Availability of School Facilities and Utilization in Secondary Schools
Abstract
The study was carried out to investigate the influence of school facilities in the teaching of Biology on academic performance of students in Biology in secondary schools in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom State. The study examines the influence of school laboratories facilities and library facilities and academic performance of students in biology.
Two research questions were formulated to guide the study alongside two research hypotheses. Literature was reviewed based on variables of the study. The study adopted survey research design. The population of the study was three thousand nine hundred and eighty six (3,986) Biology students in all the ten (10) public secondary schools in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State. Data for the study were generated through an instrument titled “Biology Achievement Test (BAT)”.
Independent t-test was used in analyzing the data generated for the study. The result revealed that school facilities such as Laboratory facilities and library facilities influence academic performance of students in secondary schools. The study recommends among others, that, laboratory and library facilities that are relevant to teaching and learning in secondary schools should be purchased and used henceforth in teaching and learning process to make such lessons permanent interesting practical and meaningful for longer lasting impression and impact on students. Also, regular supply of laboratory and library facilities should be embarked upon by the government at all level.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The school is generally accepted to be a social agent that provides the environment upon which a child may be formally educated in order to attain educational goals. Human beings have unlimited capacity to learn but may however be limited by the behaviour patterns and facilities that the school environment offers. According to Umoh (2014) nature only provides the raw materials in form of potentials but it is the environment that determines the extent of development.
Ekanem (2011) has shown that the school facilities assist teachers in making their lessons explicit to learners. Eneh and Nkang (2011) in postulation theory of cognitive development have shown that learners in schools function at the operational stage of mental development, one of the characteristics of the students at this stage of development is that they hardly remember what they learn except taught in concrete form.
It is when learning experiences are made in concrete form that learners can remember what they learn and one way of making learning experiences concrete is by teaching the students with school facilities such as, library, laboratory facilities and sporting facilities among others.
Akinfolarin (2013) identified school facilities are the major factor contributing to the teaching and learning effectiveness in the school system. These include equipped laboratories and libraries. Different studies conducted by Ayodele (2010) and Vandiver (2011) showed that a positive relationship exists between the utilization of facilities in schools and academic performance of students.
Similarly, Miller (2012) asserted that the teaching of sciences could be made easy and interesting for students if the facilities such as laboratory facilities and library facilities in the school are available and utilized in the teaching and learning process. It is also noted that a well prepared instruction could be destroyed by non-availability or improper utilization of school facilities by the teachers.
According to Boniface (2012) utilization of laboratory resources and library facilities in teaching assists the teachers as the manager of the instructional process in the arrangement of the mechanism of the presentation and also in planning the whole instructional process and limited or completely absence of these facilities could pose a serious problem in the teaching of sciences. Again few available ones are sometimes not utilized in the teaching-learning process making teaching to be in effective.
It will be against this background that it will becomes necessary to investigate the extent to which the utilization of school facilities such as laboratory and library facilities influence the academic performance of students of Biology in secondary schools in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area.
Availability of School Facilities and Utilization in Secondary Schools
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The act of teaching is fundamentally concerned with passing ideas, skills and attitude from the teacher to the learners. In Nigeria for example, experience has shown that spoken words done in the communication of ideas are grossly ineffective and inefficient in producing desired learning outcomes. Every year, when the results of public examinations are released, there has been mass failure in Biology.
On the fore-going scholars like Ekong (2014) have emphasized that we learn and remember 10% of what we hear, 40% of what we discuss with others and as high as 80% of what we experience directly or practice. However, the question is could the mass failure be attributed to lack of school facilities to be used by teachers during the teaching and learning process? And could the availability of library facilities and laboratory facilities in schools enhance the academic performance of students in Biology. Finding answers to these questions and many more will summarizes the entire problem of this study.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The main purpose of this study was to determine the influence of school facilities in the teaching of Biology on academic performance of students in Biology in secondary schools in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom State. Specifically, the study aimed at the following objectives:
(1) Ascertain laboratory facilities in teaching of biology and academic performance of students in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area.
(2) Investigate the library facilities in the teaching of biology and academic performance of students in secondary schools in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The findings of the study will make teachers realize that children at secondary school age learn easily through the use of school facilities priority in sciences especially in Biology.
The finding of this study will give information to all stake holders in education on the benefit of school facilities.
It will also be importance to the students in the secondary schools by enabling them acquire greater knowledge, attitude and skills through the utilization of school facilities in the teaching-learning process.
The findings of this study will serve as reference materials for further studies or related topics.
1.5 Research Questions
The following research questions were formulated to guide the study.
(1) To what extent does the use of laboratory facilities in the teaching of Biology influence academic performance of students in Biology?
(2) To what extent does the use of library facilities in the teaching of Biology influences academic performance of students in Biology?
1.6 Research Hypotheses
The following null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study:
(i) There is no significant difference in the academic performance of students taught Biology using laboratory facilities and those taught without using laboratory facilities
(ii) There is no significant difference in the academic performance of students taught Biology using library facilities and those taught without using library facilities
1.7 Limitation of the Study
The major factors encountered by the researcher that limited the scope of this study and its findings were lack of adequate finance, the researcher’s academic workload and scarce availability of relevant literature.
1.8 Delimitation of the Study
There are many factors affecting the academic performance of students in Biology in secondary schools in Nsit Ibom Local Government area; but this study only seeks to investigate schools facilities in the teaching of biology and academic performance of students.
1.9 Definition of Terms
The following terms were operationally defined as were used in this study.
School Facilities: School facilities refer to those materials in the school such as laboratory and library facilities.
Academic performance of students: Academic performance of students is the act of helping others to learn Biology effectively.
School: School is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the guidance and supervision.
Biology: Is the study of life (plants and animals).
Teaching: this refers to the passing of information from one person to another
