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THE EFFECT OF CLASSROOM AND MANAGEMENT IN SECONDARY SCHOOL

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Education in Nigeria has become a gigantic industry that has been recognized not only as a tool for nation building but also as a source from which individual Nigerians can realize their goals and aspirations. The vision of every society in modern times is that education be used as a tool for social change. In other words, if a country desires to bring about a new philosophy, a new orientation, a new social order or a new thinking pattern, the vehicle for such a change is education. To effect a desired change such a country must undertake modification of its curriculum as a first step, followed by classroom instruction, which is derived from the affected curriculum and implemented by the teacher in the classroom.

The classroom is the environment where teaching and learning takes place. Classroom is the power-house in which the success or failure of the teaching-learning process is sustained (Wigwe, 2013). It is a learning environment where all the factors conducive for learning are put in place such as physical- sensory elements, that is lighting, colour, sound, space, furniture, among others. It does not necessarily mean an empty room; it includes laboratories, workshops, among others (Kanu, 2012). The anticipation and objectives of formal education are normally accomplished in the classroom using a well planned curriculum through effective classroom management.

Management is an important aspect of every organization. Ogbonnaya (2014) defined management as the co-ordination of the resources of an organization through the process of planning, organizing, directing and controlling all energies aimed at achieving the organizational goals. Management in the classroom refers to issues of supervision, the act of handling or controlling the classroom activities successfully. Male and female teachers take actions to create an environment that support and facilitate both academic and non-academic learning. The ability of the classroom teacher to exercise a reasonable degree of control over student’s behaviours in the classrooms depends on the male and female teachers’ knowledge and level of classroom management skills.

Classroom management is well-informed actions taken by teachers to utilize any available resources in schools to facilitate teaching and learning. Classroom management is the action teachers take to create an environment that supports and facilitates both academic and social emotional learning (Everton and Weinstein, 2006). Male and female teacher’s involvement and cooperation in classroom activities help to foster and establish a productive class environment. It is based on this that Oboegbulem (2011) defined classroom management as the arrangement of students and grouping of activities into units to make for effective teaching and learning.

According to Umoren (2010), the concept of classroom management is broader than the notion of student control and discipline, it includes all the things teachers must do in the classroom to foster students’ academic involvement and cooperation in classroom activities to create conducive learning environment. Morse (2012), relates that classroom management involves curtailing learner’s disruptive behaviors such as fighting and noise making, close observation, arrangement of classroom learning materials, and response to students who suffer from poor sight (vision), poor hea3etb ring, poor reading, poor writing, poor spelling, shame, dullness, hyperactivity and poor study habits.

According to Bassey (2012), the wider view of classroom management shows increased engagement, reduction in inappropriate and disruptive behaviors, promotion of student responsibility for academic work, and improved academic performance of students.

An analyses of the past 50 years of classroom management research identified classroom management as the most important factor, even above students’ aptitude, affecting students’ learning and academic performance (Wang, et al., 2009). Contrary to popular belief held by Pandey (2006), classroom management is not a gift bestowed upon some teachers. While it is true that some teachers adapt to classroom management easily, making it felt by their colleagues as if they posses some innate talents. Classroom management is a skill that can be acquired like any other profession. It is a skill that must be practiced to achieve proficiency. Classroom management thus requires specific skills such as planning organizing, as well as an aptitude for team work. It requires a great deal of commitment, initiatives, teachers’ willingness to adjust, creative thinking and actions (Abel, 2011).

All the way through times past, teachers are considered as the key elements in the teaching and learning process. They are also the principal actor in working towards the achievement of the aims and objectives of education. The teacher in the educational process, plans, organizes and controls the students' activity and consequently appears in the position of a leader. As a leader, he is saddled with the responsibility to make provision for all the procedures necessary for the establishment and maintenance of an environment that is conducive and appropriate for learning. The way the teacher structures his daily schedule, sets up his classroom, plans daily lessons and sets expectation for students’ behaviour will determine the success of teaching and learning. One of the yardstick for determining the effectiveness and efficiency of a teacher is to measure how well he/she is able to cope with the demand of the responsibilities saddled on him and the learners’ outcome (Adeyemi & Bolarinwa, 2013; Anyakoha & Anyanwu, 2006; Jones & Jones, 2012).

Recent happenings and occurrences at the level of secondary schools and even other levels of education leave many scholars in panic today and Abuja Municipal Area Councils is not left out. The teacher finds himself in a class filled with students who are disposed to violence, not only to their fellow students but the teacher also. In a bid to control this tendency towards violence, indiscipline, and noise making, careful management of the classroom is therefore important.

