INFLUENCE OF PEER GROUP ON THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENT’S IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY
Indecent appearance has come to characterize the dress pattern of many students on the campuses of higher learning in Nigeria. There is hardly any higher institution of learning in this country that is not faced with this nauseating problem. The way students on these campuses of learning particularly, the female ones, dress seductively leaves much to be desired What the girls call skirts that they wear is just “one inch” longer than their pants. When they put on such dresses, they struggle to sit down, find difficulty in climbing machines, cross gutters as well as pick anything from the ground. Apart from the skimpy and tight fitting nature of these dresses, they are again transparent; revealing certain parts of the bodies that under normal dressing patterns ought to be hidden away from the glare of people. In the case of boys, their pattern of dress is different.
It makes them to look so dirty and very unattractive with unkempt hairs and dirty jeans having pockets of holes deliberately created around the knees and the lower part of the trousers allowed to flow on the ground because they go through their heals into their legs as socks. The waist of their trousers are lowered and fastened tightly at the middle of the two bottom lobes to reveal their boxers (pants). And when they are walking, they drag their legs and one of their hands particularly, the left one, cupping their invisible scrotum as if they will fall to the ground if not supported. Many of them because of how they dressed had at one time or the other become victims of rape, lured into prostitution, used for ritual purpose, unable to complete their education or training and also engaged in other ancillary social and moral problems like cultism and lying to mention these few. Although, there are no universally acceptable way or ways of dressing, dresses are meant to serve some definable purposes, country or region notwithstanding. They are part of a peoples culture and they define their tribal or ethnic identity.
Apart from dresses being a means for cultural identity, they are for ornamental or aesthetic purposes, for protection of the body against harsh weather conditions as well as for covering the intimate parts of the body (Answer.com, 2011; &Articlesbase.com, 2011). These purposes are important especially as they form major aspects of a person’s personality. But as important as these purposes are, they have been defeated by the generation of Nigerian youths (Articlesbase.com, 2011). Their dress patterns are most times anti-African, and are invented. They usually dress in a manner that does not show that they are responsible (nigerianfilms.com, 2009). The African culture and particularly that of Nigeria encourage modesty in appearance as do the Christian and Islamic religion where the larger population of these youths claim to be worshipping God.
This un-African dress pattern among the youths of this generation has generated lots of concern and worry among the citizenry of the country. Religious institutions as well as institutions of learning are not resting on their oars to watch this immoral act being perpetuated, but they speak against it. For instance, Olori (2003) reported that at the University of Abuja rules were made that any dress won must cover intimate parts of the body, must not expose the breast, stomach, navel and bare chest. But on this very campus students still dress indecently.
In the same vein, in Kogi State College of Education, Ankpa, where this study is focused, it seems that the introduction of a dress code was misinterpreted by the students to mean they should dress indecently.
This is because what became obvious with students in this college after the introduction of this dress code was the alarming and arrant ways that they began to dress indecently. One is not however surprised because what is typical of most Nigerian administrators is always a wide gap between policy formulation and execution. Indecent dressing even though is not accepted as the normality, is seen to be gaining ascendancy. One then wonders what becomes of the society tomorrow with the caliber of students that are being trained. If rules are made for people, they suppose to be adequately informed why such rules are made. It is for this very reason that this paper attempts to counsel students about the causeeffects of dressing indecently as well as suggests solutions that could remedy the further spread of this immoral act on campuses of learning in Nigeria.
1.2 OBJECTIVE OF STUDY
The purpose of the study is to investigate the extent to which peer group contribute to the academic performance of the child. The research will also find out whether peer group influence will contribute to the academic growth of its member furthermore, the investigative behavioral aspect of the peer group on a academic performance of student.
1.3 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
The concern of the peer group on the academic performance of student in selected secondary schools Efforts would be concentrated on the following
(1) children interaction with their peers
(2) stages of the formation with their group
(3) peer group influence on academic performance of the students
(4) the implication of a peer group on individual teachers educational administration, policy makers etc
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
In examining peer group effect in influencing in the study of agricultural science it is necessary to ask the following question
(1) How those peer group influence the choice of an individual students
(2) To what extent those the peer group influence the individual students in choice agricultural subject
(3) What factor contributed to the choice of an individual student in choosing agricultural science in secondary school
1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
In examining peer group effect in influencing in the study of agricultural science it is necessary to ask the following question
(1) How those peer group influence the choice of an individual students
(2) To what extent those the peer group influence the individual students in choice agricultural subject
(3) What factor contributed to the choice of an individual student in choosing agricultural science in secondary school
1.6 RELEVANCE OF STUDY
study will help in knowing more about the peer group and their stages. It will help in finding out the peer group influence on pre-adolescent and implication on them.
The work will help in finding out the influence of the peer group on the academic performance of students.
The research will help in findings solutions to the problem caused by poser group influence. It will also help in relating the peer group of male and female together in terms of the relationship.
The project will also help to find out the bad and good aspect of peer group
.