Effect Of Computer Usage On Academic Performance Of Students

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

For many years, educational researchers have maintained an interest in the effective prediction of students’ academic achievement at school. The prediction and explanation of academic achievement and the examination of the factors relating to the academic achievement are topics of greatest importance in different educational levels. Studies have shown that prior academic achievement is an important predictor of performance at other levels of education. Similarly, cognitive ability was found as the strongest predictor of academic achievement. However, some studies confirm that the correlation between cognitive ability and academic achievement tends to decline as students progress in the educational system.

The direct link between computer usage and students’ academic achievement has been the focus of extensive literature during the last two decades. Some of them help students with their learning by improving the communication between them and the instructors (Valasidou and Bousiou, 2005). Leuven et al. (2004) stated that there is no evidence for a relationship between increased educational use of computer and students’ academic achievement. In fact, they find a consistently negative and marginally significant relationship between computer usage and some student achievement measures. In support to these, some students may use computer usage to increase their leisure time and have less time to study. Online gaming and increased communication channels do not necessarily mean increased achievement. Based on all these, the researcher is examining the effect of computer usage on academic achievement of secondary school students in Nigeria.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The following are the objectives of this study:

1. To examine the relationship between computer usage and academic achievement of secondary school students in Nigeria.

2. To examine the effectiveness of computer usage in teaching and learning process in secondary schools in Nigeria.

3. To identify the disadvantages of computer usage in secondary schools in Nigeria.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What is the relationship between computer usage and academic achievement of secondary school students in Nigeria?

2. What is the effectiveness of computer usage in teaching and learning process in secondary schools in Nigeria?

3. What are the demerits of computer usage in secondary schools in Nigeria?