Month: August 2022

Aug 30

A LEXICO-SEMANTIC ANALYSIS OF CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE’S HALF OF A YELLOW SUN

Background of the study

The resources of language have always been the medium for the expression of thoughts, beliefs, feelings, ideologies, and other human experiences. Consequently, language has been a fascinating phenomenon to humans all through time. It is this resource with which the individual’s identity is asserted, the resource through which meaning of utterances, in communality with the context is construed. This diverse and fascinating nature of language is what has been employed by writers to relate meaning to their readers through the use of words. It is on this realm of language being able to paint pictures, images, sounds, assert identity and construe meaning that stylistics dwells on.

The study of a writer’s style in text may be geared towards the understanding of the ideology and meaning embedded in the writer’s work that makes his voice stands out from the myriad of voices that populate the field of literature. The writer through literature and language is able to make known his experiences about the world and his thought about happenings in the society, showing that meaning does not just lie on the linguistic codes, alone, but also on the situation surrounding the use of such codes. This is where literature, language and ideology meet.

Understanding the writer’s style is one of the ways in which the reader of a text can fully arrive at the intended meaning of the writer. Looking at the work from the angle through which the story is told, who tells the story, the reason behind the story, the ideology of the story, all through the medium of language go a long way in telling the reader more about the world of the writer. It is at this level that this research will be using Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun, to analyse how social meaning and ideology are embedded in language.

War has always plagued the world, and, through time, it seems the human race has become addicted to it, and writers have come to use it as a motivation to depict or portray its effects on the psyche of the common man. This is why Lucien Goldstein observed that

Period of crisis . . . are particularly favourable to the birth of great works of art and literature because of the multiplicity of problems and experiences that they bring to men and of the great widening of affective and intellectual horizon that they provoke ( ‘introduction’2 qtd in Allwell and Ezechi, 2010,p.73).

For the past decades, Africa has been a war torn continent, and the Nigerian civil war of 1967-1970 serves as a resource from which most Nigerian writers have drawn inspiration, relating how the war has affected the common man and all those that were either actively involved in the war or not. Nwahunanya asserted that

In every nation’s life, there are normally epochal events, events that are of national significance which keep on recurring in writings… the Nigerian civil war literature is comparable to what is happening along those lines… the nature of the shake-up that resulted from the Nigerian civil war, the nature of the trauma that people went through at the time and the aftermaths…. (1996, p.62)

It is from this pool of inspiration that Adichie has drawn to come up with Half of a Yellow Sun. It should be noted that so many Nigerian writers have explored this subject matter of the civil war in their works. Works such as Wole Soyinka’s The Man Died (1972), John Munonye’s  A Wreath for the Maidens (1973), Elechi Amadi’s Sunset in Biafra (1973), I N.C. Aniebo’s The Anonymity of Sacrifice (1974), Festus Iyayi’s Heroes (1975), Isidore Okpenwho’s Last Duty (1976), Vincent Ike’s Sunset at Dawn (1976), Buchi Emecheta’s Destination Biafra (1981), Flora Nwapa’s Never Again (1984), Chinua Achebe’s There Was a Country (2012), etc, were all inspired by the Nigerian civil war.

Adichie’s has also come to join these literary giants with her work Half of a Yellow Sun. As other writers have done, she uses the medium of language to marry history and fiction, to bring to the fore the gory and horrific details of the war on the psychology of the individual and the group involved in the war, and to inform and enlighten the reader about the civil war. Just like other third generation writers, Adichie experiment with language in her work, aesthetically using it in ways that it carries her thoughts and opinion about the war. This study therefore examine A Lexico-Semantic Analysis Of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Half Of A Yellow Sun

Aims and Objectives of the Study

Most studies on the text have focused mainly on its theme and subject matter; with little attention on its style. However, the objective of this study is to examine Adichie’s employment of language to aesthetically relate her feelings, and ideology about the war in Half of a Yellow Sun. It looks critically at the syntactic, lexico-semantic, phono-graphological features of the text, as well as the ideology that underlie them, and how these features enhance the realization of meaning.

