chapter – ii - shodhganga : a reservoir of indian theses...
TRANSCRIPT
CHAPTER – II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Introduction
In the previous chapter an attempt has been made to present a conceptual
framework of the investigation along with need and importance of the study, significance
of the study, scope of the study in relation to the influence of achievement motivation,
home environment and study habits on academic achievement of secondary school
students. In this chapter, an effort has been made to review the earlier work related to the
study under investigation.
2.2 Review of Related Literature
2.2.1 Studies related to Achievement Motivation and Academic Achievement
Sandven (1975) observed the motive to excel in academic work as an activating
force, a drive or an urge to achieve good results and recognition which to some degree
accounts to progress in school.
Abrol (1977) made a study on achievement motivation in relation to intelligence,
vocational interests, sex and socio-economic status. Students of X class from six urban
schools of Delhi were selected as the sample of the study. The study revealed that the
mean n-achievement of students from unaided, aided and Govt., schools differed
significantly. A significant and positive correlation was found between achievement
motivation and scholastic achievement. Amalaha (1975) and Moen and Doyle (1977)
found that academic achievement motivation was used to mean the pupil’s need or drive
towards the achievement of success in academic work of students. It is assumed that
people differ in their need to achieve in situations that call for excellence.
37
Indrani (1985) explored the study of relationship between academic achievement
and achievement motivation of IX class students of Bangalore city, and to locate high and
low achiever among boys and girls. The major findings of this study were significant high
positive relationship between academic achievement and achievement motivation in IX
standard boys and girls.
Harneek and Manjit Kaur (1990) studied the relationship between achievement
motivation and achievement in science and mathematics to find out whether over and
under achiever in science and mathematics differ significantly in their achievement
motivation. They found that significant relationship did not exist between achievement
motivation and achievement in science and mathematics, over and under achiever in
science did not differ significantly in their achievement motivation whereas significant
difference exists in the achievement motivation of over and under achiever in
mathematics.
Ramila Salvi and Samita Trivedi (1991) studied influence of intelligence, socio
economic status and attitude towards English on achievement in English and their various
instructions on achievement in English of XII standard students in a higher secondary
school in Ahmadabad. They found that intelligence or socio-economic status did not have
a significant influence on achievement in English and the three variables when interacted
with one another they had a significant influence on achievement in English.
Verma (1992) studied achievement motivation, anxiety and learning styles in
relation to ecological variables like age, gender, caste, residence and SES of parents.
Gender made differences in achievement motivation and anxiety, learning style and
parents’ educational level in achievement motivation.
38
Sudhir (1998) examined the nature and extent relationship between selected
personality factors and achievement motivation and the association between socio-
educational factors and achievement motivation among high school students. He found
that the students with high test anxiety are positively related to achievement motivation,
with self reliance are negatively related to achievement motivation, and with high family
relation were found to be more achievement oriented.
Tuckman (1999) presented a model of motivation for achievement that includes
three generic motivational factors that influence outcome attainment: (1) attitude or belief
about one’s capability to attain the outcome; (2) drive or desire to attain the outcome; (3)
strategy or techniques employed to attain the outcome. He has presented an experimental
research evidence to illustrate the contributive influence of each proposed factor on
academic engagement and achievement.
Gesinde (2000) found that the urge to achieve varies from one individual to the
other. For some, the need for achievement is very high while, for others it is very low.
According to him achievement motivation is learnt through the socialization process.
Those who have high achievers as their role models in their early life experience would
develop a high need for achievement, while those who have low achievers as their role
models would hardly develop the need for achievement. The family is obviously, a major
socializing agent and therefore important in determining the child’s motivation to achieve
success in various areas. Salim (2000) observed that students’ performance in science in
public examinations has been consistently low. Olatoye (2002) also found students’
achievement in Lagos State (Nigeria) secondary schools to be generally poor. Kushman,
Sieber and Harold (2000); Sandra (2002) and Broussard and Garrison (2004) have found
39
positive relationship between achievement motivation and academic performance of the
students.
Adedji Tella (2007) investigated the impact of motivation on students’ school
academic achievement in mathematics in secondary schools in Nigeria. Results showed
that gender difference were significant when impact of motivation on academic
achievement was compared in male and female students. Also other result indicates
significant difference when extent of motivation was taken as variable of interest on
academic achievement in mathematics based on the degree of their motivation.
Ahmet Akbas and Adnan Kan (2007) investigated the motivation and anxiety for
Chemistry course of high school students attending 10 different high schools located in
the city center of Mersin. The study revealed that while 2nd grade students of high school
have the highest motivation for chemistry course, 1st grade students possess the highest
anxiety level for chemistry course, as well. Also, it was found out that the motivation and
anxiety for chemistry lesson, on their own, is a significant predictor of chemistry
achievement.
Brenda Navarrate et al (2007) investigated the role of socio economic and cultural
factors that may contribute to motivational factors and academic achievement in Latino
American and Anglo American high school students in California, USA. A theoretical
model for the study of culture was used to examine the proposed relations among socio
economic status and fatalistic cultural value orientations as determinants of stability of
causal attributions for academic failure and student achievement. The findings supported
the proposed effect of socio economic status and fatalistic cultural value orientation on
academic achievement through the mediating role of attribution processes.
40
Van de Gaer, Eva; et al (2007) investigated on the impact of students’
achievement motivation on the status and growth in Mathematics and Language
achievement of boys and girls across grade seventh and eighth. They found the positive
effect of achievement motivation both individually in group on their achievement.
Pandey and Faiz Ahmed (2008) have investigated to study the significance of
difference between male and female adolescents of XI class students, on academic
performance, achievement motivation, intelligence and socioeconomic status. They found
that there is no significant difference between male and female adolescents on measures
of academic performance, achievement motivation, intelligence and socioeconomic
status.
Sangeeta (2009) studied the impact of self-concept and academic achievement
motivation on academic performance of secondary school students of Hyderabad-
Karnataka region. She concluded that academic achievement motivation had a high
impact on the academic performance of the students. Further the academic achievement
motivation and academic performance of the students were significantly correlated and
were interdependent.
