AN INVESTIGATION OF THE NATURE AND CAUSES OF DROP-OUTS AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN BAUCHI AND GOMBE STATES

ABSTRACT

Dropping out of school has become a very common phenomenon so much that the rate of school dropout is unfavourably disproportional to the output of the educational system. In view of this the research findings herein were the result of the investigation on the nature, and causes of secondary school dropouts in Bauchi and Gombe States.

In conducting the research, a random sample of 580 subjects were used, consisting of 60 parents, 60 teachers and 460 students. Two different kinds of questionnaires were used and they include Teachers/Students questionnaire and Parent oral interview questions.

Non inferential statistics were employed to test the hypothesis. The result generally indicated that in Bauchi and Gombe States lack of adequate feeding of students and lack of recreational facilities are among the strong reasons for students’ dropout of school.

The findings include:

1. significant differences between the attitude of teachers and students towards the problem of secondary school dropout in Bauchi and Gombe States,
2. that there was no significant difference between rural and urban secondary school in their retention of students,

• that no one particular factor predominant as principal cause of school dropout,

1. more female are leaving school before stage of graduation than male and

1. v) rural and urban senior secondary schools have no difference in their retentio

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CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1               Introduction…………………………………………………     48

5.2               Summary ……………………………………………………  48

5.3               Findings……………………………………………….                   49

5.4               Conclusion…………………………………………………… 50

5.5               Recommendations…………………………………………… 51

References…………………………………………………… 53

Appendices……………………………………………                   56

Appendix 1: Table of Random Number…………………….     56

Appendix 2: Validation Check List…………………………. 57

Appendix 3: Questionnaire of both teachers and Students…… 58

Appendix 4: Oral interview form for parent……………………60

Appendix 5: Analysis of the Validation check list by percentage62

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Dropout:                       This refers to a student who due to some reason is

unable to complete his/her secondary school course,

and therefore has to abandon schooling prematurely.

Day Secondary School:

These are non-residential schools locationnaly

scattered all over the states.

Truancy:                        This refers to student who was neither in the home

nor found in the school during school hour. But usually go back home after the school closing with the classmates.

Absenteeism               This refers to a student who abscond to school.

Lateness:                       This refers to a students coming to school after the

official opening time of the school hours.

Zonal Education office: This refers to the administrative headquarters of all the post-primary institutions located within a particular school zone.

ABBREVIATIONS

J.S.S           This is an acronym for Junior Secondary School. It is a school programme that covers the first three years of post-primary education.

• This means Senior Secondary School. It is three-year school programme for which students qualify to enter after a successful completion of the JSS.

GSS            This means Government Secondary School

GGSS      This refers Government Girls Secondary School.

GDSS      This means Government Day Secondary School.

Chapter 1.

INTRODUCTION

1.0        Background To The Problem

Every society has some kind of arrangement for bringing up and training her young ones so as to prepare then for adult life. As it is stated in the National Policy on Education (Revised 1981) “Nigeria philosophy of Education is based on the integration of the individual into a sound and effective citizen and equal Educational opportunities for all citizens of the nation at the Primary, Secondary and Tertiary levels, both inside and outside the formal system”. Thus Education is a basic requisite for responsible citizenship, maintenance of our way of life, and successful entry into day’s complicated working world.

Secondary education is the form of Education children receive after Primary Education and before the Tertiary stage. Secondary education is of six years duration and is given in two stages; Junior Secondary stage and Senior Secondary stage, each stage being of three years duration. Therefore in this work concerned with the only Senior Secondary School stage. In this respect, Secondary School education is viewed as most crucial since it is at this level of Education that entry into higher level of Education is determined. It is also at this stage that a child’s fate in respect of what he will become in future particularly in relation to career is decided. Therefore the importance of the Secondary Education needs to be over-emphasized. In this National Policy Education (1981) the importance of it is expressed as “preparation for useful living within the society and preparation for higher Education”. However students dropout of school for many reason such as personnel and social incapacitation due to peer-group influence, attitude of teachers, recreational facilities, others are geographical location of school, feeding system, sex differences and many other reasons. So also the lateness, truancy and absenteeism. According to Lawrence et al (1966), when a student drop out of school, his behavior generate varieties of reactions from the social milieu, from his school, parents, peers, and even from himself.

Regardless of the cause of students’ premature school leaving, the dropout behaviour increases wastage of the state resources on Education and also creates more problems to the security and social welfare agencies. Licher et al (1962) observed that lack of academic aptitude is not a primary cause of school dropout. A heterogeneous range of reason relative to each dropout’s psychological and economic deficiencies was suggested as probable reasons for students’ withdrawal from school. Some students’ dropout of school on their own accord, others do so in response to family, peer or social pressures. Some also dropout because of incompatible differences between themselves and school value system.

In view of this diversity of causes, it become necessary that any Education reform or programme of intervention that aims at checking the dropout problem starts from an understanding of the causes of school dropout, and the characteristics of the affected students. Educationist and decision-makers need to know what students’ goals are and whether school assist or interfere with their attainment. It is from this understanding that effectiveness of students’ retention shall be improved.

