ABSTRACT
The degree of comfortability and conduciveness of the school environment is one of the indicators of kids’ academic achievement and psychological development. Using a case study of secondary students in Ikeja Local Government, the study looked at the impact of school environment on students’ academic achievement and psychosocial development in Nigeria. The survey design was utilized in conjunction with the purposive sample strategy to recruit 120 secondary school students from ten different secondary schools in the study area. The respondents were given a questionnaire to fill out as part of the data collection process. The collected information was subjected to descriptive statistics and chi-squared analysis. The findings demonstrated that the physical school environment, as well as the school’s location and facilities, had a substantial impact on the kids’ academic achievement. In addition, the entire school environment had a substantial impact on kids’ psychosocial development. Based on these findings, the study suggests that modern and functional educational facilities, such as libraries, laboratories, ICT centers, health centers, sport centers, toiletries, and other instructional materials, be provided and made accessible to students, and that teachers be friendly and courteous to their students so that they can consult them whenever they have a troubling issue (s).
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Education is critical for all countries around the world, regardless of their development level. Education is the official or informal process of conveying knowledge, skills, facts, and judgment. It is the conduit via which human skills such as physical, social, emotional, and intellectual are channeled. According to Kneller (2000), education is the process of transmitting values and knowledge through schools, colleges, universities, and other learning institutions.
According to Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first black president, education is the most powerful weapon in the world for combating poverty, ignorance, and instigating constructive reforms. Quality education facilitates the acquisition of skills, technical advancement, and the discovery of human resources in the pursuit of goals. The teacher-student interaction, the aesthetic structure of classrooms, libraries, labs, the quality of teachers, teaching methods, and other factors that are important in the teaching and learning process are all covered by the school environment. These aspects of the school environment have an impact on students’ academic success (Ajao, 2001). The location of the school compound, the availability of educational materials, and the classroom layout all influence how far students learn. Scholars have uniformly agreed that schools with a favorable atmosphere for teaching and learning activities will produce beneficial educational outcomes that will accelerate effective teaching-learning synergy, education emancipation, and student academic success.
The physical characteristics of a school have a significant impact on students’ performance and teachers’ attitudes toward diligently carrying out their responsibilities. When a school environment is threatened by threats such as bad lighting, poor ventilation, crumbling facilities, excessive noise levels, high toxic material discharge, high student-teacher ratios, and so on, teaching and learning will be difficult, resulting in low academic performance of children. Ajayi et al., 2004. Teachers experience stress and job discontent as a result of the combination of an unpleasant work environment and bad school facilities. Furthermore, it would lead to indolence and demotivation among the kids.
In addition, the structure of a school environment has an impact on the level of psychosocial development.
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Private individuals, government, corporate, and religious organizations all have schools in Nigeria, which are located in diverse locations. As a result, the teaching and learning process takes place in a variety of settings.
Every school has a variety of facilities and classroom structures with varied levels of efficiency. At the end of their junior or senior secondary school career, all pupils are expected to take the same examination (Junior Secondary School Certificate Examination at junior level and Senior School Certificate Examination at senior level). Because the pupils were educated with a similar syllabus and program, they are expected to attain uniform academic performance.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The study’s major goal is to look at how the school environment affects students’ academic performance and psychosocial development in Nigeria, utilizing a case study of secondary pupils in the Ikeja local government region of Lagos state as a case study.
The study’s particular goals are as follows:
To determine the extent to which the physical environment of the school has an impact on students’ academic achievement.
To determine the impact of school location on students’ academic achievement.
To determine the impact of school buildings and equipment on students’ academic achievement.
To determine the extent to which factors such as peer pressure, self-esteem, depression, and parenting style influence pupils’ psychosocial development at school.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The following are some of the study’s interesting questions:
What effect does the physical school environment have on kids’ intellectual achievement?
What effect does the location of a school have on a student’s academic performance?
What effect does school infrastructure and equipment have on students’ academic performance?
What impact does the educational environment have on the psychosocial development of students?
RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
The study develops four hypotheses for each of the research issues.
1st Hypothesis
H0: In Ikeja LGA, there is no substantial association between the physical environment of schools and pupils’ academic performance.
H1: In Ikeja LGA, there is a considerable link between the physical environment of schools and students’ academic performance.
2nd Hypothesis
H0: In Ikeja LGA, there is no significant correlation between school location and student academic achievement.
H1: In Ikeja LGA, there is a considerable link between school location and student academic achievement.
Hypothesis number three:
H0: In Ikeja LGA, there is no substantial link between school amenities and student academic achievement.
H1: In Ikeja LGA, there is a significant link between school facilities and student academic performance.
4th Hypothesis:
H0: There is no link between the environment of schools and student achievement.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Students, parents, guardians, teachers, principals, the government, and other education stakeholders will benefit greatly from the findings.
The study’s findings will assist parents and guardians in deciding which type of school to send their children and wards to. This is because the students will benefit from a positive school learning environment that will allow them to produce high-quality school goods.
Teachers, headmasters (mistresses), and principals are informed about their readiness and strong desire to enhance school supervision and administration practices in order to provide high-quality teaching and learning. It will teach them the importance of proper school facilities and equipment in boosting kids’ academic achievement. It will also assist teachers in improving their classroom delivery, teaching effectiveness, and productivity.
SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
The study focuses on secondary school pupils in the Ikeja local government region in Lagos state to examine the impact of school environment on academic achievement and psychological development.
Time and financial constraints were the study’s limits. In terms of its broad nature, the time allotted to perform a study is relatively short, especially when combined with the researcher’s other academic commitments. In addition, due to a lack of money, the study only covers one of Nigeria’s 774 local government districts.
Despite this, a thorough and fact-finding investigation was conducted.
PLAN OF THE STUDY
The research is broken down into five sections.
The first chapter of the study contains the general introduction, problem statement, research objectives, questions, and hypotheses that will lead the investigation.
The literature review in Chapter 2 delves into the conceptual framework, theoretical review, empirical review, and gaps in the research.
The study’s research technique is presented in the third chapter.
The fourth chapter contains the results presentation and discussion.
The fifth chapter contains a summary, conclusion, policy proposal, and research suggestion.
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