EFFECTS OF OVERPOPULATION ON THE ACADEMICPERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN GOVERNMENT SECONDARYSCHOOLS IN OWERRI MUNICIPAL COUNCIL OF IMO STATE

A RESEARCH PROJECT (ED 451) SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OFEDUCATION, ALVAN IKOKU FEDERAL COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, OWERRI.

IN AFFILIATION WITH UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA NSUKKA (UNN)

IN

PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR AWARD OFBACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN EDUCATION ACCOUNTANCY (B.SC.ED)

BY

OSUJI MACGOWIN C. BD/06/28011

MARCH, 2011

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APPROVAL PAGE

This research project has been supervised and approved asmeeting the requirement for the award of Bachelor of Science inEducation (B.Sc.ED) for school of Education, Alvan Ikoku FederalCollege of Education, Owerri in affiliation with University ofNigeria Nsukka.

BY

Mrs Ajero. O. (ACA) ……………………………………

(Project Supervisor) Sign Date

Dr. B.C. Iwuama ………………..………………..

(HOD of Edu. Psychology/G&C) Sign Date

Dr. C.N. Ugwuegbulam …………………………………….

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(Dean School of Education) Sign Date

External Examiner …………….. ………………

Sign Date

DEDICATION

This work is in the first instance dedicated to our Lord Jesus Christ.It is also dedicated to the club Ochos’ for their patience andsupport of our academic works.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are grateful to the Almighty God for giving us grace,good health, love and infinite mercies which enabled us to finishthis work safely. We are also grateful to the Provost, Alvan IkokuFederal Collage of Education, Owerri, Dr. (Mrs.) B. C. Ijeoma forproviding a conducive environment for academic activities inAlvan Ikoku Federal College of Education. Our gratitude goes tothe Dean, School of Agric and Vocation, Dr. R. E Onuoha and theHead of Department of Accountancy, Mr. B. C Uchegbu (CAN,ACTI) for the able ways they have been piloting affairs in theschool and department.

Our appreciation goes to our able supervisor, Mrs. O. Ajaero,whose firm but amiable insistence on excellence propelled usfrom beginning to the end of this research work. Thank you foryour constructive criticism and patience in correcting us, we areso much indebted to you.

We pay our heartfelt tribute to our siblings and parents; Eze– Efaa Uche Benjamin Agu (V), Mr. I.O Osuji (ACA), Mr. CalebNwachukwu and Mr. Emmanuel O. Ekekwe. Without your endlesssupport, our Education would not have been a reality. We oweyou a lifelong appreciation.

We most humbly acknowledge our friends. You are all one ina million, and wonderful friends indeed. Thanks so much.

OsujiMacGodwin C.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title pagei

Approval pageii

Dedicationiii

Acknowledgementiv

Table of contentsv-vii

Abstractviii

Chapter one

INTRODUCTION:

Background of the study1-2

Statement of the problem

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2-3

Purpose of the study3

Research questions3

Significance of the study4

Scope of the study5

Chapter two

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE:

Theory of overpopulation6-7

The concept of overpopulation7-10

The concept of academic performance10-12

The causes of overpopulation12-16

Incidence of overpopulation in government secondary

schools16-19

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The problems of overpopulation of students in government

secondary19-22

The impact of overpopulation of students in government

secondary schools on their academic performance22-25

Summary of the related literature26

Chapter three

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research design27

Area of the study27-28

Population of the study28-29

Sample and sampling technique29

Instruments for data collection29-30

Validation of the instrument30

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Reliability of the instrument30- 31

Administration of instrument31

Method of data analysis31

Chapter four

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

Analysis of research question one 32-34

Analysis of research question two 34-35

Analysis of research question three 35-36

Analysis of research question four 36-37

Summary of findings 38

Chapter five

DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATION,EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATION OF THE STUDY, LIMITATION OF THESTUDY,SUGGETION FOR FURTHER STUDIES AND SUMMARY OFSTUDY.

Discussion of findings 39-42

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Conclusion 43-44

Recommendation 44

Educational implication of the study 44-45

Limitation of the study 45

Suggestion for further studies 45-46

Summary of study 46-47

References48

Appendix 49-54

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ABSTRACT

The study aimed at establishing the effects ofoverpopulation on the academic performance of governmentsecondary schools. It is designed to identify the factors thatcontribute to the increase in students’ population, find out thestudents – teacher ratio in government secondary schools andalso the impact of the increase on the academic performance ofstudents. A descriptive survey design was used, while thepopulation of the study consists of government owned secondaryschools in Owerri educational zone. A simple random samplingtechnique was used to select the four (4) schools out of the nine(9) schools in the zone. The four secondary schools selected havea total population of five thousand five hundred and thirty (5530)students and eighty (80) teachers. The sample size consists of fivehundred and fifty four (554) students and eight (8) teachers. Datawere represented in a tabular form. A closed formatquestionnaire with four points likert rating scale was used for datacollection, and the mean score were used in analyzing theresponses of the research questions. As a result of this researchwork it was found out that the students – teacher ratio ingovernment secondary schools is between 55 – 60 students perteacher. Some recommendations were made, which include thatthe ministry of education should give quota on the studentsenrolment in government secondary schools in order to reducethe number of students per teacher, and infrastructural facilitiesshould be provided to the schools in rural areas in order to avoid

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students’ migration to the urban areas.

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

According to the Federal Ministry of Education, as at 2004, thepopulation of Nigeria secondary schools stood at one hundredand eighteen thousand, two hundred (118200) secondary schoolswhile that of Imo state showed a total number of two hundredand five (205). Owerri Municipal council had about seven (7)secondary schools, with a population of Seven thousand, sixhundred and fifteen (7615) students. This figure when comparedwith that of 1999 which was inclusive according to FederalMinistry of Education was very high because during that period, itwas so in order to attract Federal Government attention.

The present Nigerian population of secondary schools going bythe above number is almost twenty one thousand, eight hundredand twenty eight (21828) secondary schools, with Imo statehaving three hundred and twelve (312) secondary schools andOwerri Municipal 9 government secondary schools.

According to the statistics department, Secondary Education11

Management Board (SEMB), there has been a rapid increase inthe population of students in Owerri Education zone from seventhousand, six hundred and fifteen (7615) students to tenthousand, five hundred and seventy (10570) students. There is aconstant increase in the population of secondary schools whichruns contrary to the new encyclopedia Britannica, volume (A)assertion. Unlike population of insects, population rarely has beensubject to explosive or collapsing numbers.

Overpopulation refers to a situation where the total number ofpeople in an area exceeds the available resources. Overpopulationcan also be defined as deficiency in resources development inrelation to the available people Osuji (2008). This means existingresources can not march the immediate population number.

Evidence has shown that the population of students in urbanschools is on the increase. The steady areas to enjoy recreationalfacilities, which keeps them busy after studying is one of thefactors that contributes to overpopulation of secondary schools inurban areas.

Under population of secondary school in Nigeria has had anegative impact in the Nigeria educational sector, and the outputis devastating in terms of loss of standard and its attendantresults.

This situation of over population could be speculated to bespeculated to be responsible for the untold hardship, corruption,social disorder, poor standard of living, crime etcetera. In this,there will be lower standard of education, inadequate

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instructional materials, production of poor or a few quality textbooks, congested classrooms and attendant education incharacters (dropout as a product of the so called schools).

Statement of the Problem

Over the years, there has been an increase in the population ofstudents in urban secondary schools. This has been consistent,without the attendant increase in facilities, teachers andinfrastructure, etcetera. With the decline in the quality ofeducation and output, it therefore becomes imperative to find outwhether the increase in population of students’ directly affecttheir academic performance and identify the causes of increase inpopulation of students in government secondary schools inOwerri educational zone and what could be done to remedy thesituation.

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of the study is to ascertain the impact ofoverpopulation on academic performance of governmentsecondary students specifically, the study intends to:1. Identify the students - teacher ratio in government secondaryschools.2. Identify the causes of increase in students’ population ingovernment secondary school.

3. Find out the impact of the increase in students population ingovernment secondary schools on the academic performance of

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students.4. Make recommendations on how to curtail increase in students’population.

Significance of the Study

This study will be of immense benefit to students, teachers,educational planners, government and society at large.

