Published Article

ABSTRACT

The study sought to find out how occupational standing of parents influence the academic achievement of the students in English language. Correlational survey design was adopted for the study. The study was carried out in selected public secondary schools in Uyo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State. The population of this study comprised senior secondary two students in Uyo Local Government Area. There are 14 public secondary schools in Uyo Local Government Area and the estimated population of SS2 students was 3162. Simple random sampling technique was used to select eight public secondary schools where 303 SS 2 students were randomly selected for the study. The instrument used in this study for data collection was a questionnaire titled "Students Factors Questionnaire (SFQ)". The instrument was vetted and content validated by the researcher’s supervisor and two lecturers who are experts in language education in the University of Uyo to ensure that the instrument has the accuracy, appropriateness, and completeness for the study under consideration. The reliability coefficient obtained was 0.97, and this was high enough to justify the use of the instrument. The data were analyzed using t-test and Pearson Product Moment Correlation statistics analysis. The test for significance was done at 0.05 alpha levels. The study discovered that parent with lucrative occupations provide sufficiently for their children academic pursuit. This will motivate their wards academic achievement. But student whose parents have low occupation standing find it difficult to achieve academic excellence. Financial capacities enhance achievement. That is to say, Students whose parents place high premium on their academic pursuit perform better than those students whose parents pay lip services to their education. study found a significant influence of parental occupation on students' academic performance in English language. It was thus concluded that students whose parents have regular jobs and income perform better academically than those with non-working parents. One of the recommendations made in the study was that students from low occupational background should not feel inferior to ask questions when they don’t understand the material or assignments.

KEYWORDS: Occupational standing, Parents, Students’ Academic Achievement, English Language, Public Secondary Schools and Uyo L.G.A.