Maureen E. Kenny (2010) studied and explored the contributions of work-based
beliefs and autonomy support as predictors of adaptive achievement-related beliefs. Two
hundred and one urban high school students who were enrolled in a work-based learning
program completed measures of work hope, autonomy support, and achievement beliefs.
Results from the full canonical correlation model revealed that work hope, career
planning, and autonomy support shared 37.5% of the variance with achievement-related
beliefs. Moreover, work hope and teacher autonomy support further contributed unique
variance in explaining these beliefs. The findings contribute to the theoretical knowledge
41
base concerning the value of work-based learning in fostering academic motivation
among adolescents.
Karen Strobel (2010) made a study on deeper understanding of classrooms that
promote motivation, engagement and ultimately achievement among an ethnically and
economically diverse population of middle school students. Their analyses highlight three
main findings: 1.Students’ motivational beliefs are significant predictors of their
achievement. 2. Classroom practices that encourage effort and understanding and create a
caring learning environment potentially yield higher achievement by increasing students’
motivation to learn. 3. Changes in classroom practices are associated with changes in
students’ motivation.
Gök and Sılay (2010) examined the effects of teaching of the problem solving
strategies on the students’ physics achievement, strategy level, attitude, and achievement
motivation on the tenth grade students in Turkey. The averages of the experimental
group’s achievement, motivation, strategy level, and attitude were found to be higher than
control groups. According to the experimental data, gender didn’t affect the physics
achievement of students. It was concluded that problem solving strategies were more
effective in cooperative learning than conventional teaching.
Aydın and Coşkun (2011) investigated the achievement motive among secondary
school students. The relations between the achievement motive and gender, class level,
parent education level and family income level with variables. They revealed that the
views of students about the scale of geography lesson achievement motivation has shown
significant difference according to class level, but did not show any significant difference
according to gender, mother’s education level, father’s education level and family income
status.
42
Prakash Chandra Jena (2011) has made a study on to compare the memory and
achievement motivation of male and female students of secondary schools in Sikkim
state. The findings were; there was a significant difference in the memory of rural boys
and girls; there was no significant difference in achievement motivation of urban boys
and girls, and there was no significant difference in achievement motivation of rural boys
and girls.
Vishal Sood (2012) has investigated on need for achievement, academic
achievement and socio-demographic variables of high school students of Kullu and
Manali districts of India. The results revealed that n-achievement positively and
significantly affected academic achievement of high school students. The students with
high n-achievement possessed significantly higher academic achievement as compared to
students with average and low n-achievement. Girls were found to have significantly
higher n-achievement in comparison to boys. However, no significant differences in n-
achievement were found among rural and urban students as well as students belonging to
nuclear and joint families.
Firouzeh Sepehrian Azar (2013) has investigated the relationship between self-
efficacy, achievement motivation, academic procrastination as predictors of academic
achievement in pre-college students. The results revealed that there was significant
difference between boys and girls in terms of the level of achievement motivation,
academic achievement and academic self-efficacy.
2.2.2 Studies related to Home Environment and Academic Achievement
Asha Bhatnagar (1980) has made a study on X class students of Delhi and found a
positive relationship between parental involvements in studies with their academic
achievement.
43
Veerabhadramma (1984) investigated the causes of under achievement of middle
school children of Government schools in Bangalore city. The results revealed that the
students do not study due to poor home conditions, lack of motivation and poor
communication skills. Head masters of the schools feel that schools are not well
equipped, promotion rules are too liberal, heavy syllabus and remedial training not done
and schools are overcrowded.
A few researchers noted little or no effect of parental involvement on adolescent
school performance (Keith et al, 1986; Natriello and McDill, 1986). The parenting style
(democratic, authoritarian, etc) is also influential both in the students’ educational process
as well as in family-school relations. Jagannadhan (1985), Rodriquez Castellano (1986)
and Narang (1987) found that a positive family climate favours the development of well-
adapted, mature, stable and integrated subjects, and an unfavorable family climate
promotes non-adaptation, immaturity, lack of balance and insecurity. Baumrind (1988)
has identified three types of parenting styles: authoritarian, authoritative and permissive.
Keith (1991) observed the inconsistencies in part by the numerous definitions of
parent involvement in studies on school performance. For instance, some authors use the
latter term to refer to parent participation in school activities while others use it to refer to
more general parental interest in their child's academic and social life. Steinberg et al.,
(1992) found the positive correlations between parenting style and involvement in school
suggests that a combination of some dimensions of these variables could be associated
with adolescent school performance. Epstein (1992) found that parental involvement in
children’s learning activities positively influences their levels of achievement and
motivation to learn.
44
The research studies conducted by Dauber and Epstein (1993) and Janosz, (1994)
revealed that the home environment influences academic achievement and thus prevents
high school dropout rate. Among the family-related factors associated with school
performance are family background variables, such as parental education and family
structure, and family processes, such as parental education style and parental involvement
in schooling. Dornbusch et al (1990); Steinberg et al (1992) and Christenson (1992) have
concluded that parenting style refers to a general child-rearing pattern that characterizes
parents' behavior towards their child. It is most often conceptualized along two
dimensions, parental acceptance involvement and strictness-supervision, which can be
combined to create a fourfold parenting typology: authoritative, authoritarian, indulgent,
or neglectful, wherein parental involvement in schooling refers to the parents' role in their
child's education. It can take several forms: presence at school, communicating with the
teachers, or helping at home with homework. Dornbusch et al (1987) and Lamborn et al
(1993) found the positive relationship between authoritative parenting and school
performance. According to these researchers, authoritative parenting is defined by a
combination of high levels of warmth and acceptance, behavioral control, and
psychological autonomy granting. They have concluded that the students with higher
grades come from parents who demonstrate high levels of warmth, supervision, and
psychological autonomy granting and who are highly involved in their adolescent's
schooling and the positive influence the family environment has on adolescent school
achievement.