For the students, it will motivate and increase theirwillingness to attend school and help improve their performancein school.

To the teachers, it will help improve abilities of the teacherto manage the classroom efficiently because reduction in thenumber of students encourages teacher - students’ relationshipand leads to effective and efficient academic performance.

To the education planners, it will be a guiding material toenable them check the population of students in relation to theavailable schools to accommodate them.

To the government, it will serve as a guide to identify theneed to improve the infrastructure available for teaching andlearning.

The study will be of great significance to the society at large as itwill help produce qualified citizens that will contribute positivelyto the growth of the society and it will also serve as a resourceand reference material to future students.

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Research Questions

For the purpose of carrying out this research, the researchers posethe following questions:

(1) What is the student - teacher ratios in government secondaryschools?(2) What are the causes of increased students’ population ingovernment secondary schools?(3) What are the impacts of the increase in population of studentsin government secondary schools on the academic performanceof the students?

Scope of the Study

This research work is restricted to only government secondaryschools in Owerri Municipal Council. The secondary schools are:

Government secondary school Owerri

Comprehensive Development secondary school Owerri

Emmanuel college Owerri

Government technical college Owerri

Ikenegbu Girls’ secondary school Owerri

Holy Ghost college Owerri

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Owerri girls’ secondary school

Urban development secondary school Owerri

Boys’ secondary school New Owerri

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CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Theory of over population

The concept of over population

The concept of academic performance

The causes of over population

Incidence of over population in government secondary schools

The problems of over population in government secondaryschools

The impact of overpopulation of students in governmentsecondary school on their academic performance

Summary

Theory of Overpopulation

Malthus(1934) reasoned that human population tends to grow ata geometrical rate, while our ability to produce subsistenceincreases at a merely arithmetical rate and so we find ourselves inan ever Deeping spiral of suffering caused by overpopulation. InMalthus view, this process could only be showed by the“preventive cheek” of decreased fertility, or the “positive check”of increase mortality.

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The Malthusian theory was once thought to be quite sufficientlydenounced, relegated to the status of a curious foot note in thehistory of economic thought.

George (1894) chapter on poverty and subsistence stand out asthe definitive marshalling of the abundant logical ammunitionagainst it. At the end of the 20th century A.D; however, anincreasingly influential crew of neo-Malthusians is bringing thetheory back, adding that subsistence can only keep ahead ofpopulation growth at the cost of unsustainable level ofenvironmental harm.

Two factors consistently correlate with high birth rate:poverty and lack of education. Where women have had access toeducation and media’ birth showed significant declines - evenwhen income levels had not increased. It has long been knownthat when living standards rise in a community, birth rate tends todecline, this widely – documented phenomenon is called“demographic – shift”.

The world is experiencing a democratic increase inpopulation. This is causing problems not only for poor,undeveloped countries, but also for industrialized full developingnations.

Overpopulation causes a considerable number of problems.In addition, education to limit the number of children per family isnot always successful. In this case, it is usually difficult to provideeffective educational institution by private and governmentservices in over crowded cities. More over, there is usually a great

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deal, more crime which is often due to high rate ofunemployment. Government must educate the people to limit thesize of the family.

The Concept of Overpopulation

Overpopulation refers to a situation where the total numberof people in an area exceeds the available resources. A country issaid to be overpopulated when there are more people in thecountry relative to the available resources Agu (2007). The peoplehave to compete for the resources and their standard of living isvery low generally, thus will in turn increase the cost of living.Overpopulation implies that there is deficiency in resourcesdevelopment in relation to the available people Zelingky (2001).

Overpopulation does not only tend to deficiency ofappropriate technology, but presses hand upon the resources andis generally growing at 2% per annum or more (Brogue 1969, clerk1965, Peterson 1969, Simmons 1978).

Overpopulation tends to point to the fact that the existingresources cannot match the immediate population number.Overpopulation has the potential to make human life pettymiserable in no distance future.

The earth currently has a recorded population of just oversix billion, which twelve years ago, it was just over five billion. Theglobal population of growth is about seventy – six million per yearand the total number of humans on earth has doubled in the past

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40 years. To point a more visual picture of the situation, under ourcurrent rate of reproduction, there should be nearly eleven billionpeople in the world in the year 2050. According to the worldoverpopulation awareness organization, this means that globalfood supply would need to be tripled in order to meet the mostbasic needs.

Further more, they would require a 100% increase in thetotal energy expended in food production Bany (2004). Dr. BebnsSagoe, Nigeria’s national program officer for the united nationpopulation fund gave an illustration to show the adverse effect ofoverpopulation. He further explains; “suppose a farmer owns tenacres of land, if he has ten children and divided the land equallyamong them, each child will have an acre. If each of those childrenhas ten children and divides the land similarly, each of theirchildren will not be as well off as their grand father who had tenacres of land”. This illustration highlighted the relationshipbetween a growing number of people and a finite earth withlimited resources. As the populations grow, many developingcountries are struggling to cope with present population level. Theproblems are lack of resources to satisfy the population. As thenumber of people increase, there are greater demands on forests,topsoil, cropland and fresh water. Another is lack ofinfrastructures such as inadequate housing, road, sanitationfacilities, health services and even schools. Also, lack ofemployment is not to be left out (Awake 2003). Paul R. Ehrlich, aprofessor of population studies at Stanford university in theunited states notes the enormity of this problem, saying “while

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overpopulation in the poor nation tends to keep them poverty –stricken, overpopulation in the rich nation tends to undermine thelike – support capacity of the entire planet” Akuemmilo (1999).

Overpopulation retards general development of theeducation sector. It should be noted that education stands for allthe knowledge and aptitudes which any population of a countryshould stand to acquire. The prospect of meeting the educationrequirement for growing population in terms of resources andenvironment is a long term mirage ( Unesco source book, 2003).

This assertion of the unesco source book is a clear indicationthat in Urban areas that has an increasing population ofsecondary schools such as in Owerri educational zone which is infor a long term reform mirage.

Educational policies are not tailored according to the needof Nigerians probably because of the ever-growing institution,consequently imply on their standard of education as manyabsent themselves or do not hear what a teacher says in theclassroom when they try to attend classes. When we relate it tothese schools that have teaming population of students in them,also in most others too, students are scared. The first schoolsmentioned above may be said to be overpopulation because theyare harboring much students than the physical structure. Thesesituations are mostly found in the urban areas as against the rural(Okonkwo 2004).

Overpopulation in Nigeria is such that the population densityis so blatant that it has caused an impaired quality of life, serious

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environment degradation, and long-term shortages of essentialgoods and services. It is an imbalance between the numbers ofindividuals vis-à-vis the resources needed for survival, and theratio of population over resources, and a fraction of the numberof density of individuals compared to the resources food,employment, business opportunity and infrastructures. We arenow in a state of meager or non – existent capability to sustainhuman life due to corruption, lack of credible leadership and ofcourse uncontrolled child birth.

Let us now have a thorough look at the situation in Owerrieducation zone in respect to Government Secondary Schools. Asa result of immigration from the rural areas in Imo State to theurban area (Owerri Municipal), it has led to over population ofpeople in the areas. The students ought to be accommodated inthe rural area schools are transferred to the urban area without acores pending increase in the schools or classrooms toaccommodate the students and more teacher to handle them.There is no doubt that this ugly trend must have its negativeconsequences on the academic achievement of the students inthese affected schools in the urban area.

The Concept of Academic Performances

Academic achievement could be determined by several factors,Ojiako (2007) defined academic performance as the totaloutcomes of ones educational activities. It is seen as the end

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product of academic work load.

Most people know that academic performance generallyrefers to how well a student is accomplishing his or her tasks andstudies but there are quite a number of factors that determine thelevel and quality of students’ academic performances.

These factors are:

Grades

It is certainly the most well known indicator of academicperformance, grades is the students’ “Score” for their classes andoverall tenure.

Grades are most often a tallying or average of assignment and testscores and may often be affected by factors such as attendanceand instructor opinion of the student as well.

Grading systems vary greatly by country and school,common scales include a percentage from 1 – 100 letteringsystems from A – F, and grade point Average (GPA) from 0 – 4.0 orabove.

