INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING ON EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE OF SECONDARY SCHOOL LEARNERS IN KADUNA METROPOLIS, NIGERIA  

ABSTRACT

This study examined the influence of social networking on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria. The study was guided by four research questions and four null hypotheses that were tested at 0.05 level of significance. Expost-facto research design was used in this study. The population of the study consisted of 1904 SS II Students in Kaduna Metropolis. The study has a sample of 190, a purposive sampling technique was used in selecting the sample of the study. Two instruments were used for data collection Extent of Social Networking Questionnaire (ESNQ) and Academic Performance Test (APT) in English Language and Mathematics. Null hypotheses 1 & 2 were tested using the Pearson Product moment Correlation (r) to determine the influence while null hypotheses 3 and 4 were tested using Independent t- test. Results of the findings showed significant influenced of Facebook usages on academic performance of secondary school students. The study also found significant influence of WhatsApp usages on academic performance of secondary school students. This implies that WhatsApp usage had negative influence on academic performance, the higher the level of WhatsApp usage, the lower the academic performance. The results showed that there is significant differential influence of Facebook usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students. This shows that the female Facebook student‟s users were more negatively influenced than their male counterparts. The study also revealed that there is no significant differential Influence of WhatsApp usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students. It was recommended among others that Secondary School Students should make appropriate use of Facebook and WhatsApp to enhance their academic performance instead of chatting with friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the Study

The issue of poor academic performance in Nigeria has been of much concern to all and sundry. The problem is much that it has led to the widely acclaimed fallen standard of education in Kaduna state and Nigeria at large. Student‟s academic performance is an objective score of attainment after specified instructional program. Academic performance refers to how students deal with their studies and how they cope with or accomplish different tasks given to them by their teacher. Tuckman (as cited in Saba & Tarang, 2012), defined performance as the apparent demonstration of understanding, concepts, skills, ideas and knowledge of a person and proposed that grades clearly depict the performance of a student. Hence, their academic performance must be managed efficiently keeping in view all the factors that can positively or negatively affect their academic performance. The performance of students in any academic task has always been of special interest to educators, parents and the society at large. The primary concern of any educator who is entrusted with the responsibility of selecting students for any advance training programme in a given field is the ability to estimate as accurately and as early as possible the probability that such candidates will succeed or fail. The major obstacle to the development of education in Kaduna State is persistent poor academic performance of students in Senior School

Certificate Examination, National Examinations Council and Joint Admission and Matriculation Board. Use of technology such as internet is one of the most important factors that can influence academic performance of students positively or adversely. Shah (2001) proposed that student users are affected by the internet and this impact is determined by the type of internet usage.

They are positively affected by the informative use of internet while having drastic impact of recreational use of internet on them. Social networking is advantageous to both students and teachers if used as a tool of knowledge creation and dissemination.

The increased use of Social Networking has become an international phenomenon in the past several years. What started out as a hobby for some computer literate people has become a social norm and way of life for people from all over the world (Boyd, 2007) Social networking among secondary school students has become more and more popular over the years because it is away to make connections between friends within and outside the school. Due to this popularity, people begin to ask questions whether the performance of students are being influenced by how much time students spent on various sites of social networking (Stollak, Vandenberg, Burklund, & Weiss,2011). Social networking has a history of decades for communicating within societies to develop relationships with others (Coyle & Vaughn 2008). With advancement in technology and evolution of the internet, communication modes became easy and it is now limited to fingertips to communicate throughout the globe using various social networking sites (SNSs) like Facebook, WhatsApp, MySpace, Twitter, Linked In, Google+. Social networking sites are actually web based services that allow people to present themselves to the world by creating an online profile. Creating an online profile allows a student to present him/herself through images, text, music, videos, business profile, religious thoughts and the likes.

Developments made in the internet software applications are beyond ones imagination. No one would have ever imagined that a networking tool developed solely for military purpose in United States in 1969 would become a rich source of knowledge, entertainment, and communication. Cain, (2008) Social network websites provide ease of connecting people to one another; free of cost and after connecting, one can post news, informative material and other things including videos and pictures. This free of cost factor fascinate students for communication and data; sharing. Students now find it very easy to express their thoughts, ideas and beliefs through social networks like Facebook, WhatsApp, twitter, MySpace, and messengers with the aid of internet connectivity. The mention of an online community in academia brings to mind an image of students chatting aimlessly away. New technologies have probably already changed the way most students share knowledge as well as their academic work environment and will very likely do so even more in the future into the direction of a more virtualized world (Olasina, 2013).

Social networking sites are web-based services that allow individuals to either construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, or articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, view, and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system. Olasina (2013) indicated that the first recognizable social network site was launched in 1997. Facebook began in early 2004 as a Harvard-only social networking site

(Cassidy, 2006). The nature and the selection of these connections may vary from site to site. Inasmuch as the most populous of social network sites like Facebook and WhatsApp encouraged interconnectivity among individuals in remote locations, these veritable tools are mainly used to share information relating to social life and not used to share academic information like information on assignments, examinations, time tables, lecture hours, group readings, seminars and research.

The mass appeal of social networks on the internet could be a cause for concern, particularly when attending to the gradually increasing amount of time students spend online. Social networking sites are virtual communities where users can create individual public profiles, interact with real life friends and meet other people based on shared interests. They allow individuals to construct a public or semipublic profile within a bounded system, indescribable power to influence, connect and mobilize students. Preoccupation with internet usage, repetitive thoughts about limiting or controlling the use, failure to prevent the desire for access, continuation of using the internet though functionality is being ruined at various levels, spending more and more time on the internet, craving for using the internet when access is not available are the remarkable problems with internet addiction (Adedeji, 2011). Internet is a seductive place, especially for today‟s linked-in teens that are far more likely to add graffiti to their friends

Facebook wall than they are to actually get on their bicycle and ride over to that same friend‟s house. One has to admit it would be a challenge to connect face-to-face with someone one has never met in person and who lives in a different time zone or area. Therein lies the problem and makes the internet perfect for students as social networking sites let them represent themselves as whomever or whatever they want. Everything is edited by them, chosen specifically to present the face they want the world to see (Cabral, 2011). Today‟s youths have grown up understanding the power of the internet and as a result they feel a constant pressure to be connected with their peers through maintaining a continuous connection with technology. Their connectedness is creating new kinds of peer-to-peer relationships that are considerably different from what used to be the norm. It is against this background that the researcher wants to find out the influence of social networking on academic performance among secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

It was not easy getting information except through newspapers, staying close to Television set or radio, but now internet connectivity has changed everything and social networking has made it more flexible. Social networks are not designed for negative impact, but the way secondary school students are using Facebook, WhatsApp and other sites these students are now not only staying connected with their peers but are also becoming more adept at keeping up with world events and helping to influence themselves either positively or negatively. With so many social networking sites on the internet, students are tempted to abandon their homework and reading times in preference for chatting on social networking with friends.

Even in classrooms, some students are always busy pinging, 2go or Facebooking, while teaching is going on. Times that ought to be channeled towards learning, have been wasted by the students as a passion for meeting new friends ‘online and most times busy discussing trivial issues. For example an average Nigerian student can spend about 6-7hours on the internet daily, some do all night browsing leaving them with little or no time to read/study their books or make

research.

Students are used to short forms of writing words in their chat rooms they forget and use the same in the classrooms and during examination. Examples of some of these spelling words are, 4 in place of “For”, U in place of “You”, D in place of “The”. This problem motivated the researcher to investigate the influence of social networking on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The study has the following objectives:

1. To investigate the influence of Facebook usage on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.
2. To find out the influence of WhatsApp usage on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.
3. To determine the differential influence of Facebook usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.
4. To find out the differential influence of WhatsApp usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.

 

1.4 Research Questions

The following questions were answered:

1. What is the influence of Facebook usage on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria?
2. What is the influence of WhatsApp usage on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria?
3. What is the differential influence of Facebook usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria?
4. What is the differential influence of WhatsApp usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria?

1.5 Hypotheses;

The following hypotheses guided the study

1. There is no significant influence of Facebook usage on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.

2     There is no significant influence of WhatsApp usage on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria

3. There is no significant differential influence of Facebook usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.
4. There is no significant differential influence of WhatsApp usage on academic performance of male and female secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.

 

 

1.6 Basic Assumptions

For the purpose of this study, the following assumptions are made:

1. It is assumed that Facebook usage may influence the academic performance of secondary school students of Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.
2. It is assumed that WhatsApp usage may influence the academic performance of secondary school students of Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.
3. There may be differential influence of Facebook usage on the academic performance of male and female secondary school students of Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.
4. There may be differential influence of WhatsApp usage on the academic performance of male and female secondary school students of Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria.

 

1.7 Significance of the study

It is hoped that the findings from this study will be beneficial to the following: students, teachers, counsellors, Parents and the ministry of education educational planners and Implementers. All academic activities and programmes are designed for the benefit of the students, from the findings of this study; it is hope that the students will realize the advantages and disadvantages of the use of social networking and specifically how the use could influence their academic performance. Secondary school students will learn to use social networking sites especially Facebook and WhatsApp in promoting their academic performance. It is also hoped that the findings of this study would create more awareness to students on how to strictly use the social networking for academic only. The findings are also hoped to benefit teachers with more information and ideas on how to identify students who are becoming weak academically as a result of either spending much of their time on social networking or something else at the detriment of their studies and advise them appropriately on effective study procedure. These ideas would also assist teachers to promote the use of social networking in the school by engaging them on academic activities that have to do with social networking through posting assignments, instructions, class notes, that may encourage students to use social networking more for academic purposes.

The school counsellor will also find the outcome of this study useful as it will highlight the influence of social networking sites on academic performance of students. The counsellors are constantly searching for ways to assist the students especially with regards to their academic performance; the counsellors will be in a better position to be aware of the negative use of social networking as such counsel students on better effective study habits. The counselor will make use of this knowledge to assist students with the right information on how to make good use of these sites. Counsellor can be connected on any of the social networking sites that most of the students in his school are likely to be involved, that will help them to interact with some of these students by posting useful information, creating an enabling environment for students to ask questions about their personal and academics issues, such interaction should aimed at assisting these students to be more committed in their academic activities. Another way to do this would be by giving classroom presentations on the risks and benefits of social networking, highlighting the negative behaviuors associated with these sites if used wrongly but also educating students on how these sites can improve their lives socially and academically.

Parents on the other hand will also benefit from this study because they would be made to understand the negative effect of social networking on their children academic progress and hence warn them to desist from such act and devote more of their time on academic activities Parents will also consciously contribute to the building of a morally viable Nigerian society by instilling strong moral values into their children right from their homes which is the microcosm of the larger society. (Charity begins at home).

Similarly the finding of the study is hoped to be useful to School administrators. It will assist them to understand how social networking can influence students negatively or positively. This knowledge will help the school administrators to develop software that can strictly be used to transmit academic information among secondary school students by organizing academic programmes that would assist students to use these social networking sites for assignments and other academic activities. The computer masters and Mistresses in school can be encouraged to assist students to develop and design a web-site for their students for academic purposes only.

Government would also benefit from the findings of this study, since it would point out some reasons why many secondary school students have been performing well or poorly especially in WAEC and NECO examinations since the advent of these social networking sites. This will help the government to provide schools with the equipment like computers and internet facilities that the students can have access to at all time. The findings will help government to formulate policies that will help trained teachers on how to assist students to learn the use of these social networking for their academic development.

Finally, the study will benefit future researchers in the field of social networking with empirical data about social networking and students‟ academic performance, this will also add to existing literature in Social Networking and academic performance.

1.8 Scope and Delimitation of the Study

This study was carried out to find out the influence of social networking Facebook and

WhatsApp usage on academic performance of secondary school students in Kaduna Metropolis, The researcher was limited to academic performance of secondary school students in English language and Mathematics test from six selected secondary schools located in Kaduna

Metropolis; the study is only concerned with students who are user of Facebook and WhatsApp. Social networking like Twitter Emails, 2go, badoo, black berry messenger (BBM) and others are not covered in the study. Junior secondary school students were not involved in the study also teachers of the secondary schools was not involved in the study.

INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING ON EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE OF SECONDARY SCHOOL LEARNERS IN KADUNA METROPOLIS, NIGERIA  

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