THE EFFECT OF INDUSTRIAL ACTION ON THE ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF STUDENTS IN COLLEGES OF EDUCATION

ABSTRACT

This study was carried out to find out the effect of industrial action on the academic achievement of students in colleges of education (a case study of Federal College of Education Osiele, Abeokuta, Ogun State). This study adopted a descriptive survey design with a study population of 100 students from Federal College of Education, Abeokuta,Ogun State from which a sample size of 100 respondents was randomly selected using systematic random sampling technique. The questionnaire was the main research instrument used for data collection, while data was analysed using simple percentage counts. The findings revealed that: 1. Strike is caused by irregularities of lecturers salary 2. Lack of dialogue between government and the workers. All these result to strike action, the effect of this strike action is usually decreased in performance of students academic in tertiary institutions. This study identified that industrial actions affects the student academic and demoralizes the students for achieving their academic pursits. Industrial action leads student to anti-social crimes such as armed Robbery, drug trafficking and it expose female to unsafe sex which lead to pregnancy.Recommendation and suggestions were that government should negotiate and between the workers to resolve industrial action in tertiary institutions.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Industrial action by the tertiary institution in Nigeria have had serious effect on the Academic performance of students and also the educational development of our Economy. Strike action could be trance back from the nationwide strike organised by the Academic union of Universities (ASUU) in 1988, which was used to challenge the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida, General SanniAbacha (1994 and 1996) and president Olusegun Obasanjo after the return of Democracy in 1999. The union had use strike action to demand for fair wages, university autonomy and funding of Nigeria universities etc. Chijioke (2013) sees strike as an organised work stoppage by a body of workers to enforce compliance with demands made by an employers or a group of employers. Fair work Act (2009) sees industrial action as stoppage of work, work bans, lock-out and the performance of work by an employee in a manner dieffrent from that in which it is customarily performed.

Oxford Dictionary learners sees industrial action as a process by which organisation organised stopping of work by employers because of some agreement on wages and salaries. Disruptions in Academic programs serve as non-motivational factors to the students. It discourage them from learning. It is not surprising therefore that during strike actions, most students are seen involved in diverse activities such as sexual immorality, cyber scan, pool betting, unnecessary gossips, watching of films and reading comic materials for entertainment purposes rather than reading their book. The student regretted that the strike action caused socio-psychological havocs in their lives leading to unwanted pregnancies and involvement in crimes. The Student Union Government (SUG) president of Federal College of Education Technical Omoku River States. Comrade Ekeakita Hector Chinem said further that strike is a total failure and had caused more pains to students than what the management intended to achieve he said the strike action frustrated students, adding that more than 25% of their female counter parts are carrying unwanted pregnancies, while some of the males are wasting in police cells for various oences. He was also of the opinion that shame on the side of the Hon. Minister of state for Education Chief Nyesomwike who was in change to Amicable resolve the striking issue but failed to do so. As far as he was concerned it is an act of wickedness with the level of unwanted pregnancies we have witnessed in my campus. It essence the female student prostitution during the period of the strike action. The Student Union Government (SUG) president of Federal College of Education Osiele, Abeokuta Comrade IdowuMusiliu (AKA) Daniel said keeping the students out of classroom for that long period shows that federal government has no feeling for polytechnics sector. According to IyanuLeke (2013) a Business Education student of Federal College of Education Akoka said many students in college of education are wasting away because of the strike action. The government should consider the future of these students. Indeed the strike action has affected the students negatively said Mr.Ogo Ebenezer, a lecture of fine and Applied Art department and General secretary of college of education Academic sta Union (COEASU) Akoka chapter. College of Education is regarded as the citadel of knowledge, the fountain of intellectualism, the most appropriate ground for the incubation of leaders of tomorrows. Odubela (2012) concluded that an eective learning or an enhanced academic performance is achieve by successful covering of the course outline timely and before examination. This is rarely achieved with strike action in place from the above review therefore the researcher is of the view that disruption in academic program as caused by strike action breeds disappointment, frustration, Emotional and psychological trauma, unpreparedness on the part of the students and lack of motivation, which sum up to non conductive environment for effective learning in Nigerian Universities situation that dampens human development. Presently education in Nigeria has not been able to achieve the noble objective because it is the incessant of Academic staff union of lecturers, industrial action which has often disrupted academic activities. Many reason can be seen responsible for the incessant industrial action by the union of lecture is contention between the federal govern (FG) and college of education Academic sta union (COEASU) is the 2010 agreement, which the former said the federal Government (FG) has refused to fully implement. These include the non-integration and payment of peculiar learned allowance, non-implementation of life insurance to families of decreased member and the non-implementation of the retirement age of 65 in many states colleges of education. The other issue include poor of education nationwide, poor funding neglect of teachers education, non accreditation of National certificate of Education programmes (NCE) non-release of the white paper on visitation panel reports, and the imposition of the integrated personnel and payroll information system.