Psychological Factors Influencing Students Performance In Integrated Science Of Junior School Certificate Examination In Rivers State, Nigeria
Keywords:
performance, Rivers State, Integrated Science, JSSCE, Psychological factorsAbstract
This study investigated the psychological factors that influencing the academic
performance of students in Junior Secondary School Certificate Examination
(JSSCE) in Integrated Science in Rivers State, Nigeria. The Survey Research
Design (SRD) method was adopted. A total of 240 students in junior secondary
schools were selected randomly for the study through Stratified Random Sample
(SRS) from eight (8) Junior Secondary schools in the state. Five research questions
were formulated to guide the study and Likert scale was used to obtain data for
the study. Data was analyzed using mean and standard deviation, and a standard
reference mean of 2.50 for a 4-point rating scale was adopted for the purpose of
decision making. Analysis of data showed that the psychological problems that
affect academic performance of students in JSSCE in integrated science in the
state include, stress, phobia, depression, inferiority complex and delinquency. It
is recommended that parents should consciously show love and care for their
children to ensure good upbringing and prevent phobic tendencies. School
principals and teachers are urged to instill strict discipline on students to avoid
truancy and other acts of delinquency. Government should engage qualified
counsellors in schools who in conjunction with the teachers would evolve positive
ways of managing stress, depression and interiority complex among students in
Junior Secondary schools.
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