IMPACT OF SCHOOL LIBRARY SERVICE ON THE LEVEL OF ACHIEVEMENT OF STUDENTS IN LEARNING FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING IN SECONDARY SCHOOL
ABSTRACT
The study investigate the Impact of Library Service on the level of Achievement of Students in the learning of Financial Accounting in Secondary Schools in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti state. The study investigated available library resources for teaching financial accounting and how the available library resource is being utilized in teaching accounting. Furthermore, it found out impact of library on student academic achievement, the problem militating against school library and the way forward to improve the library services. Questionnaire was used as the method to gather relevant information needed. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, percentage frequency count was used to answer the general questions and inferential statistic of chi- square (χ2) was used test the hypotheses. The study found out findings showed that library usage in teaching and learning of financial accounting in secondary school significantly influence student academic performance and students believed that handbook, journal, textbooks and magazine enhance better performance of student. However, the study revealed that the library opening hours should be extended beyond school hours to give students the opportunity to study in the library after school hours and there should be employment of adequate trained staff for school library.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page
Approval Page
Certification Page
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Abstract
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
1.2 Statement of the Problem
1.3 Purpose of the Study
1.4 Research Questions
1.5 Research Hypotheses
1.6 Scope of the study
1.7 Significance of the Study
1.8 Definition of Terms
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Concept of Library
2.2 Types of Library
2.3 Impact of Library on User Satisfaction
2.4 Impact on Academic Achievement
2.5 Impact on Broader Aspects of Learning
2.6 The need for Library Services
2.7 The Role of Libraries in Educational Development
2.8 Library and Information Technology
2.9 Library and Students Achievement
2.10 Staff Roles and Responsibilities in Library
2.11 Summary of Review of Related Literature
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
3.1 Research Design
3.2 Area of the Study
3.3 Population of the Study
3.4 Sample and Sampling Techniques
3.5 Instrument for Data Collection
3.6 Validation of the Instrument
3.7 Reliability of the Instrument
3.8 Method of Data Collection
3.9 Method of Data Analysis
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Analysis of Research Questions Using Percentage
4.2 Analysis of Research Hypotheses Using Chi-Square
CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION OF RESULTS, SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Discussion of Findings
5.2 Summary
5.3 Conclusion
5.4 Suggestion for further studies
5.5 Recommendations
REFERENCES
APPENDIX
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Accounting is an inevitable subject in the school system. The students’ abilities and potentials are revealed through the help of accounting because it involves deductive thinking and logical reasoning which develops the brain. It also builds up skill in the students so as to meet up with different difficulties and challenges in the future academic work. The teaching and learning of Accounting demands library service in an environment that is inspiring, encouraging and challenging to learners to enable them acquire and utilize the necessary skills in the subject. Such skills which are either generic or integrated include observing, classifying, calculating, reporting, analyzing, communicating, using numbers and recognizing spatial relations. Others are inferring, predicting, defining operationalizing, identifying and controlling variables, experimenting, interpreting data and using models. Library skills are fundamental to the teaching and learning of accounting, allowing every category of learner to conduct investigations and reach conclusions. The library is the heart of education because the library is the centre of activity of any educational enterprise. School libraries contribute to the total development of the teachers and students. It enlarges their knowledge and stimulate critical, imaginative and creative facilities. The development of any meaningful educational programme greatly depend on the library. Thus, the quality of the library in terms of the holdings determines the product of any socio economic and political development. Dike (1998), applauding the gradually evolving educational practice which tends to shift emphasis from the teacher to the learner, sees in the school library as a reliable instrument for actualizing this much derived educational reform. The power of the library lies in the resources and through interpretation: the resources can influence, modify, affect and even destroy the socioeconomic, political and physical parameters of the environment (New Standard Encyclopedia, 2005) Libraries have not enjoyed universally accepted definition. For this reason, library users and scholars have the liberty to define the library based on the use they are able to make of it. The early idea of a library was that of collection of books containing knowledge and information that must be chained together and preserved for consultation only. Harold’s Librarians’ Glossary (1995) defines library as collection of books and other library materials kept for reading, studying and consultation.
