EFFECTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF BIOLOGY EDUCATION STUDENTS IN ONITSHA SOUTH LOCAL GOVT ANAMBRA

ABSTRACT

Social networking has become a common international trend that has spread its reach to almost every corner of the world. The use of Social media sites has exploded and evolved into an online platform where people create content, share it, bookmark it, and network at a prodigious rate. Among the prominent users of social media are students. This research assesses the impact of social media on student academic performance in a case study of Awudome Senior High School, Onitsha South LGA Biology two students. Three research questions were set to guide the study. The study adopted a survey research design. The populations used as samples were students from Awudome Senior High School, Onitsha South LGA. The result shows that there is a significant relationship between the purpose of visiting social media sites by students and their academic performances. It also revealed that the nature of social media activities in that the student engages does not have any significant impact on the student’s academic performance. In addition, the method of data collection was the use of a structured questionnaire, the questionnaire contains twenty-five (25) statement items that were expected to throw light on the research questions. Further analyses were done on the data collected from questionnaires and were presented in a tabular form using a simple frequency percentage table. Finally, students’ academic performances suffer set back due to frequent usage of social media by the students.

 

EFFECTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF BIOLOGY EDUCATION STUDENTS IN ONITSHA SOUTH LOCAL GOVT ANAMBRA

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Socialization is a lifelong process that continues as people change jobs or roles and as society itself changes. It is an age-long human activity that entails the relationship between a human being and another in the environment in which they live (Haralambos, Holborn, and Healed, 2008). Socialization has long been witnessed before the advent of new technologies which transformed socialization into a new system in society.

The transition to the technological era brought about the advent of the internet as well as social media. The advancement in technology has made it easier for people especially young people to have internet access and thus social networking which they join in with friends (Ibrahim, 2012). Social media or networking has revolutionized the way social interaction takes place. It is a process by which people socialize online. Through it, people seek and enjoy the companionship of others online. It supports the sharing of information and services among individuals and groups having a common interest.

Social media according to Kaplan and Helen (2010) is defined as a group of internet-based applications that allows the creation and exchange of user-generated content. In the same vein, Arshin (2010) referred to social networking sites as virtual places where people find themselves and share information. These social networking sites have open membership. As soon as one opens an account and uploads his or her data on the profile pages, the person is entitled to create a network of friends. However, some social networking sites are specifically designed for mobile phones, some are accessed via computers and others could be accessed using both mobile phones and computers or other information communication technologies.

These social networking sites are so numerous but a few would be mentioned, which include; Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram, and so on. There are no limitations or restrictions as to which social networking sites one should belong; one can be a member of as many as possible. While social networking sites have the same key aspects, the cultures and responses around them that become apparent are varied. Most sites help strangers connect with others based on shared personal interests, political and economic views, or simply recreational activities. Some sites accommodate distinct viewers while others attract people based on similarities, such as common languages or shared racial, sexual, religious, or nationality-based identities. Nonetheless, social networking sites have only a common goal. It is to encourage new ways to communicate and share information. It also provides great opportunities for members including senior high school students and Librarians who use it to promote the services of the library and also get first-class information about their users through interacting with them. The students, on the other hand, benefit from some of the postings on some sites because some postings can be informative and educative and the students after reading such posts can comment on them.

Some senior high school students have formed the habit of visiting different social networking sites that have started influencing their overall attitude; academically, physically, and socially.

A student’s primary objective is academics, especially at the senior high school level because it is the stage of career building; therefore, the need to take their studies and reading more seriously cannot be over-emphasized. Akintunde (2001) observed that the importance of developing a good reading habits by students cannot be overstated. As competence in reading enables learners to be successful and engage with the world beyond the classroom (Mabekoje 2011). He stressed further that developing a good reading habit broadens readers’ horizons; it is important for independent of other language skills, especially speaking and writing. The entire process of education and the development of literacy depend on printed words and reading is the crucial means through which student develops this literacy and knowledge about the environment (Mabekoje 2009).

Nevertheless, senior high schools that are offering Biology subject who are supposed to use social media and social networking sites to promote and uplift their academic career through various social networking sites but the reverse is the case, as these set of students are often observed during school time in various hiding places either discussing social networks or browsing with their phones. Long (2012) postulated that it is so common these days that many young people are addicted to social networking activities, abandoning homework and reading time in preference to chatting with friends, even at lectures times, many students are on phones engaging in one form of chatting or the other which can be quite distracting and loss of concentration most times.

Social networking with its numerous benefits should not be allowed to drift away from the minds of students where in lies the development of Nigeria. Reading empowers everyone, it prepares the mind for societal challenges, therefore, there is a need to ensure it is back in line to develop and move the nation forward. Therefore, the main focus of this study is to investigate the influence of social media on senior high school students.

 

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Since the advent of social media sites in the 1990s, it is assumed in some quarters that the academic performance of students is facing a sort of neglect and divided attention between social networking activities and their academic work. It is observed that students devote more attention to social media sites than they do to their studies.

Therefore, this study is an effort to understand the possible impact these social media site has on students about their academic performance in Biology as a subject. This is the reason why the impact of social media on students’ academic performance in Biology catches my attention, more especially the fact that the social media effect has not been empirically investigated in Biology, particularly in Awudome Senior High School, Onitsha South LGA, Anambra State. Hence, this study is an effort to fill the research gap.

 

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The general purpose of the study is to unravel the impact of social media on students’ academic performance in Biology as a subject at Awudome Senior High School, Onitsha South LGA, Anambra State.

The specific purposes of the study are to;

• (i). determine the most visited social networking sites by Biology students
• (ii). determine the purpose for using the identified social media sites by Biology students.
• (iii). determine the Information Communication Technologies mostly used by Biology Students in secondary schools for social networking.

 

1.4 Research Questions

The following research questions were formulated to guide this study;

• (i). which social networking sites do Biology students visit most?
• (ii). what purposes do Biology students use their chosen social media for?
• (iii). which Information Communication Technologies do Biology students mostly use to explore their social media?

 

1.5 Significance of the Study

The study will be of immense benefit to Students, Parents, Guardians and School Teachers, Management, and other Stakeholders in the education of the post-primary school. Students need to learn to manage and balance their time well to be great contributors to the development of society.

 

1.6 Scope of the Study

The scope of this study is on the impact of social media on students’ academic performance in Biology at Awudome Senior High School, Onitsha South LGA, Anambra State, Nigeria. The research will cover form two (2) students of Awudome Senior High school taking Biology as a subject. The choice of this scope is to allow for a depth study. However, there is still hope to give a reliable outcome.

 

1.7 Definition of Terms

(i) Social Media: They are forms of electronic communication that facilitate interaction based on certain interests. Social media include web and mobile technologies such as computers, G.S.M, and mobile phones.

(ii) Social Networking: This is the use of the internet to make information about yourself available to other people, especially people you share an interest with. The essence of social networking is to share ideas and exchange messages.

(iii) Academic: It is concerned with studying from books as opposed to practical work.

(iv) Biology: Biology as a subject is taken by Business students in Senior High Schools in Nigeria.

(v) Institution: The term “institution” commonly applies to both informal institutions such as customers, or behavior patterns important to a society, and particular formal institutions created by entities such as the government and public services.

 

EFFECTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF BIOLOGY EDUCATION STUDENTS IN ONITSHA SOUTH LOCAL GOVT ANAMBRA

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