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www.ccsenet.org/ass Asian Social Science Vol. 7, No. 7; July 2011
ISSN 1911-2017 E-ISSN 1911-2025
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School Facilities and Academic Achievement of Secondary School
Agricultural Science in Ekiti State, Nigeria
Joseph Sunday Owoeye PhD
Kampala International University, Kampala, Uganda
Tel: 256-7-7543-4483 E-mail: drjsowoeye@yahoo.com
Philias Olatunde Yara PhD
Kampala International University, Kampala, Uganda
Tel: 256-7-8310-4687 E-mail: yaraphilias@yahoo.com
Received: December 15, 2010 Accepted: January 19, 2011 doi:10.5539/ass.v7n7p64
Abstract
The study looked at the provision of facilities as it relates to academic performance of students in agricultural
science in Ekiti state of Nigeria between 1990 and 1997. The study population was results of the West African
School Certificate Examinations (WASCE) conducted between 1990 and 1997 in 50 secondary schools in both
rural and urban areas of the state. One validated instrument (ST Q F) was used for data collection. One
hypothesis was formulated and answered. Data were analysed using mean and t – test. The results showed that
there were no significant differences in the performance of students between rural and urban secondary schools
in term of availability of library facilities (t = 1.79, p<0.05), availability of textbooks (t= 1.20; p <0.05) and
availability of laboratory facilities (t= 1.83, p<0.05). It has been established that facilities are potent to high
academic achievement of students; therefore, Ekiti State Government should provide adequate material resources
to rural/urban locations to enhance teaching and learning processes. The Parent Teacher Association (PTA),
philanthropist and other charitable organizations are also implored to compliment the effort of the government to
boost the performance of students in SSCE.
Keywords: School facilities, Academic achievement, Agricultural science, Secondary school, Ekiti state
Introduction
School facilities have been observed as a potent factor to quantitative education. The importance to teaching and
learning of the provision of adequate instructional facilities for education cannot be over-emphazied. The dictum
that “teaching is inseparable from learning but learning is not separable from teaching” is that teachers do the
teaching to make the students learn, but students can learn without the teachers. According to Akande (1985),
learning can occur through one’s interaction with one’s environment. Environment here refers to facilities that
are available to facilitate students learning outcome. It includes books, audio-visual, software and hardware of
educational technology; so also, size of classroom, sitting position and arrangement, availability of tables, chairs,
chalkboards, shelves on which instruments for practicals are arranged (Farrant, 1991 and Farombi, 1998).
According to Oni (1992), facilities constitute a strategic factor in organizational functioning. This is so because
they determine to a very large extent the smooth functioning of any social organization or system including
education. He further stated that their availability, adequacy and relevance influence efficiency and high
productivity. In his words, Farombi (1998) opined that the wealth of a nation or society could determine the
quality of education in that land; emphasizing that a society that is wealthy will establish good schools with
quality teachers, learning infrastructures that with such, students may learn with ease thus bringing about good
academic achievement. Writing on the role of facilities in teaching, Balogun (1982) submitted that no effective
science education programme can exist without equipment for teaching. This is because facilities enable the
learner to develop problem-solving skills and scientific attitudes. In their contribution, Ajayi and Ogunyemi
(1990) reiterated that when facilities are provided to meet relative needs of a school system, students will not
only have access to the reference materials mentioned by the teacher, but individual students will also learn at
their own paces. The net effect of this is increased overall academic performance of the entire students.
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In his study on resource concentration, utilization and management as correlates of students learning outcomes in
Oyo State, Farombi (1998) found that the classroom learning environment in some schools was poor. He cited
examples of schools without chalkboard, absence of ceiling, some roofing sheets not in place, windows and
doors removed among others, a situation which the researcher regarded as hazardous to healthy living of the
learners. According to Nigerian Tribune on Thursday 25 November 1999, in caption; Mass Failure will Continue
until…” the chairman of the National Committee of WAEC, Dr. U.B Ahmed opined that the classroom is the
origin of failure… a close look at the public schools and what goes on there shows that nothing good can come
out of most schools as they do not have facilities, adequate and appropriate human resources to prepare
candidates for WASCE.