Thus, these research intents to study the causes and characteristics of dropout in Bauchi and Gombe State Senior Secondary Schools. Therefore factors such as peer-groups influence, attitude of teachers, feeding system, others are lack of recreational facilities, geographical location of school and sex differences will be examined in terms of their relationship to the rate of school dropout in the State.

1.1        Statement of the Problem.

Many people especially parents, students schools and the society in general have expressed concern about the increasing number of school dropouts at the Senior Secondary School level. Ideally, such a problem draws much attention to the causes of Senior Secondary School dropout in Bauchi and Gombe State, so as to understand why people resist schooling in the state. Is it probably because of possible causes of school dropouts in the State? The probable areas that could be investigated include the peer-group influence, attitude of teachers, lack of recreational facilities, others are geographical locations of the school and sex barrier, so as to test if there is any significance relationship between the areas and the act of school dropout.

However, such a problem is unofficially reported of the school system of Bauchi and Gombe State. It affects both Primary and Post Primary Schools. Most of the Educational reforms and policy changes which had, and are still taking place in recorded in attracting children to school. Parents have still failed to encourage or support their children’s education. Hence, contrary to one of its

principal aims of boosting enrolment, the establishment of more post-primary schools has not substantially increased the role of schools attendance in the State. Many schools have now become functionally ineffective and deserted due to mass student truancy, lateness, absenteeism and withdrawal.

The children being what they are, may not know or predict future consequences of their acts, thus they end up roaming about the streets as “Gang boys” and at last they find it difficult, if not impossible to gain entry into Higher Education Institutions. On the whole, the society is affected with the criminals that drop away from our schools. It is therefore necessary to find ways or means of curbing the situation.

1.2        Research Questions.

• What influence does peer-groups have on students dropout?
• What influence does teachers’ attitude have on the act of school dropout?
• What influence does lack of recreational facilities have on school dropout?
• What influence does geographical location of school have on the act of school dropout?
• What influence does the feeding system have on the school dropout?
• What is the effect of sex on the rate of school dropout?

1.3        Hypotheses:

The research has the following hypotheses all of which were tested at 0.05 level of significance. H1. There is no significant difference between the opinion of teachers and that of students with regard to peer-group influence as a cause of school dropout.

H2. There is no significant difference between the opinion of teachers and that of students with regards to attitude of teachers as a cause of school dropout.

H3. There is no significant association between the opinion of teachers and that of students with regards to availability of recreational facilities in a school and the act school dropout.

H4. There is no significant difference between the opinion of teachers and that of students with regards to rural and urban schools in the rates of their retention.

H5. There is no significant difference between the opinion of students and that of teachers with regard to students feeding as a cause of school dropout.

H6. There ids no significant difference between the opinion of teachers and that students on gender (Male and Female) as a cause of school dropout.

1.4        Statement of Objectives:

The objective of this study is to: –

1. Identify whether friends have any influence on school dropout.
2. Identify whether attitude of teachers encourages school dropout.
3. Find out whether lack of recreational facilities aid school dropout.
4. Find out whether geographical location schools encourages school dropout.
5. Find out whether inadequate feeding of students encourages school dropout.
6. Investigate whether gender is a factor in school dropout.

1.5        Significance of the Study:

Bauchi State is among the States that are relatively behind in Education. This is why the state is not producing both the required number of university in-take and manpower representation in the Federal service which is grossly inadequate (State budget speech, 1998).

In addition to that, the prevalent negative response of the people of Bauchi state to education has made the study of the dropout in the society a useful endeavour. Since the main aim of the research is to facilitate an understanding of the dropout problem in terms of its nature and causes in senior secondary schools, this is an effort, which will eventually lead to rational means of tackling the problem. The significance of the research also includes: –

1. Cultivation of a sense of awareness on the caused and nature of school dropout to teachers, parents and the decision makers in the State Ministry of Education to enable the children complete the two –tier secondary school system.

2. Emphasizing the need for the teachers and administrators to participate in

1.6        Scope of the Study

The scope of the study is delimited to the assessment of the senior secondary school dropouts in Bauchi and Gombe states. In doing so, teachers /parents and students of the selected schools will be given questionnaires as regard to the nature and courses of secondary schools dropout in Bauchi and Gombe state.

This research is not a direct study of the views of the secondary schools dropout. It is not a study of all Post-primary schools, not Teachers Training Colleges, Technical , Commercial Vocational college. Its focus is mainly on Senior Secondary School dropouts.

The socio-cultural and geographical limitation of this study is Bauchi state only. Any replication or adaptation to the social environments must take cognizance of the unique circumstances of the new setting. Thus, the virtual homogeneity of the socio-cultural life of the people of Bauchi and Gombe state restricts the generilizability of its finding, method and conclusion.

1.7        Summary

This introductory chapter consists of seven aspects that combine to give a comprehensive presentation and justification for the research. The introduction presents the reader with a brief but learned authoritative view of some scholars on the dynamics of school dropout. The statement of the problem is a further clarification that treats and exposes the shortcomings of current school reforms aims at curbing the dropout problem in Bauchi and Gombe state. The hypotheses and research questions are stated so as to inspire the researchers thought and direction for analysis. The purpose of research consists of statements of objectives for the research was also expressed. This was followed by the scope of the study which sets out what is and is not the concern of the study.

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