CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

Education is of great importance to every nation. It therefore attracts considerable attention to the family, community and to all tiers of government; education is discussed, planned and processed (Omolewa, 2001). It is believed that education recreates both the individuals and the nation, influences values and attitudes for a worthwhile living. The National Policy on Education (2009) is not wrong with its assertion that education is “an instrument par excellence” and the world at large had keyed into this, by recognizing education as the panacea to development and survival of man itself. It is not surprising therefore that the processes of education are offered by the three levels– primary, secondary and tertiary education. As a result, education is classified on the concurrent list. That is, administration, funding, policy formulation and maintenance of schools or matters relating to education can both be deliberated upon by the Federal and State governments.

Over the years, there had been public outcry concerning the fate of educational system in Nigeria and the breeding of graduates with little technical know–how which has resulted in serious setbacks to the industrial and economic development of the nation and its place among comity of nations in the 21st century. Investigations into the factor that influence academic performance of students in and out-of-school could be trace to individual family or home. The family or home is an integral part of the society which is a sub-system of the social structure. It is an axiom that good homes breed a productive nation .This is the brain-child of why, every society aspires for development. Everyone has had someone who nurtured them in their childhood and who they called “family”. No man existed by himself. Everyone comes from a family. Only few things are more universal than the family. The family is the only channel through which there can be continuity of life of human societies. The Bible testifies to this in Genesis 1:28, “And God blessed them: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it…” (American Standard Version).

Whether single or married, all parents leave long-lasting impressions on their children’s life and the single parents are not excluded from the role. However, death, divorce, or whatever may be the cause of this singularity will likely leave deep impressions or impact on the emerging personality of the child. What actually matters is the way the single parent respond to the herculean tasks of single-parenting. Ahuja (2000) believes that in which ever manner the single parent has dealt with the parenting challenges, there are deep effects on the child’s character, individuality, and academic performance as compared to the children whose parents live together. Being a child to a single parent is a very complex situation. Children look up to their parents for the gratification of their first three psychological needs, according to Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, that is, the Physiological needs (food, water, air, shelter), Safety needs (security), and Love and affection needs. If the parents are confident and emotionally stable, their children will feel secure and confident. The sense of belonging to a single parent has a disturbing effect on the child’s personality. Although, the norms and mentality of many African societies have changed, many children with single parents are often called bastards, that is if they have unmarried parents.

As it is a social taboo, it always haunts the child whose mother was never married to his/her father, or when the father refused to recognize or accept these children as his. They are singled out by others at school and playgrounds and made fun of. As a result of which they become reluctant to attend school and socialize.These are parts of the difficulties that children with single parents have to pass through (Stinson, 2000). The child is the focal point, and without the child, the concept “parent” is invalid. Researchers in social sciences have identified various ways in which children display different behavior patterns depending on the type of household they come 10 from. Many believe that materialism and compulsive consumption behavior in children have been found to be higher in single-parent households than in dual-parent households. (Amato, P. R., 1987) A child from homes where both the father and mother are present will be well taken care of and socialize in the best way possible. This is due to the fact that the process of socialization depends on both parents playing complementary roles in bringing up the child. The home is the first and fundamental agent of socialization. Such a child that is brought up well is likely to achieve self-actualization later in life, while the children from single-parent homes are likely to suffer deprivation and denial of some rights and opportunities (Battle, 1998). Salami (1998) is of the view that, “Children from broken homes are usually associated with anti-social behavior and poor academic records”. Time has really changed. Many of the old customs and traditions which were taught and practiced for several years are now obsolete. The modern culture has changed and outgrown the values and beliefs that were thought to be the core beliefs and values of our society. Even though, moralists and conservatives are experiencing disgust over the currently evolving belief and cultural systems. The truth is, what has been unacceptable in the olden days, is now becoming fast and rapidly rising trends. For decades and even centuries, one of the major concerning issues to the conservatives, is the issue of single-parenting. Single-parenting is already becoming a fast and rapidly growing trend in the society. (Tenibiaje, M. O., 2011).

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Time has really changed. Many of the old customs and traditions which were taught and practiced for several years are now obsolete. The modern culture has changed and outgrown the values and beliefs that were thought to be the core beliefs and values of our society. Even though, moralists and conservatives are experiencing disgust over the currently evolving belief and cultural systems. The truth is, what has been unacceptable in the olden days, is now becoming fast and rapidly rising trends. For decades and even centuries, one of the major concerning issues to the conservatives, is the issue of single-parenting. Single-parenting is already becoming a fast and rapidly growing trend in the society. (Tenibiaje, M. O., 2011).The child is morally upright and emotionally stable when both parents cooperate in taking good care of him. The family is the first agent of socialization the child come in contact with, and the family has a great influence on the child’s physical, mental, moral, emotional, spiritual, and academic development. The family lays the strong foundation of education before the child goes to school and the personality that the child takes to school is determined by the home. “Charity begins at home,” says the wise ones. Parents have roles to play in the child’s educational development. It is in view of this that the researcher intend to investigate the influence of single parenting on the academic performance of secondary school students in Obio Okpo LGA of River state.