Also, the Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science (2003) defines the library as an organization or a system designed to preserve and facilitate the use of graphic records. The library is mass communication agency just as the galleries, museums and archives, is also a mass media, the library is an institution of learning that is intimately linked to the environment. It is the only institution that shares, contributes and functions as a developmental process and historical documents. Therefore, a library can be defined as an organized collection of books and other materials used for study, research and recreation. According to Achebe (2008) library can be defined in terms of the nature of book or non-book production. For example, a library is also a collection or set of books, records other items, all produced in the same style or about the same subject.
In Nigeria, especially, as it is in some other parts of the world, the controversial opinion that the standard of education has fallen has generated hot arguments in many quarters. Various factors have been put forward by scholars and researchers as possible factors responsible for this development. However in the midst of these counter arguments; the National Policy on Education (2004) recognized the library as one of the most important educational institutions for development, Fayose (1998). Based on the relevance of the library as pointed out by the national policy on education, it is difficult to believe that secondary schools are established without functional libraries. This means that to have a non-functional library is as good as not having a library. The concern alerted and initiated the study. These burning issues have been addressed in this work with a view to contributing to the improvement of educational standards through proper placement of library services in teaching and learning in secondary school in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The place of school libraries in the overall development of Secondary School education cannot be over emphasized because as a resource centre, it is expected to acquire and organize print and non-print materials suitable for the needs of the users and more so, as a learning laboratory. It is expected to provide materials to support teaching, learning and encourage students to find out things for themselves. In the past, government has sunk large sum of money into the provision of library material resources for both teachers and students of the state.
Regrettably, observation indicates that government efforts have not led to effective utilization of school libraries by teachers and students of Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State. If the teachers do not use the library, it will be difficult for them to prepare their lesson notes very well which affect their teaching and productivity generally. Moreover, the situation will have a cycling effect on the quality of students as the teachers will be breeding half-backed graduates from the schools. The consequence of this sad development could be that these young school leavers will be ill-equipped and will not be able to face their future academic challenges. Beyond this, no research has really been undertaken on teachers’ and students utilization and the impact of the school library to the teaching and learning in Gbonyin Local Government Area. In view of this, the researcher decided to embark on this study to find out specifically the impact of school library service on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of school library service on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in Secondary School in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State. Specifically, the study intend to
The following research questions were raised to assist the study
The following hypotheses were generated form the above research questions and tested at 0.05 level of significance
The study is delimited to impact of school library services on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in some selected secondary school in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State. The study also focused on the library collections, from book to non-book materials, the location, space and staff. The study also examined the extent the students utilized/used the resources and the relationship between adequate funding and the development of school library. The study was limited to five secondary schools in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti.
1.7 Significance of the Study
This study which focused on impact of school library service on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in some selected secondary school in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State is significant for the following reasons. Schools and practicing teacher-librarians will need this study to execute their library operation and enhance performance. Librarians-in-training and library educators will find this study a worthy companion as it would provide and enrich literature for effective teaching and learning in schools. Secondary Schools Principals, Proprietors and Proprietress of Secondary Schools will benefit from the study, as it would unmask the role of the school library in secondary school system of education, especially as it relates to enhancing education. The findings of the study will therefore serve as a valuable working document in the hands of Educational Administrators in finding a long lasting solution to the problem of falling standard of education in the country. This study will also be of immense benefit to educational policy makers and implementers as it would serve as a guide in formulating and implementing relevant educational policies relating to school library services. Students and general readers will find the study useful as it explains the professional practice of school library thereby helping in creating more awareness of the use and usefulness of school library and its maximum usage as information resources custodian.
