INFLUENCE OF SINGLE PARENTING ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Education is of great importance to every nation. It therefore attracts considerable attention to the family, community and to all tiers of government; education is discussed, planned and processed (Omolewa, 2001). It is believed that education recreates both the individuals and the nation, influences values and attitudes for a worthwhile living. The National Policy on Education (2009) is not wrong with its assertion that education is “an instrument par excellence” and the world at large had keyed into this, by recognizing education as the panacea to development and survival of man itself.
It is not surprising therefore that the processes of education are offered by the three levels– primary, secondary and tertiary education. As a result, education is classified on the concurrent list. That is, administration, funding, policy formulation and maintenance of schools or matters relating to education can both be deliberated upon by the Federal and State governments. Over the years, there had been public outcry concerning the fate of educational system in Nigeria and the breeding of graduates with little technical know–how which has resulted in serious setbacks to the industrial and economic development of the nation and its place among comity of nations in the 21st century. Investigations into the factor that influence academic performance of students in and out-of-school could be trace to individual family or home. The family or home is an integral part of the society which is a sub-system of the social structure. It is an axiom that good homes breed a productive nation .This is the brain-child of why, every society aspires for development.
The well-being of any society is the aggregate of the well-being of the individual families that make up the society. So, the home is a quite essential factor on the learner’s psychological, social, emotional and economic state. Most homes are made up of father and the mother with or without siblings or extended relations. In the African societies, some homes could be polygamous while others could take the form of monogamy. One is not so surprised that African Traditional Religion (ATR) influences all aspect of one’s life and it is practical in nature.