Shukla et al (1994) have investigated the factors at home which effect academic
achievement of the children. They found that the facilities for learning at home have
significant correlation with achievement level of children at primary stage. Henderson
and Berla (1994) synthesized over sixty studies regarding the effects of family
45
involvement on student achievement. Their work attributes to parental involvement
effects that include higher grades and test scores, increased homework completion,
improved school attendance, more positive attitudes, fewer discipline problems, increased
high school completion rates, decreased school leaving rates, and greater participation in
postsecondary education. They suggested that the parents’ involvement can contribute to
these outcomes from early childhood through high school. Paulson (1994) asserted that
demandingness, responsiveness and parental involvement have positive effect on the
achievement outcomes of early adolescents.
Deslandes et al (1997) examined the influence of parenting style and parental
involvement in schooling on academic achievement at the secondary level. The research
was conducted with 525 adolescents of the Quebec-Appalaches region and found that the
three factors, parental acceptance, supervision, and psychological autonomy granting,
contributed to school achievement. Results also indicated that youngsters whose parents
gave them affective support performed better than their peers. The study revealed that
parents retain substantial influence over their adolescent's school performance.
Cartejon and Perez (1998) found indirect relationships with performance from the
student’s perception of how much importance his or her parents assign to study at home.
In a study by Gottfried et al (1998), home environment was found to have a statistically
positive and significant effect on academic intrinsic motivation. Children whose homes
had greater emphasis on learning opportunities and activities were more academically
intrinsically motivated.
Sophia Catsambis (1998) analyzed the data of National Educational Longitudinal
Study of 1988 whether parental involvement influences the educational achievements of
high school seniors. By utilizing multiple involvement indicators for the eighth and
46
twelfth grades, the study confirms the importance of considering the multidimensional
nature of parental involvement in students’ education. General conclusions based on the
findings support the existence of positive effects of parental involvement on twelfth grade
students’ academic achievements. High levels of educational expectations, consistent
encouragement, and actions that enhance learning opportunities of students were the
major ways by which families positively influence the educational achievements of their
teens. Regardless of socioeconomic or race/ethnic background, families with high levels
of educational expectations have the most positive effects on their children’
achievements.
Ichado (1998) found that the home environment in which the students come from
would greatly influence their performance at school. The family lays the psychosocial,
moral and spiritual foundations in the overall development of the child, while the
mother’s significant role in this cannot be over-emphasized. Agulanna (1999) made a
study on father-child relationship and concluded that the presence of a father in the home
influences significantly the development of a child.
Various studies conducted by Raj (1995), Bajwa and Kaur (2006), Williams
(2008), Ewnetu and Fisseha (2008), Houtenville and Conway (2008), Chan and Koo
(2010) have concluded strong connection between parenting styles and the academic
achievements of children. These studies revealed that home environment as a potential
predictor of academic achievement and reported the positive and significant effects of
home environment on academic achievement of students, while Vijayalakshmi (2003)
revealed negative correlation between home environment and academic achievement.
Marchesi and Martin (2002) observed that parental expectations have a notable
influence on academic results, even when controlling for initial knowledge and socio-
47
economic context. Other studies show that the family relationships (Buote, 2001) and
level of family cohesion (Caplan et al, 2002) prove themselves capable of predicting
academic performance.
In a study on achievement and aspirations of adolescents, Malvinder Ahuj and
Sunitha Goyal (2005) observed high parental involvement leads to high achievement and
low parental involvement resulted in low achievement. Rajendher Singh Pathani (2005)
found that school atmosphere, socio-emotional adjustments and home environment effect
the academic achievement. Vamadevappa (2005) has found that there was a positive and
significant relationship between parental involvement and academic achievement among
higher primary students. Good parental involvement leads to higher academic
achievement. And achievement of girls was more than the achievement of boys among
high parental involvement group.
A study by Bansal et al (2006) based on 100 eleventh grade students drawn from
10 senior secondary schools in Ludhiana City of India showed that good quality of home
environment had significant positive correlation with high level of achievement
motivation among high achievers. It was found that as the quality of home environment
deteriorates, the level of achievement motivation also deteriorates. In a longitudinal study
of 89 first grade children of low income mothers, parental support was not found to be
related to academic motivation.
Sunitha and Khadi (2007) investigated the academic learning environment at
home and school, of coeducational high school students from English and Kannada
medium schools and its influence on academic achievement. The study also aimed to
know the influence of socio-economic factors on academic learning environment at home
and school. The sample consisted of 240 students, selected from 8 coeducational high
48
schools in Dharwad city of Karnataka state. The results revealed that students with
English medium of instruction were significantly higher in students involvement, had
higher qualified teachers in schools, received significantly better parental encouragement
and care and had significantly better facilities in home (separate room to study, table,
light, ventilation, and surrounding environment), had significantly better academic
achievement than students of Kannada medium schools. Further, home learning
environment had positive and significant influence on school learning environment of
students among Kannada medium schools. Socio-economic status of the family exhibited
positive and significant influence on home learning environment and school learning
environment of students of both Kannada and English medium schools.
Hickman & Crossland (2005), Assadi et al. (2007) and Abar et al (2009) have
observed that people are aware of the importance of the home environment or family on
pupil’s/student’s academic performance. The home has a great influence on the students’
psychological, emotional, social and economic state. And have concluded that
authoritative parenting produce high level of academic performance and academic skills.
Ajila and Olutola (2007) observed that the state of the home affects the individual since
the parents are the first socializing agents in an individual’s life. This is because the
family background and context of a child affect his reaction to life situations and his level
of performance. Although, the school is responsible for the experiences that make up the
individual’s life during school periods, yet parents and the individual’s experiences at
home play tremendous roles in building the personality of the child and making the child
what he is.