Attendance

It would be difficult to perform well in class if the studentdoesn’t attend. In public grade schools, attendance is compulsoryand numerous unexcused absences may lead to notifying thestudents’ parents, banning of make up work for missedassignments and test or direct affect on grades. In extremeinstances, parents have even been taken to court and given jail

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term for their tenant students or wards.

Standardized test

Standardized tests are those that provide a consistentmeasure of a student’s performance with those that take thesame test, often nationwide. Standardized test include theStanford achievement test (SAT), the Stanford binet intelligencescale, and the California achievement test (CAT). As testingprocedure and scoring are consistent regardless of where the testis taken, standardized test can provide a more directrepresentation of the taker’s knowledge and aptitude than his orher grade in school.

Extra curriculum activities

Although by definition voluntary, involvement in extra –curriculum activities such as volunteer work, schools and sports,newspapers develop and show-case student initiatives andleadership skills as well as provide insight into the student’sinterests and priorities. Extra – curricular activities therefore canmake a student more attractive to colleges and employers.

Behaviour

Yet another measure of academic performance is the assessmentof the student’s behavior while in school. Grade schools oftenhave strict guidelines for student behavior, and violations such as

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academic dishonesty (cheating and plagiarism) and classdisruption can lead to disciplinary action. Delran School District inNew Jersey for example, cites several different types of detentionand suspension for student misconduct in its 2009 guidelines.

The Causes of Overpopulation

Overpopulation could be caused (on a small time scale) by anatural disaster causing migration to a small area leading to aninadequate supply of water, food and other resources. Indeveloping countries that require a large amount of manpower,overpopulation could become an issue as people are told toreproduce as much as possible and that trend just does not stop.Overpopulation frequently caused by lack of availability ofcontraceptives and taboos against abortion.

The most common effect of overpopulation is a strained socialsupport system (health care for example) and limited resourcessuch as food, water, and etcetera. War could also be called aneffect of overpopulation as every one has to fight to get whatlittle they stressful environment.

Overpopulation is not simply a function of the size or densityof the population. Overpopulation can be determined using theratio of population to available sustainable resources. If a givenenvironment has a population of ten, but there is food or drinkingwater enough for only nine, then that environment isoverpopulated; if the population is one hundred individuals but

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there is enough food, shelter and water for two hundredindividuals for indefinite future, then it is not. Overpopulation canresult from an increase in births, a decline in mortality rate due tomedical advances, from an increase in immigration, a decrease inemigration, or from an unsustainable use and depletion ofresources. It is possible for very sparsely populated areas to beoverpopulation, as the area in question may have a very meageror non- existent capability to sustain human life (example themiddle of the Sahara desert or Antarctica). The resources to beconsidered when evaluating whether an ecological niche isoverpopulated include clean water, clean air, food, shelter,warmth, and other resources necessary to sustain life. If thequality of human life is addressed as well, there are thenadditional resources to be considered, such as medical care,employment, money, education, fuel, electricity, proper sewagetreatment, waste management, and transportation, negationimpacts should also be considered including crowding stress andincreased population. If addressing the environment as a whole,the survival and well being of species other than human must alsobe considered.

Some countries have managed to temporarily increase theircarrying capacity by using technologies such as agriculture,desalination and nuclear power. However, most technologiesdecrease the long – term carrying capacity unless they aredesigned to be sustainable. Some cornucopias have argued thatpoverty and famine are caused by bad government and badeconomic policies, and that higher population density leads to

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more specialization and technological innovation and that thisleads to a higher standard of living.

In the context of human societies, overpopulation occurswhen the population density is so great as to actually cause animpaired quality of life, serious environmental degradation, orlong – term shortages of essential goods and services. This is thedefinition used by popular dictionaries such as Merriam –Webster. Overpopulation is not merely an imbalance between thenumber of individuals compared to the resources needed forsurvival, or a ratio of population over resources, or a function ofthe number or density of individuals compared to the resourcesthat is, food production they need to survive. When focusing onthe effects of overpopulation on our daily living. Overpopulationhas impacted the life of common man in reference to educationalinstitutions most especially the secondary schools in the westernNigerian society and has proved to be one of the gravestdifficulties that have to be fought. Overpopulation implies scarcityof resources and economic inflation; these are monsters whichcan make life miserable. We can summarize the effect or causesof overpopulation as related with academic performances ofstudents in Owerri, Imo state as follows:

Decline in the death rate: The fall in death rate, that is, declinein mortality is one fundamental cause of overpopulation.According to the advancement in medicine, man has found cureto the previously fatal diseases. The new inventions in medicinehave brought in treatments for most the dreadful diseases. Thishas resulted in an increase in the life of expectancy of individuals.

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Mortality rate has declined leading to an increase in population.Owing to modern medications and improved treatment to variousillnesses, the overall death rate has gone down. The brighter sideof it is that we have been able to fight many diseases and preventdeaths. On the other hand, the medical boom has brought with it,the curse of overpopulation.

Migration: Immigration is a problem is some parts of the world.If the inhabitants of various countries migrate to a particular partof the world and settle over there, the area is bound to sufferfrom the ill effects of overpopulation. If the rates of emigrationfrom a certain nation do not match the rates of immigration tothat country, overpopulation makes its way. The country becomesoverly populated. Crowding of immigrants in certain parts of theworld, results in an imbalance in the density of population.

Lack of education: illiteracy is the opposite in meaning ofliteracy. It is another important cause of overpopulation. When acountry that is developing or under- developed lack propereducational training, there tends to be great ignorance on thefactors that should have been adopted in reducing growth in thesociety. Those lacking education fail to understand the need toprevent excessive growth of population. They are unable tounderstand the harmful effects that overpopulation has based ontheir ignorance or illiteracy status. They are unaware of thevarious simulative manners of controlling population. Lack offamily planning is commonly seen in the midst of families withilliterate parents or guardians who live based on their culturalbeliefs. As such there exists lack of good family planning as

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towards reducing overpopulation in the nation. This factor is oneof the major leading to overpopulation. Due to ignorance orilliteracy, they do not take the appropriate and necessary familyplanning measures that reduce overpopulation, thus leading to ahigh rate or increase in the entire population of the society in thisissue, assuming the families discussed here are highly literate andthe parents or guardians know how to moderate child birth andfamily planning appropriately, the result will be fabulous in thesense that it tends to positive response to the appropriate anddesired family planning required for the control of the populationof a nation so as to make out positive changes and resultsachieved greatly.

Incidence of Overpopulation in Government Secondary Schools

There are a lot of issues raised when and each time thepublic schools come to lime light. We have to highlight somefactors such as the over crowed public schools which in turn havegenerated less learning as discipline in academic moral decline. Alot of teachers who have always present report on the usual PTAmeeting have insisted that due to the fact that parents who wantstheir children or wards to go to school not withstanding thenumber of children they have and as a result of this, they dumpoff the children as the school’s liability and as such, there wouldnot be positive academic performance as a result. It is realizedthat every large family home schooled and truly devoted their liveto their children will reap little or less from the labor. Even the

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little they reap could still be a burden to their fellow citizensdirectly. The other counter argument to overpopulation hasalways been the care and finding of the older generations. It is acivic obligation of the citizen. The incidence of overpopulation inGovernment secondary schools cannot be overemphasized. Theburden of over population in secondary school is mainly borne bythe students. In schools that are over populated, the ratio ofstudents to teacher is always high which has a negative impact tothe student’s academic performance. It should be noted thatoverpopulation in secondary schools apprehends a shortage in thebenefits to be achieved in the education sector. In this case it isobserved that in overpopulated secondary schools, one teacherteach so many students and it is obvious that all the studentscannot understand what the teacher is teaching as their attentionis been divided. Indiscipline is common in overpopulatedsecondary schools, this is because the school is overcrowded andthe teachers cannot control the students and inculcate in themthe spirit of discipline. The situation of overpopulation is solelyresponsible for social vices, hardship, commotion, poor standardof living and crime among students in the overpopulated schools.In this situation, there are inadequate instructional materials, lowstandard of education, and production of poor or little quality textbook for the students, congested classroom and higher rate ofschool drop outs.

