CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1              BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Guidance and counselling services in the university promote the personal social planning and programming for students with special learning needs.

The students need to prepare themselves not only academically but also socially in order for them to gain acceptance into the new community.It’s also good to know that, the undergraduates, even though a good number of them are adults, there is the need to guide them if the purpose which they are in the university is to be achieved.Also, majority of students in the University are faced with anxiety and stress, to be able to handle situation like this, they need counselling.

The services of guidance and counselling in tertiary institution is to bring about well guided and properly counseled among university undergraduates who will be leaders of tomorrow because the role of guidance and counselling cannot be over emphasized.

Most university administrators in Nigeria are searching for stability as a way out of crises and a means to restore some lasting tranquility on campuses. Recently, dramatic increase in violence and revolutionary behaviour among students has almost attained a high proportion throughout the world. Guidance and counselling services are needed in order to find lasting solutions to some problems that have plagued institutions of learning for a very long time.

Students need counselling programme as a result of these unruly behaviours. In order words, university undergraduates need help to resolve their home, social, academics, health, emotional, vocational, financial and religious problems. The undergraduates at this level are made to understand the nature and complexity of their problems and better means of solving the problems.

Fresh students appear to be plagued by the questions self-defined by their present status within the community, by their position within their peer group and by their academic performances in secondary school. Without counselling programme/support, they will feel inferior and be defeated of their social identities. Difficulties may come the way of new students trying to adjust to the new environment and they will find it painful and hectic. This may be due to the differences they encounter in life when in secondary schools.      Values espoused by other students are social climate, course of study, study conditions and degree of freedom and adjustment to these differences often result in crises of some sort. The crises can be averted if guidance and counselling services are made available to this category of students at the point of entering into the university.

Since counselling aims at the total development of the individual persons, it also helps students to find spiritual and ethical measuring in life and help them to live in harmony within the other members of the university community. The inculcation of ethnical values through guidance and counselling services will go a long way in curbing irrational behaviours among university undergraduates. Effective counselling services in the university will constrain students from rebellion against the established rules of their schools organization and destruction of school properties.

The student is aspiration should be brought into balance with the goals of their educational institutions and those of their surrounding community will be maintained.Denga (2003) is of the opinion that the need for guidance and counselling in our educational system is increasingly pressing as educational, economic, technological, social and ideological advancements are being made. Each student will need to be helped to strengthen his own abilities to make meaningful and realistic choices and to face problems encountered in the society.

According to Oladele (2007) no matter how good and well-constructed an educational policy may be, if guidance and counselling is not given priority and made an integral part of the system, it cannot succeed. Guidance and counselling services within the frame work of education has the potential to help an individual to realistically examine his/her belief and values within the comprehensive nature of the university set up, only good guidance and counselling services can help the undergraduate through social adjustment to take the right decisions and understand himself and his world.

The importance of guidance and counselling services among undergraduates are glaring and inevitable. The services are veritable instruments for achieving success in and out of school. As revealed by findings and conducted by number of Nigerian scholars, among whom are Adugbo (2000), Denga (2003), Allolla (2004), Bello (2007), guidance and counselling services are yet to take off effectively in Nigerian schools generally due to some problems that are yet to be addressed properly.

These problems includes inadequate number of personnel (counsellors), lack of materials and facilities for effective guidance services, lack of finance, inadequate time allocated to guidance and counselling services in schools, unhealthy perception of the school head, counselor, students and parents.The need for guidance and counselling services amongst Nigerian university students cannot be compromised if the universities must actualize the goals for which they were established. So it is important for the universities to properly design counselling services to interpret the goals of the constitution the students and his family in term of its ability to satisfy students’ educational, vocational, social and personal needs. Also it is important for the achievement of academic goals and aspiration in the university.

1.2              STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Study has shown that, Students who have access to counseling programs reported being more adjusted, positive and having greater feelings of belonging and safety in their schools. A thorough study of previous researches has shown that researchers have been limited in their study due to various factors the most common being their own idea on concept of what guidance and counselling is. Therefore, this research is aimed at combining all the factors that involve guidance and counseling and studying them as a whole. This research is focused on lack of proper career guidance and counseling for undergraduates and how it affects their motivation and adjustment to school because of the change in environment and systems they need proper guidance on how to adjust properly.

1.3              OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The general purpose of this study is to find out the need for guidance and counseling services among Nigeria University students. Other objectives include;

1. To reveal the importance of career guidance and counseling for students’

2. To compare the motivation towards school of those students who received career guidance and those who have not received guidance and counseling.

3. To determine the influence of training of peer counselling on students’ discipline.

4. To establish the extent to which guest speakers on guidance and counselling influences students’ discipline.

1.4              RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

Hypotheses one

Ho: Guidance and counseling has no influence on students’ performance

Hi: Guidance and counseling has an influence on students’ performance

Hypotheses one

Ho: There is no need for guidance and counseling services in Nigerian Universities.

Hi: There is a need for guidance and counseling services in Nigerian Universities.

1.5       SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study will provide contemporary and best way for guidance and counselling suitable for undergraduates of the university.

It would help the university administrations to identify areas of guidance and counselling services that need attention. The study will also help in aiding the curriculum planners to decide essential services to be established firmly in guidance and counselling unit in the university.

 1.6 SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

This study is primary concerned with the need for guidance and counseling services among Nigeria university students. This study/project work covers Ambrose Ali University Ekpoma, Edo State. The researcher encountered some constraints, which limited the scope of the study. These constraints include but are not limited to the following

a) AVAILABILITY OF RESEARCH MATERIAL: The research material available to the researcher is insufficient, thereby limiting the study     

b) TIME: The time frame allocated to the study does not enhance wider coverage as the researcher has to combine other academic activities and examinations with the study.The students would also benefit from the guidance and counselling services to have a focus in life and be responsible citizens with the skills in time management as well as upholding good morals.

1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS

GUIDANCE AND COUSELING: Guidance and counseling refers to the services that promote personal, social, educational, and career development. Guidance counseling attends to the needs of students, parents, professional associates and the community.

UNIVERSITY STUDENTS: A student is primarily a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution who attends Students are permitted to progress towards university level programs in both government and

1.8 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows

Chapter one is concerned with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), historical background, statement of problem, objectives of the study, research hypotheses, significance of the study, scope and limitation of the study, definition of terms and historical background of the study. Chapter two highlights the theoretical framework on which the study is based, thus the review of related literature. Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.  Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study 

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