Meena Siwach nee Daulta (2008) assessed the effect of home environment on the
scholastic achievement of children of class VIII. The study revealed that boys of high
49
home environment group achieved significantly greater mean score than the boys falling
in the group of low home environment. The impact of home environment has also been
observed in the mean values of scholastic achievement of girls belonging to high, medium
and low home environment groups. But the difference was not significant at 0.05 level
and results also showed that good quality of home environment had significant positive
correlation with ‘high’ level of scholastic achievement in boys than among girls. It was
found that as the quality of home environment gets declined, the level of scholastic
achievement also comparatively declines in boys.
Huang (2008) investigated student social capital in Norwegian secondary schools
and its effects on student achievement. He also tested an analytical model that links
student home background, social capital at school and student academic achievement,
using a structural modeling technique. Control variables in the analysis were student age,
gender, school size and home community. Testing the analytical model with female and
male student subgroup, gender perspectives have been taken into consideration. The study
revealed that student social capital, generated from student social relations with parents,
teachers and peers, has a significant influence on student achievement.
Uwaifo (2008) examined the effects of family structure and parenthood on the
academic performance of Nigerian university students. The sample for the study consisted
of 240 students drawn from the six randomly selected faculties in Ambrose Alli
University, Ekpoma, Edo State. The results showed that significant differences existed
between the academic performance of students from single parent family and those from
two-parent family structures. The results also indicated significant differences in
academic performance of male and female students compared on two types of family
structures. On the basis of findings, it was recommended that school counselors should be
50
employed in all schools and that they should provide necessary assistance to students
especially those from single-parent family to enable them overcome their emotional
concerns.
Prasamita Mohanty (2009) attempted to examine the social factors that play
significant role in academic achievement. The study was carried among 210 rural
scheduled caste primary school girls in four DPEP districts of Haryana. The results
revealed that socio-economic status is found to be potential social correlate of academic
achievement. Home environment is having positive correlation with academic
achievement in case of low achievers only and school environment failed to prove any
relationship with the achievement level of high and low achievers.
Abdul Raheem Yousuf et al (2009) investigated the influence of parenting styles
on junior secondary school students' performance in social studies in Ilorin Emirate,
Nigeria. The results showed that the parenting styles adopted had influence on the
performance of the students. In addition, it was observed that students from authoritative
parenting had better performance than students from other parenting styles. It was
recommended among others that parents should adopt authoritative parenting style to
enhance optimal performance of the students. In addition, the school should create
structures and strengthen the existing ones that would provide parent training
intervention.
Jagpreet Kaur et al (2009) explored academic achievement and home environment
as correlates of self-concept among adolescents. The results of the study revealed self-
concept was positively correlated with academic achievement, though not significantly
so. A significantly positive relationship of home environment components:
protectiveness, conformity, reward, and nurturance with self-concept among adolescents.
51
However, the correlation of social isolation, deprivation of privileges and rejection
components of home environment is significantly negative with self-concept among
adolescents.
Muola (2010) investigated the relationship between academic achievement
motivation and home environment among standard eight pupils. The study was carried
out on 235 standard eight Kenyan pupils from six urban and rural primary schools
randomly selected from Machakos district. Their age ranged between 13 and 17 years.
Two questionnaires, the simple profile (SP) and home environment questionnaire, were
used to provide information on the pupil’s levels of academic motivation and home
environment. A significant positive relationship was found between six of the home
environmental factors, that is fathers’ occupation , mothers’ occupation , fathers’
education , mothers’ education , family size and learning facilities at home and academic
achievement motivation. Parental encouragement was the only factor that was not
significantly related to academic achievement motivation. These correlations showed that
pupils’ motivation to do well in academic work is to some extent dependent on the nature
of their home environment.
Farhana Kazmi et al (2011) conducted a study to explore and evaluate the impact
of father’s style of dealing with their children at home and their academic achievements at
school. Classroom achievement of the children has been taken as a dependent variable.
The sample of the study consisted of 300 students, 300 fathers and 20 teachers which was
drawn randomly from urban and rural areas of district Mansehra province Khyber
Pakhtun khwa (KPK). The results of this study were found in the favor of the fathers’
involvement for the academic achievements.
52
Viswanathan and Indira Ramani (2012) have investigated on social skills and
home environment of secondary level tribal students of Khammam district in Andhra
Pradesh (India). The study revealed that standards of VII and IX Tribal students did not
differ in their perception on home environment. This was due to the process of schooling
and other learning activities which they have undergone at the school.
Siva Kumar (2012) has made relational studies of home environment and
emotional maturity of higher secondary school students and found that level of home
environment of higher secondary students is average. There is a significant difference
between boys and girls with respect to their home environment. There is a significant
difference between rural and urban higher secondary students with respect to their home
environment.
2.2.3 Studies related to Study Habits and Academic Achievement
A habit is automatic learned behavior pattern that enables an individual to handle
specific type of environmental situations. The student who has acquired good study
habits, has developed a behavior pattern, which enables him/her to sit down and begin
working on his/her assignment with a minimum concentration. Individual study habits
play a pivotal role in determining in a pupil’s academic achievement. A student’s
progress or failure in the classroom depends upon several factors like interest in the
subject, study facilities, own study habits and so on. Academic achievement is the
achievement of the pupil during the course of his study, the standard of achievement in
language, in subjects and in general knowledge.
Brown and Holtzman (1956) constructed and validated a self-rating questionnaire
that measures a student aptitude and motivation towards studying as well as his study
habits. The questionnaire was validated on a sample of 219 men and 176 women.
53
Correlation of 0.50 and 0.52 were obtained for the sample of men and women
respectively. Krishnan (1956) showed that the junior B.A. students had better study habits
than senior B.A. students. Ahmann et al (1958) reported that the raw scores yielded by
study habits scale failed to correlate significantly with the first semester grade point
averages. It made no significant contributions to the prediction of these averages when
included in a battery of tests.
Norton (1959) made an investigation on the relationship of study habits and
achievement on IX grade students from general science pool. He found that the
achievement in general sciences wasn’t associated with study habits. Diener (1960)
obtained the similarities and differences between over-achieving and under-achieving
students and also observed that the two groups differed significantly in respect of their
study habits. The over-achieving males had better study habits.