The above statement indicates that the problem of candidates’ mass failure in WAEC’s organized examination
will continue until the situation of the nation’s public schools change for the better. Writing on how to improve
primary education in developing countries, World Bank publication (1990), citing Mwamwenda and
Mwamwenda (1987) linked performance of students to the provision of adequate facilities while referring to a
survey of 51 primary schools in Botswana that students performed significantly better on academic tests when
they had adequate classrooms, desks and books. Earlier, Fagbamiye (1979) attesting to why students’
performance standard fall observed 559 cases from 13 secondary schools in Lagos State using age, type of
school (Day or Boarding, mixed or single sex), teachers qualification and teaching experience as well as intake
quality using students’ entrance examination achievement. His findings revealed that schools which are equipped
had good records of achievement and attracted more students. He concluded that good quality schools in terms
of facilities and younger students’ intake perform better in WASCE.
Commenting on why high academic attainment is not in vogue in Nigeria, Adesina (1981) identified poor and
inadequate physical facilities, obsolete teaching techniques… overcrowded classrooms among others, as factors.
Throwing more light on school facilities and moral guiding provision, Fabunmi (1997) asserted that school
facilities when provided will aid teaching learning programme and consequently improve academic achievement
of students while the models guiding their provision to schools could take any form as rational bureaucratic and
or political model. Whichever model is adopted, according to him, there is always a common feature of differing
allocation of facilities to schools. In his words, Ojoawo (1990), however, noted that certain schools are favored
in the allocation of facilities at the expense of others. Writing on poor performance of students in public
examinations, London (1993) stated that in many developing nations certain physical facilities are none existent,
and that those instances where amenities are available many are of sub standard quality. What is even more
alarming is the correlation, which these observers claim to exist between quality of facilities and academic
performance. Lamenting on the glowing inadequacies of school facilities in our educational industry, Akinkugbe
(1994) opined that everywhere you look, primary, secondary, special, technical, tertiary, there is abundant
evidence of crippling inertia, criminal neglect and a pervasive decay in values and standard.
Other scholars (Wilcockson 1994, Lawal 1995, Ajayi 1996, Suleiman 1996) have variously identified the
significance of facilities in teaching learning spheres. We can say that absence or poor (and or deteriorating)
quality of educational facilities can affect academic performance. Gamoran (1992), however, holding a contrary
view noted that facilities… teachers’ salaries, books in the library and the presence of science laboratory, had
little impact on variation in student achievement once student background variables had been taken into account.
This statement connotes that before such student could perform well in higher educational level, he must have
been groomed or cushioned by availability of resources in his elementary days upon which he now uses as spring
board. According to Hallak (1990), facilities form one of the potent factors that contribute to academic
achievement in the school system. They include the school buildings, classroom, accommodation, libraries,
laboratories, furniture, recreational equipment, apparatus and other instructional materials. He went further to say
that their availability, relevance and adequacy contribute to academic achievement. He however, quickly added
that unattractive school buildings and overcrowded classrooms among others contribute to poor academic
attainment. Describing where these facilities should be located, he ascribed that educational facilities should be
located in appropriate places, while the needs of the users should be put into consideration. In another
development, Aliyu (1993) as cited by Johnson (1998) found that there was no significant difference between
students in secondary schools with and without adequate instructional facilities. However, he submitted that
instructional facilities were indispensible to academic achievement of students in English Language,
Mathematics, Biology and Geography while students could perform well in other subjects without adequacy of
sophisticated instructional materials. He concluded that the effect of instructional facilities on students’ academic
achievement is more felt in pure and social sciences.
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In a comparative study on correlates of school extrinsic variables with students academic attainment in science
using a target population of 182 Secondary Schools with 20 schools randomly chosen to represent each of the
three science subjects; Physics, Chemistry, and Biology in Bendel State. Arubayi (1987) found a positive
relationship between the independent variables of laboratory facilities; recommended textbooks, number of
science books in the library and teachers’ qualifications and the dependent variable, the academic achievement
of students in physics, Chemistry, and Biology. From the various facts highlighted above, attempt will be made
to identify the contributions of some elements that constitute these facilities and their impact on academic
achievement of students. They are; Libraries, Textbooks, School buildings, Laboratories.
