Influence of Reward and Punishment on Academic Performance of Secondary School History Students in Ilorin Metropolis, Kwara State

Abstract

In order to avoid creation of anxiety that causes loss of concentration, fear, distortion and poor
learning attitude from the students, teachers need to use commensurable punishment that
can bring about a desirable behaviour as well as the reward that will encourage students to
acquire skills and knowledge for their own development, not for mere marks. Thus, this study
aimed at examining the influence of reward and punishment on academic performance of
History students in Senior Secondary School in Ilorin metropolis of Kwara State. Simple
random sampling technique was adopted to select 27 History teachers and 90 History
students from the nine (9) selected Senior Secondary Schools in Ilorin metropolis as a sample
for this study. The instrument administered to collect data and information are questionnaire
and profoma, using Pearson product moment correlation statistics at 0.05 level of significance
to test the three hypotheses generated in the study. The findings revealed that there was a
significant relationship between teachers’ frequent use of reward, punishment and academic
performance of History students’ in Ilorin metropolis. Based on the findings, it is recommended
that teachers should cultivate the habit of using reinforcement techniques that would encourage
learners to put in extra efforts toward learning. Also, they need to understand that punishing
students cannot determine an excellent academic performance. Therefore, there is need for the
teachers to minimize the use of punishment so that students can perform better in schools.