ABSTRACT
The study investigated the influence of truancy on the academic performance of primary pupils in Ilorin East Local Government Area of Kwara State. Two hundred pupils were purposively selected from collected 20 primary schools through the influence of truancy on academic performance question more data was analysed using frequency counts, percentage, t-test and ANOVA statistics. The results indicated that truancy has negative influence on the academic performance of male and female young and old and pupils from polygamous and monogamous parents. However, there is a significant difference the influence of truancy on the academic performance of pupils from illiterate non graduate and graduate parents. In view of this finding it is recommended that guidance and counseling should be introduced to primary school to assist pupils with problems.
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
Title
Pages i
Certification
ii
Dedication
iii
Acknowledgements iv
Abstract
v
Table
of Contents vi
List
of Tables viii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background
of the Study 1
Statement
of the Study 7
Research
Question 8
Purpose
of the Study 9
Research
Hypothesis 9
Significance
of the Study 10
Scope/Delimitation
of the Study 11
Definition
of Major Terms 11
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF THE
RELATED
LITERATURE
Introduction
13
The
Concept of Truancy 13
Causes
of Truancy 16
School
Factors in Truancy 19
Effects
of Truancy 27
Appraisal
of Related Literature 30
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
Introduction 33
Research
Design 33
Population
of the Study 33
Sample
and Sampling Techniques 34
Instrumentation
34
Validity
of the Instrument 35
Reliability
of the Instrument 35
Administration
of the Instrument 36
Procedure
for Data Analysis 37
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND
DISCUSSION
Hypothesis
Testing 38
Discussion
of Findings 44
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION
AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary 47
Conclusion 48
Recommendations 49
References 50
Appendix 52
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Distribution of respondents by sex 38
Table 2: Distribution of respondent by parental education 38
Table 3: Distribution of respondents by age 38
Table 4: Distribution of respondents by family
types 39
Table 5: Result of
t-test analysis on the academic
performance of male and female pupils. 41
Table 6: Result of
t-test analysis on academic
performance of young and old truants. 41
Table 7: Results of ANOVA analysis on the
academic performances of pupils from illiterate and literate parents. 42
Table 8: Duncan multiple range test on parental education 43
Table 9: Result of t-test analysis on the
academic performance of pupils by party type. 43
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to
the Study
The school is a social organization and as such it
has got her established patterns of behaviour expected of all its members.
These are expressed in the form of rules and regulations which governs the
deeds of the headmaster, the teacher, the pupils and many other groups of
personal that work within it.
Today, the school like most other social
organization, faces the serious problem of its members, mostly the pupils do
not conform to the standard behaviour expected. The non-conforming to norms of an organizations
is what sociologist refers to as “deviant behaviour”.
Truancy is one of its aspects and the most common
among primary schools pupils and secondary school students.
According to Webster’s Dictionary (1991), truancy
is the act of a child absenting himself or herself from the school without
permission or good reason. Also the Oxford Dictionary (1989) defined “truancy
as absence from duty without leave, especially a child absenting himself or
herself from school without permission or running away from one’s place of work
or school without a good reason”.
From the above definitions, truancy could be take
to mean an act of staying away from school by a child without a good reason.
According to editorial comment of Nigeria Tribune (20th
July 2001 Pg 10) the news was as worrisome as it was alarming. It was widely
reported in the media recently that about 600 students from various primary and
secondary schools in Lagos State were found at a party organized by some of the
at a hotel situated at lyana-Ipaja during school hours. Bewildered the matter
to the Lagos
state commissioner for education who promptly sent the rapid response team of
education ministry to investigate the case.
By the time the team and some armed policemen
arrived the hotel, the students has reportedly embarked on a drinking space and
sexual orgy of unimaginable proportions. They were said to have dangled bottles
of bear and condoms at the government team, which forced the door of the hotel
open.
Subsequently, thirty students were arrested while
the rest escaped leaving their bags behind. This is symptomations of the pervasiveness
of the not in the society in general and the education sector in particular.
Such incident, has become imbiquistes all over the
country in recent times. Rather than staying in schools, some students visits
video games shop, hostel and recreation centres where they some cigarette,
drink alcohol and generally indulge in vacuous nefarious activities.
It is this some set of students who are members of
secret cults in Nigeria
secondary or primary schools. This situations is so bad that the students reportedly
bring things to their schools to molest teachers and fellow students. Little
wonder than that these students are daily being recruited as pimps,
prostitutes, drug carries and even armed robbers by criminals who frequently
besiege hotels like the one located at Iyana-Ipaga where students held their
“Owanbe party”. It is therefore beyond the researchers imagination of hotelies
that would allow underage student’s to hold a party as early as a 9.00-am and
even sell cigerattes and alcohol to them.
Perhaps, it is such playing of truancy that has
led to the phenomena decline in the standard of primary and secondary education
in the last ten years and the attendant increase in the examination
mal-practices.
Primary education as referred to in the National Policy
Education (1998) is the education given in an institution for children aged
normally 6-11 years plus.
Since the rest of the education system is built
upon it, the primary level is the key to the success or failure of the whole
system. This being the case, the general objectives of primary education are:-
a. The inculcation of permanent literacy and
numeracy and ability to communicate effective.
b. The laying of sound basis for scientific
and reflective thinking.
c. Citizenship education as a basis for
effective participation in and contribution to the life of the society.
d. Character and moral training and the
development of sound attitude.
e. Developing in the child the ability to
adopt to his changing environment.
f. Giving the child opportunities for
developing manipulative skills that will enable him to function effectively in
the society within the limits of his capacity.
g. Proving basic tools for further educational
advantage cement including preparation for trades and craft of the locality.
In pursuance of the above objectives of the
Kanaiwa Cegiwa square venue of the lunch of UBE president Obasanjo took the
tumultuous crowd down memory land when he launched the Universal Primary
Education (UPE) in his position then as the military of state 23 years ago. The
justification for that programme, at that time, remains such the same as it is
today. There is a continuous need to provide for the children and indeed for
all citizens, the basis educational skills they require to be useful citizen in
their communities, their country and in the world at large. He said the UBE was
almost the same in concept as the defunct UPE, “It is still full and universal like
before, but now in addition, it will be compulsory” he further maintained that,
the present scheme extended to all children from age (six) 6 to 15 primary
school to junior secondary school and adult literacy programme. The Universal
Basis Education programme has been expanded to enable all Nigeria children not
only to learn how to read and write but also to learn how to acquire basis
technical and other skills for survival in this modern time.
Education describes the total process of human
learning by which knowledge is imported facilities trained and skills
developed. Schooling is only one form in which education is provided. The ideas
are implicit in the world education, one is that of leading out into knowledge
and experience, the other is that of feeding, thereby producing growth and
development.
Both of these helpful in understanding what
education is and both point to the fact that education is an essential process
whereby the adult members of the society guide the development of the younger ones.
It is how deviation of the expected roles affects the system that is the forms of
this study.
Statement of
the Problem
INFLUENCE OF TRUANCY ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS PUPILS IN ILORIN EAST LOCAL GOVERNMENT