Brown and Dubois (1964) and Richard and Virginia (1967) found a positive
relationship between good study habits and academic achievement. Samuel and Rao
(1967) conducted a study on a sample of 500 pre-university students and showed that
there is a significant positive relationship between the study habits and academic
achievement. Agarwal and Saini (1969) found that the coefficient of correlation between
the study habits score and scores on achievement in mathematics of VIII and IX class
students. Krishnamurthy and Rao (1969) conducted a study on high school students in
Coimbatore. They observed that there is significant correlation between study habits and
academic achievement of the urban students and also there is high significant correlation
between study habits and academic achievement of sub-urban students.
Richard et al (1971) observed that the feasibility and applicability of combining
psychological conditioning techniques with a study technique in terms of its effect upon
54
the academic performance of ‘high risk’ college students. Florence and Ronald (1971)
revealed that in the case of boys, the study habits score and attitudes subset predicted
reading achievement, in the case of girls, the attitudes subset did predict a different
criterion mathematics achievement.
Sinha (1972) found significant relationship between study habits and scholastic
achievement among adolescents. Marentic Pozaranik (1974) found positive relationship
between study habits and scholastic achievement of IX class pupils. McCausland and
Steward (1974) showed that academic aptitude, study skills and attitudes contribute to
college success. Silvermann and Riordens (1974) observed that there was positive
relationship between study habits and first semester grade of college students. Prociuk
and Breen (1974) examined the relation between locus of control (inner-outer), study
habits and attitudes, and academic performance; they stated that there is a positive
relation among them.
Girija et al (1975) made a study on the relationship between study habits, study
skills, academic achievement motivation and academic achievement of first and final year
students of the under graduates of University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore. The
two groups differed significantly with regard to their study skills and achievement. Patel
(1976) showed that there is positive correlation between study habits and achievement in
school subjects.
Ansari (1980) found that study habits and study attitudes are both significant
variables which determine the academic performance of the students. Asha Bhatnagar
(1980) made a study on 600 students of X class of Delhi and found that there existed a
positive relationship between the study habits and academic achievement. Tuli (1980)
observed that study habits are correlates of achievement in Mathematics. Several studies
55
have established that students’ academic performance is highly influenced by their study
habits (Akinboye, 1980; Mustapha (1982), Adetola, 1988).
Patel (1981) and Chauhan and Singh (1982) found that there exists significant
relationship between study habits and academic scores among school going children.
Christian (1983) studied need achievement and study habits of the pupils of standard 10th
in relation to sex. Study habits inventory of Patel (1976) was administered on a sample of
79 girls and 68 boys. The analysis of variance revealed that girls and boys had equally
good study habits. The study suggested that study habits are one of the important factors,
helpful to achieve more in the promising field.
Agarwal (1983) made a study on reading ability in relation to certain cognitive
and non-cognitive factors. A sample of 200 males and 200 female students of XI grade
were randomly selected from high schools in Bihar, India. The subjects completed a
battery of reading ability tests, study habits inventory, general intelligence and non-verbal
intelligence tests, anxiety, Eysenck personality inventory and youth adjustment inventory.
The results indicated that males had a greater predisposition to better study habits,
neuroticism, extroversion, favorable parental attitude and a better ideal self than females.
However, females showed a higher reading ability and academic achievement than males.
There were significant and positive correlations in both males and females between
reading ability and their study habits.
Singh (1984) found that the study habits of boys and girls differed significantly at
different levels of academic achievement. Gadzella et al (1984) found that effective study
skills lead to academic success. Premalatha Sarma (1986) in a study on achievement of
rural girls found that poor study habits were highly associated with under achievement.
56
Singh (1987) investigated into the Study habits of scheduled caste adolescents in
relation to their intelligence and achievement motivation. The random sample consisted
of 100 boys and 100 girls of 9th standard of secondary schools of Bilaspur, Kangra and
Simla districts of Himachal Pradesh in India. Study habits Inventory and general mental
ability test and TAT were used for the study. The results reported that the main effect of
intelligence on study habits was very highly significant. High intelligent group had better
study habits than the low intelligent group.
Singh (1989-90) made an investigation into the Study habits of scheduled caste
adolescents in relation to their sex and achievement motivation. The study was conducted
on 150 boys and 150 girls belonging to scheduled caste from 9th classes in Himachal
Pradesh, India. The main effect of sex on the study habits was significant at 5 percent
level. It indicated that the study habits of boys and girls differed significantly. Boys had
significantly better study habits than girls.
Ramaswamy (1990) studied the relationship between study habits and academic
achievement in high and low achieving boys and girls of 11th standard in Madurai
district, Tamil Nadu, India. The study habit inventory of Patel (1976) was used to
measure the study habits. The correlation analysis revealed significant relationship
between the study habits and academic achievement variables.
Deb and Gravel (1990) revealed that after their investigation on B.Sc. final year
Home Science students, the component of study habits was positively correlated with the
academic performance of students. Students with good study habits did better
academically. Therefore parents and teachers should help to promote good study habits in
their children right from the beginning. Patnaik and Basavayya (1991) reported that there
was no significant relationship between study habits and achievement in mathematics.
57
Misra (1992) conducted a study on assessing the level of test anxiety, self-concept,
adjustment and study habits in predicting academic achievement. The study was
conducted on a sample of 88 Oriya male students of 9th and 10th class in three schools of
Bhubaneshwar, Orissa, India. To determine study habits of subjects Wrenn’s (1941) study
habits inventory was used and total marks obtained in annual examination was used to
know the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. It revealed
significant and positive correlation between study habits and academic achievement.
Tymms and Gibbon (1992) examined the relationship between time spent on homework
and exam grades among approximately 3000 students from schools and colleges in
Northeast England. Average time spent was 5 hrs per week. Girls reported spending
approximately 30 minutes/week more than boys. The study revealed that students who
marked for long hours gained slightly better grades than those who worked for modest
periods.