 Significance of the Study

A critical study of a text enables the analyst to see how the writer’s linguistic choices enhance the communicativeness of their works. The significance of this study lies in the demonstration of how the writer’s linguistic choice leads to a better understanding of the social experiences and ideology that underlie the text. It shows how linguistic devices such as mood, transitivity, cohesion, parallel structures, etc, enable us to unearth the ideology behind text construction. The ideology of the text leads us to understand issues of identity and inter-group relations in Adichie’s society.

 Scope of the Study

Studies in stylistics range from discourse stylistics, pedagogical stylistics, literary stylistics, linguistic stylistics, general stylistics, feminist stylistics, to critical stylistics etc. This study will however focus on critical stylistics which looks at how social meaning and ideology manifest through language in text. It will use the features of critical discourse analysis and critical linguistics in analyzing the style in Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun.

Aug 30

DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A WEB BASED APPLICATION TUTOR FINDER SYSTEM

DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A WEB BASED APPLICATION TUTOR FINDER SYSTEM

Chapter one/Introduction

Peer tutoring between students in similar age groups has received positive reviews from educators all over the world as an intervention to support student learning outside of the typical classroom setting, even though teachers continue to be the primary facilitator of learning at every level of education. Peer tutoring, according to studies, is a useful technique for developing academic skills with someone your own age. (2015) Dodge K, Farkas G, Fryer RG, Guryan As a result, numerous online tutor scheduling and appointment tools have emerged for the convenience of potential tutors and students. Since virtually everyone already owns a smartphone, it is also incredibly handy for individuals to set up appointments wherever they are and whenever they want to, which is why many developers produce mobile scheduling software.

Students needing help staying on track academically and struggling in a course can receive tutoring from the academic assistance department of their school. Students who would wish to use the school’s tutorial services can schedule an appointment by emailing their academic support staff. Even if tutorial programs are available, the typical way to get a tutor is to go in person to the office of student affairs or academic support staff, schedule an appointment online, via email, or via text message. Prior to hiring a tutor, it has not yet been investigated to obtain a list of tutors with their qualifications and reviews from past students who were their tutees. Additionally, some institutions give pupils better academic support by consolidating all instructors in one place and offering tutoring by appointment only Uddin MP, Nadim M, Imd, Afjal MI. (2013)

Furthermore, none of the scheduling methods currently in use have addressed concerns about whether or not the methods could be safe for both the tutor and tutee. Students’ safety is not always guaranteed in a private tutoring session, particularly when sessions are performed off-campus with no adequate oversight of the tutoring location. While the majority of tutorial appointment apps may offer competent tutors, they do not guarantee a moderated atmosphere that is regularly watched over by staff members.

Therefore, the goal of this project is to create an improved web-based tutor search system. GrabTutor will offer a list of available tutors together with information about their areas of specialization and performance reviews from former students. Instead of asking family members or friends, a parent can quickly find tutors for their child using this program. Instead of waiting days or for a response from someone else, parents would receive their results immediately. Parents will choose a tutor for their child based on a number of factors, including the instructor’s gender, educational background, specialization, and command of the English language. Additionally, by organizing their schedule, this program will assist tutors in coordinating and saving time. In order to allocate teachers and pupils in the same area, the application uses location preference as the primary attribute. The application’s key characteristics include maintainability, where instructor and parent data will be maintained by a database, the ability to modify uploaded profiles based on needs, and responsiveness, dependability, and user-friendliness.

Problem Statement

For students, the current manual approach for selecting tutors is a very time-consuming and exhausting process.
The current web-based system is inefficient because it primarily serves as an advertisement for the tutor.
Not responsive enough for students to use a laptop or website to find their tutor

Aug 29

THE EFFECTS OF ALCOHOLISM ON NIGERIA YOUTHS IN LAGOS STATE

CHAPTER ONE

Alcohol use has been a part of human history since the beginning of time. Alcohol intake in traditional Nigerian civilizations was based on age and gender. It was primarily consumed in social settings by adult males. Locally produced alcoholic beverages were produced and consumed under the control of customs and traditions. Even though some communities allowed youth to imbibe alcohol, Emeka, this was typically done so in the company of adults who kept an eye on their intake (Emeka, 2013). Alcohol use was limited to religious rituals, marriage ceremonies, kingship enthronements, cultural festivals, and child naming ceremonies. It was not a regular occurrence. Adults’ excessive consumption was nonetheless restrained culturally even on these occasions. The younger tribal members would serve the elders who would drink first, leaving little wine for the latter group because the wine was not made in commercial quantities. Following the Group Changing Patterns of Alcohol Consumption in Nigeria, this tendency changed in the fifteenth century with the arrival of European slave traders and their “trade spirit.”