Another reason, our culture does not want to talk about theissue of overpopulation, is two reasons; one, we are of a culturethat measures success on short term growth. More people, more

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cheap lab or and more consumers (why have the governmentalways looked the other way at illegal immigration? Until recentlywhen local areas can not afford them anymore, and people arestarting to get stressed by crowded conditions). This in termmeans constant growth somewhere, housing, wall – mart sales,whatever. We contend that a viable, smart economy does notneed a growing population to be successful. Business andeducational activities must be successful in a culture of stable non– growing population. One of the constant contentions is thatoverpopulation is outstripping the ability to support it. There hasbeen no pause time. The result of overpopulation in our academicenvironment is what we see today at all government or publicschools in Owerri. In the issue of these incidents, we are now atthe most critical stage of resources, the main two: energy andwater. For positive results to be achieved 100% form. We have tomake it on the influence of overpopulation as pertaining achievingpositively great academic performance in government schools.Every thing depends on the above mentioned resources (energyand water). One the constant contentions are that overpopulationis out stripping the ability to support it. There has been no pausetime. Our nation needs this very much, a leveling off of populationso we can fix our infrastructures (like academic environment thatwill deliver good results and performances), damaged ecosystems,slow down sprawl, etcetera. The result of what is occurring to ustoday is a result of the fact that overpopulation is stripping ourability of water to support us invariably. What is the Middle Eastreally in conflict over? Water, Look at our far west, mega citiesbuilt upon nothing starting to have water wars. Hell, it is

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happening to us due to the poor delivery of our governmentagencies and other social organizations which one way or theother affect the students of these public secondary schoolsheavily in this society of ours. Considering the area of population,the recent climate changes has affected our society and thusresulted to effect on the comfort of the students towards positivedelivery of academic performances. These questions come inmind when you contemplate on these factors. We talk of why wecan not level or balance our population, both as a society and as anation? So people could have a better quality of life and sochildren can grow up healthy and better educated. Where is themandate that we must have a billon people? Ten billion Or 12billion? There is no sound reason to support this. The onlyargument for an individual is personal choice. But at what cost,our globe can not support it. The culture can not support it, andmy prediction is that we will soon reach the breaking point, whichis going to lead to chaos and anarchy in the academic entire newclass of people, the under class criminal and war fighting groupscomposed of deposed men and women that cannot go anywhereelse, but because of our unrealistic views of population we are tobe blamed. This is where overpopulation according to academicperformances becomes a big national security issue. The situationof over-population is to be held for social vices, crime, poorstandard of living, hardship and corruption among students in theoverpopulated schools. In this situation, there are inadequateinstructional materials, poor production of few quality of textbooks or educational materials, low standard of education andschool drop outs as an end product of the so called overpopulated

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secondary schools.

The Problems of Overpopulation of Students in GovernmentSecondary Schools

These problems are enormous and numerous too.(Beshavion 1992) lamented that overpopulation of schools with itsmany problems ranges from indiscipline to lack of dedication toduty by the teachers, lack of student control, lack of seriousstudies on the part of students etcetera. All the aforementionedconditions affect the academic performance of students. We canunderstand that a lot of reasons are behind the overpopulation ofsecondary schools especially in the urban areas, our focus in thisresearch work. For instance, children of civil servants,businessmen of repute, even indigenes themselves send theirchildren and wards to secondary schools within Owerri educationzone. The problems of overpopulation in government secondaryschools are being addressed through the urban and rural areas soas to create brighter atmosphere for students to achieveacademic performances positively. The problems of raisingchildren through these government schools have become soscary.

How can one balance raising children that are protectedappropriately early on but also responsible once they face suchchallenges?

Recent surveys of these problems have listed some top

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discipline problems in public schools as the following;

Drug abuse: The students in the current public secondaryschools have been forced to do take hard drugs like( marijuana )just to make them feel relieved a bit from the environment whilesome take it to feel belonged to their environment which is thebandwagon of spoilt and wreck less children.

Suicide: In the government secondary schools, it has suddenlyturned out to be a headache that even the students tend to tryavoiding the situation in class. Due to mental stress, emotionaldepression and spiritually demoralized as a result of theoverpopulated class rooms, a student could decide easily toterminate his/her life suddenly, because there exist no singleopportunity to really meet up to the teachers expectations whichis considered poor nor the parent or guardians expectations. Assuch, when the students lacks attention he/she tends to feeldemoralized and depressed due to the harsh environment andmight resolve in taking his/her life and this ending the mystery.

Rape: In government secondary schools the condition ofoverpopulation should not be ignored. In a situation where thereexists female students in male and female boarding schools, themales who could turn out to be corrupt and thus make out ascenario where rape would take place using the instance of therecent rape attach on the students of Owerri Girls secondaryschool, Owerri. In this case, the students whose accommodation isseen as uncomfortable, crowded and highly overpopulated due tothe number of students admitted into the high school were

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molested and raped due to the insecurity of their environment.Even at this point, other government schools are still at risk if timeis not taken.

Cultism: The act of bad groups and corrupt students insecondary school has made the situation worst by resulting intocults and several fraternity in high schools in the society mostespecially government owned. Wherever there is intimidation ofthe students by the corrupt ones there is every tendency that the“good ones” among the students will initiate the characters andstyles of bad acts displayed by the cult students. If the schoolmanagement can not be able to control the overpopulation andout numbered students in the government secondary schools, weare left with choice of the current spate of corruption in thecountry to influence them effectively. But in the instance wherethe students are normal in population, these problems listedwould have been avoided and the sanity reinstalled into theacademic system.

Pregnancy/Abortion: when in government schools, mostespecially the female secondary schools, the students due tooverpopulation indulge in several corrupt practices and thus thoseones who have one way or the other indulge in having sex wouldperadventure get pregnant and in order to make sure thesituation is saved, the female student would have no choice thanto follow the “usual” way or culture of others by hither toaborting the pregnancy to remain in the school environment. Dueto competition among these girls, based on getting pregnant andthus aborting the baby. When there is overpopulation this

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happens, and the students who are supposed to be educated failto achieve good academic performance.

Robbery and prostitution: In a situation of student beingoverpopulated, the teacher will have no firm control on the affairsof the students. The boarding schools would be an alternative forbreeding robbers and prostitutes in the society. For instance, HolyGhost secondary school is so populated and the problemsemanating from the students are above level. The school whichcomprises of only the male students who are corrupt and hencethe issue of robbery has been the order of the day by most of theboys. Why? Due to the fact that it is a day – school where thestudent are expected to leave their home in the morning andcome back in the evening, as such they do not really attend thenormally school lessons. Some of the students practice how to roband execute crimes without the knowledge of the government.Government has tried to agree with the secondary educationmanagement board to regulate the member of students that areadmitted into government secondary schools. Even at that, theoverpopulation of children who are desperately desiring theeducation of the high school directly or indirectly, In the issue ofprostitution, most female secondary schools and even the“missed” public secondary schools have as well be forced toaccumulate a lot of female students and as a result, the fight forbeing the richest girl and the sharpest makes the students indulgein prostitution so as to make money to take care of themselves.Why? it is as a result of negligence and depression they suffer as aresult of the poor family background they emerged from.

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The Impact of Overpopulation of Students in GovernmentSecondary Schools on their Academic Performance

The pride of educational system depends not just on thequantity but more importantly, on the quality of its product at alllevels. Ojiako, (2007) defined academic achievement orperformance as the total outcomes of ones educational activities.It could be seen as the end product of academic work load.

The quality of the students in turn depends largely on thequality of education diet that students receives in secondaryschools and which is also dependant on upon the standard ofcontrol that teachers and students enjoy. It has been observedthat, the problem of adequate and effective quality control hasbeen responsible for producing students who remain half – bakedand could not assist the society in which they find themselves(Erinle & Abioye, 2003). The problem of quality in Nigeria publicsecondary schools has been a recurring one, more so after theintroduction of free Education policy in certain parts of Nigeria in1979 and Universal Basic Education of 1999.

Many criticisms have been associated with the low standardof secondary school education in Nigeria. The greatest amongthese is the lack of quality of its products.

According to the critics, it has been growth withoutdevelopment (Akuemmilo, 1993). The problems of our secondary

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school include poor academic performance, gross indisciplineamong staff and students, weak and incompetent teachers, poorquality teaching, poor performance in public examinations, highwaste rate and so on.