Libraries and Academic Achievement
Oxford advanced learners dictionary described a library as a building or room in which collection of books, tapes,
newspapers etc. are kept for people to read, study or borrow.
Library is an essential factor in teaching-learning process. It forms one of the most important educational
services. The educational process functions in a world of books. The chief purpose of a school library is to make
available to the pupil, at his easy convenience, all books, periodicals and other reproduced materials which are of
interest and value to him but which are not provided or assigned to him as basic or supplementary textbooks. The
importance of library has been demonstrated by the government when she expressed in the National Policy on
Education (NPE) that every state Ministry needs to provide funds for the establishment of libraries in all her
educational institutions and to train librarians and library assistants. As a resource, it occupies a central and
primary place in any school system. It supports all functions of school-teaching and provides service and
guidance to its readers. According to Fowowe (1988) a library must be up-to-date and at the same time allow
access to older materials. It must be properly supported financially to fund materials and services among others.
While itemizing the types of libraries, Ola (1990) opined that secondary school library in whatever form, has
replaced the traditional method of ‘chalk and talk’ in imparting knowledge to students that its effect on academic
performance need not to be over-emphasized. He concluded that a well equipped library is a major facility which
enhances good learning and achievement of high educational standard. In his words, Farombi (1998) reiterated
that school libraries may not be effective if the books therein are not adequate and up-to-date as its impact may
only be meaningful if the library could be opened to the students always for a considerable length of time in a
school day. With all the above mentioned facts, it is sad to know that many schools operate without libraries
(Shodimu, 1998) whereas Ogunseye (1986) had earlier noted that total absence of an organized school library
would continue to spell dooms for thousands of secondary school students. This statement clearly implied that
many schools operate without libraries and had affected the academic performance of their students.
Moreover, Fuller (1986) identified a school library as an instructional resource which may significantly influence
pupils’ achievement after controlling for pupils’ family background. He found that effect of library size and its
activity have been positive in 15 out of 18 analyses. Also, in his study on the relationship between instructional
facilities and academic performance, Popoola (1989) discovered that library correlates with academic
achievement and those schools with well equipped library normally maintain high academic performance.
In another study on raising school quality in developing countries, Fuller (1985) found that collection of books
kept for reading in the library is related to performance. Reporting the state of library in Lagos Secondary
Schools, Shodimu (1998) submitted that the guidelines that each school should be provided with a library with
100 students seating capacity was not followed as most of the schools he sampled had seating capacity of less
than 100 students.
Textbooks and Academic Achievement
A textbook constitutes an important tool for academic achievement. Many writers (Heyneman and Loxley 1982,
Walberg 1984, Beeby 1986) have variously highlighted the contribution of textbooks to academic achievement.
Studies have revealed in some instances, that textbooks provide the only source of information for students as
well as the course of study for the subject. Exploring the effects of textbooks and other factors on student
achievement gain, Lockheed et.al (1986) found in their longitudinal data from a national sample of eight grade
Mathematics classrooms in Thailand that textbooks may affect achievement by substituting for additional post
Secondary Mathematics education of teachers and by delivering a more comprehensive curriculum. Earlier in his
own contribution, Altbach (1983) opined that “nothing has ever replaced the printed word as the key element in
the educational process and, as a result, textbooks are central to schooling at all levels”. In his empirical studies
of use of textbooks and educational achievement involving 1,006 primary school pupils, Fuller (1985) revealed
that students who had used more than two textbooks were almost three times as likely to pass… 67 per cent
graduating examination compared to students who had no textbooks in schools (only 24 per cent graduating).
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Squire (1991), writing on teachers reliance on textbooks, stated that those seeking to improve the quality of
education believed that improvements in instructional materials would inevitably lead to changes in actual
teaching. For many teachers, textbook can provide an excellent and useful resource, without usurping the
position of the teacher. While the selection of a textbook has been adjudged to be of vital importance to
academic achievement, it is sad to say that relevant textbooks are not available for teaching and learning
activities (Soyibo 1987, Odulaja and Ogunwemimo 1989). Lack of textbooks could be identified with the high
costs. When this happens, he further noted that students cannot afford to purchase, the implication therefore is
that the teacher will serve as the only source of information. Where the teacher is the only source of information
his selection of a textbook may be biased. Biased in the sense that his selection may be based on reasonably
unsatisfactory criteria such as its attractiveness in terms of color, print, photograph, the author’s qualifications
and the recognition he has accorded in some other publications. In his study on resources and resources
utilization as correlates on academic achievement, Oni (1992), reported that there was a significant relationship
between recommended textbooks and academic performance in introductory technology, Business Studies and
Home Management respectively.