Ruth Lee (1992) conducted a study on development of study skill to improve
grades in IX and X students. It is found that development of study skills, increased
student achievement. Russell and Petrie (1992) have cited a research study aimed to find
out the relationship between study habits and student attitude and academic performance
(cumulative GPA) of college students. Findings of the study indicate a positive
correlation between study attitude, study habit and academic achievement.
Mehta and Malhotra (1993) carried out a study to find out the predictors of
academic achievement among 300 arts students. Stepwise regression analysis revealed
that study habits and study attitudes were the important predictors of academic
achievement. Stella and Purushothaman (1993) examined the study habits of
underachievers. 90 underachievers from rural and urban schools in Tamil Nadu, India
58
were selected by using randomized block design. Patel’s (1976) Study Habit Inventory
was used for the study. The results indicated significant difference between urban and
rural students in respect of study habits. The mean value showed that urban students had
better study habits than rural students. But no significant difference was found between
boys and girls.
Research on the correlation between study habits and students’ academic
achievement has for long received attention from scholars and educational agencies. For
instance, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in 1994 conducted a
study to find out the relationship between study habits and academic performance of the
students. Findings of the study revealed a positive correlation between study habits and
academic achievement.
Loranger (1994) compared the study strategies of six 16-18 year old successful
and unsuccessful learners to determine if successful learners would differ in the quality of
their information processing from unsuccessful learners. Each subject read and studied on
article and participated in an interview. Results showed that successful students tended to
be more motivated to succeed and more likely to be active, purposeful and flexible in
their strategy use while less-successful students perceived themselves as successful, and
they lacked self knowledge of inefficient strategy use. Abdullahi (1995), Anamoze (1999)
and Pinda (2000) found that Nigerian students have negative pattern of study habits and
possessed only half of the skills required for effective study habits.
Verma (1996) studied the effect of study habits on academic achievement among
500 students of X class. The sample was selected from schools in Delhi by using random
cluster sampling technique. The results showed that students possessing good study habits
scored higher achievement than students possessing poor study habits in English, Hindi
59
and Social studies. On the other hand, students having poor and good study habits scored
almost equal achievement in Mathematics and General science.
Patel (1996) from his study revealed that 1. the achievement scores of pupils
having high and low general ability were significantly different, 2. those pupils who had
good study habits did get significantly more achievement scores than those who had poor
study habits, 3. it was found that sex and study habits integrated significantly in
explaining achievement scores.
Patel (1997) investigated the causes of under achievement in mathematics of
eighth grade students having high numerical ability. A sample of 35 high achievers and
40 low achievers was selected from schools in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India, based on their
marks in mathematics. The chi-square analysis revealed that the study habits have
tremendous effect on the achievement. Ayeduso (1997) and Ikegbunam (1997) identified
study habits as correlates of academic performance. Sampath and Selvarajgnanaguru
(1997) studied the study habits of higher secondary commerce students. 428 higher
secondary second year commerce students studying in Chidambaram Taluk in Tamil
Nadu were selected by using cluster sampling technique. The study revealed the positive
correlation between study habits and academic achievement of the students.
Sam Sananda Jah and Sreehi (2000) found that study habits and academic
achievement on students are positively and significantly related. Onwuegbuzie et al
(2001) conducted a series of studies to find out the relationship between academic success
and study habits and reported positive relationship between the two variables.
When the differences are examined in terms of gender, it is revealed that female
students are more successful academically than male students and they have better study
habits and attitudes (Gadzella and Fournet, 1976; Brown & Holtzman, 1984;
60
Kucukahmet, 1987; Mullen, 1995; Hong & Lee, 2000; Arslantas, 2001; Tinklin,
2003Houtte, 2004; Grabill et al., 2005;).
Aluede and Onolemhemhen (2001) studied the effect of study habits counseling
on the academic performance of secondary schools students in English language. The 108
senior secondary students of Uromi, Edo state, Nigeria were targeted. The multi-stage
stratified sampling method was used. The study habit inventory (Bakare, 1977) was used.
The findings of the study revealed that counseling students on good study habits could
bring about improvement in the students’ academic performance.
Onwuegbuzie (2001) conducted a series of studies to find out relationship between
study habits and academic success and reported positive relationship between study habits
and academic success. The main objective of the study was to examine the effect of
guidance services on students study attitudes, study habits and academic achievement. It
was found that effective study habits promote academic achievement. Nagaraju (2001)
concluded that the academic achievement in all the school subjects has positive
significant influence at 0.01 level on the study habits of high school students.
Sirohi (2004) conducted a study of under achievement in relation to study habits
and attitudes. A sample of 1000 elementary grade students was taken from ten composite
schools of South District, Delhi. The results found that guidance program would lead to
better results, improving the achievement of the students and thus their potentialities be
maximally utilized. Guravaiah (2004) investigated into the academic achievement of X
class students in all the school subjects and found that study habits of pupils do not have
any significant influence on their achievement. Rajani (2004) observed that the academic
achievement of Intermediate students in all the subjects including group subjects is
positively related to their study habits.
61
Abid Hussain (2006) examined the effect of guidance services on students’ study
attitudes, study habits and academic achievement by developing a guidance programme
for secondary school students. An experiment was conducted to explore the effectiveness
of guidance services in terms of improvement in students’ study attitudes, study habits
and academic achievement. Ten null hypotheses were tested to explore the effect of
guidance services on students’ study habits, study attitudes and academic achievement in
five subjects. The results of the study indicated that the guidance services have
significant effect on the students’ study attitude, study habits and academic achievement.
Sud and Sujata (2006) conducted a study on academic performance in relation to
self-handicapping, test anxiety and study habits of 200 high school children from
government senior secondary schools of Himachal Pradesh. Study habits scores using
SHI of Palsane & Sharma (1989) and academic performance using the school marks were
considered for analsis. The results revealed that boys were poorer in study habits and
academic performance than girls.
