THE IMPACT OF SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT AND PEER GROUP ON STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

THE IMPACT OF SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT AND PEER GROUP ON STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

CHAPITER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 THE STUDY’S BACKGROUND

Whether a person is a student, teacher, employer, or employee, the environment has a big impact on their life. Although some people continue to doubt that a better environment leads to better performance. The academic growth of students is influenced by a variety of elements, including the learning environment at school, which includes classrooms, libraries, technical workshops, and labs, as well as the caliber of teachers, the operations of the institution, teaching methods, and other students (Orlu, 2013). In order to enhance students’ academic performance, it is important to continue to investigate and effectively manage the school environment.

The government, parents, professors, and even students themselves have long expressed worry about how poorly Nigerian pupils perform academically. The effectiveness of instruction depends not only on how well teachers carry out their duties but also on how well the school environment is coordinated (Owoeye & Yara, 2011).

Children form bonds and friendships through play when they leave their families and enter child care facilities, schools, and the greater community. Even newborns and toddlers have been seen touching other infants, crying in reaction to other children’s tears, and even offering comfort or care. However, by the time they are three years old, toddlers establish early bonds and their classmates start to have a more lasting influence (Barbour, Barbour, & Scully, 2002). These children start to think and act like their classmates, and they start to understand that there are more norms, attitudes, and values than just those set by their parents (Ajuba, 2011).

In order to feel accepted, adolescents develop a variety of peer groups and join them by taking part in their activities. During adolescence, peer groups have a substantial impact (Majeed, 2010). Teenagers now spend a growing amount of time in peer groups, which has become increasingly important in today’s culture. Modernization has led to a rise in age segregation in society, the business, and schools. A teenager’s development into a mature adult will be significantly influenced by how much time they spend with their friends (Barbour, Barbour, & Scully, 2002).

The majority of the teenager’s time is spent with peers. He abides by the group’s values and seeks to be fully accepted. Being rejected by peers is the most devastating experience an adolescent may have (Vishala, 2008). Adolescents are mostly influenced by their peers, and what is regarded acceptable by others shapes their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors (Dewey, 2008). A peer group, according to Castrogiovanni (2002), is a small group of individuals that share the same age, are relatively close friends, and engage in similar activities. With a focus on a few selected secondary schools in Dutse, Gombe State, this study intends to investigate the impact of peers and the school environment on students’ academic success in economics.

SITUATION OF THE PROBLEM

Outside of Nigeria, a lot of research has been done on student academic success, peer influence, and school climate. In addition, the majority of the scant studies on the school environment, peer influence, and its possible effects on students’ academic achievement that were conducted in Nigeria were theoretical studies with judgmental results. It has been noted that prior research did not give the topic enough consideration (Lang, 2014). By performing an empirical investigation of the relationship between the school setting, peer pressure, and students’ academic advancement in economics in Gombe State, this study will close the gap.

People are all too quick to point the finger at parents and students when it comes to the poor academic performance of economics students. Inadequate school structures, poorly furnished classrooms, a high rate of school enrollment, a lack of instructional materials, high drop-out rates, and inadequate facilities are just a few of the factors that have contributed to widespread failure in public examinations in economics that have plagued Nigerian education since independence. These issues led to the creation of the renowned 6-3-3-4 technique. However, the issue of economics students’ subpar academic performance continues (Adamu, 2014).

Peer pressure dynamics are a crucial factor influencing students’ academic success in economics at the secondary school level. According to research, peer pressure has replaced parental influence as the main source of values and behavioral impact in teenagers during the past 50 years (Oni, 2010). Due to the fact that students are increasingly being misled and manipulated, whether directly or indirectly, by the friends they keep, this new tendency has resulted in an unheard-of rise in antisocial conduct. In this regard, Abd-Elhamid et al. (2014) issued a warning, noting that friendships play a significant role in both beneficial and detrimental activities and that peer pressure predisposes adolescents to engage in a variety of deviant behaviors, including alcoholism, gangsterism, robbery, and violent secret cult activities, even to the detriment of their academic goals and eventual outcomes. Given the foregoing, it is plausible to believe that some of the social vices and low academic success reported each year in Nigerian senior secondary schools in subjects like economics are due to an unfavorable school atmosphere and the influence of peers on teens.