However, many factors have been identified as beingresponsible for the poor quality of work in our public secondaryschools. They include: poor funding, inadequate supply ofqualified and experienced teachers and outdated method ofteaching among others (Akuemmilo, 1993). Despite the clamorsfor education, education has not been accorded its rightful statusand value in Nigeria’s development efforts by both civiliangovernment and military regimes since independence. Manybottlenecks, missteps and crises have manifested in oureducational institutions. These are noticeable at the four nationallevels of education (public primary especially).

Some of the glancing indices of crises in education includedilapidation of school buildings, exorbitant prices of textbooksand other instructional aids, incessant teacher’s strike andmaladjusted student behavior and so on. For many years,educationists and researchers have debated on which schoolvariables influence students’ achievement.

Considering the work of Ogoamaka (1998), he argued that in theexpansion of the educational system, the problems of quality andquantity is inevitable, therefore it is necessary to encounter andbe prepared to control these issues since they are mutuallyexclusive and also for any better and meaningful changes as

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regards to education in any society or nation, qualitative aspect ofeducation must be considered expedient, the rapid growth inNigerian population alongside with the alarming schoolregistration on high demand. The acquisition of education ispredominantly in the minds of majority of people and everyindividual want to do everything to acquire it, in terms of moneycost and material cost.

Under our existing constitution (1999), the federal, state andlocal governments share the primary responsibility for providingquality education. However, the prescription that the minimumstandard which must rest squarely on the Federal Government,courtesy Decree 16 of 1985 and its consequent amendments. it ispertinent to know that the control of quality in education inNigeria is as old as the introduction of formal education in thecountry by church missionary bodies. In order to do this,government set up the National Council of Education (NCE), JointConsultative Committee on Education (JCCE), and other relevantparastatal such as National Council for Colleges of Education(NCCE) and so on.

However, academic performance could be poor or good. Achild is said to be performing well in his academics when he isscaring above average that is, 50% and above, while children thatscores below 50% are said to be academically poor. This meansthat the academic performances of students are measurable.

Thus, the impacts of increase in students’ population on academicperformance of students are as follows:

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Overpopulation of government secondary school entails thatclassrooms take more than the required number of students justthe way the total number of people in a geographical areaexceeds the available resources in an economy. In school setting,these resources include the dormitories which are equallyoverpopulated by students. When this is overcrowded, theatmosphere no longer becomes conducive for comprehensivereading, thus hampering good academic performance by studentswhich are evident by their consistent failure in examinations. Bothdormitories and classrooms are built to accommodate a givennumber of students and when these numbers exceeds what isavailable, there is overpopulation because the amount of airneeded in the dormitories and classrooms will not be enough forthose that needed it.

Since students repeatedly fail in their examination due tounconducive environment, they resort to engaging in all forms ofexamination malpractices which clouds the worth of a person andif not properly checked, it could have an adverse effect in the longrun on the students’ academic performance.

Overpopulated classrooms generates noise making, the teacheris not heard by the students neither can the students make adifference between what their teacher is saying and that of otherteachers in nearby classrooms. This is especially so in schools thathas long halls with no permanent partition. This greatly inhibitsthe teaching and learning process as most students listens toseries of distorted sounds that are able to keep their

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attentiveness imbalance in the classroom.

Summary of the Related Literature

We have in this chapter portrayed the view of differentauthors on the concept of overpopulation or increase in students’population, the problems of overpopulation in governmentsecondary schools and the impact of overpopulation of studentsin government secondary schools on the students’ academicperformance. Based on the definition of overpopulation and thatof academic performance or achievement, we could now deducethat overpopulation and its ugly heads, to a large extentdetermines a child’s academic performance in terms of being anaverage or good student, and a low academic achiever. Increase instudent’s population has apprehended a shortage in educationalachievement, students whose schools are overpopulated tends toachieve low academically. From the foregoing; we are rest assuredthat our investigation on the factors contributing to increase instudents’ population in government secondary schools in Owerrieducational zone would be fruitful to all and sundry.

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CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This chapter describes the procedures adopted by theresearcher while conducting the research work. This chapter isdescribed under the following heading:

Research Design

Area of the study

Population of the study

Sample and sampling techniques

Instruments for data collection

Validity of the instrument

Reliability of the instrument

Administration of the instrument

Method of data analysis

Research Design

The study is a descriptive survey design. This research design wasconsidered appropriate because it is one of the best available

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research design for the purpose of describing conditions as theyexists, considering the overpopulation of schools these days.

Again, it was designed in such a way as to obtain relevantinformation through the questionnaire.

Area of the Study

The area of study was Owerri Municipal Local Government in ImoState, Nigeria. The reasons for making this choice are that theresearchers are conversant with Owerri educational zone.it willafford the researchers chances of getting respondents and easycollection of information necessary for carrying out this researchproject.

Population of the Study

The population of study consists of students in governmentowned secondary schools in Owerri educational zone. There is atotal number of nine public secondary schools in this zone.Statistics from the secondary schools in the zone showed a totalpopulation of one hundred and eighty teachers (180) andfourteen thousand five hundred and seventy (14570) students.Among the list of the public secondary schools are:

Government Secondary Schools in Owerri Municipal Council

S/N

NAMES OF SCHOOL MALE FEMALE TOTAL TEACHERS

1 Government secondaryschool Owerri

2220 - 2220 22

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2 Comprehensivedevelopment secondaryschool Owerri

950 1120 2070 18

3 Emmanuel college Owerri 1750 1750 21

4 Government technicalcollege Owerri

1740 1740 20

5 Ikenegbu girls’ secondaryschool Owerri

1105 1105 21

6 Holy ghost college Owerri 1830 1830 21

7 Owerri girl’s secondaryschool

1745 1745 21

8 Urban developmentsecondary school NewOwerri

415 520 935 17

9 Boys’ secondary schoolNew Owerri

1175 1175 19

GRAND TOTAL 10080 4490 14570 180

Source: Statistics Department

Secondary Education Management Board (SEMB), Owerri– Imo State. (2009/2010)

Sample and Sampling Technique

The subjects for the study were drawn from four secondaryschools in Owerri Municipal Council. A simple random samplingtechnique was used to select the four (4) schools out of the nine(9) secondary schools in the zone. The sample size of thepopulation include five hundred and four (554) students and eight(8) teachers. Further more, the members of the populations arehomogenous with respect to the attribute being studied.According to Nkwocha (2007), when the population size is very44

large, ranging up to 5000, 10% of the population might be used assample. Thus, a sample of 10% of the entire sample was used forthis study, they are as follows.

Selected Government Secondary Schools

S/N NAMES OF SCHOOL STUDENTS SAMPLE TEACHERS SAMPLE

1 Government Technicalcollege Owerri

1740 174 20 2

2 Emmanuel collegeOwerri

1750 175 21 2

3 Ikenegbu Girls’secondary school Owerri

1105 111 21 2

4 Urban developmentsecondary school Owerri

935 94 18 2

TOTAL 5530 554 80 8

Instrument for Data Collection

In this study, the instrument we used for data collection was astructured items questionnaire. The questionnaire titled “Effectsof overpopulation on academic performance of students’ ingovernment secondary schools in Owerri”. The questionnaire hasd section A and B. Section A is the personal data of therespondents such as name of schools, sex, age, marital status andso on. While section B is the study of the questionnaire such asquestions and research questions in order to gather informationfrom the respondents.

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The questionnaire was developed based on the researchquestions. Again, a close format questionnaire with four pointlikert type rating scale of Strongly Agreed (SA), Agreed (A),Strongly Disagreed (SD) and Disagreed (D) type of questionnairewas used as follows:

Strongly Agreed (SA) 4 points

Agreed (A) 3 points

Disagreed (D) 2 points

Strongly Disagreed (SD) 1 points

VALIDATION OF THE INSTRUMENT

The researchers designed the questionnaire after consultingliterature and questionnaire designed by previous resources andresearchers as guild to the development of the instrument. Theresearchers gave the questionnaire to experts in the field andtheir supervisor for their criticism and validation. They checkedthe wordings and items in the questionnaire. The researchersproduced the final version of each instrument based oncomments and suggestions.