School Building and Academic Achievement
Many research findings have shown that the success of any educational endeavor rest on the availability of
physical facilities especially the school building. Writing on its importance, Olutola (1982), noted that the
availability of the school building and other plans contribute to good academic performance as they enhance
effective teaching-learning activities. He further stated that well sited school buildings with aesthetic conditions,
playground, lavatory, etc. according to the scholar usually contribute to achieving higher educational attainment
by the students. Throwing more light on this, the Encyclopedia of Educational Research recorded that the total
environment within a school building should be comfortable, pleasant and psychological uplifting. It should
provide a passive physical setting that is educationally stimulating, it should produce a feeling of well-being
among its occupants, and it should support the educational process (p.1156). The above condition can only be
met through the cooperative efforts of imaginative teachers, administrators and a creative knowledgeable
architect.
Tracing the history of school building to the past to give credence to above statement, Samuel (1997) noted that
school sites were arbitrarily chosen with little or no consideration for architects, consultants, engineers, and
administrators, among others. He observed the flaws as a huge waste of scarce resources. Earlier in his study,
Williams (1973) succinctly said that school buildings are very vital input to educational system; emphasizing
that even though they do not teach but their use may facilitate or impede learning. However, he did not see
school building as one of the critical variables affecting school academic achievement because he found no
evidence to show that an expensive school building would necessarily improve academic achievement. Giving
credence to the above finding, Owoeye (1991) in his submission, expressed skepticism about any useful
relationship between such expensive structures and academic achievement.
Also, in his report on secondary school education in Nigeria, Adaralegbe (1983) reiterated that from Inspector’s
reports over the years, there is abundant evidence and catalogue of inadequacies in the provision and judicious
use of school buildings and materials for instruction. He went further to say that many classes have been held
under unhygienic conditions while some schools have no ceiling, some have no doors and windows have no
shutters and some classroom floors have not been concreted. The situation is even worst in rural areas and under
these unfavourable situations; much learning cannot be expected to take place. As a result of this deplorable
condition, Obemeata (1995) submitted that only a small proportion of secondary school products are qualified to
enter the University in Nigeria. Akinwumiju and Orimoloye (1987) opined that education institutions from
Nursery to University require buildings for their effective operations. Classrooms, offices, assembly halls,
laboratories and staff quarters are needed…important items like furniture for staff and students, books, science
equipment, games and sport equipment should be adequate in number and they should all be in good conditions
for schools to function properly. Writing on the deplorable state of public schools in Nigeria, Ogunmoyela (1994)
lamented that school buildings of public schools have no roof, windows and doors, some walls are cracked,
instructional facilities are lacking while teachers are frustrated consequent upon lack of equipment/facilities to
meet educational endeavours. Comparing schools in developing countries with what obtains in industrialized
world, in terms of facilities, materials, utilization, and provision. Akintayo (1997) opined that schooling in
developing countries like Nigeria takes place under condition that are very different from those in industrialized
countries like Great Britain. He further stated that primary school pupils in developed countries are likely to go
to school in modern well-equipped buildings and to have a curriculum that is well thought out in terms of scope
and sequence. In line with the above, Lockheed and Verspoor (1991) stated that on the average they receive 900
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hours a year of learning time. The situation is not the same in Nigeria, both primary and secondary schools in
Nigeria in particularly Ekiti State battle with dilapidated buildings as well as incessant strike action for upward
of three to six months that students’ average attendance per session is very poor and discouraging.
