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Impact Of Broken Home On Academic Performance And Psychosocial Adjustment Of Secondary School Students
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CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Family
is the basic unit of a society and it’s the most important component of
the society. According to Alfred Adlers (1973), a family which parent
are separated or divorced would affect the individual because every
child has a problem in which both the mother and father are to attend
to, for example the mother is supposed to teach the child some moral
attitudes or behavior while the father is supposed to teach the child
(son) how to be a responsible man and to be responsible for the society
and to be able to overcome the individual psychological problems like
problems of work, problem of friendship, problem of love. It may be
alternated to the word “house†but a house is more appropriately
referring to the material structure whereas home refers to the
intangible things that bind together the family members. It has the
immeasurable love and care that keeps together the mother, father and
their children. The family is an essential factor for a human
well-being, everything about a man, his background, attitude, all his
achievements, his honour and dignity, rallies on the structure of the
man’s family. Marriage on the other hand can be seen or viewed at as a
legal union of two people i.e. a man and woman in love as husband and
wife. In Nigeria marriage is regarded as an institution which every
person gives much importance.
Umahi, (2009) states that, marriage is a
system by which a society recognizes a man and a woman bounded by love
to stay together as couples, have a sexual relationship and expect
children which they will bring up together. In Nigeria when a person is
married he or he is expected not only to have children but also to give
them the psychological emotional, moral and economic support with
adequate education which will be of help to them in future. Couples have
the duty to give their children education which will enable them live
happily, be stable emotionally, and acquire worthwhile knowledge,
understanding and skills.
Egbo (2012), views broken home as a place
where the parents engage themselves in quarreling, fighting suspecting,
keeping late hours to the detriment of the children’s primary drive for
food, sleep and other basic needs. Broken homes could be due to divorce,
separation or death. If there is no love, understanding and peace in
the home children suffer and pay severely for it. Those children may be
defective behaviorally and often they are not given worthwhile education
training and skills which in turn may have a carryover effect which is
always detrimental to the progress and stability of the society. Studies
have shown that divorce though frowned at is on the increase amongst
our youths. Hake (2000) lamented that after couples have made solemn and
sacred contracts before the public, friends well-wishers and family
members as their witness to be together till death put them apart, the
same couples fall victims to broken home within a short period in our
modem society.
When a home is broken, affected in many ways for
example are the girls who may run into men in order to pay their school
fees. Some of them may get pregnant in the process which might which
might warrant them to quit schooling entirely (Okoye, 2001). Nwosu
(1991) noted that some girls take to prostitution in a bid to also pay
their school fees which may be difficult for their single parent. Boys
also may give in to robbery roistering in the school, joining criminal
gangs and exhibiting all form of social vices.
Empirical evidence has
equally shown that children from intact-homes will be well taken care
of and better socialized life for example a child with a good mother and
father care whereby serves as a good model to the child in which the
child does not turn into a deviant and more also, peer pressure
challenges would be avoided through the supervision and help of both
parent. This is due to the fact that the process of socialization
depends on both parents playing complimentary roles in raising such
children; which will definitely impact positively on the later during
school years. On the other hand children from single parent homes are
likely to suffer deprivations and denials of some rights and
opportunities that will have negative psycho-socio impact on them in
school years. Studies have equally shown that children from broken homes
are usually associated with anti-social behaviours and poor academic
records.
Adolescence in simple terms is a distinct phase of life.
From Literature it is a period of 13-18 years of an individual’s life.
It is a period of rapid psychological and social expansion. Agubosi
(2003) stated that it is the era of peer grouping when the adolescents
spend most time with their age group. This stage is a period of storm
and stress (Bolarin 1999, Olayinka 1997) and identify formation
(Osarenren 2001) Adolescence is a transitory period between childhood
and adulthood. During this period an individual is seen neither as a
child nor an adult. Hall in Salami & Alawode (2000) claimed that
adolescents are characterized by emotional instabilities and
hyperactivities, which cause them to experience storms and stress.
Erickson in Salami & Alawode (2000) opined that identity formation
creates tension in the adolescents to the extent that some of them
become confused about their personality.
The period of adolescence is
very important to development of an individual. Any laxity on the part
of the parents in assisting and guiding the adolescents may result in
academic backwardness and development of unwholesome behaviours. The
foundation of what a person becomes in the society is laid in the home
and at the initial stage of life. Parents therefore have important roles
to play in seeing to it that the youths acquire the appropriate social,
psychological, moral and academic development.
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 5]
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]This study examined the impact of broken homes on academic performance and psychosocial adjustment of secondary school students in Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos State. The descriptive survey design was used in this study. The research instrument used for this study was a questionnaire tagged (BHAP) which was adapted by the researcher. The population of this study covered the teachers in selected secondary schools at Kosofe Local Government, area Lagos State where data was collected using ... Continue reading---