RELIABILITY OF THE INSTRUMENT

The researchers ascertained the reliability of this instrument byusing a test – retest method. A pretest of this instrument was

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given to two (2) teachers and twenty (20) students who wereadministered on two occasions on each group of respondentsseparately at intervals of two weeks between the first and secondadministration. The scores obtained from the test – retests werecorrelated using the spearman rank order correlation coefficienttechnique and the score got was 0.78.this indicated that theinstrument has internal consistency.

ADMINISTRATION OF INSTRUMENT

The researchers personally administered the questionnaire to allthe respondents by visiting all the secondary schools selected forthe research. Five hundred and sixty two (562) was administeredbut five hundred and forty (540) was retrieved.

The personally administered instrument helped theresearchers to further explain the purpose of the research and toanswer questions that might be raised by some respondents. Thecompleted questionnaires were collected some minutes afteradministration.

METHOD OF DATA ANALYSIS

The mean score were used in analyzing the responses of theresearch questions. The responses were weighted using the fourpoint likert type rating scale (point estimate). Each of the scalechoice was multiplied by the weight of the choice, sum up and

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divided by the total number of choices to determine the meanscore. The bench - mark was obtained by adding the total weightand dividing by 4, 2.5 and above indicate that the responses weresignificant.

CHAPTER 4

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

The result of the study was presented and analyzed using meanscore(X).

Research Question one

What are the students – teacher ratio in government secondaryschools?

Table 4.1: Students – teacher ratio in Government secondary

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schools

S/N ITEM STATEMENT SA A D SD X REMARK

1 The number of students per classin Government secondary schoolsis more than the normal student– teacher ratio of 30 students toone teacher.

295 105 85 55 3.2 Agreed

2 Students in rural areas alwaysmigrate to urban secondaryschools, thereby increasing thenumber of students in the urbansecondary schools.

270 95 105 70 3.0 Agreed

3 Teachers in theurban/government secondaryschools teach up to 55-60students per class.

290 85 85 75 3.1 Agreed

4 The total number of teachers ingovernment secondary schools islimited, compared to theincreasing population of studentsin the area.

341 136 44 19 3.5 StronglyAgreed

5 There is a steady increase in thepopulation of students ingovernment secondary schools.

268 97 88 87 3.0 Agreed

Total mean = 15.8

Cluster mean = 3.16

From the above table, table 4.1 it is observed the of 3.2 is at agreater number of respondents agreed that the number ofstudents per class in government secondary schools is more thanthe normal students – teacher ratio of 30 students to one teacher.

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The cluster mean of 3.16 is greater than the bench – markwhich is 2.5 (that is, 3.16 > 2.5). This implies that the number ofstudents per class in government secondary schools is actuallymore than the normal students – teacher ratio of 30 students toone teacher.

In item 1, a total mean score of 3.2 was obtained from theanalysis. This shows a very significant value of the mean. In item 2,a greater number of respondents agreed that students in ruralareas always migrate to urban secondary schools, and this resultedto a mean score of 3.0 this shows that it is statistically significant.

Also, in item 3, 375 respondents agreed that teachers in thegovernment secondary schools teach up to 55 – 60 students perclass. While the total number of 90 respondents disagreed, totalmean scorer of 3.2 was obtained from the analysis. This is asignificant mean score.

In item 4, a total number of 477 agreed with the assertionthese constituted a mean score of 3.5, which is significant.

On the other hand, a total mean of 63 respondents disagreed onthe assertion, which is less than the number of respondents thatagree. This implies that it is significance.

In item 5, a total of 3.0 representing a total number of 365respondents who agreed with the assertion, while a total of 175respondents disagreed with assertion, which shows a significantmean score.

It can therefore be concluded that the assertions are true.

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Teachers in the government secondary schools teach more thanthe required number of students in a class, and is also justified thatthe number is on a steady increase.

Research Question two

What are the causes of the increase in students’ populationgovernment secondary schools?

Table 4.2: Causes of increase in students’ population

S/N ITEM STATEMENT SA A D SD X REMARK1 Lack of recreational facilities in rural

areas, which keeps students busyafter studying, contributes tomigration of students form rural tourban areas.

305 105 85 45 3.2 Agreed

2 Lack of family planning contributes tothe increase population of secondaryschools in the urban areas.

305 85 85 70 3.2 Agreed

3 Polygamy has immensely led to over-increase in the number of issue perincome.

315 100 85 45 3.3 Agreed

4 Availability of infrastructural facilitiesin urban secondary schoolscontributes to increase in students’population.

325 65 111 39 3.3 Agreed

5 Well-equipped laboratory andbuilding of hostels motivate people toschool in the urban area.

225 165 75 75 3.0 Agreed

6 Qualified teachers in governmentsecondary schools also attract peopleto school in the area.

271 102 89 78 3.0 Agreed

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Total mean = 19.0

Cluster mean = 3.2

The analysis of the data on table 4.2 shows that a greaternumber of respondents agreed that lack of recreational facilitiesrural areas contributes to migration of students from rural tourban areas. The mean of 3.2 shows a very significant value of themean. A mean of 3.2 obtained in item 2 shows that it is statisticallysignificance.

Also in item 3, a greater number of persons agreed with theassertion and this resulted to a mean score of 3.3, which issignificant one. Furthermore, in item 4, 390 respondents agreedthat availability of infrastructure facilities in governmentsecondary schools contributes to increase in students’ population,while 150 respondents disagreed, given a total mean of 3.3, whichis significant. The mean of 3.0 and 3.0 obtained in item 5 and 6respectively were also significant.

In conclusion, the assertions are truly the causes of theincrease in students’ population in government secondary schools.

Research Question three

What are the impacts of the increase in students’ population onthe Academic Achievement of students?

Table 4.3: The impact of the increase in students’ population onthe academic performance of students’

S/N ITEM SATEMENT SA A D SD X REMARK

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1 Students who study in overpopulatedschools in the urban areas score low inthe general examination.

450 90 0 0 3.9 StronglyAgreed

2 Increase in students population in urbansecondary schools leads to examinationmalpractice.

305 105 45 85 3.2 Agreed

3 Increase in students’ population ingovernment secondary schoolsencourages good student-teacherrelationship.

35 45 413 147 2.2 Disagreed

4 Academic environment ofoverpopulated government secondaryschools are conducive for learning.

- - 490 150 2.1 Disagreed

5 The problem of obnoxious attitudeamongst the students increases as aresult of increase in students’population in urban secondary schools.

345 85 75 35 3.4 StronglyAgreed

Total mean = 14.8

Cluster mean = 3.0

The analysis of the data on Table 4.3 shows the number ofrespondents that agreed and the one that disagreed with theassertion. The mean scores of 3.9, 3.2, 2.2, 2.1 and 3.4 respectivelyare significant. Since the mean score of the respondents thatstrongly agreed is greater than the one that did not agree and arevery significant, therefore the assertion are truly the impact on theacademic performance of the students, in overpopulatedgovernment secondary schools.

Research Question four

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What are the impacts of the increase in students’ population ingovernment secondary schools on the people in Owerri educationzone?

Table 4.4: The impact of the increase in students’ population ingovernment secondary schools on people in Owerri educationzone

S/N ITEM SATEMENT SA A D SD X REMARK1 Increase in students population in

government secondary schoolsleads to congestion of roads sometimes in the area.

251 149 75 65 3.1 Agreed

2 There is an increase in the price ofgoods and services in the urbanarea due to increase in students’population in urban secondaryschools.

45 85 304 106 2.1 Disagreed

3 Social amenities will not besufficient in the area due to theincrease in students’ population inurban secondary schools.

345 85 75 35 3.4 Agreed

4 Increase in students’ population ingovernment secondary schoolsand the rate of social vicesamongst students in the urbanareas is very high.

225 175 75 75 3.1 Agreed

5 Increase in students’ population ingovernment secondary schoolsresult to a higher cost of living inthe economy.

- - 450 90 1.8 StronglyDisagreed

Total mean = 13.5

Cluster mean = 2.7

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Based on the analysis of the data above it shows that thequestionnaires, which Agree and with the research has a meanscore of 3.1, 3.4 and 3.1 respectively and are very significant. Againthe respondents on the questionnaire items which recorded themean score of 2.1 and 1.8 are insignificant; this is because it is notup to 2.5 which is the bracket.