1.8 Definition of Terms
Library: Is an instrument of self-education, a means of knowledge and factual information, a centre of intellectual recreation, and a beacon of enlightenment that provides accumulated preserved knowledge of civilization which consequently enriches one’s mental vision, and dignifies his habit behaviour, character, taste, attitude, conduct, and outlook on life. library as a place in which literary and artistic materials, such as books, periodicals newspapers, pamphlets, prints, records, and tapes, are kept for reading, reference, or lending. In a digital sense, a library may be more than a building that houses a collection of books and other materials as the Internet has opened up an avalanche of online and electronic resources for accessing documents on various fields of interest.
Academic Achievement: Is the outcome of education, the extent to which a student, teacher, or institution has achieve their educational goal. The act of achieving or performing and obtaining by exertion, successful performance accomplishment of an object. Something that has been done or achieved through effort, a result of hard work.
Financial Accounting: Financial accounting is the process of recording, classifying, selecting, measuring, interpreting, summarizing and reporting financial data of an organization to the users for objective assessment and decision making
Teaching: This is the process of transferring ideas through methods by the teacher to the students’ in order to ensure learning. The activities of educating or instructing someone
Learning: Learning is the act of acquiring new, or modifying and reinforcing, existing knowledge, behaviour skills, values or preferences and may involve synthesizing different types of information. It is the activity or process of gaining knowledge or skill by studying, practicing being taught or experiencing something.
ABSTRACT
The study investigate the Impact of Library Service on the level of Achievement of Students in the learning of Financial Accounting in Secondary Schools in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti state. The study investigated available library resources for teaching financial accounting and how the available library resource is being utilized in teaching accounting. Furthermore, it found out impact of library on student academic achievement, the problem militating against school library and the way forward to improve the library services. Questionnaire was used as the method to gather relevant information needed. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, percentage frequency count was used to answer the general questions and inferential statistic of chi- square (χ2) was used test the hypotheses. The study found out findings showed that library usage in teaching and learning of financial accounting in secondary school significantly influence student academic performance and students believed that handbook, journal, textbooks and magazine enhance better performance of student. However, the study revealed that the library opening hours should be extended beyond school hours to give students the opportunity to study in the library after school hours and there should be employment of adequate trained staff for school library.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page
Approval Page
Certification Page
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Abstract
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
1.2 Statement of the Problem
1.3 Purpose of the Study
1.4 Research Questions
1.5 Research Hypotheses
1.6 Scope of the study
1.7 Significance of the Study
1.8 Definition of Terms
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Concept of Library
2.2 Types of Library
2.3 Impact of Library on User Satisfaction
2.4 Impact on Academic Achievement
2.5 Impact on Broader Aspects of Learning
2.6 The need for Library Services
2.7 The Role of Libraries in Educational Development
2.8 Library and Information Technology
2.9 Library and Students Achievement
2.10 Staff Roles and Responsibilities in Library
2.11 Summary of Review of Related Literature
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
3.1 Research Design
3.2 Area of the Study
3.3 Population of the Study
3.4 Sample and Sampling Techniques
3.5 Instrument for Data Collection
3.6 Validation of the Instrument
3.7 Reliability of the Instrument
3.8 Method of Data Collection
3.9 Method of Data Analysis
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Analysis of Research Questions Using Percentage
4.2 Analysis of Research Hypotheses Using Chi-Square
CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION OF RESULTS, SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Discussion of Findings
5.2 Summary
5.3 Conclusion
5.4 Suggestion for further studies
5.5 Recommendations
REFERENCES
APPENDIX
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Accounting is an inevitable subject in the school system. The students’ abilities and potentials are revealed through the help of accounting because it involves deductive thinking and logical reasoning which develops the brain. It also builds up skill in the students so as to meet up with different difficulties and challenges in the future academic work. The teaching and learning of Accounting demands library service in an environment that is inspiring, encouraging and challenging to learners to enable them acquire and utilize the necessary skills in the subject. Such skills which are either generic or integrated include observing, classifying, calculating, reporting, analyzing, communicating, using numbers and recognizing spatial relations. Others are inferring, predicting, defining operationalizing, identifying and controlling variables, experimenting, interpreting data and using models. Library skills are fundamental to the teaching and learning of accounting, allowing every category of learner to conduct investigations and reach conclusions. The library