ABSTRACT
This study was on the evaluation of students achievement in mathematics in the junior secondary school in Ndokwa West local government area. Eight (8) schools where selected, four from urban and four from rural area were selected. The instrument used for the study was the results of year 2011, fro the result of the study and the discussion of findings, it shows that the student academic achievement is poor and the poor is as a result of some influential factors. Such as attitude of students toward the subject mathematics and teachers personality. Then, the researcher there came up with some recommendation and suggestion which can aid the improvement of student’s academic achievement in the junior secondary school result.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION Background of the study Mathematics has played an important role in the educational system of Nigeria. The scientific and technological status of the nation depends on a small; knowledge of mathematics. In history, early measurement approaches for evaluation is based on informal and formal form. The first written best were probably the informally written examination used by Chinese at 2, 200BC. To people into civil services the coral examination initiated by Socrates in the 5th century BC was also inform. In the informal form evaluations were value are assigned by judgment. The formal form of evaluation implies to process of testing in measuring in this examination is conducted to determined the ability of pupils/students. The teacher have been groomed into conducting final examination, reporting the grade, and making the same available to the presents, the actual testing movement as it is known today is less than one hundred year old. In Nigeria, there are much organization as the west Africa Examination Council and the General certificate for education (WAEC/GCE), National Examination council (NECO), the joint Admission and matriculation Board (JAMB). The WAEC was established first in the 31st December, 1951 in Gambia and in Nigeria 1952Neco was established in 2000. JAMB which was established in changes with the responsibility of conducting university common entrance examination exercises. Lastly the junior secondary school certificate examination has first written in the year 1987 from the year 1987 till now is about 22 years, therefore for this reason, this research wok is carried out to evaluate students academic achievement in mathematic in the junior secondary school. I Nigeria, there is a burning desire to make sure that every child has the slightest idea about his environment and the academic achievement of a child. According to Dartan Williams (1990) stated that there is no clear agreement in the dividing line between rural and urban schools. One might note that the term rural school has no concrete numerical limits, dhdsghd green and Sterlen (1988, 11) one certainly might “in the first place of the 69 key report only 27 mention any numbers at all in their analysis of urban versus rural schools. In the second place, the sjhja limits for a “rural” school in those 27 documents ranges from 200 to 100 students and other ranges from “urban” schools is 3000 to 5000 students, William however write that: On average, the research indicates that an effective size from an elementary school is in the range of 300-400 students and that 400-800 students is appropriate for a secondary school (7-8) while many researchers argue that no school should be large than 400-500 students. I use William’s number in this report, since my own sense of the research is very similar. Many parents in the urban and rural areas and some students may not realized the role performance by mathematics in the present day development the fact is that most students enter secondary school without suffering the basic pre-requisite knowledge to cope with the subject mathematics, in addition these students already have their believe that mathematics deals with abstract before coming into secondary schools. Mathematics is very useful and important subject. It is important through all aspect of life. Hence there is need to study mathematics in our schools. Mathematics is defined by advance Learners Dictionary as a science of size and numbers of which arithmetic, algebra, geometry, statistics are components. Mathematics can also be defined as the study of logical consequence sets of axioms and postulates, it comprises of two branches. Analysis and algebra concerned respectively with continuous and discuss variation. Mathematics is the language communication of a society; that is the society that communicates mathematics in positive direction will be a better society in all field of life. The importance of this subject is in all field of life. The importance of this subject cannot be over emphasized because mathematic is an inherentance of the race; therefore mathematic as been existing for long before other subject come into existence in the school curriculum. Mathematics had made it easy to the proper understanding of the formulation and structure of science which has sensed a basic pre-requisite for curriculum planner at the national and local linfh mathematic has recently achieved along with other branches of learning, a new changes in learning have led to the recommendation of the mathematic curriculum. He following list according to Douglas and Ray (1974:349-351) summarizes these needs new skill because of urgent need to develop the natural resources of the country it was felt that emphasis should be placed on functional education that will help utilize the elites of the nation and education that will help create things. The practical need of the nation called for functional, education that is the education in which the ability to perform productive tasks is more emphasized than he education that aim at producing PROPle with gust theoretical minds hence science, holding mathematics have been advocated in recent education expectation for schools. Mathematics is also been found extremely useful in the development scientific knowledge like the discovering of light and sound in physics, in social science, in economics and sociology and in subject related o the earth and its movement in geography. It is well known that mathematics is the language medium for teaching and learning of science an other science related subjects with these put together. It is necessary for the school to take the teaching and learning of mathematics serious with regards to the importance of mathematics above, for any country or society to be technologically self reliant, the role of mathematics cannot be over emphasized. Educationist, past and present seems to ignore importance of mathematics which should be attach to the level of achievement of students performance in urban and rural junior secondary school mathematics examination. Denise C. Golfrideson (1985) states that urban schools appear to promote negative teacher percentage of school administrated and low staff moral. There is less research on school size in relation o smaller school Emberts, Kehoe, Stone (1982), Gottfredson (1985), Gregory (1992), Johnson (1990), Miller, Ellorworth and Litoral (1992), Slockard and Maybeny (1992), these researcher examined administration attitude, their work, administration, and teacher attitude toward their work, these administration and one another as well as the incidence of co-operation. Also, statistics show that it is evident to students school administration and parents that despites the emphasis in making mathematics a compulsory subject and daily taught subject in junior and senior secondary schools. These has been continuous poor academic achievement I mathematic in J.S.S examination take a good look at the evaluation of students is both urban and rural area in Ndokwa West local Government Area of Delta State.
