Family Structure and Academic Achievement of Senior Public Secondary School Students in North-Central Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigated the family structure on the academic achievement of senior public secondary school students in North-Central Nigeria. Four research questions and three hypotheses guided the study. A correlational survey research design was employed for the study. The population of the study comprised 748,067 students (male and female) drawn from 1785 public senior secondary schools in North Central Nigeria. A sample size of 384 senior secondary students was selected for the study, using the Krejcie and Morgan determination Table. The proportionate sampling technique was employed for the study. The reliability of the questionnaires was determined using Cronbach's Alpha statistics, which yielded a reliability index of 0.64. The data collected was analysed using mean and standard deviation for research questions, while hypotheses were tested using simple regression and t-test analysis. Findings of the study show that there is a significant relationship between family structure and academic achievement of senior secondary school students in North Central Nigeria. Findings revealed that there is significant relationship between parental involvement and academic achievement of students in public secondary schools in North-Central Nigeria; there is significant difference between male and female students in the family structure on academic achievement of senior secondary school students in North Central Nigeria; and there is significant difference between urban and rural in the family structure on academic achievement of senior secondary school students in North Central Nigeria. Recommendations made are that school counsellors in North Central Nigeria should take into account the diversity of family structures prevalent among students in North Central Nigeria when addressing students’ academic, behavioural and psychological challenges.