Yenagi (2006) conducted a study on study habits as a function of self-perception
among intellectually gifted and non-gifted students. A sample of 1020 pre university
college students was randomly selected from colleges in and around Hubli and Dharwad
cities of Karnataka state. Study habits inventory by Patel (1976) and self-perception
inventory Soars and Soars (1976) were considered for data collection. The results
revealed that the overall study habits were significantly differed from gifted and non-
gifted groups. General habits and attitudes, planning of subjects, reading and note taking
habits, habits of concentration were also found to be significant. Thus the results
indicated that study habits influence academic achievement of students.
62
Subrahmanyam (2007) has investigated the study habits and social, emotional and
educational adjustment problems of 10th class students in relation to their achievement.
The study revealed significant relationship between study habits and academic
achievement of students. Significant influence of gender on academic achievement was
also found.
Muniraja Reddy et al (2008) carried out a study to find out the level of
achievement in reading in English as a second language among high school students,
influence of study habits on achievement of reading, the correlation between the study
habits and achievement in reading and the prediction of achievement in reading with the
help of study habits. The final test was administered on a sample of 1200 students. The
major findings were: majority of the students were having average level of study habits;
study habits like reading and note taking, general habits and attitudes and school
environment have major impact on vocabulary and comprehension. As a whole study
habits have their own influence on achievement in reading of the high school students
except factors of home environment and planning of work.
Samual O. Salami (2008) investigated the relationship between psychopathology
and students’ academic performance and the moderator effects of study behaviour, self-
efficacy and motivation. Participants were 476 students (228 males, 248 females)
randomly selected from ten coeducational secondary schools in Ibadan. Measures of
psychopathology, study behaviour, self-efficacy and motivation were administered on the
sample. Results showed that psychopathology correlated negatively but non-significantly
with academic performance. Study behaviour, self-efficacy and motivation correlated
significantly with academic performance.
63
Niradhar Dey (2008) has conducted a comparative study of the study habits of
high achieving CBSE and ICSE students in the secondary school examination. The results
indicates that high achieving CBSE and ICSE students were having similar nature of
highly positive study habits in curricular areas both for boys and girls.
Gokhan Ozsoy et al (2009) investigated the relationship between fifth grade
students’ meta-cognition levels, and their study habits and attitudes. Participants of the
study consist of 221 students, 125 female and 96 male, enrolling to six public primary
schools in Turkey. The results revealed that there was no significant relationship between
meta-cognition and study habits and attitudes for low and medium achievers but, there
was a significant relationship for high achievers.
Aanu and Olatoye (2011) investigated combined and relative influences of use of
library resources and study habits on science achievement of the junior secondary school
students in Ogun State, Nigeria. Three hundred and sixty (360) students randomly
selected from twelve secondary schools participated in the study. Three instruments were
designed and used for data collection. Use of library resources and study habits combined
together to significantly influence science achievement. There is no significant difference
between male and female students’ use of library resources, study habits and science
achievement.
Tuncay Ergene (2011) investigated the relationships among study habits, test
anxiety, achievement motivation, and academic success on a Turkish tenth grade high
school sample consisting of 510 participants, 267 females and 243 males. The data were
collected by the Turkish version of Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI), Study Habits Inventory
(SHI) and Self Evaluation Inventory (SEI). Students’ GPA was accepted as the indicator
of their academic success. Small but significant correlations were found between the
64
worry subscale of TAI scores and academic success, and between the study habits scale
scores and academic success level. A positive relationship between study habits scores
and achievement motivation was found. Gender, worry subscale of TAI and study habits
predicted academic success in general. Test anxiety and study habits were associated
positively with academic success.
Omotere Tope (2011) investigated the effects of study habits on the academic
performance of students’ using some selected senior secondary schools in Ijebu-Ode
Local Government Area of Ogun State in Nigeria, as a case study. Two hundred students
were randomly selected from five senior secondary schools in the area. The results
showed that family background, peer group pressure, personality type of the student and
the school environment, all affect the reading habits of students in secondary schools.
Sutherman and Vasanthi (2011) have investigated on study habits and academic
achievement of XI standard students in Palani District of Tamilnadu state. They observed
that girls are better in study habits and academic achievement. The mean scores of rural
students are higher in study habits when compared to urban students, whereas rural
students are poor in academic achievement when compared to urban students.
2.2.4 Studies related to Gender and Academic Achievement
Gender is one of the important variables which influence the academic
achievement of secondary school students. Farquhan (1963) observed no significant
relationship between academic achievement and sex of XI grade high school students.
Pavithran and Feroze (1965) found there is no marked difference between boys and girls
in the scholastic achievement of X class students. Both are more or less on the same
levels of achievement. Padmanabhan Nayar and Visweswaran (1966) found that there
was significant difference between the achievements of urban boys and girls of X class.
65
They also found a marked difference in the achievement of rural boys and girls.
Balasubramanian and Feroze (1966) found that there existed no significant difference in
the achievement of boys and girls of urban locality, while there was some marked
difference in the achievement in mathematics between boys and girls of rural areas of X
class.
Gupta (1968) observed no significant differences between boys and girls of IX
class in three variables namely academic achievement, intelligence and economic status.
Haragovinda Gupta (1968) observed that except, in the high intelligence group of VIII
class students, a significant relationship between academic achievement and sex appears
to exist in both the moderate and low intelligence groups. Roach (1979) conducted a
study on 206 boys and 212 girls from five urban elementary schools in Jamaica and found
that the girls scored significantly higher than boys on a mathematics achievement test.
Dubey (1982) has found that girls performed better than boys in all the school subjects.
Asudullakhan et al (1982) showed that sex of Pre-university students was found to be not
effective in bringing about any variation in the scholastic achievement. Gupta (1983)
found that girls on the whole, had better achievement motivation than boys and had
higher academic achievement than boys. The relationship between achievement
motivation and academic achievement is positive and significant.
