The Effect Of Truancy On The Academic Performance Of Senior Secondary School Students
[A CASE STUDY OF OGBOMOSO SOUTH, OYO STATE]

Teachers should take class attendance regularly in order to know students who are not frequent in the school. Such students should be called and advised. Relevant teaching aids and teaching methods should be made use of in order to make lesson interesting to students. This would make them love school and look forward to the next day at school, instead of thinking that the school sis a very boring place which should not be attended on frequent basis.
Counselling is an effective tool in eradicating truancy among students of the senior secondary level. Truants do not want to be identified as such, this, there is the need for a professionally qualified counsellor to help identify truants and assist them in solving their problems in order to make them have positive attitude to schooling. The typical counsellor in secondary schools certainly spends the larger part of his time in educational programming and college advising.
A cousnellor is expected to act as a go-between or contact man in various ways; he is the contact man between parents and teachers. He is also the buffer between students and teachers. When students have ‘teacher-trouble, they usually expect the counsellor to be on their side. Students who present persistent disciplinary problems should be sent to the counsellor for investigations and non-punitive counselling many schools today do not have trained counsellor, efforts should be made by the government to post counsellors to schools in order to help identify truants and dig out of their problems.
Holden (2014) says that counsellors play important role in correcting deviation acts in students. He says that counsellors see their clients as they are. They accept and understand feelings and opinion about moral issues as well as about homework. They believe that people are intrinsically valuable. In so doing, they establish communication with their clients and once this is done, the later will listen to them. The students may not act upon what he or she hears immediately, or be instantly transformed by it, but he or she will consider it instead of rejecting it outrightly, as they so often reject moral preaching.
A truant may have psychological problems which the teacher can not solve. If such a students is referred to the  counsellor, he may identify the student’s problem, and lead him into solving it as a way of correcting the bad behaviour in the student.
Guidance services serve as a primary means for providing the contract and help needed in the school on a personal level for the enhancement of the individual and the facilitation of the learning process. There is need for counselling truants in school. Through guidance, the individual is helped to develop in ways that will enable him to school strengthen the use of his own abilities, make wise choices and face the problems he will encounter in and out of school Taylor (2014) says that there is a need for greater concentration of resources within the school, especially services for the delinquent, the emotionally disturbed and the anti-social. It is suggested that the primary role of the school counsellor is to be readily available in schools so that every young person in difficulty is helped.
5.3    Conclusion
    Truancy is a deviant act. It violates the norms and rules of the school authority. Punctuality and regular attendance in schools should be the aims of students. Truancy could be drastically reduced from our schools. We have to approach its reduction methodically. Obe (2013), stresses that the approach to correcting school discipline in Nigeria are divisible into the traditional ‘punitive’ approach the modern “corrective approach” and sometimes a combination of both.
    This modern approach to correcting any behaviour stresses the corrective rather than the punitive method and emphasizes the development of self discipline. It assert that “behaviour is learnt and that attempts to identify the Maladaptive behaviour should precede treatment. Behaviour modification in terms of role of reinforcement and counselling for individual or groups, have been found to be effective corrective method. Whichever method is used to prevent this learning and behaviour  problem, the involvement of the school, the parents and the government should be given greater attention in order to be able to find out what the cause is and be able to find out what the cause is and be able to apply treatment. Olayinka (2013) feels it is part of the guidance counsellor’s duty to inform the parents of the truant about their child’s problem. Parents may not be aware of their child’s truancy. Parents too have their own roles to play in the treatment approach of truancy. Parents who always hold back their children from school, in order to engage them in selling or in assisting to look after the younger children should be made aware of the implication of truancy on their children.
    A guidance – counsellor should encourage parents to maintain high affection to their children in spite of any deviation bahaviour on the part of the child. Parents should show interest in their children’s school  affairs, check children’s daily work and discover in time when they do not attend school regularly.
    Covey (2014) points out that a client should be assisted to gain insight into his or her problem and be led to practice actively in changing self defeating behaviour. Students perceive teachers as helpful persons only when teacher consider the problems of students as important
    Geshinde (2013), believes that counselling follows the medical approach to treatment-analysis, synthesis, diagnosis, prognosis, counselling or treatment and follow – up.