Influence of Class Size On Students’ Academic Achievement in Public Secondary Schools in Niger North Senatorial District, Niger State, Nigeria (Published)
This study investigated the influence of class size on students’ academic achievement in public secondary schools in Niger North Senatorial District, Niger State, Nigeria. The study examined how large, normal, and small class sizes affect students’ academic achievement. A descriptive survey research design was adopted. The population comprised 4,025 respondents, consisting of 68 principals and 3,957 teachers from 68 public secondary schools in the district. Using a simple random sampling technique, a sample of 405 respondents (9 principals and 396 teachers) representing 10% of the population was selected. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire titled Questionnaire on the Influence of Class Size on Students’ Academic Achievement, and a pro forma for students’ academic records. The instrument was validated by experts and its reliability established through a pilot study. Descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) were used to answer the research questions, while Chi-square statistics were employed to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that large, normal, and small class sizes have significant influence on students’ academic achievement in public secondary schools in the study area. The study concluded that class size is a critical factor in effective teaching and learning. It was recommended that government and educational authorities should strictly adhere to the National Policy on Education teacher student ratio of 1:30 through the recruitment of qualified teachers and provision of adequate classroom facilities among others.
Keywords: Academic Achievement, Public Secondary Schools, Teaching and Learning, class size
Impact of Class Size on Early Childhood Education among Primary School in Bwari Area Council (Published)
This study focused on the impact of class size on early childhood education in Bwari Area Council. It is a survey research. The population consists of all early childhood education pupils in Bwari Ara Council. The stratified and random sampling techniques were used to select a sample of 155. The instrument is a self-developed questionnaire titled “Impact of Class Size on Early Childhood Education Questionnaire”. The psychometric properties were determined through a test – retest method of reliability. Using Pearson “ϒ” it yielded a correlation coefficient of 0.76 which was found to be reliable enough. Four (4) Research questions and two hypotheses were formulated for the study and analyzed using t-test statistics. It was found that a significant relationship exists between the mean ratings of the impact of class size and early childhood education. Recommendations, amongst others, include reducing a large class to a manageable one with appropriate counseling approaches.
Keywords: Bwari, Council, Primary School, childhood education, class size, early