AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE STUDENTS MISBEHAVIOUR AND FACTORS THAT DETERMINE QUALITY EDUCATION IN NIGERIA TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background To The Study

The concept of quality has attracted many definitions from several scholars. Kalusi, (2001) argued that quality is a complex concept and there is hardly any consensus. According to DuBrin, (2007) quality is a desirable attribute of a product or service that distinguishes it for the person seeking the attribute. Viewed from this definition, quality could be said to have the attribute of worth and acceptance. Nevertheless, DuBrin maintained that good quality should possess the characteristics of conformance to expectation, conformance to requirement, excellence and value and loss of avoidance. Asiyai and Oghuvbu (2009) defined quality as a measure of how good or bad the products of higher education institutions in Nigeria are in terms of their academic performance and meeting established standards. World Organization of Standardization, (2004) defined quality as the totality of features and characteristics of a product of services that bear on its ability to satisfy stated needs. Article 11 of the World Declaration on Education, (2003) sees quality as a multi-dimensional concept which should encompass all the functions and activities in schools. Such activities of higher educational institutions has been highlighted as teaching, research and scholarship, community service, staffing, students, infrastructures and educational facilities, equipment and the academic environment (World conference on higher education, 2011). High quality delivery is a prerequisite for effective productivity in education industry and hence quality education is an instrument for effecting national development. According to Ekong (2006), quality builds knowledge, live skills, perspectives, attitudes and values. When quality education is delivered high enough to meet set standards, the products of education should be able to perform well in the world of work in real life situation. When quality is low, performance cannot meet the set standards. Hence one can say that the quality of education has declined below set standard.

The world continues to be a dynamically changing place and the changes that have occurred over the centuries have challenged the teaching and learning process and would continue to do so. Even for the most DCs, progressive enquiry continue to unravel the sociological dynamics of society and the need for paradigm shift to best practices in the sharing and transmission of knowledge for the development of society. We expect that the developing countries should especially pay attention to the changing dynamics of society to be able to forge dynamic educational system to meet the needs of the 21st century world and beyond.  A paradigm shift in knowledge building and transmission may be required to transmute to a comparable state of development as the first world. The purpose of education is to create and sustain an enlightened mind that can elevate and progressively advance the touch points between human and environment through an inquiry predilection of society. This is consistent with Rosado’s (2000) conceptualization of true education; as the “harmonious development of the physical, mental, moral, and social faculties, the four dimensions of life, for a life of dedicated service” To educate therefore is the process of awakening the thirst for knowledge and a desire to develop the entire dimension of the human capacity. The symphonic slant between the mind (learning) and human environment is buttressed by Tagore (as cited by Singh, 2013) that “the highest education is that which does not merely give us information but bring our life in harmony with all existence.

Education is a derived Greek word which means “to lead out” In other words, the philosophical premise of education is the assumption of the latent state of the human faculty and the need for a process “to lead out” and manifest the latent perfection in man. Knowledge is presumed to exist in the mind but without form, the instructions (teaching and learning process) represents the friction required to ignite the body of knowledge, skills and mental capacities and help to give shape and structure to the cognitive capacity of the mind. Thus, the interaction of the mind with the environment unlocks the hidden treasure of nature given knowledge. Rousseau, the 17th century philosopher posited that education is the child’s development from within, and all efforts at true education should be to unlock that nature given cognitive capacity that is hidden in the soul of every human.

Consequently, the purpose of education as suggested by Rand (1982) is to “teach a student how to live his life-by developing his mind and equipping him to deal with reality. The training he needs is theoretical/conceptual. He has to be taught to think, to understand, to integrate, to prove. He has to be taught the spirit and essentials of life-long learning as a lifestyle. Knowledge acquisition requires the training and development of an inquiry mind that leaves a human in a condition of continually asking questions and probing the status quo with a view to improving his environment and his relationship with it. The educational system that consistently delivers improved learning outcomes, enhances experiential learning, challenges critical thinking, and delivers solutions to mankind is deemed efficient.

The sociological framework of paradigm shift and stages of societal changes, developed by Rosado (1997) is instructive in understanding the functionality of the education system in tandem with the state of development of the society. The framework captures the time path of society’s development, from the 18th century agrarian economy, 19th century industrial economy, the 20th century information age and the 21st century global village status of the world.  The thrust of the framework facilitates genuine self-assessment of comparable state of development juxtaposed with the rest of the world on the one hand, and on the other hand an objective assessment of the relevance and functionality of the educational system in meeting the development needs of society

In the light of the models’ characterisation most African countries would appear to be living anachronistically in the 18th and 19th century when juxtaposed with the rest of the world in terms of the level of economic development, institutional advancement, rule of law, position in the world league of higher education institutions especially in terms of meeting learning objectives and contributing to the world pool of relevant development directed research efforts to the human race. What this implies is that, African countries must situate their specific developmental needs and harness strategic resources in dealing with the challenges in a uniquely continental manner that bridges the consistency between the internal African environments with the rest of the world.

