Research Prospectus On Impact Of School Context And Student Attitude Towards Academic Achievement
Introduction
Much research has been done in the field of academic achievement and many authors have given their suggestions about the factors that influence students within the school environment. Two of these factors include student attitudes and school context. Against this theoretical background, it is necessary to look at how important these two factors are and exactly how those factors affect student outcomes. The aim of the research is to;
- Establish a relationship between students attitude and academic performance
- Establish a relationship between school context and academic performance
- Determine the most influential factor that affects academic success
Theory
Research has shown that a large number of students' performances are affected by their attitudes towards specific subjects, education and academics in general. (Bowen & Richman, 2000) It has been suggested that when students demonstrate week commitment to their academics then they are bound to underperform. Additionally, some students with an unrealistic view of themselves may perform poorly too. For instance, those who tend to be overconfident or naïve about the requirements of their academics may register very poor performance. (Broughton, 2003)Conversely, when students do not believe in themselves or when they have low self confidence, then chances are that they will underachieve. (Powers, 2006) Sometimes some students may think of themselves as people who cannot control their own destiny. They imagine that they are victims of the system and this can lead to academic failure. In other scenarios some students may be too proud to ask for help when they encounter a problem in their studies. (Bowen & Richman, 2000) Also, some students find it difficult to grow or develop because they tend to resist change and this impedes their academic progress. In other situations, a student may not work well in groups yet this is a necessary part of the academic environment. Lastly, some students tend to avoid those areas where they perform poorly such as in science or mathematics. These and many more aspects of student's attitudes can be causes of academic failure.
School context is depicted through certain avenues. These avenues can either lead to excellent performance or poor performance depending on how they are implemented. (Powers, 2006) In certain schools, the system may be too bureaucratic to the point that both teachers and students cannot do their jobs. This eventually leads to poor performance. (Bowen & Richman, 2000) In other situations, teachers lack the skills to impart knowledge and this may cause failures. Likewise, some teachers may be disengaged with their students and this brings about problems in the end. (Broughton, 2003)Additionally, there are certain school environments that are influenced by the external world to such a large extent that the students cannot concentrate on what they are meant to do. Such schools lack discipline. (Broughton, 2003) Some school environments may have certain levels of segregation and this impedes academic success. (Broughton, 2003)
Significance of study
Upon completion of this study the research may lay out clear causes of academic failure thus facilitating change in school environments. The research may assist teachers in formulating strategies to deal with attitudinal and contextual problems. Additionally, the research will transform traditional ways of thinking about education. It might remove stereotypical notions or ideas held by stakeholders in education. The research may also encourage greater investment in the psychological development of the student because it will review some of the pre-existing psychological attitudes that could be hindering academic excellence.
Methodology
The research is based on the latter mentioned literature. Consequently, the purpose of the research is to affirm pre-existing theory on factors that affect academic success. Because of the nature of this investigation, it will be necessary to perform a qualitative rather than a quantitative study.
This study will entail the use of two types of methodology. The first will be through primary research while the second will be through secondary research. In the primary research, data will be obtained through face to face interviews. Students, teachers and administrators will be asked about the aspects of students' attitudes that affect academic achievement. Additionally, the latter groups will also be asked about the role of school context in academic achievement. Thereafter, they will be required to give their opinions about the most influential factors among the two in their respective schools.
The second part of the research will be done though an examination of student reports in a specific school. This will entail obtaining requests from the school administration to utilize their resources in the research. Academic achievement of the participating students will be analyzed for one year while comparing that to certain indicators of school attitude and school context. A relationship will then be established between these factors. (Powers, 2006)
Limitations
Qualitative interviews are generally more difficult to analyze because responses obtained are quite varied. However, answers will be clustered into similar groups to try and establish a relationship between the parameters. Additionally, student attitude and school context are both complex parameters i.e. they are denoted by other sub-factors. It will be difficult to determine which factors are most important and which ones are not.
Delimitations
Since the secondary aspect of the research will involve only one school, then it may be difficult to transfer results for the relationship between student attitude and respective student achievement to the entire student population. In relation to this, the issue of school context will also be a problem in secondary research owing to the fact that there will be no comparison with others schools.
Conclusion
The research's major aim is to establishing a link between school context, student attitude and academic achievement. This might enable teachers/ administrators/ stakeholders to look for ways of enhancing academic achievement. The major limitations of the study revolve around data analysis and data collection while the delimitation will be brought by secondary research which be conducted in only one school.
References
Bowen, L. & Richman, M. (2000): middle schools student's perceptions of the school environment, Journal of social work in education, 13, 22, 69-82
Broughton, A. (2003): The school success profile, Technology in Human services Journal, 21, 1, 11
Powers, J. (2006): Assessing the functioning of schools as learning organizations, Journal for schools and children, 13, 29, 208
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