In fact, academic performance has been seen as a term used for students based on how well they are doing in their studies and classes. This definition tends to see academic performance as the culmination of all the activities of the student in the school.  Academic performance for the student is also seen as the extent to which a student has achieved his educational goals (Wikipedia, 2012). This means the student’s academic performance is measured by the extent to which he has reached the educational goals he set for himself.

Secondary School students’ academic performance according to (Kathryn, 2010) Academic performance refers to a person’s performance in a given academic area (e.g. reading or language arts, mathematics, science and other areas of human learning. Academic performance relates to academic subjects a child studies in school and the skills the child is expected to master in each (Kathryn, 2010).

As a matter of fact, it gives parents and students feelings of satisfaction and joy when children excel academically (Fehintola, 2009 & Ojukwu, 2016).

Academic performance refers to excellence in all academic discipline, in a class as well as extracurricular activities. It includes excellence in sporting behaviour, it includes excellence in sporting behaviour, confidence, communication skills, and others. Academic performance refers to how well a student is accomplishing his tasks and studies.

Browers and Tower (2010), submitted that teachers who have problems with classroom discipline are frequently ineffective in the classroom and often report of high levels of stress and symptoms of burnout. According to Donovan and Cross (2012) the inability of teachers to effectively manage classroom behaviours often contribute to students’ low academic achievement. The rationale behind this assertion is that teachers’ inability to effectively manage classroom behaviours makes it impossible for quality to be assured in teacher’s classroom management skills. This is because the quality of learning, among others depends on the skills exhibited by the teachers in the classroom. The application of these skills ensures quality in teaching and learning in schools.

Quality in teaching and learning in schools, otherwise known as quality assurance is the process of ensuring that good standard is upheld. Mbaji, Ebirim and Akwali (2012), opined that quality assurance is the establishment of standard in various processes and activities that lead to the attainment of quality result. Quality assurance is an organized way of encouraging the achievement of good and high standard. Quality assurance is the practice to ensure that teachers maintain good standard in the classrooms to achieve the educational goals. Nwite (2012) maintained that quality assurance in teacher’s classroom management involves a systematic management, monitoring, and evaluation of procedures adopted to measure the performance of students to ensure that best practices in institutional input and output are maintained in schools.

Quality assurance involves processes of monitoring, assessing and evaluating according to agreed standard, and communicating judgment obtained to all concerned in order to ensure quality with integrity, public accountability and consistent improvement. There are several dimensions of educational standards such as infrastructural standard, curriculum or content standards, teaching and learning standards, quality including management and leadership standards, care, guidance support standards and professional standards Nwite (2012). All these dimensions of standards are the concern of quality assurance. And these should be maintained at all levels of the education system especially the secondary level.

Secondary school is one of the levels of Nigerian education system. Secondary education is the education children receive after primary education and before the tertiary stage, (Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN) 2013). The underlying principle here is that secondary schools should prepare the individuals for useful living within the society and for higher education. The expectations and objectives of secondary education are normally accomplished in the classroom using a well planned curriculum through effective classroom management skills. In order to maintain appropriate standards in secondary school there is need to effectively manage classrooms by using appropriate classroom management skills. 

This being the case, one may ask whether the expectations and objectives of secondary education in Nigeria are guided by unskilled teachers and mismanaged classrooms. It is on the basis of the above that the researcher is worried and decided to carry out this research to find out, the Influence of Classroom Management on student academic performance.

To parents and society at large, the school is being held liable for every aspect of students’ performance. So, classroom management plays a very significant role in students’ academic performance. Effective classroom management put the teacher in firm control of the classroom and provide orderliness and safety needed for instruction and learning. Yet, the various reforms in education, like, the National Policy on Education of 1977, revised in 1981, 1998 and 2004 in Wali (2007), failed to mention or address classroom management and the connectivity between students’ academic performance and classroom management.

Classroom Management is one of the neglected areas in our secondary schools, despite the fact that the success or failure of any teaching and learning process depends on the way classroom are managed. Failure to effectively manage the classroom can have an overall negative influence on the entire school, especially in terms of sound academic performance of the school. When this happens other negative consequences follow such as the depletion of the student population of the school because parent/guardians prefer to enroll their children and ward in schools that are performing well academically.

Discipline, is one of the key variable of Classroom Management. Discipline is a function of the interaction between teacher and student that bring about self-control and respect for authority. (Ada, 2004). It entails creating and keeping rules based on reciprocal understanding limits that must not be breeched. What is common in the present time are students breeching the limits, turning violent in classroom, and exhibiting extreme unruly behavior. The result is a class full of arrogance and unruly student resulting in a noisy and chaotic classroom that does not support effective teaching and learning.

This situation agrees no-less with the observation of Martin and Sass, (2010), that over the years, classroom management has been observed to be issue for teachers. They continued that students’ performance has been affected in schools where discipline and behavior issues are not properly handled.