Laboratory and Academic Achievement
Laboratory has been conceptualized as a room or a building specially built for teaching by demonstration of
theoretical phenomenon into practical terms. Farombi (1998) argued the saying that “seeing is believing” as the
effect of using laboratories in teaching and learning of science and other science related disciplines as students
tend to understand and recall what they see than what they hear or were told. Laboratory is essential to the
teaching of sciences and the success of any science course is much dependent on the laboratory provision made
for it. Affirming this, Ogunniyi (1983) said there is a general consensus among science educators that the
laboratory occupies a central position in science instruction. It could be described as a place where theoretical
work is practicalized whereas practicals in any learning experience involves students in activities such as
observing, counting, measuring, experimenting, recording, observation and carrying out field work. These
activities are totally different from the theoretical work which involves listening to talks and taking down notes
from such talks.
According to Ango (1986) laboratory work
Stimulates learners’ interests as they are made to personally engage in useful scientific activities and
experimentation;
Promotes that science is not only products or process;
Affords the learner the basic skills and scientific method of problem solving;
Knowledge obtained through laboratory work promotes long term memory.
Laboratory helps to provide a forum wherein the learner is given the exercise to subjects, his beliefs, ideas,
statements, theoretical propositions etc. to some forms of experimental test (Soyibo, 1990). To maintain and
arouse the interests of students in subjects involving laboratory work, the teacher should be effectively involved
in order to transfer knowledge and facts to learners for a good performance in any examinations. In line with this,
one then pauses to ask, to what extent has laboratory been able to achieve its objectives. Odulaja and
Ogunwemimo (1989) highlighted that the teacher assumes a position of dispenser of knowledge with the
laboratory serving the function of drill or verification. They further explained that at the other extreme, the
teacher assumes the position of guide to learning and laboratory as a place where knowledge is discovered.
However, there are growing evidences that teachers do not exhibit behaviours which are complementary to
achieving the stated objectives. They include methods of teaching practical work; inadequacy or absence of
well-equipped laboratories; high enrollment of students; inadequacy of resources for teaching and learning
practical work; quantity and quality of teachers.
Nwachukwu (1984) discovered in her survey of the resources for the teaching and learning of Biology in some
of the new secondary schools in Lagos that there was a general inadequacy of resources. She also found out
among other things that (a) out of 80 per cent of the old schools that accepted as having laboratories, none had a
well-equipped laboratory and (b) 40 per cent of the schools had no laboratory at all, while the remaining 60 per
cent had rooms labeled “laboratory” without adequate apparatus, she concluded that teaching of Biology
practical by teachers would be difficult and that students learning experiences would be limited. In his
contribution, Balogun (1982) submitted that no effective science education programme can exist without
equipment for teaching. Writing on the situation of our secondary schools today, Okoli (1995) reported that
laboratories have become shelves of empty bottles of chemicals. In terms of academic achievement, Soyibo and
Nyong (1984) have shown that schools with well-equipped laboratories have better results in the school
certificate science examinations than those that are ill-equipped. Corroborating this, Gana (1997) reiterated that
students instructed entirely by the laboratory methods had higher attitude’s scores but lower achievement scores
than students instructed entirely by the traditional lecture or textbook mode. Yadar (2007) opines that no course
in science and mathematics can be considered as complete without including some practical work. The practical
work ought to be carried out by individuals either in science laboratories or in classes. At school level, practical
work is even more important because of the fact that we learn by doing. Scientific practices and applications are
thus rendered more meaningful. It is an established truth that an object handled impresses itself more firmly on
the mind than the object merely seen from a distance or in an illustration. Thus practical work forms an
important feature in any science and mathematics course (UNESCO, 2008). In view of these different and
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conflicting findings, the study found the relationship between teachers’ quality and students’ academic
achievement.
Method and material
Research Questions
The study answered the following research hypothesis.
There is no significant difference between rural and urban secondary schools in term of availability of library
facilities, availability of textbooks and availability of laboratory facilities.
Research Design
The research design for this study is descriptive survey design of the ex-post facto type. This is because the
researchers will not be able to manipulate the variables for the simple reason that they have already occurred.
Population and sampling procedure
The research respondents for this study were final year students of schools in the rural and urban areas of Ekiti
state, Nigeria. A total of 50 secondary schools formed the target population comprising 4 Federal unity schools
and 46 public schools. The schools were those that sat for the West African School Certificate Examinations
(WASCE) between 1990 and 1997.