Aug 27

Assessing level of awareness on causes and prevention of pelvic inflammation disease (PID)

INTRODUCTION

Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) refers to an inflammatory condition in the female reproductive system above the internal os of the cervix. It can be due to a bacterial, fungal or viral infection though bacterial infection is more common.

Organisms that are notable in PID conditions are, Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis, even normal vaginal flora can be involved. The infection can be due to a single species of organisms or a co- infection of many different organisms.

World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that worldwide over 340 million new cases of four curable STIs ( gonorrhoea, chlamydia, syphilis, and trichomoniasis) occurred in 1999 in men and women age 15-49. In sub-Saharan Africa, the WHO Global programme estimated the prevalence of STIs at 208 million cases, with an annual incidence of 65 million (WHO, 1995)

32 Prevalence of PID in Nigeria is high, particularly among young adults. A study done in Port Harcourt, Nigeria put the prevalence among undergraduates at 11%. 5 Prasad et al24 in a similar study reported a prevalence of 14% among young women in India.

A study in 1994 in hospitals showed that 10 percent of out-patient attendees were due to STIs (Roseberry et al., 1994). Another population study in a community trial in Rakai, Uganda, found a prevalence of 15.6% for HIV, 9.4% for syphilis, 25.0 % for trichomoniasis, 1.1% for gonorrhoea, 2.2% for chlamydia and 51.2% for bacterial vaginosis, at a baseline control group (Wawer etal., 1999).

According to data from the Mulago STD clinic, the prevalence of HIV among STD clients remains much higher than in the general population. While the HIV prevalence has stabilised around 6.4% in the general population since 2000, among STD clients it has remained high, ranging between 19 and 23.7% (MOH, 2003b).

There are limitations and constraints associated with making an etiological diagnosis based on laboratory evidence, apart from research settings, most of the diagnosis and management of STD patients is based on the syndromic approach.

PID could be a result of an untreated sexually transmitted disease, abortion childbirth, miscarriage or post pelvic operations. It can be diagnosed using laparoscopy, pelvic scans and histology smears. However there are other conditions that have to be considered when diagnosing the disease and they include appendicitis, ectopic pregnancy, hemorrhagic or ruptured cyst and twisted cyst.

PID can be cured but its effects can be permanent hence early treatment and regular screening of individuals at a high risk of STIs is important since gonococcal infections are asymptomatic. Treatment generally involves antibiotic therapy and the drugs are given either orally or intravenously. Untreated or late treated PID has serious complication such as infertility, ectopic pregnancy chronic abdominal pain.

Prevention strategies include avoiding STIs and early treatment of the symptoms for any STI or PID which include; pain during intercourse, abnormal vaginal discharge and fever.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

In general, infertility can be attributed to the female partner one third of the time, the male partner one third of the time, and both partners in the remaining one third. This approximation emphasizes the importance of evaluating both members of the couple before instituting therapy (William’s gyaenecology).

In Uganda the rate of infertility is high and the most probable cause is risky behaviours which people always engage in, this has led to people acquiring different infections which have led to P.I.D , a disease people hardly know anything about.

Early identification of the disease is a major preliquisite to prevention and controlling of the disease, however with the various myths and inadequate information about the disease many people are at a high risk.

JUSTIFICATION

According to the 2004-05 Uganda HIV/AIDS Sero-Behavioural Survey, the prevalence of STIs and related risk behavior was high. In the same survey, only 9 percent of women and 15 percent of men reported condom use during the preceding 12 months, 14 percent of youth age 15-24 reported started having sex before age15. Sixty-three percent of females and 47 percent of males 18-24 years had had sex before age 18, and only 29 percent of females and 33 percent of males used a condom at initiation of sex. Multiple sexual partners were common and No table of figures entries found.reported multiple sexual partners

Despite the above troubling information there has not been any reported study in Uganda on the awareness of PID among the youth. This research will therefore serve to add knowledge on the awareness of this debilitating disease that has great impact on both the spread of HIV and infertility.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

