Students Social Variables as predictors of Junior Secondary School Interest in Mathematics in Ibadan Municipal, Ibadan, Nigeria
Main Article Content
Abstract
The importance of mathematics in national development cannot be overemphasized. However, students' consistent poor performance in the subject has raised a lot of concern among the educational stakeholders.
This study, therefore, investigated how some student social variables (student-teacher relationship, peer pressure, age and birth order) predict their interest in mathematics in Ibadan municipal Oyo State, Nigeria. Two hundred and twenty-five students were sampled from 15 schools. The validated Student Social Variables Questionnaire (SSVQ; r=0.72) and Students' Mathematics Interest Questionnaire (SMIQ; r=0.56) were used. Data collected were analysed using percentage count and multiple regression analysis.
Findings showed that most students 121 (53.8%) have low interest in mathematics. Also, there was a linear relationship between students' social variables and students' interest in Mathematics. The four predictors jointly accounted for 6.9% observed variance in the measures of students' interest in Mathematics, [R = 0.263, R2 = 0.069; p < 0.05]. The best predictor of the students' interest in mathematics was peer pressure [β = 0.243, t (224) = 3.227; p < 0.05].
The study recommended that parents and teachers should educate students on the choice of friends in
relation to how it influences interest in school subject, and consequently their academic performance.
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