Instrument
The research instrument was Student and Teacher Questionnaire on Facilities (STQF) designed by the
researchers. It has section A with seven items dealing with profile of the respondents such as gender, age, school
type (rural/urban), and grade among others. Section B has 12 items that measured availability of facilities like
laboratories, school building, textbooks and libraries. The respondents were asked to respond to the questions on
a four point Likert scale of strongly agree, agree, disagree and strongly disagree.
Results
The results of the findings are presented below.
There is no significant difference between rural and urban secondary schools in term of availability of library
facilities, availability of textbooks, availability of laboratory facilities and academic performance in agricultural
science. The findings are answered using tables 1, 2 and 3.
From Table 1, a comparison of the mean score of rural and urban schools in terms of availability of library
facilities showed a no significant result. The mean for the rural school achievement score was 1:100 while the
urban had an achievement score of 1.350, a mean difference of 20 and a t-value of 1.79. Considering the mean
score of the rural urban, this result suggests that they are not well disposed to library facilities. This was found
not to be significant at 0.05 alpha level as indicated in table 1 (i.e. t=1.79, not significant at p<0.05). From the
result, it shows that there is no significant difference between rural and urban secondary schools in term of
availability of library facilities, availability of textbooks and availability of laboratory facilities.
Table 2 showed a comparison between rural and the urban schools in terms of textbooks availability. The result
showed a mean score of 1.0.667 with standard deviation of 0.3665 for 29 rural schools while the mean score
of1.200 with standard deviation of 0.410 for 21 urban schools was recorded. With 48 (DF) the result upholds the
view that a rural and urban secondary schools do not differ significantly in terms of availability of textbooks (t=
1.20; not significant at P <0.05). The result showed that there is no significant difference between rural and
urban secondary schools in term of availability of library facilities, availability of textbooks and availability of
laboratory facilities.
Table 3 showed the significant difference in terms of availability of laboratory facilities between rural and urban
schools in the area covered by the study. The t-test result showed a mean score of 1.1000 with standard deviation
of 0.305 for the observed 29 rural schools while a mean score of 1.300 with a standard deviation of 0.470 was
recorded for 21 urban schools in the area covered by the study. With 48 degree of freedom (DF) the result shows
that rural and urban secondary schools do not differ significantly in terms of availability of laboratory facilities
(t=1.83, not significant at p<0.05). This showed that there is no significant difference between rural and urban
secondary schools in term of availability of library facilities, availability of textbooks and availability of
laboratory facilities.
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Discussions
The analyses in tables 1 to 3 clearly indicate that there are no significant difference between availability of
facilities in rural and urban secondary school locations and that rural and urban secondary schools do not differ
significantly in terms of availability of library facilities, textbooks and laboratory facilities. Although availability
of facilities have been found to influence both efficiency and productivity (Oni, 1992), it has also been found to
influence learning (Farombi 1998) but the findings of this study have revealed that availability of facilities in
both rural and urban locations in Ekiti State have no significant difference. From the researcher’s personal
experience, most of these materials that were even claimed to be available apart from being inadequate were
obsolete. In fact, some of the schools used for this study had between two to five microscopes of different sizes
but were non-functional. The irony of it is that these schools claimed to have such equipment available for use.
The situation in the libraries is not different as they contain few books supplied by the state government packed
inside cartons of beverages. The findings therefore confirm the submission of Sofolahan, the Chairman of the
National Task Force on implementation of the new Educational Policy, the 6-3-3-4 (cited in Adedeji 1998) that
what we have today apart from Federal Government colleges are ‘barren’ schools which lack the bare necessities
and as such the children are not getting enough good education.
The findings also agreed with the findings of Ajayi (1987) and Ahmed (1999) that linked the decline in students’
academic achievement with non-availability of teaching materials, non- availability of class rooms, libraries and
laboratories, among others. It also agrees with Ibukun (1983) who found that resource situation in Ondo State
Secondary Schools was not significantly favourable – staff quality was not significantly high while material
resource was not significantly favourable. The findings also confirmed the observation of Durosaro (1985) who
in his study on performance of students in vocational education opined that there was no distinct budget for
secondary schools in Bendel State, his study area, pointing out that only about 1% of school expenditure went to
materials and equipment would be announced on the radio and television as being provided to all schools which
is mere propaganda; whereas these materials are purely inadequate. He concluded that this type of expenditure
would have negative effect on the academic achievement of students. The findings also lend credence to the
submission of Akinwumiju and Orimoloye (1987) and Obilade (1989) that items like books, teaching aids and
educational materials were not only unavailable and those available were grossly insufficient, under utilised and
poorly managed. They concluded that such situation would result in sharp decline in the quality of the
professionals and students that graduate from our educational institutions.
