Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of family background on form five students’ choice of geography as a school subject in Buea municipality. The data collected for this research was done in three schools: BHS Buea, GHS Buea town, and Summerset Bilingual College Molyko (SCCM) Buea. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire which was guided by the following research question

-To what extent does parental educational level influence their children’s choice of geography as a school subject?

-To what extent does parental status influence their children’s choice of geography as a school subject?

-To what extent does parental marital status influence their children’s choice of geography as a school subject?

The parent population of this study comprised of the secondary schools in Buea municipality while the target population was made up of form 5 students of BHS Buea, SCCM, and GHS Buea town. This study found out that family background (parental education, financial and marital status) average influence students choose to study geography in secondary schools in the Buea municipality and hence affect their performance.

To this effect, parents influence their children’s choice of subject and their career through their educational level, financial strength, and marital status.

CHAPTER ONE

THE RESEARCH PROBLEM.

1.0 Introduction.

The family occupies an important position in the life of a child. It is in the family that a child is born and nurtured until when he or she becomes an adult to take care of him or herself. According to Williams (2000), the first type of training a child starts with the family.

It is through this institution that the social, cultural, and moral behavior, as well as proper integration into the society, is translated. This implies a great influence on their psychological, emotional, social, and economic states. Thus everyone starts life in a family, irrespective of the type of family.

Form five is generally considered as a strategic class where the GCE O\L examination is taken. It is a transition from the first cycle to the second cycle and a determining class or whether a student will study arts or science as such student’s needs conducive family environments.

According to Sear R.E, Maccobu, R Levin H (2003), observation has shown that successes or high academic achievement have become herculean tasks to be accomplished by students in recent times. This is because students need support from parents both financially and during their time at home.

Research examining the extent to which students are likely to choose subjects that are associated with their parents’ characteristics has been carried out in Norway Hanson 1997, the Netherlands (Van de Werfhorst et al. 2001), Sweden (Dryker 1998), and the U.S (Davies and Guppy 1997) in general, these researches take the line that parents interest are communicated to children, and thus the children are likely to choose subjects that suits their parent’s interest.

Because of the above issues, this research look at three of the many indicators to investigate the extent to which family background influences the choice of geography as a school subject to form five students with particular attention to Buea municipality of the southwest region of Cameroon. The indicators of family background are parents’ educational level, financial and marital status.

1.1 Back Ground Of Study.

According to wright and wright (1994), the family is the foundation of human society, children who do not grow up with their parents or whose parents are always caught up in conflict or whose parents have no time to supervise them are at the greatest risk of not achieving well academically, especially form five students and thus may make the wrong decision on what to study in the high school.

Williams (2000) argues that the first type of training a child receives in life starts with the family. Wilkins (2001) states that the family as the major unit of socialization is very important for the development of the child.

It is from the family that the child gets to know other ethnic groups and the society at large for example in Cameroon, the family remains the most significant group to which one is attached throughout life, this should remain the ties between members of the family. Thus the home has a great influence on students psychological, emotional and social, and economic states.

According to AjilaGolutola F (2000), the state of the home affects the individual since the parents are the first socializing agents in the individual’s life.

Family structure in terms of single and two parents. Families have been noted by (Tenibiaje, 2009; Eweniyi, 2005) to have a significant influence on students’ performance and mental development.

As a student, it is important for me to embark on the study of geography due to its strong relationships to our daily lives.

Geography helps students to understand more about the modern world in making decisions for the future. It also helps students to know the nature of the environment and its impact on human health in other to maintain and keep it well for both present and future uses.

Since most of our daily routines revolve around geography, it helps the students to apply the basic conservative measures to help keep the environment healthy for human animals, plants inhabitant.

Since the basic needs in ones life is food, water and a home, students studying geography will know the ways in which soil can be maintain for high yield of food stuffs and also pollution of land, water and air will be avoided and also the natural ecosystem will be well protected thus making human inhabitant in the environment to be healthy and worth living.

One learns a lot of skills and knowledge that one can apply to other jobs or to one’s personal life. Learning about the environmental hazards, pollution, and natural hazard like earthquakes, landslides,s, etc., can help one to know how to use certain chemicals in the environment and also better ways to prevent the environment against damages.

If studies are being carried out by geography  student’s, and other individuals in the society at large, the natural vegetation will be conserved, and also the soil and water will be preserved for both present and future use since they are essential in the life of plants, animals and human inhabitants and wellbeing.

You will learn more about how the world works. You will learn more about the impact of destroying the ecosystem, you will learn more about the impacts of production and foreign exchange of goods (agricultural products).

You will learn more about the importance of good transport network system and also you will learn more about the conservation prevention of agriculture products furthermore, personally believe that having a more geographical knowledge about the society at large and the environment in which we live in our natural environment will be well preserved for a healthy and a well done future, because of this knowledge and if it is properly done, the mind of people will be open about what they have been exposed to, and it should not so much tell people about what to think, rather it should give them tools about how to think of things more clearly and realizing the importance of it.

This information will cause parents to influence their children’s choice to study geography as a school subject. The importance of geography initiates in individuals in an individual’s life in terms of pollution prevention, usage of the agricultural chemical, and the knowledge of how the world at large is operating will equally encourage and promote students’ interest in the subject geography.

The indicator marital status of parents anchors firmly on the theory of family deficit model (Donatoo,2003) which sees nuclear or two parents family as the ideal family structure and single parents family as a deviant from the ideal family.

According to this model, single-parent families have negative impacts on the children in that it is bad for their upbringing and cognitive development. The implication of this theory to the present study depends on their upbringing which perhaps is influenced by their family background. This is why this study focuses on the influence of family background on form five students’ choice of geography as a school subject.

1.2 Statement Of The Problem.

In the view of Ajila C, and Olutola F (2000), the state of the home affects the individual since the parents are the first socializing agents in the individual since the parents are the example, the family remains the most significant group to which one is attached throughout life.

The declining quality of education in the country and the production of learners of low self-esteem with little technical know-how have resulted in serious setbacks in students’ outputs in all subjects including geography.

For instance, clement H, Oelke M (1967), and Emeke (1984) attributed the cause of poor academic performance to a combination of personal and institutional factors the link between family and academic achievement.

Due to the aforementioned problems of poor academic achievements, the researcher is challenged and consequently sought to carry out a study on the influence of family background on form five students’ choice of geography in Buea Municipality.

1.3 The Purpose Of The Study.

There are specific and general purposes.

The general-purpose objectives

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the extent to which family background influences the children’s choice of geography as a school subject.

The specific purpose objectives.

Specifically, this study seeks to find out the extent to which:

1. The educational level of parents influences their children’s choice of geography as a school subject.
2. The financial status of parents influences their children’s choice of geography as a school subject.
3. The marital status of parents influences their children’s choice of geography as a school subject.