Effect Of Divorce And Separation On Adult Learners Academic Performance In Ovia North East L.G.A, Edo State

Effect Of Divorce And Separation On Adult Learners Academic Performance In Ovia North East L.G.A, Edo State
Abstract
The study examined the effect of divorce and separation on adult learners academic performance in Ovia North East LGA. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The study population comprises of adult learners in the school of continuing education in Ovia North East LGA. A random sampling technique was used, 300 students were randomly selected. A questionnaire was the main instrument used for the study. Findings showed there is significant relationship between divorce and separation and academic performance of adult learners(r=.505, N=300, p<0.5) the null hypothesis is rejected while the alternate hypothesis is accepted, significant relationship between Divorce and separation and the social relationship of the adult learners(r=.466, N=300, p<0.5), the result is significant at 0.05 level, therefore, the null hypothesis is rejected while the alternate hypothesis is accepted and Finally, this result revealed that there is significant relationship between Divorce and separation and the social relationship of the adult learners(r=.544, N=210, p<0.5), the null hypothesis is rejected while the alternate hypothesis is accepted. The study therefore recommended that Counselors, psychologists, social workers and teachers should identify students from divorced families and counsel them and the separated parents should also be counseled on their social needs so that their academic work will not suffer at school, to reduce divorce or separation rates, couples should have enough time for each other and made love and understanding the corner stone of their marriage. For instance, there should effective communication among couples since communication serves as the blood of any relationship, Government; community organization courts and religions organizations should work together to ensure that all unhappily married couples have access to counseling that is both affordable and child cantered.
Table Of Contents
Preliminary Page(s)
- Title Page
- Declaration
- Approval
- Dedication
- Acknowledgement
- Abstract
- Table of Content
Chapter One
1.0 Introduction
- 1.1 Background Of The Study
- 1.2 Statement Of The Problem
- 1.3 Objectives Of The Study
- 1.4 Research Questions
- 1.5 Hypotheses
- 1.6 Significance Of The Study
- 1.7 Operational Definition Of Terms
- 1.8 Organization Of Study
Chapter Two
2.0 Literature Review
- 2.1 Theoretical Framework
- 2.1.1 Social Cognitive Theory
- 2.1.2 Attachment Theory
- 2.1.3 Theory Of Moral Absolutism
- 2.2 Divorce/Separation And Academic Performance
- 2.3 Academic Performance
- 2.4 Concepts Of Separation And Divorce
- 2.5 Types Of Separation And Divorce
- 2.6 Children Of Divorced Parents
- 2.7 Separation Rates
- 2.8 Effects Of Divorce And Separation
Chapter Three
3.0 Methodology
- 3.1 Research Design
- 3.2 Population
- 3.3 Sample And Sampling Procedure
- 3.4 Instrumentation
- 3.5 Administration Of The Instrument
- 3.6 Procedure For Data Analysis
Chapter Four
4.0 Results And Discussion Of Findings
- 4.1 Analysis Of Socio-Demographic Characteristic Of Respondents
- 4.2 Analysis Of Research Hypotheses
- 4.3 Discussion Of Findings
Chapter Five
5.0 Conclusions And Recommendations
- 5.1 Conclusion
- 5.2 Recommendations
- References
- Appendix
Chapter One
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background Of The Study
Marriage is one of the most important transitions in the course of an individual’s life, yet many marriages end in divorce (Huston, Caughlin, Houts, & Smith, 2010), and divorce has become epidemic in U.S. culture. According to Santrock (2014), research has indicated that children of divorce experience greater difficulty in adjustment compared to children who have not experienced a divorced family. Adjustment problems are greater when children experience multiple divorces. Such problems include, but are not limited to, academic difficulty, delinquency, anxiety, depression, decreased social responsibility, troubled relationships, and failure to finish high school, drug abuse, and earlier-than-normal sexual activity. Children of divorce also tend to display lower self-esteem (Santrock, 2014). The long-term sequel of stress related to living in a non-intact household seems less clear. The current literature lacks research regarding the impact on young adults of growing up in a non-intact household during childhood or adolescence. Pedro-Carroll (2011) suggested that living in a non-intact home may affect the transition into young adulthood. Divorce is legal dissolution of marriage bond. Once the couple decides to divorce, they are free to remarry again. In Nigeria, there has been the increase in the rate of divorce. There are two factors influencing the rising divorce rates in the Nigeria. The first factor is that both men and women are depending less on one another for economic survival. Women gain status in their work place or on their businesses, they often want to stand on their own and prefer to control their lives’ affair which enables them to be less dependent on their husbands who are the heads of household. Women who are gainfully employed and self-sufficient may be more willing to dissolve a marriage because they are not perceived as a financially dependent spouse. Financial stability allows the female head of household to have more flexibility to exit a broken marriage. Secondly, when both male and female parents gain political status in the society, one seems to be superior over the other due to political stability. They seem not have chance to look after the family, especially the female ones which more likely be the victims of divorce. According to Hargreaves (2010), student’s resilience in a one-parent household is believed to be a significant indication of success in other areas of their lives, including academics. Similar to a domino effect, students under emotional heartache and stress at home often have emotions that interfere with concentration during the school day. Poor school performance often agitates the parent and the dominos continue to fall as the student loses self-confidence and experiences decreased academic performance in school. Students may have a difficult time concentrating on school work from divorce-related stress occurring at home. Students may face unique challenges of completing homework assignments when organizing their homework, backpack, and paperwork between multiple homes.
