academic performance is undoubtedly a research after the heart of educators, teachers,psychologists, policy makers, parents and guardians, social workers, etc. In their attempts to investigate what determines academic outcomes of learners, they have come with more questions than answer. In recent, prior literature has shown that learning outcomes (academic achievement and academic performance) have been determined by such variables as; family, schools, society and motivation factors (Aremu and Jokan, 2003; Aremu and Oluwole, 2001; Aremu, 2000). In the samevein, Parker, Creque, Harris, Majek, Wool and Hogan (2003) noted that much of the previous studies have focused on the impact of demographic and socio-psychological variables on academic performance is government factor (Aremu and Sokan, 2003; Aremu, 2004). In spite of the seeming exhaustiveness of literature on the determinant of academic performance of learners, there seems tobe more area of interest to be investigated. This becomes obvious in view of the continuous interest ofresearchers; and continuous attention of government and policy makers and planners. It has been observed that the falling academics standard and the influencing factors include theeconomic status of the parent. Owing to the present economic situation in the country, many poor parents are forced by circumstance to saddle the young ones with chores like hawking wares, clearing the house and doing other menial jobs around the house before going to school and after school hours. Domestic chores like these no doubt help to train the children and make them realize that they can and should contribute their own quota to the general upkeep of the family. However, when parents and guardians burden their children with work excessively, leaving little or no study time for the children their school work is bound to suffer (Akanle, 2007).

Danesty and Otediran (2002) lamented that street hawking among young school students have psychologically imposed other problems like sex networking behaviour, juvenile delinquent behaviour, which takes much of the student school time that necessitated the poor academic performance and drop out syndrome noticed among young school students. Nevertheless, they also lamented that the maternal and paternal deprivation of the essential needs of the young students have prompted their poor performance in public examination, such as Junior Secondary School Certificate (JSSC), West African Examination Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council(NECO).

EFFECT OF SOCIO ECONOMIC STATUS OF PARENTS AND DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR OF FEMALE STUDENTS IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS