ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECT OF INFRASTRUCTURAL AMENITIES ON LEARNERS’ PERFORMANCE IN SOCIAL STUDIES IN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COLLEGES IN NIGER STATE, NIGERIA  

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the assessment of the impact of infrastructural facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger State, Nigeria. Six objectives were raised to guide the study, among which are to: determine assessment of the impact of provision of adequate classrooms environment on students‟ performance in Social Studies; determine assessment of the impact of provision of adequate hostel facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies; and examine assessment of the impact of library facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger State, Nigeria. Six corresponding research questions and hypotheses were all stated in line with the objectives of the study. The study adopted ex-post facto research design and out of the total of 5 principals, 80 Social Studies teachers and 3254 students of Federal Government Colleges totalling 3339, a sample size of 351 respondents was used for the study. This comprised 4 principals, 41 teachers and 306 students. This sample size was arrived at using simple random sampling technique. A validated structured questionnaire and students‟ recorded scores in Social Studies was used as instrument for data collection in the study. The instrument was pilot-tested and a reliability coefficient of 0.78 was obtained. Data collected were analysed statistically using descriptive statistics which include mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions, while non-parametric statistics of Kruskal-Wallis was used to test the formulated hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. Findings among others revealed that provision of adequate classrooms environment has positive impact on students‟ performance in Social Studies. Provision of adequate hostel facilities has positive impact on students‟ performance in Social Studies. Finding also revealed that library facilities have positive impact on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger State, Nigeria. The study concluded that provision of neat and attractive classroom environment with well equipped modern chairs, tables, ceiling fan, lighting, learning facilities, constant supply of light, water and maintenance of toilets in the hostels have positive impact on students‟ performance. Recommendations were made that  Federal Ministry of Education , Non Governmental Organization, P.T.A should put more effort in providing more classrooms facilities, replace the old desk with new in these schools, Ministry of Educaiotn who are responsible in providing most of the funds in these Federal Government Colleges together with the principal, community leaders, students should establish criteria or teachers indicators for evaluating the condition and level of maintenance of laboratory facilities on regular basis.

CHAPTER ONE

  INTRODUCTION

1.1       Background to the Study

Education is a very important instrument of national development for any society. Education is a vehicle for economic, social, cultural and political development of individuals and nations, Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN, 2004). Education is a major vehicle for individual empowerment and National development. A National educational system is vital because it produces the personnel that are required to function in various facets of national life and development process. Gray (2001) cited in Uhaa (2016) notes that the goals of wealth creation, employment, generation, poverty reduction and value reorientation can be effectively pursued, attained and sustained only through an efficient, relevant and functional education system. Quality education at all levels, primary, secondary and tertiary, is desired of all Nigerians. At the secondary levels, quality education is absolutely necessary because it serves as the foundation for tertiary level and for people to provide self employment if they cannot continue with the tertiary level.

Federal Government Colleges are colleges established primarily to foster unity and integration in Nigeria, they were established on federal character principles, as a tool for national integration, found in all the state of the federation, where students study and live during the school year with fellow students, teachers and administrators, some of the schools have both day and boarding studnets who attend the institution by day and return off-campus to their families in the evening.

 

Infrastructural facilities such as; classrooms environment, hostel, libraries and laboratory, electricity/water, common room/dinning hall form the bulk of things that facilitates the achievement of goals/objectives of impacting knowledge in the life of students. Infrastructural facilities form the backbone of any educational instruction. Lack of these infrastructural facilities in school such as unhealthy surroundings, inadequate office, libraries and laboratory most at times placed both students and teachers under stress, thereby affecting the learning and teaching in the school resulting in failure and low performance.

Classroom environment is vital to students success and impacts students in many ways, one that allows students to feel comfortable and confident as a leaner, the need for space includes how furnitures are arranged and organized, who clean the classroom and the overall colour and brightness. Hostel facilities, is shelter for the students who from far places students live there with each other and learn the values of discipline and cooperation, hostels are situated close to schools, it saves time of the study for the students, life in a hostel is helpful to the students in so many ways disciple, sense of responsibility in matters of handling of the books, health and cloths. Library facilities, library conjures up images of books, books remain a cone feature and are beneficial in many ways to understood, help students educate themselves. Laboratory facilities provide students with the opportunities to interact directly with natural phenomena, chemical, data collected by others using tools, material collection techniques and models.

Electricity is generated at power stations which use various fuel sources including coal, gas, oil, biomass water, wind, geothermal or solar. Electricity generation is provided by both government owned corporations and private companies. Water is essential for maintaining an adequate food supply and a productive environment for the plants and miobes worldwide, as human populations and economics.

Common room could be said to be the heart of the college as a physical room, its where students gather every day for various mission and form a community, the common room is very crucial to students learning.  Student learning environment cannot be isolated from the social needs, interaction, and socialization. A dinning hall is a special place set aside for food, sources, preparation, supply, services style, many students food preference nutrition, food safety, relationship to academic programme and students forming a community, students learnt enough while on dinning services, table manner, students can attempt rules, where students can placed high value.

The researcher hope this study will help solve the problem of mass failures in external examination. Fact from institutions like NECO who are responsible for conducting basic Education Examinations certificates for this junior classes shows that there is a sharp failure in the performance of students in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state. Situational analysis also revealed that in Federal Government College Minna, student do not have conducive learning environment, infrastructural facilities such as libraries, labouratories, lack of classrooms, lack of desk, students hostels are in a deplorable state thereby constituting the poor performance of students. The researcher observed in the school under study that, lack of classrooms can hamper effective teaching and learning as most of the  schools do not have adequate classrooms and that students  receive  lesson under a shade. This is because when students are taking lesson under shade or overcrowding class, in such environment, learning cannot take place; lack of desk in most of the classrooms could discourage students when lesson is going on. Consequently, this could result into students struggling with available desks thereby distracting the entire learning environment. Situational analysis also revealed that students do not have  adequate and good equipment that will facilitate learning for example in Federal Government Girls College New Bussa, students do not have adequate library, labouratory facilities, electricity/water, common room/dinning hall, this could affect the morale of students that will want to be scientist tomorrow having known the importance of

laboratory to science subjects.

The researcher therefore hope that, findings from this study if properly utilized will bring about improvement in the performance of social studies in these school in Niger state. The findings of the study will hopefully uplift the standard of social studies students‟ performance and recommend ways of providing these school infrastructural facilities to enhance teaching and learning of social studies in junior secondary schools in these Federal Government Colleges in Niger state. Hence, availability of these facilities for effective teaching/learning of social studies can equip the learners with basic knowledge of social studies concepts and contents, with higher cognitive skills such as problem solving, and thinking skills that allow for self development and continuous learning process at junior secondary school (JSS) level.

Moreover, availability of these facilities in schools can boost the morale of teachers to be able to use right teaching methodology, proper, effective and efficient use of instructional aids to teach. The thrust for this study is therefore based on the perceived facilities in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state. This study therefore focused on finding out the state of existing school infrastructural facilities in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria. It is therefore, expected that the study will at the end provide a framework for policy decision making, further research, add to the existing knowledge and create a platform for educational planners to see to the problem of inadequate infrastructures at the Federal Government Colleges in Niger state and Nigeria in general.

1.2       Statement of the Problem

Infrastructural facilities are vital and from a major part of effective teaching and learning, its main objective is to equip the school environment with all the necessary infrastructural facilities for effective teaching and learning. Problems of inadequate infrastructural facilities in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, have attracted a lot of public attention/debate. Feedback on students learning outcomes in junior secondary school social studies in Nigeria is not encouraging. Students‟ performance in junior secondary school certificate examination in social studies from 2010-2015, shows that about 61% of the students who sat for the examination within this period could not attain a credit level. Studies such as; Bullock (2007), Udouroso (2011) and Abubakar (2014) have shown a number of factors responsible for this, poor teaching methodology, lack of tiem management during lesson delivery by teachers, poor questioning skill, lack of teachers motivation among others.

 

Federal government colleges were once seen as ultimate place to send students to study. This is so because the Federal Government Colleges were equipped with adequate infrastructural facilities which provided good learning environment where students learned good skills to adopt to any society and live a well informed citizens life as well as  interacting and learning from each other. These Federal Government Colleges were dscribed as the best because of the adequate facility it had as noted by the researcher.

Situational analysis by Abubakar (2014) have shown that, the quality and quantity of infrastructural facilities, such as, hostels, libraries, laboratories, classroom environment, common rooms, games and sporting infrastructural facilities expected to be in schools are quite far from ideal. There is inadequacy of the aforementioned infrastructural facilities and the ones available are not in any way maintained to serve their life span not to talk of staying beyond the lifespan. The absence of these required infrastructural facilities in our Federal Government Colleges had since cast a lot of doubt in mind of parents, students and other stakeholders, as well as the general public. The researcher investigated the problem of adequate provision of classroom enviroment, adequate provision of hostel facilities, provision of library facilties, laboratory electricity/water supply and the problem of common room/dinning hall on students performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria. Musa, (2003) In Auta, (2012) opined that lack of infrastructural facilities management result in depression in academic programme, waste of resources, over utilization of available infrastructural facilities occasioned by inadequacy which often result to damage or collapse and even complete breakdown of

such infrastructural facilities.

There is prevalence of inadequate infrastructural facilities occasioned by inadequate provision, over utilization and poor maintenance practice. This can affect the students, physically, emotionally, psychologically and intellectually. There is near absence of regular and effective provision of school infrastructural facilities in order to ascertain the state of existing infrastructural facilities. Effective  infrastructural facilities provides inspectors with information  for decision making in terms of allocation, policy change or review. Poor student’s academic performance has been attributed to inadequate infrastructural

facilities.

Infrastructural facilities form one of the potent factors that contribute to high academic performance in the system and these facilties are classroom environment, hostel facilities, laboratory, libraries facilities, water and electricity supply. Situational analysis also revealed that student do not have adequate equipment that will facilitate learning.  In Niger state, the performance of students is observed to be deplorable and students perform below expectation, following the report of NECO 2012/2013. Statistics showed that out of 100 students that sat for junior examination within the year under review, an approximate percentage of 34.4% passed with credits, while a total of 65.11% had pass or failure

(NECO Chief Examiner‟s reports, 2010-2014).

Lack of good teaching methodology, lack of understanding and mastery of social studies concepts, use of old teacher based strategy instead of activity base and poor handling of the subject. In view of the above stated problem, the present study will be carried out to assess the state of existing school infrastructural facilities in Federal

Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria. It is therefore, expected that the study will add to the existing knowledge and create a platform for educational planers to debate or find lasting solution to the problem of inadequate infrastructures in the Federal

Government Colleges in Niger state and Nigeria in general.

1.3       Objectives of the Study

The objectives of the study are as follows:

• assessment of the impact of provision of adequate classrooms environment on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger

state, Nigeria;

• assessment of the impact of provision of adequate hostel facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria;
• assessment of the impact of library facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria;
• assessment of the impact of laboratory facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria;
• assessment of the impact of provision of adequate electricity/water on students‟ performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria; and
• assessment of the impact of common room/dinning hall on students‟ performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria.

1.4       Research Questions

The following research questions have been formulated in the study:

• What is the assessment of the impact of provision of adequate classrooms environment on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria?
• What is the assessment of the impact of provision of adequate hostel facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria?
• What is the assessment of the impact of library facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria?
• What is the assessment of the impact of laboratory facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria?
• What is the assessment of the impact of provision of adequate electricity/water on students‟ performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria?
• What is the assessment of the impact of common room/dinning hall on students‟ performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state,

Nigeria?

1.5       Research Hypotheses

Based on the formulated research questions, the researcher stated the following hypotheses to guide the study:

H₀₁:   There is no significant difference in the assessment of the impact of provision of adequate classroom  environment on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government  Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria;

H₀₂:   There is no significant difference in the assessment of the impact of provision of adequate facilities on students‟ performance in Social Studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria;

H₀₃:   There is no significant difference in the assessment of the impact of library facilities on students‟ performance  in social studies in Federal Government

Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria;

H₀₄: There is no significant difference in the assessment of the impact of laboratory facilities on students‟  performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria;

H₀₅:  There is no significant difference in the assessment of the impact of provision of adequate electricity/water on students‟ performance in social studies in Federal

Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria; and

H₀₆: There is no significant difference in the assessment of the impact of common room/dinning hall on  students‟ performance in social studies in Federal

Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria.

1.6       Basic Assumptions

The study is based on the assumptions that:

• If conducive and  required educational infrastructural facilities are provided in

Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, students‟ performance in social studies could be improve greatly.

• Performance output of social studies students‟ can be encouraging if only an

appropriate infrastructural facilities are put in place.

• Lack of school infrastructural facilities in schools drastically affects the implementation of secondary school curricula by extension affect the performance of students.
• If equal numbers of school infrastructural facilities are provided in all Federal Government Colleges irrespective of size, purpose or objectives, it will ultimately enhance the performance of students.
• If adequate electricity/water are provided in Federal Government Colleges, students‟ performance in social studies could improve greatly.
• Performance output of social studies students in Federal Government Colleges can be encouraged, if appropriate common room/dinning hall are provided.

1.7     Significance of the Study

This study will be of great importance to the following education stakeholders school administrators, ministry of education officials, policy makers, social studies teachers, the learner, curriculum experts, parents, education inspectorate officers, community leaders, religious leaders, examination bodies, non-governmental organization

i.e UNESCO, UNICEF.   It is hoped that the findings of this study will uplift the standard of social studies education thereby enhancing students‟ performances in social studies. This study is expected to enlighten and assist every stakeholders (policy makers, school administrators, teachers, government, curriculum experts and the students) Parent Teachers Association in playing a sensitive role aimed at improving the standard of education through the provision of a conducive learning environment. Its significance shall be looked into one after the other.

Policy makers will be well equipped with a reliable and factual information which will serve as an input for effective law making, on issues relating to allocation of funds, timely released period and the legal framework guiding its activities. It will provide an extensive knowledge of schools infrastructural facilities to the school administrators to initiate, sustain and put in adequate use on underlying structures. It will afford other researchers to look into grey areas not covered in the present study and seek ways of improving over it. They will use the information gathered from this study to further research work which will improve the students‟ performance in social studies and will add knowledge to the existing literatures. Social studies teachers as a major stakeholders in the school system, who also plays an intermediate role to work harmoniously with the school in encouraging the students to use the infrastructural facilities. This could be to solve assignments, observe practical knowledge and in the acquisition of essential skills. The findings will be useful to social studies teachers who will improve their teaching strategy in order to enhance academic performance and arose students‟ motivation towards learning social studies. It will place a great burden on the government to provide adequate funding to the school system, equip the inspectorate unit to carry out it functions effectively.

It will provide an understanding of the extent of government contributions in providing educational infrastructural facilities  to Federal Government Colleges in Nigeria, useful information for educational planners and implementators in terms of maintenance and utilization of infrastructural facilities  for meaningful educational achievements, an insight into the existing state of infrastructural facilities which might assist in future educational plans, provide a basis for further investigation on the issue (infrastructural facilities) in areas not covered by this study.

The Ministry of Education officials will benefit from this study on issues relating to allocation of funds to these schools. The need to allocate more funds having known the state of infrastructural facilities in these school again, the Ministry of Education officials will be equipped with reliable and factual information concerning the state of infrastructural facilities in these schools and the modalities to manage them and for planning purpose. The Ministry of Education officials will benefit from the study, the findings from this study will alert them in playing a sensitive role aimed at the provision of a conducive learning environment and at the same time improving the standard of education.

The Ministry of Education official will benefitfrom the study by having knowledge of the state of infrastructural facilities in these federal government colleges in Niger state and it will serve as an input for effective law making, timely release of funds for infrastructural facilities to these schools and the legal framework guiding its activities. The Parent Teachers Association (P.T.A) are indeed partners in managing the school and will benefit from the study. The findings from the study will inform the Parent Teachers Association, the opportunity to have adequate knowledge of the infrastructural facilities in these schools and the roles they can play in supporting the school with more infrastructural facilities. It will enable them to work harmoniously with the school in talking to their wards/students on how to use the infrastructural facilities.

Education Administrators like the Principal, Teachers, Parent Teachers Association, the findings from this study will inform the education administrator on the need to consider the enrolment rate of new students given the availability of infrastructural facilities. It will help the teachers who are the major stakeholders in teaching and learning to initiate, and use different teaching strategies, sustain and adequately use the available infrastructural facilities at his or her disposal, to achieve teaching goal. It will help the teacher even in placing disciplinary measures on students so as to take care of the

infrastructural facilities.

Non-governmental Organization will have reliable and factual knowledge of the state of infrastructural facilities in these schools. It will give them the opportunity to play a sensitive role of providing more funds, to enable these schools have more school infrastructural facilities. Again, religious bodies who are partners in education, the findings from this study will give them the opportunity to lay more emphasis on the moral and spiritual teachings that will enable the students make proper use of these

infrastructural facilities without necessarily  abusing the infrastructural facilities.

Curriculum Experts/planners will benefit from the study, it will give them the opportunity to have adequate knowledge of the state of infrastructural facilities in these schools. It will place a burden on them to plan and develop curricula documents that will take care of all students, as well as curriculum experts in playing a key role aimed at mapping the standard of education, hence the curriculum needs to be changing along side with the needs and aspirations of the society. The study will motivate the curriculum planners to emphasize the use of mastery learning skills, reflective strategy in teaching various concepts in social studies. This may help to enhance the performance in social studies thereby reducing the rate of failure in the subjects.

Again, social studies students will benefit by using the infrastructural facilities such as libraries to solve assignments, observe practical knowledge and in the acquisition of essential skills in their learning. The students will benefit from the study by having useful information to enable them have maintenance ability to properly utilize the infrastructural facilities for meaningful educational attainments. The findings will enhance motivation of social studies education students towards the subjects and improve their performance since it incorporate mastery of the concepts taught. Findings for the study will open more doors for further/research to be carried out in the future. Researcher will have adequate knowledge of the state of infrastructural facilities in these Federal Government Colleges. Knowledge of infrastructural facilities in these schools which shall be open up to the academician, shall place a burden for academicians to press hard for all concern for improvement in the standard of infrastructural facilities in these schools so as to enhance students‟ performance.

It will boost the morale of teachers to be able to use right teaching methodology, proper effective and efficient use of instructional aids to teach. It will enable the educational administrators and planners to appreciate the need for proper management of these infrastructural facilities, so as to ensure longitivity. This will help in showing the effectiveness and usefulness of infrastructural facilities for teaching social studies to the teachers and all other classroom teaching and learning activities.  It will equally aid and motivate the students and teachers, about the principles, guidelines and procedures for maintenance, selection, application and use of these infrastructural facilities.

It will help students and teachers under training to enhance their learning skills, knowledge and rudiment about how school infrastructural facilities can help both teachers and students to learn and improve their skills successfully. It will help school administrators in having an oversight on the extent of benefitof adequate infrastructural facilities as well as the opportunity to enroll in more students in these Federal Government

Colleges in Niger state.

1.8       Scope of the Study

This study investigated the assessment of the impact of infrastructural facilities on students‟ performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state. The study is essentially conceived with the ever increasing students‟ enrolment without the adequate commensurate provision of infrastructural facilities, failures in exams and dilapidated infrastructural facilities in these Federal Government Colleges in Niger state, Nigeria. This study is to cover all the junior secondary school social studies students, JSS 1

– JSS III, the five principals and all the social studies teachers of the five Federal Government Colleges in Niger state. Federal Government Colleges are located all over

Nigeria. There is no state of the federation that does not have Federal Colleges but the choice of the researcher to pick Niger state is because, Niger state happen to be one of the state that is having five Federal Government Colleges (Federal Government Girls College Bida, Federal Government Girls College New Bussa; Federal Government College Minna,

Federal Government Technical College Shiroro; and Federal Government Academy Suleja) The following variables were looked into; provision of adequate classroom

environment, provision of adequate hostel facilities, libraries facilities, laboratory facilities, electricity/water supply and common room/dinning halls and their impact on students‟ performance in social studies in Federal Government Colleges in Niger state were looked

into.

ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECT OF INFRASTRUCTURAL AMENITIES ON LEARNERS’ PERFORMANCE IN SOCIAL STUDIES IN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COLLEGES IN NIGER STATE, NIGERIA