The insignificant difference between availability of facilities in rural and urban secondary schools also support
the findings of Jencks et al (1972) that the students characteristics are more significantly related to academic
performance of students, and that the other educational inputs in terms of human and material resources allocated
to schools are either ‘secondary or irrelevant’ to student learning. Similarly, the findings can be linked with the
report from Economic Commission for Africa (ECA cited in Johnson 1998) that the quality of West Africa
secondary education has suffered partly due to inadequate teaching aids and partly due to poorly equipped
laboratories and technical workshops.
The finding is also in consonant with Johnson (1998) who found no significant relationship between school
physical facilities and the students’ academic achievement the SC/GCE English Language Examinations in State
Secondary Schools and associated it with non-availability and poor condition of such physical facilities as
buildings furniture and fittings, sanitation equipment and playgrounds in many secondary Schools. The finding is
also in line with the findings of Hallam (1969). The results of this study is in consonant with the findings of Yara
and Otieno (2010) who found out that classroom/laboratories and textbooks/student-ratio could be used to
predict academic performance in mathematics in secondary schools in Bondo district of Kenya. The findings
also corroborate Oni’s (1992) submission that although there was a difference between urban and rural schools
in the supply / acquisition of material resources, there was no difference among the zones. He concluded that an
urban or rural school remained the same; irrespective of the zone such a school might be located. The findings
also corroborate Aliyu’s (1993) who submitted that there was no significant difference between students in
secondary schools with or without adequate instructional facilities. He, however, noted that instructional
facilities are very indispensable to students’ academic achievement in English, Mathematics, Biology, and
Geography while students can still perform well in History and Economics without adequate sophisticated
materials. However, the findings disagrees with Johnson (1998) who found a significant relationship between
instructional materials and students’ academic achievement in English Language and Mathematics examinations
under schools with adequate instructional materials stressing that result higher than what he got could not be
obtained as a result of inadequate or lack of instructional materials. He concluded that the resultant effect might
also be due to inadequate utilization of the available instructional materials. The finding also lends credence to
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Ayodele (1988) who submitted that the drift to the urban areas in recent years had resulted in gross inadequacy
of facilities in most urban areas.
Conclusion
The study has also proven that school facilities were the most potent determinant of academic achievement.
Facilities in terms of qualifications of personnel, who are directly involved in the pedagogy; laboratory, library,
school buildings, chairs/tables, administrative blocks, chalk-board, school maps and the likes are very crucial to
high academic attainment. The study indicates that achievement is a function of availability of facilities to
students in unity schools compared with public schools. Experience cannot be ruled out in this study, however,
as an important factor in achieving academic excellence. It has been established that facilities are potent to high
academic achievement of students; therefore, Ekiti State Government should provide adequate material resources
to rural urban locations to enhance teaching and learning processes. The Parent Teacher Association (PTA),
philanthropist and other charitable organizations are also implored to compliment the effort of the government to
boost the performance of students in SSCE.
There are some facilities that could be improved by the teachers and the students in order to facilitate teaching
and learning hence such facilities should be provided by the teachers and students respectively.
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Table 1. Availability of Library Facilities in Rural and Urban schools
*sig at p < 0.05
Table 2. Textbooks Availability in Rural and Urban Schools Compared
Variable N Mean SD DF T-value Sig T P
Rural 29 1.0667 0.365
48 1.20 0.235 NS
Urban 21 1.2000 0.410
*sig at p < 0.05
Table 3. Availability of Laboratory Facilities in Rural and Urban Schools Compared
*sig at p < 0.05
Variable N Mean SD DF T-value Sig T P
Rural 29 1.100 0.481
48 1.79 0.08 NS
Urban 21 1.350 0.489
Variable N Mean SD DF T-value Sig T P
Rural 29 1.1000 0.305
48 1.83 0.074 NS
Urban 21 1.3000 0.470
