THE INFLUENCE OF PARENTAL BACKGROUND ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF PRIMARY SCHOOL PUPILS
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background
of the Study
From
the beginning, parents have been the major person involved in raising children
in every society. This is why the family is recognised as an important agent of
socialization.
Adejaeyi (2002) observes that it is
mainly through their efforts and abilities that children are socialized to
become productive citizens so, wherever parents possess the resources and skill
and apply them effectively and joyfully in raising their children the entire
society benefits.
This brings joy and pride to the
nation and encourages development and peaceful co- existence the children
themselves feel good and bring happiness to their parents and the whole
community.
In light of this, the influence of family
background on the academic performance of pupils become an indispensable factor
in the wheel of progress. It is a fact that parental background influences
pupils academic performance either positively or negatively. A well to do
family will have positive interest in the education of their children.
The primary function of parents is the
rearing and protection of children and passing on to them the values and
beliefs of the society. They also teach children the rules, traditions and ways
of doing things. It is also the responsibility of the parents to provide their
children with shelter, food, education, security and personal development. This
is the basis of family orientation.
The level of educational attainment of
parents influences the academic performance of their children for instance, in
a family where both the mother and the father are educated; their children are
always taken good care of in respect of their academic activities. They may go
through their children’s exercise books after schools or even employ private
teacher to teach them after school. By so doing their academic performance will
be improved. Whereas in the case of illiterate family, the need to supervise
their children’s home work could be hardly possible, hence this reason
contributes to poor academic performance of their children.
It is obvious to note that the level
of performance of a child educationally also depends on the hereditary factors
and the environmental factor that he finds himself.
Hereditary factors influence a child
academic performance in school. This happens when a child inherits poor genes
from either the mother or the father; such a child will not be able to achieve
much even if the environment is conducive for effective learning. On the other
hand, a child who inherits a very high genes from parents may not perform very
well if the environment is not stimulating.
A conducive environment is necessary
for a good academic performance of a child. A stimulating environment could
spur up a potential mediocre into an intellectual ground while an inhibiting
environment could turn a genius child into a mediocre. Parents are once more reminded
of their divine and practical responsibilities of their pupils. Our school
system and society will be more disciplined and functional.
Statement of the Problem
This
study intends to pin- point the influences of parental background on the
academic performance of pupils in schools. The influence of parental
background, that is, the socio- economic status of parent has been identified
as one of the issues posing serious problem in the academic achievement of the
pupils in the primary schools. Also, some parent can’t afford to provide
adequate balance diet for their children which can affect academic performance
of children; Not that alone, Educational level of parent could affect the
academic performance of a school pupil. Hereditary is also identified as part
of what a child can inherit from their parents as this could negatively affect
academic performance of their children.
Living in conducive environment is one
of the inhibit factors that affect academic performance of children and also
in- ability of parents to live together as a result of divorce may impede
children academic performance.
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to
investigate the influence of parental background on the academic performance of
pupils in some selected primary schools in Ise- Ekiti Local Government Area
Ekiti State. The objectives of the study specifically include;
i.
Identifying the influence of parental
background as it affects the academic performance of their children.
ii.
Carrying out controlled study and
investigate home environment and facilities in these homes for children
educational development with special reference to Ise- Ekiti Local Government
Area.
iii.
Seek to suggest the possible solution to
the problem so as to enhance pupils’ academic performance in schools.
Significance of the Study
This
study is to highlight the influence of family background on the academic
performance of pupils in primary school in Ise- Ekiti Local Government Area.
This study is therefore significant because of the following reasons;
i.
It will highlight the problems
associated with pupils’ performance in school.
ii.
The result of the study will also
uncover the fundamental roles expected of the parents in respect to the
intellectual training of the pupils.
iii.
The study will also serve as a source
for future research in other area of study.
iv.
The outcome of this study will also be
of immense value to the inhabitants of the area in and it will seek to improve the
interest of parents with regards to education.
v.
Finally, it is hoped that when this
research work is completed, the learners, parents, teachers, ministry of
education, curriculum planners, government and the entire society will benefit
from the finding by formulating a policy that will bridge the gap between
children of high socio- economic status and that of the low socio- economic
status in respect of their academic performance in school.
Scope of the Study
The
scope of this study is delimited, to only seven primary schools in Ise- Ekiti Local Government Area of Ekiti State.
The
seven primary schools are as follows;
i.
Ansar
– un- deen Primary School Ise- Ekiti.
ii.
C.A.C.
Nursery and Primary School Ise- Ekiti.
iii.
Emmanuel
Nursery and Primary School Ise- Ekiti.
iv.
St
Theresa Catholic Primary School Emure- Ekiti.
v.
All
Saints Primary School Emure- Ekiti.
vi.
Ife-
Oluwa Nursery and Primary School Emure- Ekiti.
vii.
L.A.
Primary school Emure- Ekiti.
For
the human resources only pupils in primary four, five and six in the above
named schools serves as the primary source of data collection.
Research Questions
i.
Is there any difference between the
academic achievement of pupils whose parents are of higher socio- economic
class and the academic achievement of pupils whose parents are low socio-
economic class?
ii.
Is there any difference between academic
achievement of pupils from educated parental background and pupils from
uneducated parental background?
iii.
Is there any difference between the
academic performance of pupils from poor, average and higher parental
background?
iv.
Does the family background influence the
academic performance of pupils?
v.
How does the socio- economic status of
parents affect their pupils’ academic career?
Hypotheses
i.
There is no significant difference
between the academic performance of pupils from poor, average and higher
parental background.
ii.
There is no significant difference
between the academic achievement of pupils whose parents are of higher socio-
economic class and the academic achievement of pupils whose parents are low
socio- economic class.
iii.
There is no significant difference
between academic achievement of pupils from educated parental background and
pupils from uneducated parental background.
iv.
There is no significant in socio-
economic status of parents that affect their pupils’ academic career.
Definition of Terms
Influence: This is the
power to affect somebody character, benefits or action through example.
Family: This refers to a social unit
consisting of parents and their children.
Parents: This refers to the one who has begotten
offspring or occupies the role of mother or father.
Academic
Performance:
This refers to how much the pupils respond to the teaching and learning of the
formal school successfully especially using their own effort and skill.
Pupil: This is a person
who is being taught, especially, a child in a school.
Low Socio-
economic status:
This refers to families whose what they are earning is very low compare with
others, that is, their daily or monthly take home is very little, Such as
cleaners, housemaid.
Middle socio-
economic status:
this refers to families whose are fairly paid such as, teachers in primary
school, secondary teachers.
High socio-
economic status:
this refers to families whose are highly paid such as, professor, minister, honorable,
Doctor.