is the heart of education because the library is the centre of activity of any educational enterprise. School libraries contribute to the total development of the teachers and students. It enlarges their knowledge and stimulate critical, imaginative and creative facilities. The development of any meaningful educational programme greatly depend on the library. Thus, the quality of the library in terms of the holdings determines the product of any socio economic and political development. Dike (1998), applauding the gradually evolving educational practice which tends to shift emphasis from the teacher to the learner, sees in the school library as a reliable instrument for actualizing this much derived educational reform. The power of the library lies in the resources and through interpretation: the resources can influence, modify, affect and even destroy the socioeconomic, political and physical parameters of the environment (New Standard Encyclopedia, 2005) Libraries have not enjoyed universally accepted definition. For this reason, library users and scholars have the liberty to define the library based on the use they are able to make of it. The early idea of a library was that of collection of books containing knowledge and information that must be chained together and preserved for consultation only. Harold’s Librarians’ Glossary (1995) defines library as collection of books and other library materials kept for reading, studying and consultation.
Also, the Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science (2003) defines the library as an organization or a system designed to preserve and facilitate the use of graphic records. The library is mass communication agency just as the galleries, museums and archives, is also a mass media, the library is an institution of learning that is intimately linked to the environment. It is the only institution that shares, contributes and functions as a developmental process and historical documents. Therefore, a library can be defined as an organized collection of books and other materials used for study, research and recreation. According to Achebe (2008) library can be defined in terms of the nature of book or non-book production. For example, a library is also a collection or set of books, records other items, all produced in the same style or about the same subject.
In Nigeria, especially, as it is in some other parts of the world, the controversial opinion that the standard of education has fallen has generated hot arguments in many quarters. Various factors have been put forward by scholars and researchers as possible factors responsible for this development. However in the midst of these counter arguments; the National Policy on Education (2004) recognized the library as one of the most important educational institutions for development, Fayose (1998). Based on the relevance of the library as pointed out by the national policy on education, it is difficult to believe that secondary schools are established without functional libraries. This means that to have a non-functional library is as good as not having a library. The concern alerted and initiated the study. These burning issues have been addressed in this work with a view to contributing to the improvement of educational standards through proper placement of library services in teaching and learning in secondary school in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The place of school libraries in the overall development of Secondary School education cannot be over emphasized because as a resource centre, it is expected to acquire and organize print and non-print materials suitable for the needs of the users and more so, as a learning laboratory. It is expected to provide materials to support teaching, learning and encourage students to find out things for themselves. In the past, government has sunk large sum of money into the provision of library material resources for both teachers and students of the state.
Regrettably, observation indicates that government efforts have not led to effective utilization of school libraries by teachers and students of Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State. If the teachers do not use the library, it will be difficult for them to prepare their lesson notes very well which affect their teaching and productivity generally. Moreover, the situation will have a cycling effect on the quality of students as the teachers will be breeding half-backed graduates from the schools. The consequence of this sad development could be that these young school leavers will be ill-equipped and will not be able to face their future academic challenges. Beyond this, no research has really been undertaken on teachers’ and students utilization and the impact of the school library to the teaching and learning in Gbonyin Local Government Area. In view of this, the researcher decided to embark on this study to find out specifically the impact of school library service on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of school library service on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in Secondary School in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State. Specifically, the study intend to
- find out the available library resources for financial accounting in secondary school
- find out how the available library resources are being utilized by accounting students and teachers in secondary schools.
- to examine whether library usage in teaching and learning of financial accounting in secondary school significantly influence students’ academic performance?
- to find out whether gender of accounting students significantly influence the use of library service in secondary school
- to find out the impact of library on the achievement of students in secondary school
- to identify the problems militating against school library services and utilization of the library resources by accounting students.
