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EFFECT OF SOCIO- ECONOMIC BACKGROUND ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN ECONOMICS IN SOME SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS



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EFFECT OF SOCIO- ECONOMIC BACKGROUND ON STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN ECONOMICS IN SOME SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS

 

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to look into the impact of parents’ socioeconomic backgrounds on students’ academic performance in a few selected schools in the Bariga local government area of Lagos State, Nigeria.

This is to determine whether or not a student’s good or poor academic performance can be explained by socioeconomic background, and to determine whether or not the assumption that students from a high socioeconomic background perform better academically than students from an average/low socioeconomic background is correct.

The study’s findings revealed that students’ academic performance is heavily influenced by their parents’ socioeconomic status. As a result, certain socioeconomic background variables of parents could greatly explain both good and poor academic performance.

A total of 80 students were chosen at random from the four secondary schools in the Bariga local government area. The only instrument used was a questionnaire with questions about family income, educational background, and family type. For data analysis, descriptive statistics were used.

The findings revealed that students from high socioeconomic backgrounds outperformed their counterparts from average and low socioeconomic backgrounds. As a result, socioeconomic factors have a significant impact on students’ academic performance.

It is hoped that additional research on the extent to which socioeconomic background affects academic performance of students will be conducted in order to determine if this factor affects the majority of students in the country, so that the factor can be considered when planning the curriculum and also offering solutions to this important factor.

 

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 CHAPTER ONE

1.1 THE STUDY’S BACKGROUND

Apart from being actively involved in their children’s education, parents play an important role in their children’s learning. Parents also provide a conducive home environment, educational resources, and other resources that can influence learning. Socioeconomic status is determined by a number of factors, including occupation, education, income, wealth, and place of residence. Sociologists frequently use socioeconomic status to predict behavior. (www.answers.com).

Many researchers have attempted to explain and analyze the reasons for differences in student academic performance by focusing on school/environment and hereditary factors while ignoring the effects of socioeconomic background.

According to research, children from low socioeconomic households and communities develop academic skills more slowly than children from higher socioeconomic status. Morgan et al., 2009; Farkas et al., 2009; Hillemeier et al., 2009; Maczuga et al., 2009).

According to research, school systems in low socioeconomic status and community are frequently under resourced, which has a negative impact on students’ academic performance. (2008) (Alscens and Barbarian). The primary environment of students is their home, and it has the potential to have a significant impact on their academic performance. Hoover Dempsey et al., 2005; Redding, 2006; Nyarko, 2010 Furthermore, the primary agent of education for the child is the home.

As a result, the home influences how the child lives, what he or she eats, and how he or she lives. The type of family system to which the child is exposed may have an impact on his academic performance in school. According to

Kellaghan (1993), academic success is dependent on what parents do at home. Education has a direct impact on a person’s life chances, income, and well-being (Battle and lewis). As a result, it is critical to have a clear understanding of what aids or hinders one’s educational attainment.

Today’s educators are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of knowing about their students’ interests, needs, drives, and backgrounds. Parental involvement in their children’s education is critical. Aside from actively participating in their children’s education, parents also provide a home environment that can influence learning and determine the educational resources available in the home.

Teachers must study the personalities of individual students in order to teach effectively because they come from different homes and backgrounds and will exhibit distinct characteristics. The teacher must interact with these various groups of students in order to understand and differentiate their behaviors and attitudes.

Aside from intellectual training, the teacher must be interested in other aspects because students learn better when the learning experience is meaningful to them. He must understand his students’ economic and social backgrounds.

 

Among students, three types of homes can be identified: the poor family, the rich family, and the average family, which is neither too rich nor too poor (Wilson, A.B. 1988). According to the researcher, some students come from broken homes with many problems; some students have well-educated parents, while others have illiterate parents.

All of these groups have different attitudes toward work and different levels of academic performance in their class assignments, but it all depends on the environment.

He went on to say that students from low-income families do not have access to radios, computers, television sets, libraries, or information on the internet that provides a solid educational foundation. There is also little or no parental encouragement, difficulty paying school fees, little or no time for leisure and extra lessons, and parents with little or no education.

For those students in higher grades, there is enough money to pay school fees, as well as the availability of books, radios, libraries, and newspapers, to name a few resources that aid in the development of those students’ mental abilities.

The third group of parents is the middle class, and they live in either owned or rented homes. Parents in this group give their children some freedom and educational opportunities, but these cannot be compared to those of upper-class people.

These various differences in socioeconomic background influence students’ attitudes at school, as well as the way they think, speak, and perform academically. It is widely assumed that children of parents with high and middle socioeconomic statuses are better exposed to a learning environment at home due to the provision and availability of extra learning facilities.

Becker and Tomes (1979) support this idea by stating that it has become widely recognized that wealthy and well-educated parents ensure their children’s future earnings by providing them with a favorable learning environment, better education, and good jobs.

