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RELATIONSHIPS AMONG PEER PRESSURE, TIME MANAGEMENT AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF IN-SCHOOL ADOLESCENTS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1    Background to the Study

Time and tide are believed wait for no man. Students need to make use of their time wisely as no one can hold the time back. Whatever one cannot achieve within a day will have to be carried over. There are many obstacles to achievement that can impede progress and performance of students. These include poor time management, bullying in school, deviant or anti-social behavior, poor parenting style or involvement etc. In the modern world, time is seen as an indefinitely divisible and usable commodity. It helps to infuse the concept of time through the institution. All the material and human resources possessed by organizations can be enhanced in the course of time or be transformed as time goes on; yet the only asset that cannot be changed or purchased or stored is time itself. The secret to achieving success in life is effectively managing this resource that everyone possesses equally and paying sufficient emphasis to planning (Macan, Shahani, Dipboye & Phillips, 2000).

Time management plays a vital role in improving student’s academic performance and achievements. Each and every student should have time management ability which includes setting goals & priorities, using time management mechanism and being organized in using time. Here time management is only possible through self-motivation; performance, ability and motivation (Brigitte, Claessens, Eerde, & Rutte, 2005). These are the few activities performed by today’s students, which act as a barrier between them and their academic performance. Due to mismanagement of time they gap behind. Likewise, in the process of providing educational services this issue has been a subject of interest discussed and emphasized in several platforms and an attempt has been initiated to assess and analyze time and the time management attitudes and behaviors of students in educational institutes (Denlinger, 2009).

Time Management is the act or process of exercising conscious control over the amount of time spent on specific activities, especially to increase efficiency or productivity. Time Management may be aided by a range of skills, tools and techniques used to manage time when accomplishing specific tasks, projects and goals. This set encompasses a wide scope of activities and these include planning, allocating, setting goals, delegation, analysis of time spent, monitoring, organizing, scheduling and prioritizing. Initially, Time Management referred to just business or work activities, but eventually the term broadened to include personal activities as well. A Time Management system is a designed combination of processes, tools, techniques and methods. Usually, Time Management is a necessity in any project development as it determines the project completion time and scope (Subramanian, 2016).

Time management has to do with planning and scheduling activities, organizing tasks in a prioritized order and allocating time to the tasks according to their order of importance and helping one achieve desired objectives (Achunine, 1995). Time management is the ability to manage and control time (Lakein, 2003). The use of planners, calendars and the like are effective tools in managing time. Time management is the art of arranging organizing, scheduling and budgeting one’s time for the purpose of generating more effective work and productivity (Lakein, 2003). In completing the task on schedule, a student will also enhance his academic performance. It can be deduced from Misra (2000) view that an in-school adolescent who spends his time on irrelevant things instead of concentrating on studies may end up having poor academic performance. The issue of students loitering about, holding parties at the expense of their studies tends to suggests that students do not manage their time well. Hence, academic performance might be affected.

According to Oluwatosin (2002), academic performance is something you do or achieve at school, college or university, in class, in a laboratory, library or fieldwork. It does not include sport or music. An academic performance such as graduating 1st in one’s class is sometimes a purely qualitative matter, while having the findings of lengthy, comprehensive research published by recognized journal is also notable academic performance. Being named head/chairman of a particular department in a university is both a professional and academic performance. Teachers’ observation made up the bulk of the assessment and today’s summation or numerical method of determining how well a student is performing, is fairly a recent intention. Different teachers valued different aspect of learning more highly than others, and although some standardization was attempted in order to make the system fairer, the problem continued. Today changes have been made to incorporate differentiation for individual student’s abilities and exploration of alternate methods of measuring performance is ongoing.

The tracking of academic performance fulfils a number of purposes. Areas of achievement s and failure in a student’s academic career need to be evaluated in order to foster improvement and make full use of the learning process. Results provide a framework for talking about how students fare in school and a constant standard to which all student are held, performance results also allow student to be ranked and sorted holding teachers and schools accountable for the component of each and every grade. Performance in school is grading students demonstrate their knowledge by taking written and oral test, performing presentation, turning in homework and participating in class activities/discussion. Teacher evaluation in the form of letter or number grades and side notes to describe how well a student has done. At the level, students are evaluated by their performance on standardized tests geared towards specific ages and based on a set of achievement of students in each age group are expected to meet (Chel 2011, Adekoye, 2011).

In Nigeria, as in other parts of the world, educational system is examination oriented. Thus the quality of education could be adjudged by secondary school students’ academic performance in the National School Leaving Certificate Examinations. These examinations, known as Secondary School Certificate Examinations, are conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examination Council (NECO). There is now a growing concern on the factors that influence students’ academic performance in these examinations. In recent times, students’ academic performance in these national examinations had declined in Ekiti State. Results showed that between 2006 and 2008, only 28% of the students who attempted English Language, 42% Yoruba Language, 28% Biology, 51% Mathematics and 43% Economics in WAEC were successful (Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, 2011). On the order hand, large exclusive amount of time spent in unsupervised peer context may reinforce or exacerbate adolescent substance use and delinquency. Thus, large amount of unsupervised time spent with peers at parties, “hanging out” at malls, dating and talking on the phone may contribute to a variety of negative peer pressure in adolescents (Osgood and Anderson, 2004).

In developing countries where students have a lot of issues during academic journey have a new story for the researcher to dig out much more interesting results. Time management practices have an impact on the results of students as empirical studies done by past researchers. In spite of knowing about the impact of time on academic achievement, this relationship is not given importance by the students (Sevari & Kandy, 2011). Thus, the present study is designed to investigate time management and academic performance among secondary school students in Igbogbo Bayeku Local Council Development Area, Ikorodu.

