AN ASSESSMENT OF IPOB “SIT-AT-HOME” ORDER AND ITS EFFECT ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF 2021 WASSCE STUDENTS IN SOUTH-EAST, NIGERIA: A CASE STUDY OF PUBLIC PERCEPTION

AN ASSESSMENT OF IPOB “SIT-AT-HOME” ORDER AND ITS EFFECT ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF 2021 WASSCE STUDENTS IN SOUTH-EAST, NIGERIA: A CASE STUDY OF PUBLIC PERCEPTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

In Nigeria, education is a "par excellence" tool for achieving national development. Non-governmental organizations, communities, and individuals have all actively participated, as have government actions. As a result, it is desirable for the country to state clearly and unequivocally the philosophy and goals that underpin its investment in education.

The government intended for the far-reaching requirements outlined in all areas of the program to gradually transform all elements of the nation's life. To achieve that goal, the government established a national educational policy implementation committee to translate the policy into a practical plan that would guide the bodies tasked with putting the program into action. The group was also tasked with creating a monitoring system for the educational plan as it progressed. Education must be geared toward self-realization, better human relationships, individual and national efficiency, effective citizenship, national consciousness, national unity, as well as social, cultural, economic, political, scientific, and technological progress in order for the philosophy to be in line with Nigeria's national goals. Since the Old African Society to the present day, many changes have happened in Nigeria's educational system, according to Obanya (1993). Despite the establishment of educational ideas with the intention of generating positive and permanent improvements, these changes lack substance. This inconstancy is attributed to the inherited colonial educational system, which lacked aims and association with any national goals, causing ambiguities, contradictions, and a lack of standardization in practice across the federation.

The process of transformation in the policies and systems of education in Nigeria was publicly begun in 1969 at the National Curriculum Conference in Lagos to rid the system of these anomalies and hindrances to steady progress in education and national development. This conference resulted in a national strategy on education based on the philosophy of education, with the goal of equipping the educational system with everything needed to propel Nigeria into the future politically, socially, morally, and technologically.

Obanya (1993) went on to say that good educational planning at all levels should represent the country's educational and development philosophy. According to him, educational planning in Nigeria should focus on the five key national objectives outlined in the Nigerian government's Second National Development Plan, which was approved by the federal government in 1970 as the required foundation (National Policy on Education 1979).

With all of these efforts, Nigerian secondary education, which serves as a link between primary and secondary education, not only occupies a crucial position in the Nigerian educational system, but also trains individuals to be helpful members of society.

Secondary education, which is the midpoint of the educational system in Nigeria, is rapidly losing relevance, owing, among other things, to the unsatisfactory and low performance of secondary school pupils in public examinations. According to Nwokocha & Amadike (2005), academic performance of students is the criterion for evaluating a nation's educational excellence; thus, maintaining a high performance in internal and largely external examinations is very simple.

Scholars have debated and discussed student performance because it is the most important educational policy and indicator that stakeholders are interested in. Since the inception of educational theory, student performance has been a subject of national interest and comparative studies among countries.

While stressing the importance of academic performance in the educational system, Nwokocha & Amadike (2005) believe that academic performance is a fundamental criterion by which all teaching-learning activities are measured, using some standards of excellence and the acquisition of particular grades in examinations to measure a candidate's ability, mastery of the content, and skills in a variety of areas. Parents, guardians, instructors, counselors, and educators are concerned about the current low performance of pupils and administration of public senior secondary schools in Nigeria's West African Secondary School Certificate Examinations (WASSCE).

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Soldiers from the Nigerian Army reportedly invaded Kanu's country residence in Umuahia, Abia state, on September 14, 2017. During the operation, soldiers are said to have fired rounds in several directions, causing anxiety in the neighborhood. A number of people were reportedly killed or arrested as a result of the incident. IPOB spokesman Emma Powerful said in a statement 

"We, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) global movement, desire to remind all Biafrans, allies of Biafra, and lovers of Biafra independence throughout the world that the IPOB leadership's sit-at-home order to be observed on Tuesday, September 14th, 2021 is sacrosanct," it said. The "freedom seekers" aim to honor them. He claims that the sit-at-home rule is sacred and must be followed.

People's agitations have been proven in several studies to have an impact on their society's political stability and educational sector (Adamu & Ocheni 2016; Adangor 2017; Chinwendu 2017; Okpukri 2012). Agitators have their reasons for agitating, and depending on the level of dissatisfaction within a group of people, they use different styles in their agitations. Nnamdi Kanu, a dual citizen of Nigeria and the United Kingdom, founded the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in 2009 as a pro-Biafran and separatist group. The group campaigns for the Republic of Biafra to gain self-determination from the Nigerian government in order to achieve independence. The group may have utilized a variety of tactics in their protests, including sit-ins, street marches, and the use of various forms of communication, such as radio and television, to inform the public about their predicament. This study investigates how IPOB agitations affect the performance of 2021 WASSCE students in the South-East in this article.

1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The overall goal of the research is to:

1. To evaluate the public perception of the incident that led to the sit-at-home order by IPOB
2. To evaluate the impact of the sit-at-home order by IPOB on the performance of 2021 WASSCE students in the South-East
3. Suggest ways the crisis leading to the sit at home order can be curbed.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following research questions guide the objective of the study:

1. What was the public perception of the incident that led to the sit-at-home order by IPOB?
2. What was the impact of the sit-at-home order by IPOB on the performance of 2021 WASSCE students in the South-East?
3. In what way can the crisis that led to the sit-at-home order be curbed?

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