Determine the status Assessing level of awareness on causes and prevention of pelvic inflammation disease

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

    1. To evaluate the knowledge of the students about the PID
    2. To identify the predisposing factors to PID among the students
    3. To identify the prevention approaches of PID

Assessing level of awareness on causes and prevention of pelvic inflammation disease (PID)

Aug 27

DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXT TO SPEECH APPLICATION FOR VISION IMPAIRED STUDENTS

ABSTRACT
A Text-to-speech application is a synthesizer software that converts text into spoken word, by analyzing and processing the text using Natural Language Processing (NLP) and then using Digital Signal Processing (DSP) technology to convert this processed text into synthesized speech representation of the text. The vision impaired students makes a lot of mistake during typing because they just assume whatever there are typing is right, this lead to the development of Text-To-Speech application. Here, we developed a useful text-to-speech synthesizer in the form of a simple application that converts inputted text into synthesized speech and reads out to the user which can then be saved as an mp3.file. Observation and interview were deployed to gather information used in developing this material. The development of a text to speech synthesizer will be of great help to people with visual impairment and make making through large volume of text easier.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title page – – – – – – – – – i
Certification – – – – – – – – – ii
Dedication – – – – – – – – – iii
Acknowledgement – – – – – – – – iv
Abstract – – – – – – – – – v
Table of content – – – – – – – – vi

CHAPTER ONE: Introduction
1.1 Introduction – – – – – – – – 1
1.2 Background of study – – – – – – 2
1.3 Statement of problem – – – – – – 3
1.4 Objective of study – – – – – – – 3
1.5 Scope of study – – – – – – – 4
1.6 Significant of study – – – – – – 4
1.7 Limitation of study – – – – – – 4
1.8 Definition of terms – – – – – – – 5

CHAPTER TWO: Literature review
2.1 Introduction – – – – – – – – 6
2.2 Different type of data – – – – – – 6
2.2 Classes of data types- – – – – – – 8
2.2.2 Composite Types – – – – – – 10
2.2.2 Other Types – – – – – – – 12
2.3 Data conversion – – – – – – – 13
2.4 Text-to-speech application – – – – – 14
2.5 Different challenges in individual (disability) – – 17
2.6 Technology to overcome different challenges – – 19
2.7 Over goals of empowering persons with disabilities through
Technology – – – – – – – – 21
2.8 Empowerment of the target group – – – – 23
2.9 The benefits of ICT in e-learning and improving capabilities
Of students with disabilities – – – – – 23
2.10 Technology for persons with disabilities – – – 25
2.10.1 E-learning and education of students with disabilities – 26
2.10.2 Persons with disabilities moving from isolation to integration- 27
2.11 ICT providing computer accessibility for persons with
disabilities – – – – – – – – 30

CHAPTER THREE: System Analysis Design
3.1 Introduction – – – – – – – – 31
3.2 System analysis – – – – – – – 31
3.2.1 Detailed definition of the problem – – – 31
3.2.3 Feasibility study – – – – – – 32
3.3 Method of collecting data – – – – – 32
3.3.1 Interview – – – – – – – – 32
3.3.2 Observation – – – – – – – 33
3.3.3 Review of procedure manual or existing system/procedure- 33
3.3.4 Evaluation of forms – – – – – – 33
3.4 Problem of the existing system – – – – 34
3.5 User preparation – – – – – – – 34
3.6 Data preparation – – – – – – – 35
3.6 Objective of the new design – – – – – 35
3.8 Design of the new system – – – – – 36
3.9 Program structure – – – – – – – 36
3.9.1 Modularity – – – – – – – 36
3.9.2 Top-down program design – – – – 37
3.9.3 System flowchart – – – – – – 37
3.9.4 Program flow chart – – – – – – 37
3.10 File Maintenance module – – – – – – 37
3.11 main menu specifications – – – – – – 38
3.11.1 Output specification – – – – – – 38
3.11.2 Input specification – – – – – – 38
3.11.3 File/database specifications – – – – 38

