Socio-economic Status Of Parents And Students' Academic Performance
[A CASE STUDY OF LAGELU GOVERNMENT AREA, OYO STATE]

Research Hypotheses
The following null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study.
Main Hypothesis
Ho: There is no significant relationship between socio-economic status of parents and students' academic performance in Lagelu Local Government Area, Oyo State.
Operational Hypotheses
Ho1: There is no significant relationship between educational status of parents and students' academic performance in Lagelu Local Government Area, Oyo State.
Ho2: There is no significant relationship between parents' occupation and students' academic performance in Lagelu Local Government Area, Oyo State.
Scope of the Study
The study was restricted to senior secondary school three (S.S.S. Three) students in Lagelu Local Government Area, Oyo State. The geographical scope of the study was limited to students in Lagelu Local Government Area, Oyo State. The respondents were selected from 10 secondary schools. The variables scope comprised educational status of parents, parents' occupation and family structure. The instrument scope was Socio-economic Status of Parents Questionnaire (SESPQ) and Students' Academic Performance Proforma. The statistical scope was descriptive and inferential statistics. The time frame was 2013-2016.
Significance of the Study
This research work presented the influence of parental socio-economic status on students’ academic performance. Most particularly it explained the way in which occupational status, educational status and family structure of parents affect the students’ academic performance.
The findings of this study would be of immense benefit to students, the ministry of education, the government, non-governmental agencies, examination bodies and guidance counselors. The findings of the study would help these various organisations to understand the effect of parental socio-economic status on the performance of students academically. The findings of this study would also assist government to have better insight into adverse effects of the low socio-economic status of the populace. In short, the study would create awareness on the best ways to improve the education of the country.
Parents, who are saddled with the responsibilities of ensuring high academic performance for their children stand to benefit from the findings of this study would assist them to have better knowledge about how their occupation, education and family structure  affect their children positively or negatively. Educational and curriculum planners would be guided in planning the curriculum without rigidity to suit diverse cultural environments.
Operational Definition of Terms
As words may mean differently in different contexts, the following definitions are given as intended to be understood for the purpose of this study:
Educational Status of parents: refers to the educational background of students' parents, whereby they have obtained School Certificate, NCE, First degree, Masters and Ph.D qualifications.
Parents' occupation: refers to the job or occupation that parents do.
Socio-economic Status: refers to the position of recognition which one finds himself in the society, such a position may not be heredity but acquired through personal efforts in education, wealth acquisition, occupation and social class.
Academic Performance: refers to students’ achievement scores in external examination and their positions relative to all those subjected to the same test.