These facts are: Only very few are aware of the value/importance of education in the nation’s development and only very few are aware of the real magnitude of the declining nature of the quality of education in the country. It is essential to measure the impact of the quality teaching initiatives in order to be able to improve these initiatives. However assessing the quality of one’s teaching remains challenging. This difficulty may in part explain why the two most famous international rankings rely heavily on research as a yardstick of the universities’ value and leave aside the quality of teaching. However, many teachers give little credit to the answers of the students that they perceive as biased. The answering students tend to blame teachers for all problems, forgetting the role of the administration or the infrastructures. Measurement should clarify its own aims (improvement or punishment?) before implementation. Peer-in class evaluations present the advantage of focusing on the process, not merely the outcomes. But these evaluations by peers may lead to self-congratulation and may hamper teaching innovations (the teacher being evaluated fearing to be poorly judged if too creative). Peers may also be influenced by a widespread conservatism of judgment. Using teaching portfolios to evaluate quality teaching seems fairer as more sources of evidence are considered, but then a question remains: how much should each source of evidence be weighted? Assessing the results of Quality Teaching initiatives has proven to be difficult, and this issue has received increasing attention in the literature. Many researchers now address the numerous paradoxes that the measurement of quality sometimes induces. For instance, a well-rated programme or a rewarded teacher feels less incentive for change and becomes therefore more likely to maintain the status quo. Teachers who follow-up on quality assurance schemes are also those who believe that it is in their power to improve student learning. Last, most teachers will try to improve the quality of their teaching only if they believe that the university cares about teaching. Hence, if an institution wants its teaching to be of good quality, it must give concrete, tangible signs that teaching matters.

1.2 Statement Of The Problem

The consequences of not addressing the problem of students’ academic achievement are many. Students by their nature do get involved in very many activities outside their studies. When students lose interest in their studies, failure rate will be higher. They many engage in very many unlawful activities like cultism, robbery, prostitution, and tyranny among other vices. Furthermore student’s low academic achievement may result in failure. When failure becomes persistent, students may easily withdraw from the school system. Research finding has also shown that economic deprivation could lead to failure.

In addition to this, students may engage in all forms of disruptive behavior in and outside the school system. Drug addiction is one of the problems likely to be encountered by the students. Research reports confirmed that more students are into drug addiction. Reports of survey carried out in Lagos and Kano showed that cannabis, heroin and cocaine are widely abused mainly by smokers were marijuana (86.9%), cannabis (66%), alcohol (22%), cocaine (18%) and heroin (13.8%).

Punishment has been the most widely used form of behaviour management. Too harsh and excess corrective practices against students brings an atmosphere that can lead to school hostility (Hyman and Snook,2000) Students that receive relation based punishment are less disturbed when teachers handle their misbehaviour and they take action more maturely than those who receive coercive discipline and act less responsibly (Lewis 2001). Since coercive behaviour management approaches are negative, the non-coercive methods are normally recommended. Researchers have discussed successful parenting as a model for teachers’ authority based on wide observation of parents and their offspring.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The main aims of this study is on the factors that influence students misbehaviour and factors that determine quality education in Nigeria tertiary institutions. The other specific objectives of the study are:

1. To find out the nature of misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo.

2. To ascertain the factors responsible for misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo.

3. To know the effects of misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo.

4. To examine the impact of misbehaviour on the academic performance of students in University of Uyo.

5. To assess the positive measures/strategies being put in place to arrest misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo.  

1.4 Research Questions

The relevant research questions related to this study are:

1. What is the nature of misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo?

2. What are the factors responsible for misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo?

3. What are the effects of misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo?

4. What is the impact of misbehaviour on the academic performance of students in University of Uyo?

5. What are the positive measures/strategies being put in place to arrest misbehaviour among students in University of Uyo?

1.5 Significance of the study

The students are the future leaders, the walls of our nation. It is worthy to give them the best quality education in all aspects that they need especially their behavior and values. Therefore, this study is a great help to the following:

Faculty. This study serves as basis for them to design, plan, and prepare curriculum contents and curricular activities suited for all students in terms of their behavior and intellectual capabilities. Teachers and curriculum makers are given prior information about the students so that they can adopt the best methods and the best strategies in dealing with them through the teaching-learning process.

Parents. They who always live closest to their children are given knowledge on their behavior inside the school especially within the classroom. Equipped with these information, the parents will know better on how to deal with them seeking solution. Dealing with them can result to harmonious relationship and a good behavior in school.

Students. Acquiring knowledge about the factors that affects students’ behavior will enlighten their curious minds on how to behave well in school. They can become more responsible on their actions, emotions, and behaviors especially in school. They can also be more mature in facing challenges that will interfere their studies.

Researchers. The result of this study is helpful for them in giving recommendations and advices connecting to the topic. They can acquire knowledge to know the facts and reasons behind a students’ misbehavior. It can also improve their research skills in conducting this survey.

1.6 Scope and Delimitation of the Study

This study on an investigation into the factors that influence students misbehaviour and factors that determine quality education in Nigeria tertiary institutions. Furthermore, the study covers students in University of Uyo

1.7 Definition of Terms

These terms are defined according to their meanings on the sentences used in the study.

Misbehavior

this refers to the unacceptable behavior or the action of misbehaving; bad behavior.

Disruptive talking

it refers to the student who are making noise and talking out of turn asking irrelevant questions regularly.

Biological Factors

this refers to anything that affects the students’ behavior. These factors can be physical, physiological, chemical, neurological, or generic.

Conceptions –

this refers to the formation of notion or idea of the student tend to originate and understand a given comprehension.

Academic achievement

this refers to a student’s success in meeting short- or long-term goals in education.

Impede

it refers to the student’s difficulty in activity or progress.

Detrimental

it refers to a student’s formal way of talking about things that tends to cause harm.

Physiological factors

this refer to thoughts, feelings and other cognitive characteristics that affect the attitude, function and the behavior of the student. It influences how a student thinks and later affect his decisions and relations in his daily life.

Legitimate reaction

it refers to the acceptable or recognized reaction of a student.

Self-efficacy

this serves as a student’s belief in one’s ability to succeed in specific situations or accomplish a task.

Academic potential –

This refers to the ability of a student to perform and learn to develop their intelligence to achieved academically.

Hinder

it refers to the limiting of a student’s ability to do something or to limit their development.

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