CHAPTER FOUR: System Implementation and Design
4.1 Introduction – – – – – – – – 40
4.2 Justification of the programming language – – 40
4.3 System control – – – – – – – 41
4.4 System requirements – – – – – – 41
4.4.1 Hardware requirements – – – – – 42
4.4.2 Software requirements – – – – – 42
4.4.3 People – – – – – – – – 43
4.5 Implementation details – – – – – – 43
4.5.1 Coding – – – – – – – – 43
4.5.2 System testing – – – – – – – 43
4.5.3 Training and re-training of staff – – – 44
4.5.4 File Conversion – – – – – – – 45
4.5.5 Changeover procedure – – – – – 45
4.5.6 User manuals – – – – – – – 46
4.5.7 Maintenance details – – – – – – 47

CHAPTER Five: Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation
5.1 Summary – – – – – – – – 48
5.2 Conclusion – – – – – – – – 48
5.3 Recommendation – – – – – – – 49
Reference – – – – – – – – 50

DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXT TO SPEECH APPLICATION FOR VISION IMPAIRED STUDENTS

Aug 27

AN ASSESSMENT OF THE IMPACT OF SEX EDUCATION AND RAPE AMONG YOUTH IN NIGERIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS

INTRODUCTION

Rape is one of the crimes committed by man. It is a sin against humanity and is condemned in every decent human society. Legally speaking, the concept of rape varies, depending on the legal system and the value system of a society. The word rape is from the Latin word rapere, which means to take by force. The subject of the verb is sex, when this word (rapere) is applied to human being; it means to take sex by force without the full consent of the victim. Rape according to Guptas (2009) is an unlawful sexual intercourse by a man or woman under the age of 16 years or above that is against her will or her will has been obtained by putting her in fear of death or hurt. In legal terms, rape is a criminal offence. It is a crime a man commits by unlawfully or forcefully having a carnal knowledge of a woman without the consent of the victim through intimidation, force or fraud.

            In many traditional societies where men are seen as superior beings, wives do not usually have the right to deny their husbands sex. Patriarchal traditional societies do not often consider what is known as marital rape to be rape. This situation in which rape moves from the purely sexual to an act of masculine expression is captured in the following words by Seifert in Onah (2011)

rape is not primarily sexual, but rather, it is an act of oppression. It is an aggressive expression of sexuality, but a sexual expression of oppression.  Onah explains that in the perpetrators psych, it does not fulfill sexual functions, but it is a manifestation of anger, violence and domination of a woman, the purpose is to degrade, humiliate and subjugate her (p.61).

In the patriarchal view, women are men’s subject and must be submissive to them in everything including sex. Consequently, sex by force is not rape but a sign of men’s demonstration of their power over women. In early America, rape was seen simply as demonstration of men’s power over women. The white and the rich are not prosecuted when they rape black women because of the social structure that favoured the white race and the wealthy class. Consequently, Anne. L.B in Encyclopedia Britannica (2010) noted that rape is often explained or excused as a manifestation of racial, ethnic and class hatred or as stemming from a patriarchal system in which women are viewed as the property of men. Loys (2009) explained that “patriarchal power included sexual violence” ( p.29).

The legal definition of rape has changed substantially since the late 20th century. In the primitive world there was rarely anything like rape because patriarchal structure did not permit women’s power and opinion in sex. Consequently, they were obliged to submit when men asked for it. In line with this view, Anne .L.B in Encyclopedia Britannica (2010) opined that the traditional definition of rape was narrow with

 Respect to both gender and age; rape was an act of sexual intercourse by

a man with a woman against her will. As rape is now understood, a rapist

or a victim may be an adult of either gender or a child. Although rape can

occur in same-sex intercourse, it is most often committed by a male against

a female.

It is now evident that rapists and their victims can be anybody irrespective of gender, age and race.

