EFFECTS OF PEER GROUP PRESSURE ON SOCIAL STUDIES STUDENT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AMONG JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS

1.1 Introduction

Peer group can simply be said to be people of the same age and ability that is people who are knitted together by a feeling derived by a common concern as seekers of what was desirable for the group. The peer group is the student own friends, and equal member of the group often have common characteristics or interest. The peer group interests are short rage and temporary (Ezewu 2002). The most important influence on students’ behaviour to learning is not always the teacher but the fellow students. Social studies provide opportunities for students to develop the attitudes, skills and knowledge that will enable them to become engaged, active, informed and responsible citizens. Recognition and respect for individual and collective identity is essential in a pluralistic and democratic society. Social studies helps students develop their sense of self and community, encouraging them to affirm their place as citizens in an inclusive, democratic society.

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research questions, Limitation of the study and Definition of technical terms.

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1.2 Background of Study

Generally, it has been observed that a group which a child belongs to could influence his learning, studies from various cultures have shown that a child right from infancy to adolescence is faced with urge to belong and to be accepted by the group. A basic human need is to acquire an affiliation to a group in the society. Peer relationships are common in the schools and homes and this plays important roles in the socialization of children in Nigeria. Students in the midst of their group transformed into the true picture of their behaviour, they feel more comfortable among fellow students but feel morose at home or at the presence of teacher.

According to David (2018), Social studies is the integrated study of multiple fields of social science and the humanities, including history, geography, and political science. The term was first coined by American educators around the turn of the twentieth century as a catch-all for these subjects, as well as others which did not fit into the traditional models of lower education in the United States, such as philosophy and psychology (David, 2018). One of the purposes of social studies, particularly at the level of higher education, is to integrate several disciplines, with their unique methodologies and special focuses of concentration, into a coherent field of subject areas that communicate with each other by sharing different academic "tools" and perspectives for deeper analysis of social problems and issues (Wikipedia, 2021). The social studies aims to train students for informed, responsible participation in a diverse democratic society. The content of social studies provides the necessary background knowledge in order to develop values and reasoned opinions, and the objective of the field is civic competence (Larson, 2017).

Social studies is not a subject, instead functioning as a field of study that incorporates many different subjects. It primarily includes the subjects of history, geography, economics, civics, and sociology. Through all of that, the elements of ethics, psychology, philosophy, anthropology, art, and literature are incorporated into the subject field itself. The field of study itself focuses on human beings and their respective relationships. With that, many of these subjects include some form of social utility that is beneficial to the subject field itself (Historians, 2021).

Adeola et al., (2002) articulated that formation of peer group may occur from each extensive interaction with others initiate relationship development and by these contacts important attitudes and values are formed. The attitudes may influence the child’s academic performance either positively or negatively. The negative aspect which could be detrimental to students academic work are the cases of group behaviour such as truancy, persistent lateness to school, juvenile delinquency, stealing, absenteeism from school, disobedience, laziness, disregarding school rules and regulations etc.

The peer group provides the standard of taught and behaviour to be pursued by its members and they established the attitudes, opinions and ideas which they are to adopt. It is through these peer groups that cultures are established which will provide variations in standards of education and so on. While in their respective groups the individual number are prepared for performance of specific task such as leadership role, spirit of active participation, submissiveness etc in this way the child barns to lead and follow. These are vital requirements for effective citizenship.

Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Effects of Peer Group Pressure on Social Studies Student Academic Performance among Junior Secondary Schools.

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1.3 Statement of Problems

Investigation revealed that the low academic performance in schools is brought the need to investigate the factors influencing learning. The peer group pressure is one of the factors causing low academic performance. Reports have shown that there has been a downward trend in academic performance of in-school Students in Nigerian secondary school. Parents, teachers, Curriculum experts have also expressed considerable concern about this poor performance in external examination. So also are teachers and school counselor. These groups of individuals tend to point accusing fingers on influence of negative peer pressure and poor time management as being responsible for poor academic performance.

The teachers of Social Studies do not acknowledge the importance of both subjects, because of this, they do not guide their students in secondary schools on how to learn and understand Social Studies and computer science. And as a result of this, it causes the problem of effective teaching and learning of these subjects.

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1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study

The aim of the study is to investigate the Effects of Peer Group Pressure on Social Studies Student Academic Performance among Junior Secondary Schools. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:

1. To determine the relationship between peer group and academic performance of Social Studies students among Junior Secondary Schools in the area under study;
2. To investigate the influence of economic status of peers on the academic performance of Social Studies students in secondary schools;
3. To identify the factors instigating the peer pressure academic performance influence among Social Studies students in the area under study;
4. To find out the effect of peer group among Social Studies students’ academic performance in the area under study; and
5. To proffer solutions to the above stated problems affecting Social Studies students’ academic performance.

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1.5 Research Questions

The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:

• Are there factors instigating the peer pressure academic performance influence among Social Studies students in the area under study?
• What are the solutions to the problems affecting Social Studies students’ academic performance?
• What is the effect of peer group among Social Studies students’ academic performance in the area under study?
• What is the relationship between peer group and academic performance of Social Studies students among Junior Secondary Schools in the area under study?
• What is the influence of economic status of peers on the academic performance of Social Studies students in secondary schools?

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1.6 Research Hypothesis

In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.

Hypothesis One

• H0: There is no significant relationship between peer group and academic performance of Social Studies students among Junior Secondary Schools in the area under study
• H1: There is a significant relationship between peer group and academic performance of Social Studies students among Junior Secondary Schools in the area under study

Hypothesis Two

• H0: There are no significant factors instigating the peer pressure academic performance influence among Social Studies students in the area under study
• H1: There are significant factors instigating the peer pressure academic performance influence among Social Studies students in the area under study

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1.7 Significance of Study

The study will help in knowing more about the peer group and their stages. It will help in findings out the peer group pressure on students and the implication on them. It will help in finding out the influence of the peer group on the academic performance of students. The research will help in findings solutions to the problems caused by poser group influence. Also, it will help in relating the peer group of male and females together in terms of the relationship.

The result will guide counsellors to find the best ways of handling peer groups relationship. The students will benefit from the study by acquiring knowledge on peers that can hinder their progress in academic.

The result will also, enable the teacher to know more about the peer group which in turn will continue to enhance teaching and learning process. It is also hoped that the present research study will at least provide some background information for future study on the topic.

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1.8 Scope of Study

The scope of the research is focused on the Effects of Peer Group Pressure on Social Studies Student Academic Performance among Junior Secondary Schools. It will cover Some Selected Junior Secondary Schools in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State.