Contrary to popular belief, children of low socioeconomic status parents do not have access to extra learning opportunities, making it difficult for them to reach the top of the educational ladder (Drummond & Stipek, 2004).

While discussing “low income parents’ beliefs about their role in children’s academic learning,” Drummond and Stipek (2004) mentioned that a few of these parents indicated that their responsibilities were limited to meeting children’s basic and social-emotional needs, such as clothing, emotional support, and socializing manners. The primary goal is to determine the extent to which students’ socioeconomic circumstances influence their academic performance.

 

1.2 THE PROBLEM’S STATEMENT

Students’ backgrounds, particularly their socioeconomic backgrounds, have been identified as factors influencing their lives and academic performance. Teachers frequently lack information about their students’ backgrounds. It is also difficult for them to inquire about their socioeconomic background. According to the findings, many students, despite their exposure to extra lessons, perform poorly in school, while their counterparts who have little or no extra lessons perform better.

Furthermore, teachers struggle to understand the issues of emotional instability, tension, hostility, and anxiety that students bring from a poor environment. As a result, it is critical to conduct a critical analysis of students’ academic performance as well as their socioeconomic background.

 

1.3 THE STUDY’S IMPORTANCE

If necessary, the findings of the relationship between socioeconomic background and students’ academic performance will aid in making useful recommendations to improve the teaching profession.

If all of these issues are identified, known, and addressed, the teacher will be able to take on new dimensions in his or her teaching of those less fortunate from low-income backgrounds. For example, the teacher could give an extra lesson to some sections of the class that are weak academically in certain aspects of their learning.

Even instructional materials such as television, radios, field trips, and various programs may be provided for all students, giving those who come from poor environments some of the experiences that those who come from rich environments have.

As a result of this type of research, it is possible to make ongoing educational decisions about students from various social classes, cultural backgrounds, and economic backgrounds.

 

1.4 THE STUDY’S OBJECTIVES

The overarching goal of this study is to investigate the relationship between parents’ socioeconomic backgrounds and students’ academic performance. This broad goal can be subdivided into the following specific goals:

1. To investigate the extent to which the conventional assumption that students from high socioeconomic families are the highest academic achievers in school is valid.

 

2. To assess the acceptability of students from middle-income families being average educational achievers while students from low-income families being low educational achievers.

3.To investigate teachers’ attitudes toward the use of students’ socioeconomic backgrounds.

 

1.5 THE STUDY’S OBJECTIVE

This research would be carried out in the Bariga Local Government Area of Lagos State. The four secondary schools that have been chosen for use are as follows:

Ajayi Crowther Memorial Senior High School is a public high school in Los Angeles, California.

Lanre Awoloku Senior Grammar School is located in Lagos, Nigeria.

Arch Deacon Adelaja Senior High School is located in Lagos, Nigeria.

CMS Girls Senior Grammar School is a girls’ senior grammar school.

The information gathered will cover topics such as family environment, socioeconomic status, educational aspects, and so on. The majority of the data will be based on student responses to the items on the administered questionnaire.

 

1.6 QUESTIONS FOR RESEARCH

The following research questions are being investigated:

To what extent is the conventional assumption that students from high socioeconomic families are the best students at school correct?

Is it reasonable to assume that students from average socioeconomic families have average educational attainment while students from low socioeconomic families have low educational attainment?

Is teachers’ attitude toward using students’ socioeconomic backgrounds positive or negative?

 

1.7 TERM DEFINITION

The investigator attempted to define common terms found in the essay because a thorough understanding of the meaning of some key terms will be required.

The educational level of parents is one aspect of socioeconomic background, and the degree of formal education is the educational level of parents. This means that the higher the educational attainment of the parent, the higher the educational attainment of the child.

 

SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS: The various social strata or positions that people hold in society. It denotes the varying standard of living in the economy.

It is also available as a composite measure in the data set, consisting of parents’ educational level, occupational status, and family income.

People’s socioeconomic status is classified into three categories based on their social position in society:

affluent socioeconomic status

Having a Low Socioeconomic Status

Typical Socioeconomic Status

Each status serves a variety of functions. Students’ educational performance is influenced differently by their socioeconomic status.

HIGH SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS: These are the people who make a lot of money and live comfortably.

LOW SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS: These are low-income earners who live in a room or in slums and struggle to meet their basic needs.

AVERAGE SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS: These are the middle-income earners; they are neither poor nor rich, and they live comfortably, but not as comfortably as the upper-income earners.

 

 

 

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EFFECT OF SOCIO- ECONOMIC BACKGROUND ON STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN ECONOMICS IN SOME SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS
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EFFECT OF SOCIO- ECONOMIC BACKGROUND ON STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN ECONOMICS IN SOME SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS

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