Influence of Students’ Self-Concept on Their Academic Achievement in Secondary School Mathematics

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue XI, November 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186

Influence of Students’ Self-Concept on Their Academic Achievement in Secondary School Mathematics

Chika C. Ugwuanyi¹, Cynthia T. Nnolum^2*, William C. Nwachukwu³, Christopher O. Inweregbuh ⁴

^{1, 2, 3 & 4} Department of Science Education, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria
*Corresponding Author

Abstract:-This study was carried out to investigate the influence of students’ self-concept on their academic achievement in secondary school mathematics. The researchers employed descriptive survey research design. Two (2) research questions and two (2) hypotheses guided the study. The population of the study comprised of two thousand, four hundred and one (2401) SS2 students from the thirty-one (31) secondary schools in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State. A sample of one hundred and fifty (150) students from five (5) schools were selected through random sampling techniques. The instrument for data collection was Students’ Self-Concept Questionnaire (SSQ) structured on a four point Likert scale. The instrument was validated by three (3) experts from University of Nigeria Nsukka. Cronbach Alpha formular was used to ascertain the internal consistency of the questionnaire and a reliability coefficient of 0.908 was obtained. Mean and standard deviations were used to answer the research questions while chi-square (χ 2) and t-test were used to test the null hypothesis 1 and 2 respectively at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that the students’ self-concept influences their academic achievement in mathematics with overall mean of 2.6273 and it is statistically significant. Also, students’ gender does not influence their academic achievement in mathematics with overall mean of 2.2660 which isn’t statistically significant. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among others that classroom teachers should use some teaching strategies that would boost students’ academic self-concept which will in turn promote their academic achievement in mathematics.

Keywords: Mathematics, self-concept, ability, Achievement and Gender.

I. INTRODUCTION

Mathematics is a subject that studies about numbers, arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and trigonometry among others. Mathematics is studied in both primary and secondary schools as a compulsory subject. Mathematics like any other compulsory and examinable subject offered in both primary and secondary school level has a key role in shaping how individuals deal with various spheres of private, social and civil life. There is no existing field of study which does not require the use of mathematical theories or numerical computations in one way or the other. Ncube (2013) was of the view that mathematics is the bedrock and an indispensable tool for scientific, technological and economic advancement of any nation.

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