Watkins Haltie and Astilla (1984) showed that there existed significant influence
of sex, self-concept and intelligence on academic achievement of students. Jagannadhan
(1985) reported that sex does not have any significant influence on the academic
achievement of V, VI and VII class pupils. Quraishi and Bhat (1986) conducted a study
on 200 undergraduate students of M.S. University of Baroda and found that sex has a
66
significant effect on academic achievement. Ramaswamy (1990) observed no significant
difference between boys and girls of high and low achievers.
Bujendranath Panda (1991) observed that IX and X class boys of rural areas and
urban girls were better in academic achievement than their counter parts. Vijayalakshmi
and Hemalatha Natesan (1992) found that XI class girls have better mean academic
achievement than boys which is significant at 0.01 levels.
Panda (1992) investigated study habits of disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged
adolescents in relation to sex and academic achievement. The sample of the study
consisted of 50 disadvantaged boys and 50 non-disadvantaged girls of 9th and 10th
classes in Orissa, India. The subjects were selected randomly and matched with age, sex,
area of living and birth order. Patel’s (1976) Study Habits Inventory was used in the
study. The ‘F’ value for sex indicated significant difference. From the mean values, it was
revealed that boys had significantly better study habits than girls.
Nair and Bindu (1998) made an attempt to find out the association between sex
and discrepant achievement in six school subjects of secondary school pupils. Sex of the
pupils was found to be associated with discrepant achievement in social studies and
mathematics. Promod (1999) conducted a study on 300 boys and girls to find whether sex
difference exists in academic performance. The results showed boys and girls differed
significantly in their academic performance. Boys performed better than girls. In a study
Viswanatham (2000) found that girls do better than the boys but there is no significant
difference between rural and urban students in their achievement.
Suneetha and Mayuri (2001) conducted a study on age and gender differences on
the factors affecting high academic achievement of school children. The total sample of
the study comprised of 120 children of IX and X grade drawn purposively from 10
67
private schools of Hyderabad. The results showed boys and girls differed significantly in
drilling, interaction and language dimensions of study habits inventory. They also
reported that gender was found to be more important variable than IQ in deciding the high
academic performance, as more girls were found among top ranking students of classe IX
and X.
Ellekka Kumar (2001) found that there was no significant deference in
achievement in Physics between boys and girls: 1. the mean scores of achievement related
motivation was higher for girls than boys, 2. the positive correlations were found between
the achievement related motivation and achievement marks in physics in respect of girl
students studying in Tamil medium. Govinda Reddy (2002) found that sex does not have
any significant influence on the academic achievement of DIET students. Panda (2002)
observed that V class boys and girls studying in urban, rural and tribal areas did not differ
in their achievement in all the school subjects. Gakhar and Aseema (2004) found no
significant difference in the academic achievement of boys and girls of X class, in their
previous annual examination.
Wani Gulshan (2005) has conducted a study on the personality characteristics,
occasional preferences, study habits and academic achievement of Kashmiri, Dogri and
Ladakhi adolescent girls. It was a cross cultural study. The study revealed that Ladakhi
are very low in study habits and also much below in academic achievement as compared
to Kashmiri and Dogri adolescent girls.
Pandey and Faiz Ahmad (2008) conducted a study on a sample of 621 students of
XI standard from Azamgarh district of Bihar and found that there is no significant
difference between male and female adolescents on the measures of academic
performance. Nuthana and Yenagi (2009) studied the influence of study habits, self-
68
concept on academic achievement of 600 boys and girls of secondary level, 300 drawn
from rural and 300 from urban. The findings revealed that boys and girls did not differ
significantly in study habits, self- concept and academic achievement. Correlation
coefficients between self concept and academic achievement were positive and highly
significant
Jagpreet Kaur (2010) investigated on gender differences in perceptions of home
environment among school going adolescents. The results of study revealed significant
gender differences in control, protectiveness, social isolation, reward, deprivation of
privileges, rejection and permissiveness as components of home environment. Female
adolescents perceived their home environment to be more protective and rewarding than
their male counterparts.
Singh Suneeta et al (2010) studied the nature, type and characteristics of study
habits in high school children in relation to various orgasmic variables like gender, age,
class or grade level and scholastic achievement. The sample for the study was drawn from
two private English medium schools in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India, comprising of 250
high school students including equal number of boys and girls from class VIII, IX and X.
The results indicate that the girls have better study habits than boys. It is also seen that
study habits improve with age and class or grade levels in children.
Sayid Dabbagh Ghazvini and Milad Khajehpour (2011) studied the gender
differences in factors affecting academic performance of high school students. Results of
the study reveal that existence of gender difference in variables under consideration with
girls showing internal locus of control, attitude, motivation, time management, anxiety,
self-testing strategies more extensively and getting better marks in literature. Boys are in
mathematics than girls.
69
Kartigeyan and Nirmala (2012) analyzed the gender influence on academic
achievement in English. The study revealed that the girls had a higher mean score
compared to the boys in their academic achievement in English. From the community-
wise analysis it is found that girls showed better performance except in scheduled tribe
community.
2.3 Overview of the Review of related Literature
The above review of the related studies reveals the following observations.
1. The researchers from under developed countries like Nigeria, Uganda, Turkey etc.,
concentrated on the problems of the academic achievement of school and college
students in their countries for the decades. The results show a low achievement
levels.
2. The earlier studies mostly pertain to the influence of self-concept, attitudes, socio-
economical conditions, anxiety, intelligence, study habits of primary and middle
school students. Influence of study habits, achievement in individual subjects like
Mathematics, English, and Physical science on academic achievement were focused
in studies.
3. Many studies were conducted on the underachievers in relation to their achievement
motivation, home environment, study habits, self-concept, attitudes etc.
4. The study of the factors that influence the academic achievement of the Indian
population is also received good attraction from researchers. However, the work on
the influence of achievement motivation, home environment and study habits on
academic achievement of high school students is meager and not covered all the
states except a few like Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Gujarat etc.