INFLUENCE OF MOTIVATION ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN ILORIN METROPOLIS

ABSTRACT

        This study was carried out to analyse the influence of motivation on students’ academic performance in five selected secondary schools in Ilorin Metropolis.

Five schools within the area were sampled. Influences of motivation on students’ academic performance were discussed. These include meaning of motivation, importance of motivation and theories of motivation. This study is therefore an attempt at investigating the influence of motivation in secondary schools in Ilorin Metropolis. Two hundred questionnaires were used for data collection.

The finding reveals that the inadequate number of qualified teachers has not been a problem in teaching in the schools but inadequate teachers and motivation have influence on students’ academic performance in secondary schools were offered. Among these are: Government should take motivation of teachers very important to pursue their education to higher level in order to achieve standard academic performance of the students in our schools.

Also government should make provision for regular in-service training of teachers in order to make them have more knowledge that will be of benefit to their development in their professional career.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

        Motivation related to the drives, desires, needs and forces that move individual towards the achievement of a goal.

        Therefore, motivators are those things and situation that induce and sensitize individuals to perform a specific task. Motivation has something to do with the force that maintains and after the direction, quality and intensity of behaviour.

        Hence, various definitions of motivation reveal three important ingredients of motivation. These are:

1. What energizes (initiates) human behaviours such as inner state of mind needs of state of disequilibrium etc?
2. How was the behaviour is directed, that is, activities involved in meeting the needs?
3. How the behaviour can be maintained or changed. A positively directed behaviour has to be maintained with a negatively directed behaviour needs to be changed?

Motivation may either be an internal or external force. Adegbite (2003) related that internal force is innate and it has the tendency to push or drive an individual to greater achievement.  External forms, on its own, may be inform of the whip of the task maker. They may equally be in the form of social pressures or forces which “attracts or repels”. For instance, an individual may be drawn to strive to attain what others have attained or something comparable. It should be noted however, that most actions are motivated by more than one driving or drawing force. This project focuses on motivation as a tool of agent of activities. No matter how careful management may forecast, formulate policies and plan elaborate organization structure, the success of its planning is ultimately in the hands of motivated and committed workers at all levels of the organization. Management must therefore not only plan, but also lead an inspire those upon whom it relies to implement its policies and makes the organization to function effectively.

Educational organization cannot achieve its goal if the workers are not thoroughly motivated. By and large, motivation is a central issue that permits all aspect of teacher and as it relates to teaching and learning. Designing a good motivation programme will therefore lead to increase in productivity in any educational setting.

Investigation conducted reveals that students of some schools are performing academically, while some fail in their studies. The questionnaires as to why is it that some student in some school are academically sound?

Can we say this student have better potentials than their counterparts in other schools?

A cursory look at the situation above reveals that, students that are academically sound are better equipped, treated in terms of facilities, infrastructural and other essential amenities as against their counterparts in other schools, who lack the necessary material to aid teaching/learning.

This research work therefore looks into how motivational factors encouraged the students to perform better and suggests how schools can motivate teachers and students to be more productive, innovative and effective during the teaching and learning process.

The importance to the development of education cannot be overemphasis. For example, current development on school academic performance has been known to be dwelling a dowry slope step. Many research finding (Yusuf 1999, Olokoba 2003) said reports from our examination councils revealed poor academic results across all levels. Even students in the tertiary institutions are not left out of the problem.

Many methods have been used to find out the causes of poor academic performance in schools. Most of the researchers, have however, concluded that teachers mostly touched the performance of students or performance.

It is also a fact that teachers’ welfare are neglected for examples, teachers salaries and allowances are not paid regularly. The teachers’ promotions are also delayed. Olokoba (2003) reported that teachers’ payments of allowances such as leave bonus are made a public concern through the radio and television. Besides, teachers are not allowed to have say on issues that related to their welfare.