CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Education is viewed as a transformative force. Additionally, it is a process of metamorphosis. According to the website Dictionary, education is the act or process of teaching in accordance with acquired knowledge, skill, or character discipline, as well as the act or process of training through a defined or usual course of study. Additionally, Patti (2009) defined education as the act or process of influencing or obtaining broad knowledge, improving the capacity for thinking and judgment, and overall intellectually maturing oneself or others. Education, or being educated, is exposing all senses to a sequence of stimuli designed to increase and grow a person's brain activity in order to accomplish a set of, or a specific aim (Akualtines 2001).

To help attain the educational aims and objectives, governments and policymakers designated certain topics at the junior secondary level (JSS) to reduce certain aspects of the learning experience that contribute to the achievement of the National Education Goals. Several significant disciplines were designated as core subjects. Social studies is one of these disciplines (2004 edition of NPE).

According to Fageyinbo (2000), social studies is a field of study that deals with man and the various possible interactions between him and his environment, as well as the possible outcomes of such interactions, which cause him to comprehend, interpret, manipulate, and adapt within, with, or to such environment.

The National Council for Social Studies (2009) expanded on this definition by defining social studies as the combined study of social science and the humanities with the goal of fostering civic competency. According to the National Curriculum Conference on Social Studies (NCCS), social studies provides coordinates and systematic study, incorporating content from disciplines such as anthropology, economics, geography, history, law, philosophy, political science, psychology, religion, and sociology, as well as appropriate content from the humanities in mathematics and natural science. The fundamental goal of social studies instruction at the junior secondary level is to assist students in developing the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for the public good as members of a culturally varied and democratic society living in an interconnected globe (Bray & Kwok 2003).

Several efforts have been made by the government, schools, parents, and other state holders to raise the standard of education. These efforts include training and retraining of Social Studies teachers, equipping school libraries with Social Studies text books, and producing and constantly reviewing Social Studies text books. However, the persistence of low academic performance in Social Studies indicates that these efforts did not have the desired effect. Additionally, extramural classes are being used to ameliorate the problem.

According to Webster's Dictionary, extramural classes are those that are not part of the regular study courses/subjects at a university, college, or other educational institution (including a school), yet they are frequently associated with them. They are also educational activities that occurred beyond the school's walls or limits, but they are frequently associated with them. Additionally, these are instructional activities that occurred beyond the school's walls or bounds (Bray & Kwok 2003).

Extramural classes include after-school classes, private home lessons, out-of-school lessons, and even break time lessons (which are often organized between the child's parents and the teachers).

Extramural classes are a notable feature of the Nigerian education system that began long ago. They have gradually grown in popularity alongside mainstream education, where students attend, or more precisely, are required to attend, extramural classes in the belief that they will acquire knowledge that they do not appear to obtain during their school hours. These extramural activities have become prevalent in Nigeria, particularly in metropolitan areas.

Extramural lessons, or private tutoring as they are more often called, are not a problem unique to Nigeria as a poor country; they are a pervasive problem found in practically every country on earth (Bray & Kwok 2003).

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Numerous justifications have been advanced for the continued existence and expansion of extramural education. To begin, it is regarded as a type of supplemental education. As such, it can meet the educational demands of pupils, as is frequently the case in the majority of underdeveloped nations (Glewwe & Kremer 2005). Extramural lessons in such nations can offer students with knowledge that they cannot receive in school or can reinforce what they learn briefly in class. In most situations, students require this information in order to pass competitive examinations administered by several state governments and the National Examination Council (NECO). Second, extramural lessons might be viewed as a type of corruption, which is more serious than other flaws in the educational system that are readily remedied. This can occur in some underdeveloped nations with lax monitoring systems, when instructors struggle to make ends meet on their wages and are forced to rely on extramural lessons (arranged by them in partnership with the school administration) to augment their monthly revenue (Biswal 1999).

Thirdly, cultural influences can be a significant source of support for extramural classes' growth and development. Due to the fact that extramural lessons may be utilized to augment education and can be purchased, the wealthy may have greater access to high-quality education than the poor.

Despite the prevalence and nature of extramural classes, very few studies have been conducted to examine the causes of extramural classes and even fewer to determine the extent to which extramural classes affect students' academic performance, particularly at the Junior Secondary School level and in Social Studies (Biswal 1999).

Many people believe that students who participate in extramural activities do academically better than students who do not. This assumption warrants examination in order to determine whether extramural programs have a beneficial effect on students' academic achievement in social studies.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The primary objective of this study is to examine extra mural classes and their effect on students academic performance in social studies in junior secondary schools. Specifically, this study seeks to:

i.          Determine the extent extra mural classes is carried out in secondary schools in Nigeria.

ii.        Examine the effects of extra mural classes on students.

iii.      Determine whether extra mural classes affects students academic performance.

iv.      Determine if there is any relationship between extra mural classes and students improved performance in social studies.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following research questions will guide this study;

i.          To what extent is extra mural classes carried out in secondary schools in Nigeria?

ii.        What are the effects of extra mural classes on students?

iii.      Does extra mural classes affects students academic performance?

iv.      Is there any relationship between extra mural classes and students improved performance in social studies?

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