CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Education is recognized as a potent instrument for social and economic development of individuals and societies. Secondary education is the form of education which children receive immediately after completing primary school education. It constitutes post primary education and sometimes serves as a link between primary and university education. According to Ogbonnaya (2010) secondary education is the form of education which children receive automatically after they have received primary school education. In the same light, Whitaker, (2001) asserts that, secondary education refers to full-time education provided in secondary schools usually for pupils between the ages of eleven or twelve and eighteen plus. All the above means that secondary education refers to education provided in the secondary school which is meant for primary school graduates and a processing ground for a career in higher education.

The broad aims of secondary education (Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2004) within Nigeria’s overall national objectives are preparation of students for useful living within the society and for higher education (p.17). It is of six years duration and is being given in two stages, the Junior Secondary School (JSS) and the Senior Secondary School (SSS). Each stage is of three years duration. Emphasizing the importance of secondary education, Ogbonnaya (2010).