Effect Of Gender And Families Socio-economic Status On Academic Performance Of Secondary School Students
[IN IDEMILI - SOUTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF ANAMBRA STATE]

CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
DISCUSSION
The results of this study indicated that there is a significant difference in the academic performances of girls and boys. Boys performed better than girls. The results also portrayed that there is a relationship between the academic performance of secondary school students and the socio-economic status of parents. These findings agreed with the conclusion of Nzewunwah (1995) that there is a significant difference among the students from high, medium and low socio-economic status in terms of attitude to examination misconduct, attitude to studies and  academic performance.
From the score of the respondents, it is evident that the families’ socio-economic status contributed a lot to the academic performance of the students. According to Sprinthall (1981), parents provide in the home the materials for learning and when a child is deprived of the essential needs he may be found to perform poorly in his schoolwork. Parental income was therefore identified in this work to be a cogent factor upon which the academic/vocational success of secondary school students lies. This was vividly portrayed in the secondary schools of Idemili-South Local Government Area in which this study covers. Most parental income was found not to be sufficient to sustain the academic and personal social life of the students in the school. This to a large extent affects the psychological balance in the classroom, which causes low  concentration, low perception, frustration, sickness and emotional disability in academic performance of the students.
The home has a great influence on the students' psychological, emotional, social and economic state. In view of this, Ajila and Olutola (2000) opined that the state of the home affects the individual since the parents are the first socializing agents in an individual's life. This is because the family background and context of a child affect his reaction to life situations and his level of performance. The parents and the individual's experiences at home play tremendous roles in building the personality of the child and making the child what he is. Thus, Ichado (1998) concluded that the environment in which the student comes from can greatly influence his performance in school.
Families’ socio-economic status affects behavior through its impact on an individual’s aspirations, sense of efficacy, personal standards and emotional states. A strong sense of efficacy can help strengthen resiliency to adversity often found in the environment of the low socio- economic status student. Low socio-economic status students often live in chaotic and unstructured environments. They may be unable to manage their emotions, have poor role models, and feel they have no choice or control over their destiny.
Students with low socio-economic status may also be depressed, have a fear of failure due to past experiences or have acquired failure expectations from their parents. They may be truly capable children who, as a result of previous demoralizing experiences or self-imposed mind-sets, have come to believe that they cannot learn. If they doubt their academic ability, chances are there that they envision low grades before they even complete an assignment or take a test. This has an effect on goal setting in that these individuals also tend to set lower goals for themselves. They may have no real personal goals or vision, but only fantasies of what they hope for.
One of the social issues facing children of poverty is emotional trauma. The emotional climate can often be very stressful and emotionally depriving. The lack of emotional nurturing can lead to feelings of alienation, inadequacy, depression and anxiety. Aggressive or impulsive behavior and social withdrawal can also result. Emotional security and self- esteem are often lacking. There is a craving for attention and a need to belong (Ciaccio, 2000; Brophy, 2000). The characteristics that are lacking in the poverty environment are those that help foster effective learning and academic success. Emotional draining and negative self-status can literally zap the motivation to learn out of children.
We need to place an emphasis on sparking that desire to learn or (motivation) by not only helping to restore the child’s self-image but also by encouraging students to see the demands and rewards of schooling. Children will work hard, for intrinsic rewards, only if they have a very good reason (Ciaccio, 2000). We need to make them feel that they are lovable, important and acceptable human beings by making them feel secure and good about themselves and by building trusting respectful relationships with them (Bassey, 1996). The teacher may be the dependable and caring adult, often the only adult of this kind, who is a consistent and reliable figure in their lives of unpredictability and change (Bowman, 1994).
As we have noted earlier, the above findings also indicated that biological differences (gender) are among the determinants of academic performance, males performed better than females on academic performance.