CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
According to Day (2015), the guidance and counseling practices is an efficient and effective way of supporting and helping students to deal with problems and issues in educational, career and personal/social areas in the academic atmosphere. Guidance and counseling as a movement was started in America at the beginning of 20th Century as a reaction. Guidance and counseling as the third force in education along with instruction is an integral part of to change process in an industrialized society. Guidance services were set up within the department of education in September 1968 when the recommendations made by Louis, a consultant was sent over to Malta by United Nation’s Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and were taken up. Globally, guidance and counseling services are essential elements in discipline management of people in all societies. The education system in Nigeria has faced dynamic and rapid changes that have had overwhelming effects on the learner, learning institutions and society at large. Since independence in 1960, there have been numerous changes in policy formulation and directives, one of these being the introduction of guidance and counseling services provision at all levels of the education system. The policies on guidance and counseling have been aimed at preparing young people to face challenges they may encounter in and out of the education system. The main aim of education is to provide opportunities for each student to reach his or her full potential in the areas of education, vocational, social-personal, and emotional development (Kauchak, 2011). In order for students to realize this function, secondary schools are expected to provide guidance and counseling services (GCS) as an integral part of their education. When guidance and counseling services are provided they help prepare students to assume increasing responsibility for their decisions and grow in their ability to understand and accept the results of their choices (Kauchak, 2011). The ability to make such intelligent choices is not inherent but, like other abilities, must be developed. However, some students’ performance in regard to interpersonal, study, vocational and problem-solving skills need to be up scaled