Statistically, since the respondents that agreed with theassertion recorded are greater in number and have a verysignificant than the persons that disagreed. Therefore, it can beconcluded that the assertion is true that the increase in students’population has an impact on the people in the area

Summary of Findings

Based on the data analyzed in this chapter, the following werederived

The students – teacher ratio in government secondary schoolsin between 55 – 60 students per teacher, and the population ofstudents in the area is on the increase, with limited teachers, bothin number and qualification.

Lack of recreational facilities in rural areas, improper familyplanning, availability of infrastructural facilities in the urbansecondary schools e.tc. Contributes immensely to the increase instudents’ population in government secondary schools.

Students whose schools are overpopulated score very low in the

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general examination. They also involve themselves in examinationmalpractice.

Overpopulation of secondary schools on a large extent is thecause of traffic congestion in the urban areas. This is because, attwo o’clock when schools in urban dismissed, the good number ofstudents that force themselves across the road observed the freeflow of traffic.

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CHAPTER5

DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATION,EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATION OF STUDY, LIMITATION OF THESTUDY, SUGGESTION FOR FURTHER STUDIES AND SUMMARY OFSTUDY

Discussion of Findings

The researchers were able to find out the students – teacher ratioin these over populated secondary schools. Table 4.1 showed thata greater number of respondents agreed with the assertion thatthe number of students per class in urban secondary schools is onthe increase and more than the normal students – teacher ratio of30 students to one teacher. The total mean score of 3.2 obtainedfrom the analysis in item 1 shows a very significant value of themean.

It is also observed, from the analysis in item 2 and 3 that themigration of students in the rural areas to urban areas constitutesan increase in the students – teacher ratio. This proved thatteachers in the urban area teach up to 55-60 students per class,this finding is in line with ( Zelinsky, 2001) assertion thatoverpopulation leads to deficiency in resources development inrelation to the available people. It implies that the teachersavailable can not be able to control the overpopulated students inorder to get the required result. Also, according to (Bogue 1969,

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Simmons 1974), overpopulation does not only lead to deficiencyof appropriate technology, but presses hard upon the resourcesand is generally growing at 2% per annum or more. Theresearchers also find out the total number of teachers in urbansecondary schools is limited, compared to the increasingpopulation of students in the area. This is justified in item 4 wherea total number of 477 respondents agreed with the assertion,while 63 disagreed and these constituted a mean score of 3.5,which is significant. The study also showed that there is a steadyincrease in the population of students in government secondaryschools.

This study has revealed a lot of factors which contributed tothe increase in students’ population in government secondaryschools. The result obtained from the analysis of the data onTable 4.2 proved that lack of recreational facilities in rural areascontributes to migration of students form rural to urban areas;this finding is new and unique. The total mean of 3.2 shows a verysignificant value of the mean. A greater number of therespondents also agreed that improper family planningcontributes to increase in students’ population. Also well –equipped laboratory and building of hostel motivate people toschool in the urban areas. Qualified teachers in urban secondaryschools also attract people to schools in the area. The total meanof 3.3, 3.0 and 3.0 obtained in item 4, 5 and 6 respectively arevery significant. These factors actually contributes to the increasein students population in urban secondary schools from the dataanalyzed, this is because parents will prefer to send their children

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to schools that has infrastructural facilities, well equippedlaboratory and qualified teachers, thereby increasing thepopulation of the schools.

From the data analyzed in table 4.3, it is discovered thatstudents who study in overpopulated schools in the urban areasalways score low in the general examination. The mean score of3.9, which is very significant, proved that greater number of therespondents strongly agreed with this assertion. Examinationmalpractice is also on the increase in overpopulated urbansecondary schools, teachers and examiners in these schools cannot co-ordinate the examination properly and control students inthe examination hall as a result of the overpopulated students.The study also revealed that there is no good student – teacherrelationship in overpopulated secondary schools. Academicenvironment of overpopulated government secondary schools arenot conducive for learning from the result obtained. Also, agreater number of the respondents strongly agreed that theproblem of obnoxious attitude amongst the students increase as aresult of increase in students, population in urban secondaryschools, this is arrived from a significant mean of 3.4 obtainedfrom the data analyzed. This finding is in agreement with Ojiako(2007) assertion that students who repeatedly fail in theirexaminations due to unconducive environment, resort toengaging in all forms of examination malpractices which cloudsthe worth of a person and if not properly checked, could have anadverse effect in the long run on the person academically.

The researchers were able to find out the impact of increase

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in students’ population has on the people in Owerri educationalzone. The analysis of the data showed that congestion of road inOwerri as a result of the increase in students’ population in thearea. A significant mean of 3.1 implies that a greater number ofthe respondents agreed with this assertion. The finding of thestudy also proved that social amenities will not be sufficient in thearea due to the increase in students population in governmentsecondary schools, a mean score of 3.4 was obtained from theanalysis which is very significant and represents a greater numberof the respondents that strongly agreed with the notion. Furthermore, the result obtained from the data analyzed showed that theincrease in students’ population in government secondary schoolsand the rate of social vices amongst students in the urban area isvery higher. According to Nnabuo (1999) students cannoteffectively and adequately control inclinations to vices andcriminal activities like cultism, which takes place now in anunprecedented scale; questionable behaviors springs up due tobad companies are prevalent in schools that are overpopulated.

Conclusion

This research project wads designed to find out the student– teacher ratio in government secondary schools, identify the

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causes of increase in students, population in governmentsecondary schools. It is also the aim of the study to know if anydifference exists between the scores of students whose schoolsare overpopulated and those that have normal population. It wasdiscovered that overpopulation is associated with lack ofdedication to duty by the teachers, lack of student’s control, andlack of serious studies on the part of the students. Four secondaryschools in Owerri education zone of Imo state were selected andused also for research. Questionnaires were issued to all thesecondary schools involved in the research by visiting them oneafter the other by the researchers. Data collected were analyzedusing four point modified scale and calculated using the meanscore statistical formula. The result obtained after analyzing thedata revealed that the ratio of students to one teacher in thegovernment secondary schools is more than the normal student –teacher ratio of 30 students per teacher, and the teachers ingovernment secondary schools teach between 55-60 students,population in government secondary schools were analyzed, suchas lack of recreational facilities in the rural areas, improper familyplanning, well – equipped laboratory and availability ofinfrastructural facilities in the government secondary schools. Thestudy also showed that students whose schools are overpopulatedperform poorly in the general examination compared to studentswhose schools have normal population.

As a result of our findings, we persuaded the government,teachers, parents, and those responsible for educationadministration to put heads together in giving quality education

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to the students. Also, we persuaded the government to reducethe size of each class to 30 students per class in order to enhancestudents’ academic excellence, and there should be a quota forenrollment into government secondary schools. It was suggestedthat there should be a replication of this research work in order toachieve more findings.

Recommendations

In view of the researcher findings, the researchers wish tomake the following recommendations that are necessary;

The ministry of education should give quota on the students’enrolment in government secondary schools.

The class size should be limited to 30 students per class toensure academic excellence of the students.

The government should provide infrastructural facilities inthe rural areas to avoid students in the area migrating tourban areas.

The entrance examination into urban secondary schoolsshould be high.

The government should always organize a family planningprogram on the newly wedded couples.

Trained and qualified teachers should be sent to both theurban and rural secondary schools.

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More private secondary schools should be established in theurban areas to help accommodate students in the area.

Educational Implication of the Study

The result of this revealed that the collapse of discipline inschools in spite of previous efforts is due to the increase inpopulation of government secondary schools; therefore everyeffort should be made by the government, parents, and teachersto curtail this ugly situation. Well – qualified teachers should berecruited in the secondary schools, and a strict disciplinarymeasure should be taken to ensure higher level of disciplines withthe overpopulation situation. Increase in the population ofgovernment secondary schools which is as a result of migration ofstudents from rural to urban areas should be managed byproviding recreational facilities in rural areas, secondary schools inthe rural areas should be provided with infrastructural facilitiesand well qualified teachers should be recruited in the area to areato avoid students in the rural secondary schools migration tourban secondary schools. Further more, this study givesgovernment and couples, insight on how to organize a properfamily planning programme, this will help in reducing the numberof issues per couple. Finally, the parents and teachers shouldcounsel, guide the students on deviant behaviours and its effecton their academic performance.

