ASSESMENT OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF STUDENT PERSONNEL SERVICES IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN MANGU LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

• Background to the Study

The teaching and research functions of secondary education play a very important role in national development, especially in the preparation for higher institutions. However, in most cases, the societal expectations in terms of goals are hardly met and part of the explanation is linked to the absence of adequate and conducive environment for effective learning. To achieve this objective, adequate provision of certain services to students should be fostered for effective teaching and learning process. Among these are the student-personnel services. Student personnel services  in this context, refers to all the academic and non-academic services  rendered to the students at the schools setting for the purpose of healthy, physical, emotional, social and moral development as part of their preparation for a responsible and productive adult life. These services are complementary to the academic programme in making a holistic and balanced education of the students. While the task of intellectual and skill development can be accomplished through curriculum planning and implementation, the task of developing responsible attitudes and morals can only be achieved through the provision and administration of student personnel services.

Although student personnel services has received very little attention in professional literature and social administration, Ogbuji (2009), observed that it is an administrative task areas that is critical to the effective operation of any school system. This assertion is also affirmed by Apkan (2013) when he stressed that in addition to curriculum implementation, school administrators have a duty to provide adequate student personnel services in their respective schools as both services are complementary to each other. Consequently, a major concern of any secondary school, should be the commitment to implement specified student personnel services. These services enhance the achievement of school objectives. The absence of these create situations that constitute obstacles to the achievement of goals and objectives of education. Some goals of education as spelt out by Federal Republic of Nigeria (2013) in the National Policy on Education demand services that are beyond classroom instruction for their actualization. An example of such goal is the inculcation of national values (P.8). The values include respect for the worth and dignity of the individual, faith in man’s ability to make national decisions, moral and spiritual principle in interpersonal and human relations and promotion of the physical, emotional and psychological development of all children.

Student personnel services are welfare services provided in a school in order toprevent unnecessary increase in the rate of anti–social activities among the students and to

encourage positive thinking and actions that would promote the attainment of their academic pursuit and choices of future career. The students are to get in touch with student personnel services on matters that affect their socio–academic life. These services are provided to find out students problem in all ramification so as to proffer appropriate solution to the problems. Also, a well-equipped clinic will equally contribute in no small way to the health care of the students as it will help to solve their health problems. Adequate supply of water and electricity will enhance their wellbeing on campus. Furthermore, provision of catering services and accommodation is of great importance to the students.

If the above services and other services are satisfactorily provided, there would be positive response from the students in terms of their behaviours, that is, their behaviours would be in conformity with the norms of the school. Inadequate provision of the aforementioned services might lead to unwholesome attitudes among the students, such as riot, demonstration, destruction of school properties and might obstruct the learning process.

One can say that, adequate provision of student personnel services plays an important role in any secondary school as it helps to complement learning process and students’ wellbeing in school. It is in the light of the above discussion that this study seeks out to evaluate the implementation of student personnel services in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area.

• Statement of the Problem

            Adequate provision and administration of student personnel services in secondary schools is not only important but necessary for the achievement of the desired educational goals of inculcating the right type of values, attitude, skills and the development of mental and physical abilities as equipment for producing good quality citizens of Nigeria (FRN, 2013).  Over the years, secondary school have been experiencing student disturbances linked to non-availability, inadequacy, and poor quality of some vital student personnel services. Students trek long distances from home to school and this brings about lateness to class, fatigue and sleeping in the class. The libraries in these schools appear not to have current books/materials, and they appear not to have enough reading tables and chairs for the students. Students either cook inside their hostels or depend on food vendors for their feeding. Students have been reported to repeat a class due to the fact that the records of results of examinations they wrote and passed got lost. Students stand on their feet or sit on the floor listen to their lessons because there are insufficient seats.

            In most of the schools, for instance, public boarding schools, students go to streams to fetch water because these schools depend on well for supply of water and when these wells are dried, they resolve to look for their own source of water. Security is porous, hence, there are cases of rape, murder, robbery and of course cult activities. Medical Centres/clinics are there without adequate drugs except routine drugs. Guidance and counselling services are non-existent in most secondary schools, and student records are haphazardly kept. Hostels in some of the boarding schools are built in form of dormitory (without rooms), and even rooms ear marked for three students now harbour up to six students officially, excluding those that are “squatting”.

            This state of affairs suggests that something is wrong with regard to the implementation of student personnel services in secondary schools. Based on this, the problem of this study is, what is the extent of implementation of student-personnel services in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area?

• Purpose of the Study

            The main purpose of this study was to carry out an assessment of implementation of students personnel services in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area. Specifically, the study intended to:

1. Ascertain the extent of availability of student personnel services in secondary schoolsin Mangu Local Government Area.
2. Determine the adequacy of student personnel services in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area.

• Identify the constraints to the effective implementation of these services.

1. Evolve strategies for improving the implementation of student personnel services in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area.
   • Research Questions

            The following research questions were formulated to guide the study:

1. To what extent are student personnel services available in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area?
2. To what extent are these student personnel services adequate in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area?

• What are the constraints to the effective implementation of these services?

1. What are the strategies for improving the implementation of student personnel services in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area?
   • Research Hypothesis

H₀: There are no adequate student personnel services in secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area

• Significance of the Study

            This study hinged on the systems theory. This is because, student personnel services is a very important aspect of administration as a social system.

            Theoretically, the findings of this study will provide an empirical data with respect to the purpose of the study that will permit a clear understanding and testing of these findings. It will also be a resource centre for all stakeholders of education, source of information and a reference point, especially in the secondary education. The findings of the study will be of help to the entire Nigerian society, agencies and individuals that have stake in education like the policy-makers, educational administrators and planners, ministries of education and students in secondary education.

            It will provide useful information to the authorities of federal and state secondary education on certain unfavourable attitudes exhibited by students that are caused by the poor state of student personnel services. These authorities will then be geared towards making proper provision for these services.

The findings of this study will enable the education planners at the ministries of education agencies to gain better understanding of the state of student personnel services in these secondary schools.

            The findings of this study will be of great benefit to the students who stand to gain if problems raised by the present state of student personnel services are handled and especially if adequate and qualitative student personnel services are provided. This will rekindle the interest of students in school attendance and learning.

The society at large will benefit from the study because, when there is conducive atmosphere in these secondary schools, the objectives of education, which include the production of manpower, will be greatly achieved

• Delimitation of the Study

The researcher is aware of other problem areas of education, however, this study covers assessment of the implementation of students personnel services in secondary schools. The study is restricted to selected secondary schools in Mangu Local Government Area. However, despite the fact that the study is restricted to Mangu Local Government, its findings will be generalised to other parts of the state and country at large.

• Operational Definition of Terms

Assessment: This is an evaluation of an event or phenomena in order to determine its availability, success and effectiveness.

Implementation: Implementation is the realization of an application, or execution of a plan, idea, model, design, specification, standard, algorithm, or policy

Evaluation: It is a systematic determination of a subject’s merit, worth and significance, using criteria governed by a set of standards.

Student-Personnel Services: Involve all the activities and services that are rendered to the students for the achievement of the educational objectives which are not the normal classroom instruction.

Private School: An independent school that is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or federal governments.

Public School: These are schools owned by the government and they are mostly affordable even to the common man.