THE EFFECT OF WORKING CLASS MOTHERS ON THEIR CHILDREN ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of working class mothers on their children academic performance in Odeda Local Government Area of Abeokuta in Ogun State. Five secondary schools where selected out of the numerous secondary school in Odeda Local Government. Questionnaire was used to collect data and these data were analyzed using percentage. The result indicates that children whose mothers combine the roles of working class and motherhood perform very well in the school than the children of full working class mothers who spent most of their time outside the home. The researcher also made some useful suggestions and recommendations which I sincerely believe would help to minimize, the rate of poor performance of children in Odeda Local Government Area of Abeokuta in particular and Nigeria in general, if they are strictly adhered to some of these recommendations are; the working class mother’s should have time to supervise their children academic work in school, and teachers, on the other hand, should learn how to call the attention of parents to their children academic performance, their behaviour and attitude in school among others.      

CHAPTER ONE

1.0     INTRODUCTION

1.1     BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The home is the house apartment or place where a child or children live with his or her parents. The fundamental social roles of women are to bear and raise children that will engage in productive task within the household and society at large. Traditionally mothers are expected to participate or involve in social activities or job that could call for her absence in the house environment, that fact is evident in women been employed or engaged in various activities likes, labour, manual, while collar and civil job. Many parents have the dreams of successful life for their children which actually inspired the children to perform better.

However, as the relatively achievement of working class mothers has been associated with family culture and influence this in turn, raises functions about mothers experience in the contemporary family. The working class mother according to British Journal Sociology of Education says eighter (traditional (retaining traditional gender relations). And there are some factors which were identified as contributing to as “traditional” life trajectory for a working – class mother and the author concludes that while neither traditional nor traditional working class mother might become greatly involved in formed aspects of schooling, and it is clear that this relationship with their children strongly influence their academic experience or performance and also some of the working class mothers perform poorly chic to lack of full attention on their children and enough fine for the working class mother to stay with their children at home. Hence, this has contributed to lack of proper motherly care and peer feeing which results at times to permanent physical handicap or unit duely death, peer development of language skill i.e. with special regard to their mother-tongue or language of their environment due to turning of signals into words for the infant ones.

1.2     STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This project is designed to examine the effects of working class mother on their children’s academic performance specifically, this research work will find answers to the following questions:

i.                    What are the implications of a working class mother in the family?

ii.                  What are the merits and demerits by the working class mother in the family?

iii.                What are the various occupations that can likely influence children’s academic performance? 

iv.                What influence does the working class mother have on their children’s academic performance?

v.                  Why does working class mother prefer to engage in occupation rather than the domestic activities and responsibilities?

1.3     PURPOSE OF THE STUDY 

The purpose of this research is to outline how the various kinds of working class mother influence their children performance in school and how mother who engage in “dual occupation” are able to cater for them children’s academic performance and moral development.

1.4     RESEARCH QUESTIONS 

i.                    What effects would the absence of working class mothers have on the moral training of their children during their official working hairs?

ii.                  What are the major differences between the academic performance of children of career women and those of non-career women?

iii.                What are the reasons why mothers can not do without working or participating in any working activities?

iv.                What are the factors militating against academic performance of children whose mother are gainfully employed?

v.                  What are the effects of domestic activities on the performance of a working mother in her place of work|?

1.5     SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The focus of this project is on the effect of working class mother on their children academic performance in Odeda Local Government Area of Abeokuta, Ogun State in Nigeria, and this study is limited to working class mother’s in Odeda Local Government Area only. Such as teacher, nurses, bank officials, policewoman and petty traders.

1.6     SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The finding of this study will enlighten adolescent and especially student in secondary schools to know the effects of working class mother on their own academic performance. It will also guide parents and guardians on  how to assist, or find time or spend more time with their children in other for their children to achieve their aims and objective and to perform very well in their academic performance.

1.7     DEFINITION OF TERM

For the purpose of clarify; some terms used in this study would be defined as follows:

Family: According to Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English define family as a group of people who are related to each other, especially a mother, a father and their children.

Family is also a group of people united by ties of marriage, blood, interaction and inter-communication with one another in their respective social relations.

According to Mr. Isaac Sobola define family as the corner stone of a society because without family there will be no society and without society there will be no family.

Working/class: Engaged in work or working activities social class employed, especially in manual or industrial work, for wages.

These are group of people in the society who traditionally do work and do not have much more or power.       

Performance: It is academic acts that tend towards or against achieving a set standard or goal in the process of education.

Dual/occupation: This refers to acts of a woman being a mother at home and at the same time engaging in an employment outside the home.

Domestic work: This is linked with the various homes keeping or cleaning performance by mothers both before and after their routine official work. These are often performed on daily basis , such includes preparing meals for the family, washing dirty plates and clothes, fetching water, and taking care of children etc.