Marzono (2007) also express similar worry when he said that the importance of students feeling safe at school is linked to students’ learning. He said, without this feeling of safety, students will develop anxiety and become uneasy in the classroom. Safety and orderly environment protects students from physical and psychological harm and maintained order so learning can take place.

Another worrisome issue in the public secondary schools is that of teacher’s quality. Nonprofessional teachers’ are been recruited into the system. A professional teacher is one that has passed the Teacher Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) professional qualifying examination.

A qualified and professional teacher is more likely to change the life of the students by planting the seed of aspiration, noble goals and dreams in the heart of students and be a role model and show the way to greatness to students. A qualified and professional teacher is more likely to resolve and prevent conflict in the classroom, thus, bring about a better classroom environment conducive for teaching and learning, leading to better academic performance.

Poor classroom management may influence the academic performance of students negatively. It is therefore important that teachers learn to effectively manage their classrooms for a greater output. The academic performance of students these days have given many people serious concern. Our secondary school graduates cannot defend their certificates. This could be as a result of indiscipline exhibited by students in classroom such as lateness to classroom, noise making, and so on. Hence the need for classroom management that encompasses teachers’ efforts to oversee the activities of the classroom including student’s behavior, interaction and learning.

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The poor or low level academic achievement, high failure rate in examinations such as West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), National Examination Council (NECO) etc. and low quality students that are turned out has called for very serious concern in the society. What could be responsible for this ugly trend, even when there are well trained and qualified teachers to teach effectively?  A closer look at the learning environment proof that something needs to be done to improve the academic performance of the students, A conducive classroom is very important for learning, because without the feeling of safety, students will develop anxiety and become uneasy in the classroom. But what are prevalent in our public secondary schools are chaotic and un-conducive classrooms, an environment that is highly unlikely to enhance expansive teaching and learning. Against this background, this study will investigate the effect of classroom management and control on the academic performance of secondary school students in Karu local government Area, Nasarawa state.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The main objective of this study is to determine the effect of classroom and management in secondary school

Specific objectives include;

1. To assess the impact of classroom discipline on students' academic performance in secondary schools within Karu LGA, Nasarawa state.

2. To examine the influence of classroom motivation on students' academic performance in secondary schools.

3. To evaluate how appropriate teaching methods affect classroom management and students' academic performance in secondary schools.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What is the relationship between classroom discipline and students' academic performance in secondary schools in Karu LGA, Nasarawa state?

2. How does classroom motivation contribute to students' academic performance in secondary schools?

3. What role do appropriate teaching methods play in influencing classroom management and students' academic performance in secondary schools?

1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

1. There is a significant correlation between classroom discipline and students' academic performance in secondary schools in Karu LGA, Nasarawa state.

2. Increased classroom motivation positively impacts students' academic performance in secondary schools.

3. Implementing appropriate teaching methods leads to improved classroom management and enhances students' academic performance in secondary schools.

1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The significance of this study among others includes the following:-

·To ensure efficiency in the teaching method that is used.

·To ensure adequate understanding of the subject matter by students

·To ensure adequate discipline and control among student.

·To help a teacher to manage his or her class effectively.

To achieve this, the life of the school must be based on the mutual respect for all its members and understanding of the difficulties and problems the face for the principal and teachers have responsibility for the whole area of working relations within the school community. The principal or Teachers must seen to be all things to all people the heads door must never be closed to any students, parents, staff members, education, offices and policy makers and he/she must also be prepared to listen at any time to apparently trivial details which are of course of vital importance to complaints.

1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This research work investigates the Influence of Classroom Management on Student’s Performance In Karu Local Government Area, Nasarawa. The study is delimited to public senior secondary school teachers. It covers both male and female teachers.

1.8 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study will be limited to classroom management with its association problem. It will equally focus on the issue of control and discipline among pupils, which will lead to adequate solutions to the problem of the classroom.

Also in carrying out this research, the researcher did not investigate into the development orientation of individual pupils, hence whatever psychological factors that may have contributed to indiscipline behaviour in children are noted.

1.9 DEFINITION OF TERMS

1. Classroom: A physical space within a school where teaching and learning activities take place, typically equipped with desks, chairs, instructional materials, and technology.

2. Management: The process of organizing, planning, coordinating, and controlling resources and activities within the classroom to create an effective learning environment.

3. Secondary School: An educational institution that provides education to students typically between the ages of 11 to 18, following primary education and preceding higher education.

4. Effect: The result or outcome produced by a particular cause or set of circumstances; in this study, it refers to the impact or influence of classroom management practices.

5. Academic Performance: The level of achievement or success attained by students in their educational pursuits, usually measured by grades, test scores, and other academic assessments.

6. Classroom Management: The strategies, techniques, and approaches employed by teachers to establish and maintain a productive, orderly, and conducive learning environment within the classroom.

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