CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the study

The school environment, which include the classrooms, libraries, technical workshops, laboratories, teachers’ quality, school management, teaching methods, peers, etc are variables that affect students’ academic achievement (Ajayi, 2001 and Oluchukwu, 2000).  Hence,     the school environment remains an important area that should be studied and well managed to enhance students’ academic performance.

The issue of poor academic achievement of students in Nigeria has been of much concern to the government, parents, teachers and even student themselves. The quality of education not only depends on the teachers as reflected in the performance of their duties, but also in the effective coordination of the school environment (Ajao, 2001).

School environment which include instructional spaces planning, administrative places planning, circulation spaces planning, spaces for conveniences planning, accessories planning, the teachers as well as the students themselves are essential in teaching-learning process. The extent to which student learning could be enhanced depends on their location within the school compound, the structure of their classroom, availability of instructional facilities and accessories. It is believed that a well planned school will gear up expected outcomes of education that will facilitate good social, political and economic emancipation, effective teaching and learning process and academic achievement of the students.

Relating this study to international occurrences are the assertions of Williams, Persaud, and Turner, (2008), quoting Marsden (2005), which reported that safe and orderly classroom environment (aspect of instructional space); and school facilities (accessories) were significantly related to students’ academic achievement in schools. The three researchers, also quoted Glassman, (1994), asserting that a comfortable and caring environment among other treatments helped to contribute to students’` academic performance.

The physical characteristics of the school have a variety of effects on teachers, students, and the learning process. Poor lighting, noise, high levels of carbon dioxide in classrooms, and inconsistent temperatures make teaching and learning difficult. Poor maintenance and ineffective ventilation systems lead to poor health among students as well as teachers, which leads to poor performance and higher absentee rates (Frazier, 2002 Lyons, 2001 and Ostendorf, 2001).

These factors can adversely affect students’ behavior and lead to higher levels of frustration among teachers, and poor learning attitude among students.

Beyond the direct effects that poor facilities have on students’ ability to learn, the combination of poor facilities, which create an uncomfortable and uninviting workplace for teachers, combined with frustrating behavior by students including poor concentration and hyperactivity, lethargy, or apathy, creates a stressful set of working conditions for teachers. Because stress and job dissatisfaction are common pre-cursors to lowered teacher enthusiasm, it is possible that the aforementioned characteristics of school facilities have an effect upon the academic achievement of students (Marsden, 2005).

Previous studies have investigated the relationship of poor school environment including problems with student-teacher ratio, school location, school population, classroom ventilation, poor lighting in classrooms, and inconsistent temperatures in the classroom with student health problems, students’ behavior, and students’ achievement (Davis et. al, 2001). To complement these studies, the present research will examine the aforementioned areas of school environment as it affect students performance in Nigerian schools.

Statement of the Problem

Emphasizing the importance of school environment to students academic performance, Oluchukwu, (2000) asserted that school environment is an essential aspect of educational planning, he went further to explain that “unless schools are well suited, buildings adequately constructed and equipment adequately utilized and maintained, much teaching and learning may not take place.

The high levels of students’ academic achievement may not be guaranteed where instructional space such as classrooms, libraries, technical workshops and laboratories are structurally defective. However, little is known on the impact of school environment on students’ academic achievement in an urban city like Lagos State (Oluchukwu, 2000). To this effect, the study seeks to appraise the influence of school environment on the academic achievement of secondary school students in Kaduna educational zone Kaduna State.

Purpose of the Study

The purposes of this study are stated as follows:

                   i.            To examine the relationship between school environment and the student academic achievement in secondary schools in Kaduna educational zone Kaduna State.

                 ii.            To examine the impact of school facilities on the academic achievement of students in the secondary school secondary schools in Kaduna educational zone Kaduna State.

              iii.            To explore factors that promotes or inhibits students learning in the academic environment of students in secondary school in Kaduna educational zone Kaduna State.

              iv.            To investigate the extent to which school location affects the academic achievement of secondary school students in Kaduna educational zone Kaduna state

Significance of the Study

The study will be beneficial to the following group of people: Students, teachers, school administrators and the relevant stakeholders. This study will provide information for parents, educators and school administrators to reflect upon various factors that help students in achieving their academic goals. In so doing, they can investigate the possibility of introducing those factors to their school, which may consequently lead to enhancing students’ educational outcomes in school.

In addition, the fact that this study is conducted in public schools, it shares quite a lot of similarities with many other similar schools. In this connection, this study provides a valuable reference for other schools to reflect upon the school environment as it affect the academic achievement of student in secondary school.

Research Questions

This study seeks to answer the following questions:

1.     What is the relationship between school environment and the students’ academic achievement in Kaduna educational zone kaduna state?

2.     To what extent do school facilities affect academic achievement in secondary school in Kaduna educational zone kaduna state?

3.     What are the factors that affect the academic achievement of students in secondary school in Kaduna educational zone kaduna state?

4.     To what extent does school location affects the academic achievement of secondary school students in Kaduna educational zone kaduna state?

Scope of the study

The study seeks to appraise the influence of School Environment on the Academic Achievement of Students in Secondary Schools in Kaduna Educational Zone. Specifically, the study is restricted to relationship between school environment and students achievement, factors that affects academic achievement and how does school location affects academic achievement of students in secondary schools in Kaduna Educational zone        , Kaduna state.

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