THE EFFECT OF BROKEN HOME ON THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION EKIADOLOR-BENIN
ABSTRACT
This project work deals with the effect of broken homes on the academic performance of students in College of Education, Ekiadolor Benin City. School of Vocation, School of Science, School of Arts and social sciences, School of Language all in College of Education Ekiadolor Benin City. In pursuance of the study, certain effects which require solution were identified and they are that students from broken homes suffer a lot of psychological and emotional disturbances, which leads to academic and social backwardness in schools. Insecurity and unrolling attitudes lead these students to steal items that do not belongs to them in school, to actualize this, a specially planned questionnaires was used as the only medium of data collection., the questions was framed to arouse the respondents interests on the issues in which responses are elicited so as to make a true and uninfluenced but sincere choice from the alternatives. 60 questionnaires were distributed out all were collected back. Owing to the result of finding the following recommendations were made that parents should build their family on some foundation of how mutual understanding and good [planning in order to bring up children who will be useful to themselves and to the society. The governments should establish a legal backing slating the age at which our youths should go into marriages to prevent frequent occurrence of divorce.     
  TABLE OF CONTENT
Chapter One
Introduction
1.1       Background of the study
1.2       Significance of the study
1.3       Purpose of study
1.4       Statement of problem
1.5       Research question
1.6       Limitation of study
1.7       Definition of terms
Chapter Two
Literature review
Chapter Three
3.0         Research Methodology
3.1         Population
3.2       Sample/sample procedure
3.3       Instrument of data collection
3.4       Validation of the instrument  
3.5       Method of data collection
3.6       Method of data analysis
Chapter Four
Presentation and discussion of results  
Discussion of findings
Chapter Five  
Conclusion, implication and recommendations  
Implications of findings
Suggestions of findings
Suggestions of further research
Recommendations
Reference     
Questionnaires
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
          The home is the first and immediate entity of every child. He or she is born into and regarded as a full member of the home. By its nature the home is a recognized group of people who are joined together either by marriage or birth.
          According to G.W. Davidson et al (Edo) marriage is the ceremony, act or contract by which a man a woman who becomes a kind of a agreement on fixed terms, a bond which is expected to be respected and adhered to by both parties to the agreement. Hence, it is customary or common to hear the new family can’t in registries and churches in taking the marriage vow, both the bride and the bride groom usually promise to live together for better for worse for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health till death do them part.
          This vow is interesting to hear when it is being reacted by couples, but sooner or later, one would hear that such a marriage has hit the rock for reasons as numerous as there is broken marriage. Naturally, the ultimate aim of any marriage is the bearing of children which regarded as a divine blessing from God. To appreciate Gods kind gestures both parents and expected to adequately take care of and bring up such children faithfully nature provides the child through the union of two people of the opposite sex the husband and wife. Each normally perform functions that the other can not take on so well and the two joining in functions that can be done better when together,
          A woman maybe able to teach the daughters to be as femininely charming as she is but her sons need a man in their life. A boy does not learn to be a man in their life. A boy does not learn to be a man from his mother rather does a girl learns the principles of woman hood from her father. So it should be born in mind that children require both genders for their emotional psychological and social development. Parents should realize that they are their children is “Idols” who they look up to.
          Any thoughtful parent should be able to recognize the tragedy broken home or marriage brings to the children one of the evil consequences of broken home or marriage in most cases, is that the children are deprived of the influence of other parents since they are in the custody of one parents just as plants must have both sunshine and rain for their growth and the productivity, so also the children require both masculine and feminine components in their development in life. The absence of such a balance may later cause all kind of personality and academic distresses in the children
          There fore it is pertinent to state here that a decision break up a marriage or home is a risk in itself and detrimental to the academic performance of the children whether it is initiated by the woman or man it is therefore necessary for couples who are contemplating divorce to ask themselves these questions. Why much there by a divorce? Why taking this step? What effect is to going to have on our children? In order to curtail the risk of broken home, Couples intending to separate must seek genuine answers to these questions because the consequences of broken home can be grievous for the couples, their children, families indeed, the entire society. Excellence is attributed to some prevailing factors; it is worth while therefore to carryout some useful researches in order to unveil the negative effects of broken homes or marriage have on the academic performance of students with particular reference to college of education Ekiadolor.
1.2 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
          This project is intended or meant to discuss the effect of broken home on the academic performance of students with a view to proffer solution to these ugly effects. The project will undoubtedly serve as a reliable means through which in youths and the entire society can be educated on the hazard of broken home on the performance on students. It is also the belief of the researcher that the findings of this research study will be great benefit to the society in various ways because when the effects of broken homes on the academic performance of the children are known the society will then be in better position to formulate ways and means of solving the problem of divorce, broken homes so as to reduce its effects.
          Another significant aspect of the research study is that it emphasizes the idea of families having to live together, thereby helping to minimize the rate of broken homes in the society. Also if the results of the research study are made available and explained to the society, it is hoped that there will be a drastic reduction in the rate of broken homes in the society. If the findings of this project are made available to the family planning units, it will help in no mean way in education both the married and the unmarried and through them, help to stabilize the family.
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY:  
          The purpose of this research is to trace the effects of broken homes on the academic performance of students with particular reference to college of education Ekiadolor. It is therefore the researches beliefs that the facts that will contained in this project will help in no mean way to vividly bring to limelight the negative effects of broken home on the academic performance of students in college of education Ekiadolor with a view of proffering solution to this ugly situation, this research will also find out the factors responsible for this friend which has become rampant in our society
1.4 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM   
          The academic performance of students from broken home has been falling. This is further compounded with the influence of European culture where exposure to internet information technology, internet with its attendant is nothing to be compared with that of social cultural, values juxtaposes to African marriage values and educational needs. It is hoped that the research findings would go a long way in solving the problem of broken marriages/ homes and also help to guide the society towards maintaining and sustaining better and prosperous united marriages in order to help the students each in their academic careers.
          Nowadays a day hardly passes without a wedding being solemnized in Oredo local government area. The marriages are either solemnized in the churches, the mosques or at home according to the native and customs and the partners involved usually come together for various and diverse reasons. The problem, which have been found to be associated with broken homes, have also attracted to the attention of many sociologist and other scholars. They are of the opinion that the two parent’s family system is the best the child rearing environment. The same school of thought also says that living with one parent is the best and less harmful to children.
          The problem arising from what has been said and the effect on broken homes is:
1.    how is identity the various causes of divorce among couples and how best to work towards minimizing the incidence of divorce because of it affect on the children and the society
2.    how to know the relationship between broken homes could be helped in their children school learning, either by the teacher or the government so that they can become useful citizen
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1.    What are the factors responsible for broken home?
2.    What are the effects of broken home on the family and society?
3.    What effects does broken home have on the academic performance of students in Ekiadolor?
4.    What are the efforts of the society and govvermnment to curb the menace of broken home?
5.    What are the solutions to the problem of broken marriages/home?
1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS
FAMILY: the word family is used in this work to mean a group of person and children who living in one house. In other words family is the union of a husband, wife and the children, (if only) biologically related group, grand parents, and children and relations living in a household, the group that some one grows up in, the group people spend most of their time e.t.c.
BROKEN HOMES: the term broken homes as used here is a home from which one of the parents is absent by reason of death, desertion, separation or divorce.
LEARNING: learning is to mean the behaviour change in the students which is brought about by experiences and usually by an agent external to the students
ENVIRONMENT: this term refers physical, social and cultural, other than hereditary influences, in the development of the child and which can be conducive or un-conducive, favorable or unfavorable.
DEVELOPMENT: development as used here means the physical and mental growth of the students