Academics are one of the most important aspects of a student’s life, with good grades, students are able to get into colleges and universities, and allow them to earn degrees in order to obtain jobs that they want. If the relationship between the student’s parents is unstable and filled with conflict, this can alter the student’s academic performance. (Afifi, 2013; Brown, 2012; Overland, 2012).
Udansky and Wolf (2008) identified single parenting as a major problem on the rise. Divorce and separations is a common phenomenon in the community today, but still represent a major life stressor for the individuals involved, with potentially strong negative consequences for the mental and physical health of all members of the family. The effect of separation on child academic performance has been the subject of research attention for several decades, and has long been viewed as the cause of a range of serious and enduring behavioural and emotional problems in children and adolescents (Kelly & Emery, 2003).
Park and Kim (2003) argued that the mother traditionally’ play substantial role in the care of the family. The mothers’ cares for them, listens to their problems and provide solutions. Mothers are very important in ensuring a happy childhood and meaningfully adult life for their children. The parent child relationship studies indicate that a father can contribute uniquely to the development of the child independently of the mother’s contribution.
However, when issues on factors such as emotional, intelligence, self-esteem, competence and confidence come up, the father cannot be replaced easily by the mother (Park and Kim 2003).
Forman and Davies (2003) maintained that at adolescence, the individual is getting developed psychologically to cope and bear with stress and tensions which they are faced with. A child biological temperament plays a vital role in the eruption and resolution of separation (Davies 2003). According to Ekundayo & Oyeniyi (2008) and Adebule (2012), the society is tackling with many behaviour problems of the adolescent students, which include truancy, disobedience, drug addiction, smoking, flirting, stealing, armed robbery, examination malpractice, cultism, thugery, sexual abuse, sex activities, indiscriminate sex, homosexual (gay and lesbianism) as part of behaviour problems prevalent among students (Omotosho, Adeniyi and Bada 2010).
Adebowale (2006) in a study on the social behaviour of adolescents as it affects their moral behaviour observed that the type of home which the adolescent comes from, determine to a considerable extent, the type of attitude which he will develop to exhibit and his academic performance. Divorce and separation has a long and lasting impact on lives of any student. The state of the home or the marital status of adolescent parents speaks volume about the life of the child. Separated homes have been found as a crucial factor causing anti-social problems poor academic performances among adolescence. Olusola (2008) believed that the highest incidence of adolescents whose parents are living separately may become way-ward, unruly, or take to sexual misconduct as a way of searching for affection which was lacking in their unhappy parental home. Many researchers have shown that immoral behavior and poor academic performance are prevalent among adolescents who are from unstable or separated family, with less adequate parental training on their moral and social attitudes (William, 2002). This study intends to assess divorce and separation on the academic performance of adolescent students.
1.2 Statement Of The Problem
The issue of divorce and separation is an increasing social problem that has become a topic for discussion in recent times; it is traumatic for those who experience it. Those affected may experience grief, embarrassment, resentment, disappointment, intense anger and divided loyalty. Children need a secure emotional base after their parents separate, exactly as they needed before (McIntosh, 2005). The major protective factors that facilitate children’s adjustment to divorce are low inter-parental conflict, effective and constructive resolution of conflict between the parents, the quality of the parent-child relationship, nurturing, authoritative parenting from at least one parent, and cooperative co-parenting with good communication (McIntosh, 2003).
It is these family processes that contribute to determining children’s academic performance, well-being and ‘outcomes’, rather than family structures per se (such as the number, gender, sexuality and co-habitation status of parents) Kelly (2000). Single parenthood may arise when either the male or female decides to produce and rear a child or children outside; parents can help make a smooth transition for their children during a divorce (Wolf 2008). Parents can present a reliable and cooperative parenting style when providing their children with discipline and behaviour expectations (Carlson and Hines, 2003). This study intends to assess divorce and separation on the academic performance of adult learners.