1.3 Statement of the Problem

Reports have shown that there has been a downward trend in academic performance of students in Nigerian secondary school in general, Lagos State precisely. Parents, teachers, Curriculum experts have also expressed considerable concern about this poor performance in external examination such as West African Examination Council. So also, are teachers and school counsellor. These groups of individuals tend to point accusing fingers on poor time management as being responsible for poor academic performance. This factor is suspected for the luring of students into engagement in negative habits such as procrastination, failure to do assignment or complete class work on time, excessive drinking of alcohol, smoking of Indian hemp, engagement in unhealthy sexual behaviour, cultist activities and other maladjustive behaviours that distract them from academic pursuit.

Also students are seen using most of their time on playing video games, roaming in the streets, using social networks and watching television as the role of the communities to monitor and discipline them has been diminishing day after day leaving the role to the parents themselves. Common problems noticed by the researchers especially in the institution where they are presently teaching is that, there is absence of prioritization of the students on their school tasks resulting to procrastinations by some of the students especially on delaying examinations due to the lack of time to study. Students were not aware that, procrastination not only wastes the teacher’s time but also it requires teachers to prepare another exam paper just to accommodate the delays.

Also, students usually justify the delays because of the many activities and responsibilities they are doing outside the school like social activities with families and others. Since there have been various reported cases such as of teachers and students absenteeism, teachers and students being late, teachers’ heavy workloads and teachers demanding more time to perform their duties, it indicates that, there is a big challenge in managing time resource by teachers, students and other academic stakeholders like parents and inspectors. These behaviours of students which in turn impacts poor academic performance makes the researcher to ask “why are Nigerian adolescent not very concern about the current trend on their academic performance in examination? Could it be that they are insensitive to the possible poor time management on their academic performance? It is in view of these concerns that this study was carried out to determine the time management and academic performance among secondary school students in Igbogbo Bayeku Local Council Development Area, Ikorodu, so as to come up with the sound solutions to the found problems and providing suitable recommendations to improve academic performance.

1.4 Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between time management and academic performance among secondary school students in Igbogbo Bayeku Local Council Development Area, Ikorodu. Specifically, this study is aimed at finding out:

1.     To determine the significant relationship between absenteeism and academic performance of students.

2.     To examine the significant relationship between peer pressure and academic performance of students.

3.     To ascertain the significant relationship between social media and academic performance of students.

4.     To determine the gender difference with regard to time management and academic performance of students.

1.5 Research Questions

The following research questions guided the study:

1.     To what does absenteeism influence the academic performance of students?

2.     How does peer pressure influence academic performance of students?

3.     Do social media have influence on the academic performance of students?

4.     Is there any significant gender difference of time management on academic performance of students?

1.6 Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses were addressed in this study;

1.     There is no significant relationship between absenteeism and academic performance of students.

2.     There is no significant relationship between peer pressure and academic performance of students.

3.     There is no significant relationship between social media and academic performance of students.

4.     There is no significant gender difference of time management on academic performance of students.

1.7 Significance of the Study

The study has the following potential benefits. In the first place, the study would be of great benefit to students, parents, counsellors, schools, researchers. The findings of the study would help students or adolescents by making them to be aware of the merits of good time management.

The study would equally provide useful information to parents and how they can help the adolescents/ students choose their friends/peers and help them manage their time by creating a coping strategy that would help them adjust positively and excel in their academics.

The study would help the teachers to benefits from the finding of the study because the finding would help them know what is expected of them as they are role model.

It would help the counsellor to create discipline in the life of adolescents. When this is done there will be sanity, peace and order, which will enhance the moral tone of the school as well as the society. It would also help the counsellor to know the right technique to adopt in modifying negative behavior and time wasting.

The findings of the study would directly help the school to raise standard of education because experience has shown that disciplined students learn faster and perform better academically than undisciplined students. Therefore, the findings of this study would help the school produce students who can contribute meaningfully towards the development of the nation in future.

More so, this study would help to analyze the positive or negative impact of time management on academic performance of students. It would also help to make some decision about changes we would like to make to use our time more effectively. There is no one right way to manage our time; however; it is important to get to know our self, so we can make good decisions about how to use our time.

Finally, the results of the work would be of great help to future researchers. This would be a source of research materials or empirical data for them.

1.8 Scope of the Study

The study covers time management and academic performance among secondary school students in Igbogbo Bayeku Local Council Development Area, Ikorodu. The study is delimited to time management factors (absenteeism, peer pressure and social media) and academic performance of secondary school students. It is delimited to Igbogbo Bayeku Local Council Development Area, Ikorodu. The study was restricted to SS2 students and the sample of the study was made of 200 students, (both male and female). Fifty students (25 males and 25 females) were randomly selected from each of the schools. However, only four schools were chosen from the population area.

1.9 Limitation of the Study

It would have been ideal to make this study to cover more Local Council Development Area but due to the time limit of the study, it was restricted to schools in Igbogbo Bayeku Local Council Development Area, Ikorodu.

1.0 Operational Definition of Terms

Relative to this study, definitions to the following terms are provided in order to clarify each in the context of the topic:

·       Time Management: Time Management is a set of principles, practices, skill, tool and systems that work together to help us to get more value out of our time with the aim of improving the quality of our life.

·       Academic Performance: Academic Performance is the outcome of education- the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has achieved their educational goals.

·       Absenteeism: Absenteeism is when a student either is or is not in school. It is also defined as absence or non-attendance of a student for scheduled classroom learning.

Peer Pressure: In the context, it is the influence that people who belongs to a particular group can have on other members of the group.

Social Media: Social media is an online community built on internet technology that works as an interaction platform for individuals.

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