- to identify the impact of library on the performance of students who learn financial accounting with the use of library service and students who learn without the use of library service
- to suggest ways of improving the library services, ways of making the materials available and the ways of utilization of library resources in secondary schools.
The following research questions were raised to assist the study
- What are the available library resources in teaching financial accounting?
- Do the available library resources for accounting teachers and students in secondary school influence student performance?
- Does library usage in teaching and learning of financial accounting in secondary school significantly influence students’ academic performance?
- Does gender of accounting students significantly influence the use of library service in secondary school?
- Does the impact of library play a significant influence in secondary school
- Is there any problems militating against school library services and utilization of the library resources by accounting students in secondary school?
The following hypotheses were generated form the above research questions and tested at 0.05 level of significance
- There is no significant difference between the available Library resources and student performance in financial accounting
- Available library resources been utilized by accounting teachers and students does not significantly influence student academics performance
- Library usage in teaching and learning of financial accounting in secondary school does not significantly influence students’ academic performance
- Gender of accounting students does not significantly influence the use of library service in secondary school
- Impact of library does not play a significant influence in secondary school
- There is no problems militating against school library services and utilization of the library resources by accounting students in secondary school?
The study is delimited to impact of school library services on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in some selected secondary school in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State. The study also focused on the library collections, from book to non-book materials, the location, space and staff. The study also examined the extent the students utilized/used the resources and the relationship between adequate funding and the development of school library. The study was limited to five secondary schools in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti.
1.7 Significance of the Study
This study which focused on impact of school library service on the level of achievement of students in learning financial accounting in some selected secondary school in Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State is significant for the following reasons. Schools and practicing teacher-librarians will need this study to execute their library operation and enhance performance. Librarians-in-training and library educators will find this study a worthy companion as it would provide and enrich literature for effective teaching and learning in schools. Secondary Schools Principals, Proprietors and Proprietress of Secondary Schools will benefit from the study, as it would unmask the role of the school library in secondary school system of education, especially as it relates to enhancing education. The findings of the study will therefore serve as a valuable working document in the hands of Educational Administrators in finding a long lasting solution to the problem of falling standard of education in the country. This study will also be of immense benefit to educational policy makers and implementers as it would serve as a guide in formulating and implementing relevant educational policies relating to school library services. Students and general readers will find the study useful as it explains the professional practice of school library thereby helping in creating more awareness of the use and usefulness of school library and its maximum usage as information resources custodian.
1.8 Definition of Terms
Library: Is an instrument of self-education, a means of knowledge and factual information, a centre of intellectual recreation, and a beacon of enlightenment that provides accumulated preserved knowledge of civilization which consequently enriches one’s mental vision, and dignifies his habit behaviour, character, taste, attitude, conduct, and outlook on life. library as a place in which literary and artistic materials, such as books, periodicals newspapers, pamphlets, prints, records, and tapes, are kept for reading, reference, or lending. In a digital sense, a library may be more than a building that houses a collection of books and other materials as the Internet has opened up an avalanche of online and electronic resources for accessing documents on various fields of interest.
Academic Achievement: Is the outcome of education, the extent to which a student, teacher, or institution has achieve their educational goal. The act of achieving or performing and obtaining by exertion, successful performance accomplishment of an object. Something that has been done or achieved through effort, a result of hard work.
Financial Accounting: Financial accounting is the process of recording, classifying, selecting, measuring, interpreting, summarizing and reporting financial data of an organization to the users for objective assessment and decision making
Teaching: This is the process of transferring ideas through methods by the teacher to the students’ in order to ensure learning. The activities of educating or instructing someone
Learning: Learning is the act of acquiring new, or modifying and reinforcing, existing knowledge, behaviour skills, values or preferences and may involve synthesizing different types of information. It is the activity or process of gaining knowledge or skill by studying, practicing being taught or experiencing something.