IMPACT OF PEER GROUP AND SOCIAL GATHERING ON STUDENT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN UNIVERSITIES

Abstract    

Many studies have tried to measure this peer-group effect, and this project was to extend this literature by looking at the impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in university. The study was guided by the following objectives, Establish how peer group prior achievements influence academic performance

Find out the effect of peer group to academic performance Determine the relationship between peer group and academic performance in Universities students .Examine how peer group influence universities academic performance. The hypotheses was to find the significant relationship between impact of peer group and social gathering on student performance in universities. The significance of the study will be of help to ministry of education, universities, lecturers students and individual.

                                       CHAPTER ONE

                                      INTRODUCTION

• Background of the study

The peer group is the first social group outside the home in which the child attempts to gain acceptance and recognition. Students always emulate their mates in whatever form of behavior they exhibit, particularly that which interest them thus, since socialization only refers to changes in behavior, attitudes having their origin in interaction with other persons and those which occur through interaction, a child learn more through interaction with peers. The school which is an established academic institution in which the behavior of an individual is sharpened to get him/her equipped for occupational socialization.  In the school system the student gets into the social group of interest. Peer group as an agent of socialization is the most important socializing agent for the student. Peer group is the pivot of social change and during interaction with peers, the child`s life is transformed from the helpless child into matured adult. According to Castrogiovanni , a peer group is defined as a small group of similarly aged, fairly close friends, sharing the same activities. In general, peer groups or cliques have two to twelve members, with an average of five or six. Peer groups as cited in the works of Bankole and Ogunsakin,  provide a sense of security and they help adolescent ask questions relating to social identity theory such as “who am I” and “what do I want out of life”? Given that students spend twice much of their time with peers than with parents , it is important to study the impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in universities. Many peer groups can exert a positive influence on their friend. It is thought that intelligent students do help their peers bring up their academic performance. Likewise, girls with good friends who are considered intelligent tend to do better in school, all attributable to the fact that they share a common team of similar aspiration.

Through interaction over many years acceptable social customs are taught and fostered. Other children as well as adults can have a great impact on a broad range of issues in the child`s life including achievements in school. The kind of group a particular child identifies with will sometimes determine the kind of impact the group will have on his academic performance.  Children if not checked often associate with bad friends and this could have a great negative impact on them. During the period of adolescence, the amount of influence that peer group has on one`s academic achievement could be enormous. Peer influence can have both positive and negative effects on student academic performance.

Students’ use of time is an issue importance to youth, families and society as a whole because the amount of time spent in various activities has been linked to the development of student problem behaviors. Occupying time in constructive ways by participating in co-curricular activities an doing homework, for example, is often viewed by parents and community leaders as well a means of preventing negative peer pressure such as substance abuse ,delinquency and sexual activity. Students time use in school and peer experiences may also have profound influences on the development of problem behavior. Some literature shows high level of family support and cohesion are associated with lower levels of students substance use, delinquency and other negative outcomes (Barnes and Farrell (1992); Farrell and Barnes (2000). On the order hand, large exclusive amount of time spent in unsupervised peer context may reinforce or exacerbate students substance use and delinquency. Thus, large amount of unsupervised time spent with peers at parties, “hanging out” at malls, dating and talking on the phone may contribute to a variety of negative peer academic performance (Osgood and Anderson, 2004).

According to Ward, Stocker and Murray-Ward (2006) academic performance refers to the outcome of education; the extent to which the student,  have achieved their educational goals. Academic performance is the ability to study and remember facts and being able to communicate one’s knowledge verbally or written on paper (Answers, 2010). In the context of this study, academic performance refers to the extent to which students have achieved mastery of the objectives of the course they are exposed to in school. According to (Aremu and Sokan 2003) academic performance has been observed in school. The blame for poor academic performance among Universities students could be attributable to a variety of factors such as student inability to manage their time, peers influence, family factors and the likes. Parents, lecturer, curriculum, experts and evaluators have expressed considerable concern over the deteriorating students’ performance in examinations. Therefore, and in-school students should avoid negative group such as loitering along the street during school hours holding parties at the expense of their study, skipping school and drug abuse. That will create room for poor academic performance. The students should move with people that study their books in order to have good academic performance.

• STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

In order to improve student outcomes, it is important to know which inputs influence their performance most and the relative importance of peer influence compared to other inputs, such as lecturing quality or school resources. Peer-group influences are a distinct class of influences arising from ‘social interactions’ a broad term which encompasses any type of individual behavior that involves interdependency with the behavior or characteristics of others. The unhealthy behaviors of students which in turn impacts poor academic performance. It is in view of these concerns that this study was carried out to determine the impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in Universities.

• OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The main objective of the study is to determine the impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in Universities.

Specifically, the study intends to:

1. Establish how peer group prior achievements influence academic performance
2. Find out the effect of peer group to student academic performance
3. Determine the relationship between peer group and academic performance in Universities students
4. Examine how peer group influence student academic performance

• RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

For the successful completion of the study, the following research hypotheses were formulated by the researcher;

H₀: there are no negative impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in universities.

H₁: there are negative impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance

H₀²: there is no significant relationship between impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in universities.

H₂: there is a significant relationship between impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in universities.

• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

It is believed that at the completion of the study, the findings will be of benefit to the federal ministry of education, Universities, lecturers, students and individual to know the negative and positive impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance. To the Universities, the findings of the study will directly lead to the raise in standard of education in Nigeria because research has shown that disciplined students learn faster and perform better academically than undisciplined students. The study will also be of great benefit to the researchers who intends to embark on research on similar topics as it will serve as a guide.

• SCOPE AND LIMITATION

The scope of this study covers the impact of peer group and social gathering on student academic performance in Universities. In the course of the study, the researcher encounters some constrain which limited the scope of the study;

The research material available to the researcher is insufficient, thereby limiting the study. The time frame allocated to the study does not enhance wider coverage as the researcher have to combine other academic activities and examinations with the study. Finance to source for the materials couple with the school fees, also contribute to the limitation of the study.

• DEFINITION OF TERMS

IMPACT: the action of one object coming forcibly into contact with another

PEER GROUP: A group of people of approximately the same age, status, and interests.

SOCIAL GATHERING: Social gathering is defined as interactions among a diversity of individuals of all abilities in small, medium and large groups for social and community purposes. Street life used to be an integral part of the social life of people.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Academic achievement or (academic) performance is the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has achieved their short or long-term educational goals

STUDENT: A student or pupil is a learner or someone who attends an educational institution

UNIVERSITIES: A university is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in various academic disciplines.

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