1.3 STUDY’S OBJECTIVES

This study’s main goal is to evaluate how kids’ academic performance is impacted by their peer group and school environment. This study specifically aims to:

i. Establish the degree to which the school environment affects students’ academic achievement.

ii. Establish the degree to which peer pressure affects students’ academic achievement.

iii. Analyze the influence of peer groups in secondary schools in Nigeria.

iv. Consider how peer pressure might be reduced in secondary schools.

v. Consider strategies to enhance the school environment in secondary schools in Nigeria.

1.4 QUESTIONS FOR RESEARCH

In this investigation, the following research queries will be addressed:

i. How much does a student’s educational environment affect their academic performance?

ii. How much does peer pressure have an effect on students’ academic performance?

What are the effects of peer group influence in secondary schools in Nigeria?

What are the methods for reducing peer pressure in secondary schools?

v. How can the educational environment in secondary schools in Nigeria be improved?

1.5 RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER STUDIES

The study will be extremely helpful to researchers, society, schools, and counselors.

To the counselors: It is intended that the findings of this study will serve as a foundation for counselors to formally ingrain discipline in schools by reorienting in-school teenagers regarding peer pressure resistance. When this is completed, there will be sanity, peace, and order, which will improve both the school’s and society’s moral climate. This study will also be helpful to professional counselors who work with behavior modification since it will raise awareness of the need to reduce harmful peer pressure.

The study’s findings will also be helpful to classroom instructors since they will let them know what is expected of them in their capacity as character builders.

The results of this study will also be helpful to school administrators and policy makers since they will highlight the value of a safe learning environment and the effect it has on kids’ academic performance.

The study’s conclusions and recommendations may add to the body of knowledge in the area that other researchers may use as a starting point for future investigations. In the end, the public will be informed of the research’s findings through holding conferences, workshops, and seminars. Adolescents who are still in school will benefit from this by being more aware of the benefits of having positive peer groups, which will encourage them to invest more time in their studies in order to achieve academic success.

1.6 THE STUDY’S SCOPE

The main goal of this study is to determine how kids’ academic performance is impacted by their peer group and school environment. This study will be focused on figuring out how much the school environment affects students’ academic performance, how much peer group influence affects students’ academic performance, how peer group influence affects secondary schools in Nigeria, how to reduce peer group influence in secondary schools, and how to improve the school environment in Nigerian secondary schools.

The respondents for this study’s survey would be the teachers and students of particular secondary schools in Illorin, Kwara State.

Limitations of the study: 1.7

This study’s main objective will be to evaluate how kids’ academic performance is impacted by their peer group and school environment. This study will specifically be limited to determining the extent to which peer group influence and the school environment have an impact on students’ academic performance, as well as examining the impact of peer group influence in Nigerian secondary schools and ways in which the school environment of those secondary schools can be improved.

The respondents for this study’s survey will be teachers and students at particular secondary schools in Illorin, Kwara State. Because so few respondents were chosen to participate in the survey, the sample size was small and the findings cannot be generalized to secondary schools in other states.

1.8 TERM DEFINITION

Impact: A noticeable outcome or effect

The term “school environment” describes the network of relationships that develop among members of a school community and are shaped by the structural, individual, and functional traits that give schools their distinct identities.

Peer group: Individuals with comparable interests, ages, backgrounds, or social standing make up a peer group, which is also a social group. The individuals in this group have a good chance of affecting the person’s ideas and actions. Peer groups frequently undergo significant shift during adolescence.

Academic performance: The degree to which a student, instructor, or institution has met their immediate or long-term educational objectives is known as academic achievement or academic performance. Academic achievement is the completion of educational milestones such secondary school diplomas and bachelor’s degrees.