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Limitations of the Study

The limitations of this study include the following:

Financial constraints stemming from the cost oftransportation and materials.

Time constraint. This project is meant to be submittedwithin a short period of time.

Uncooperative attitudes of some of the respondents whofeel reluctant in giving out information about their schoolsand families for reasons best known to them.

Suggestions for Further Study

1. Wider geographical area in order to obtain disparity inacademic achievement of students in urban secondary schools.

2. Further investigation should be carried out on family planningand effective overpopulation control system.

3. As a result of problems encountered during this research workand dynamic nature of our society, which is prone to changesevery day, probably due to socio-economic and political situationsin the country, this research work is not the final. Further researchwork could be carried out, for improvement on this study, whichenables researchers to achieve the total aim and objective of thisstudy.

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Summary of the Study

This research work on effects of overpopulation on theacademic performance of government secondary schools inOwerri educational zone is a five – chapter exercise. It is basicallydesigned to identify students-teacher ratio in governmentsecondary schools, identify the causes of increase in studentspopulation, find out the impact of the increase in studentspopulation in government secondary schools on the academicperformance of students, and make recommendations on how tocurtail increase in students’ population. About four researchquestions were used in the research work.

The research work is composed of a review of relatedliterature and the methodology involved in the use ofquestionnaire with which researchers gathered data and theywere analyzed and interpreted. A lot of findings were made in thecourse of the research, including that the students – teacher ratioin government secondary schools is between 55-60 students perteacher, and the population of student in the area is on theincrease, with limited teachers, both in number and qualifications,lack of recreational facilities in rural areas, improper familyplanning, availability of infrastructural facilities in the governmentsecondary schools etcetera contributes immensely to the increasein students’ population in government secondary schools. Formthe analysis of data collected through the research work, it couldbe deduced that students whose schools are overpopulated scorevery low in the general examinations, and they also involvethemselves in examination malpractice and other social vices. Also

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overpopulation of secondary schools on a large extentcontributed to traffic congestion in the urban areas.

To harness the situation, it is suggested and recommendedthat the ministry of education should give quota on the students’enrolment in urban secondary schools; the class size should belimited to 30 students per class to ensure academic excellence ofthe students. The government should provide infrastructuralfacilities in the rural areas to avoid students in the area migratingto urban secondary schools, the entrance examination into urbansecondary schools should be high. Further more, the governmentshould always organize a family planning programme on thenewly wedded couples.

Finally, trained and qualified teachers should be recruited inboth the urban and rural secondary schools. More qualifiedprivate secondary schools should be established to helpaccommodate the students.

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REFERENCES

Agu, I.N (2007). Fundamentals of Educational Measurement and

Evaluation. Umuahia: Cape Publishers International Limited.

Akuemmilo, E.O (1993). Research Methodology and Statistics.Awka:

Nuel Centi Publishers.

Beshavien, G.J (1992). Large Overpopulated cities in the under

developed world. New York: Oxford University.

Nkwocha, P.C (2007). Educational Research Process made Easy.

Owerri: Chinas hop Publishers.

Nnabuo, P.O (1999). Educational Management, Concept and

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Practice.

Port – Harcourt: Bengray Co.

Ogamaka, P.M (2006). Descriptive Statistics for Research Students.

Ibadan: Wisdom Publishers.

Ohakumori, I.O (2002). Educational Research Method. Port –Harcourt:

University Press.

Ojiako, L.M (2007). History of Education. Enugu: Mac angelPublishers.

Okonkwo, C.E (2004). Introduction to Micro Economics. Owerri:Critical

Publisher.

The Encyclopedia Americana. (2000). Volume A, USA Encyclopedia

Americana Corporation.

Uwazie, I.U (2008). Writing Research Project in Social Science and

Education. Owerri: Chyzon Concept.

Zelinsky C.U (2001). Overpopulation in the Urban Region. London:

University Press.

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APPENDIX A

QUESTIONNAIRE ON EFFECTS OF OVERPOPULATION ONACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF GOVERNMENT SECONDARYSCHOOLS STUDENTS’ IN OWERRI MUNICIPAL

Department ofAccountancy,

Alvan Ikoku Federal College

Of Education,

Owerri.

P.M.B 1033

21st January, 2010.

Dear Respondent,

We are final year students of the above mentionedinstitution carrying out a research project on the above issue. Weappeal to you to help us fill the following questionnaire. The resultof our finding is hoped to make Imo sate education board toformulate policies that will convert teeming population students’in government secondary schools in Owerri educational zone intoan optimum size.

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This work is strictly on academic exercise and we promisethat all information given will be treated as highly confidential andwill be used for the purpose of this research work.

Thanks for your anticipated co-operation.

Yours Faithfully,

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APPENDIX B

QUESTINNAIRE FOR TEACHERS

PERSONAL DATA

Please tick good ( ) where appropriate

Name of school

Position

Sex: Male [ ] Female [ ]

Age: 20 – 30 [ ] 31 – 40 [ ] above 40 [ ]

Qualification: NCE/OND [ ] B.ED/B.A/B.SC [ ] M.SC [ ]

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QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS

PERSONAL DATA

Please tick good [ ] where appropriate

Name of school

Class: Jss1 [ ] Jss2 [ ] Jss3 [ ] Sss1 [ ] Sss2 [ ] Sss3[ ]

Sex: Male [ ] Female [ ]

Age: 11 – 18 [ ] 19 – 25 [ ]

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APPENDIX C

Please tick against the correct answer where applicable. Theinitials below stands for (SA) Strongly Agreed, (A) Agreed, (SD)Strongly Disagreed, (D) Disagreed.

STUDENTS TEACHER RATIO IN GOVERNMENT SECONDARYSCHOOLS

S/N ITEM STATEMENT SA A D SD

1 The number of students per class inGovernment secondary schools is morethan the normal student – teacher ratio of30 students to one teacher.

2 Students in rural areas always migrate tourban secondary schools, therebyincreasing the number of students in theurban secondary schools.

3 Teachers in the urban/governmentsecondary schools teach up to 55-60students per class.

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4 The total number of teachers ingovernment secondary schools is limited,compared to the increasing population ofstudents in the area.

5 There is a steady increase in the populationof students in government secondaryschools.

CAUSES OF INCREASE IN STUDENTS’ POPULATION

S/N ITEM STATEMENT SA A D SD

1 Lack of recreational facilities in rural areas,which keeps students busy after studying,contributes to migration of students form ruralto urban areas.

2 Lack family planning contributes to the increasepopulation of secondary schools in the urbanareas.

3 Polygamy has immensely led to over-increase inthe number of issue per income.

4 Availability of infrastructural facilities in urbansecondary schools contributes to increase instudents’ population.

5 Well-equipped laboratory and building ofhostels motivate people to school in the urbanarea.

6 Qualified teachers in government secondaryschools also attract people to school in the area.

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THE IMPACT OF OVERPOPULATION OF STUDENTS’ ON THEACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS

S/N ITEM SATEMENT SA A D SD

1 Students who study in overpopulated schools inthe urban areas score low in the generalexamination.

2 Increase in students population in urbansecondary schools leads to examinationmalpractice.

3 Increase in students’ population in governmentsecondary schools encourages good student-teacher relationship.

4 Academic environment of overpopulatedgovernment secondary schools are conducive forlearning.

5 The problem of obnoxious attitude amongst thestudents increases as a result of increase instudents’ population in urban secondary schools.

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THE IMPACT OF INCREASE IN STUDENTS’ POPULATION INGOVERNMENT SECONDARY SCHOOLS ON PEOPLE IN OWERRIMUNICIPAL

S/N ITEM SATEMENT SA A D SD

1 Increase in students population in governmentsecondary schools leads to congestion of roadssome times in the area.

2 There is an increase in the price of goods andservices in the urban area due to increase instudents’ population in urban secondary schools.

3 Social amenities will not be sufficient in the areadue to the increase in students’ population inurban secondary schools.

4 Increase in students’ population in governmentsecondary schools and the rate of social vicesamongst students in the urban areas is very high.

5 Increase in students’ population in governmentsecondary schools result to a higher cost of livingin the economy.

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