1.3 Objectives Of The Study
The main objective of this study is to assess the effect of divorce and separation on adult learners’ academic performance in Ovia North East LGA, Edo State.
The following are the objectives of this study,
- To determine the relationship between divorce and separation and academic performance of the adult learners.
- To examine various reasons for divorce and separation.
- To identify effects of divorce and separation on adult learners.
1.4 Research Questions
- What is the relationship between divorce and separation and academic performance of the adult learners?
- What are various reasons for divorce and separation?
- What are the effects of divorce and separation on adult learners?
1.5 Hypotheses
- HO1: There is no significant relationship between divorce and separation and academic performance of the adult learners in Ovia North East LGA, Edo State
- HA1: There is a significant relationship between divorce and separation and academic performance of the adult learners in Ovia North East LGA, Edo State
1.6 Significance Of The Study
It is the view of the researcher, that the study would give possible suggestions that would help the government, and other educational stakeholders in resolving many family/marital problems in the following ways: It is the believe of the researcher that, if divorce and separation is discouraged through formulation of suitable marriage policies by Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), civil society, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and the various traditional authorities, it would help improve the academic performance of students. Various religious bodies could adopt the findings to promote effective social work, guidance and counseling and marriage counseling services in their educational institutions and churches. The study would serve as a source of information for teachers, guidance and counseling coordinators, parents, social workers and nongovernmental organizations. Finally, it is envisage that this study may be useful for other researchers who are in need of literature and method of improving upon their findings further.
1.7 Operational Definition Of Terms
The terms that are used in this study are defined as they are used in this study in order to avoid any ambiguity and vagueness as it relates to research work.
Parent:
Is a caretaker of a child
Student:
A person formally engaged in learning, especially one enrolled in a school.
Separation:
The process by which the couple leaves the home or decides to stay on his or her own.
Academic Performance:
Is the outcome of education at the extent to which a student has achieved their educational goals.
Adult Learner:
An adult learner or, more commonly, a mature student, is a person who is older and is involved in forms of learning. Adult learners fall in a specific criterion of being experienced, and do not always have a high school diploma. Many of the adult learners go back to school to finish a degree, or earn a new one.
1.8 Organization Of Study
The study comprises of 5 chapters. In chapter one, the concepts are introduced and the problem of the study is established with the research objectives and questions. Chapter two presents the literature review while chapter three presents the research methodology. The fourth chapter presents the results and discussion, and the last chapter presents the conclusion and recommendation.
Chapter Five
5.0 Conclusions And Recommendations
5.1 Conclusion
It is important to remember that as divorce rates continue to increase so does the likelihood that students of divorced parents may have a greater risk of adjusting in areas of educational performance, and higher still could be the risks on the couples who actually separate ad make up the continuing education population of adults. Students feel the impact of separation as it carries over into the classroom. Students from divorced families show decreased functioning in academic performance and display oppositional behaviour, or signs of anxiety and depression.
These students lack the ability to concentrate in class; declining attendance and willingness to participate in class indicate students are having difficult time adjusting to a transition in family dynamics.
Divorce and separation has great impact on development of social attitudes of adult learners .
The social behaviours of adult learners in homes where they live together differ from the social attitudes of those students from separated homes. The social attitudes of male and female s’ adolescent students from separated homes are virtually the same.
Finally, divorce and separation has a negative impact on the social attitudes of adult learners since the value and attitudes, the customs and traditions of the society are taught to young children in the family by their parents.
Therefore, there is connection between divorce and separation and social attitudes of adult learners.
5.2 Recommendations
The following recommendations are made based on the finding of this research.
- Counselors, psychologists, social workers and teachers should identify individuals/learners from divorced families and counsel them.
- To reduce divorce or separation rates, couples should have enough time for each other and make love and understanding the corner stone of their marriage. For instance, there should effective communication among couples since communication serves as the blood of any relationship.
- Parents should be reminded of their joint responsibility for raising the child even when the marriage is annulled. This encourages concern about their children’s welfare and co-operation over child rearing issues.
- Government; community organization courts and religions organizations should work together to ensure that all unhappily married couples have access to counselling that is both affordable and child cantered.
- Family casework should be taken with every seriousness as this could help to ameliorate the adverse effects of divorce on the family. Casework should include educating the marriageable age about the great task of marriage life.


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