However, the definition of rape has been more broadened in the 21st century. Before a man sleeps with a woman outside his wife, the man is supposed to get the consent of the woman because any sexual intercourse without the consent of the girl is a full rape, to put it in another way, rape is forcefully having carnal knowledge of a girl without her consent. Eager (1989) agrees with this view when she defined rape “as taking sexual relation by force or threat without the victims consent” (p.17). Furthermore, based on the findings by F.B.I  in 2012, the understanding of rape continues to broaden, with reports of same-sex rape and female rapist discovered. However, statistics still show that many rape convicts are male. According to David (2006,p.36) “Most research indicates that rape affects women disproportionately, with the majority of people convicted being men”. A report by CNN.com (2013) gives the statistics of rape and victims in America as follows:

In the 2001 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 10.2% of girls and 5.1% of boys reported “[having] ever been physically forced to have sexual intercourse when [they] did not want to” In a 2010 study of heterosexual couples where sexual coercion existed, 45% reported female victimization, 30%    reported male victimization and 20% reported reciprocal victimization, In 2011, a study supported by a research grant from the Department of Education and Science of Spain found based on a “convenience sample of 13,877 students in 32 nations” that 2.4% of males and 1.8% of females admitted to having physically forced someone into having sex in the last year. In a 2014 study of 18,030 high school students, there was no statistically significant difference between males and females for the reported rate of having been physically forced to have sex,

This research survey shows that women are the most victims of rape while instances of male are reported.

Considerably, victims of rape are mostly minors or under age; those within age 16-18. This is probably because rape has a lot to do with force and rapist will identify their prey within this age. The people within this age are usually those they can overpower with ease. Supporting this position, Sexual Assault and Rehabilitation center (Tarma sarc,) noted that victims of rape are mostly minors and they are largely unreported. Accordingly, their statistics on rape of minors in Enugu State are as follows:

Ages between 0-5 =51

Ages between 6-10 =101

Ages between 11-13 =91

Ages between 14-17=99

Total number of raped minors are 553

Obviously, this record shows that majority of rape victims are girls and are minors. In line with this view, Bode (1998) noted that “rape is a sexual intercourse with a woman under the legal age of consent” (27).  The legal age in Nigeria is from the age of 18. This is when an adult is considered liable for his/her actions in Nigerian constitution. However, it is also important to note that even old people can be victims of rape. For instance, there was the case of Mr Nnanna Osondu, a man in his early 30s from opi community in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State, who raped about five old women of about 60years to 70years. Nija.com (2013). This case makes it difficult to define rape with the age of the victim as a major index.

According to researchers, the sources of the definitions of rape are dynamic and are better defined legally in order to capture gender, age, and race. Muehlenha and Kimes (1999) averred that definitions of rape come from the law, the media, research and political activities and even within any one of those domains. Defining rape according to law, Guptas (2009,p.82) noted that “rape is an unlawful sexual intercourse by a man or woman under the age of 16years or above that is against his or her will or her will has been obtained by putting her in fear of death or hurt”.

In Nigeria, rape is a theft and is highly condemned and life imprisonment is the punitive. This is reported bellow under the federal criminal code

Aug 26

EFFECTS OF SINGLE PARENTING ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS STUDENTS IN NIGERIA

EFFECTS OF SINGLE PARENTING ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS STUDENTS IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

The researcher aimed to investigate the effects of single parenting on academic performance of secondary schools students in Lagos State. The purpose was fulfilled through three specific objectives: To find out the causes of single parenting, to find out the difficulties facing single parents when raising their children and lastly to find out possible solutions to prevail the identified difficulties facing single parents when raising their children. Single parents are caused by divorce, death or separation. Single parents pass through many difficulties such as; inability to buy school requirements, lack of enough time to check student’s exercise books and poor communication. The learners who are raised with single parents goes through some challenges such as; lack of school resources, lack of support from parents, economic hardships, life stress and depression. The researcher employed the use of questionnaire to the students, parents and teachers. Purposive sampling was used because of the the nature whereby the teachers and the students were to give their views regarding  effects of single parenting on academic performance. After collection of the questionnaires, the researcher read through them to ascertain their numbers to see whether all the items were responded. Quantitative data was analysed by use of descriptive statistics which employed  the measures of central tendencies. The data obtained through questionnaires was organised and computer excel programme was used to convert the data into tables. The findings included three objectives which are causes of single parenting, difficulties facing single parents and possible solutions to prevent them. The sample size of the study was twenty students, twelve teachers and forty parents. All respondents returned questionnaires. The students’ response rate was 28%, teachers’ was 16% and parents 56%.

CHAPTER ONE/INTRODUCTION

Backgraound to the study

This chapter aims to discuss the background of the study, statement of the research problem, the purpose of the study, conceptual framework, objectives, significance of the study, delimitations of the study and limitations of study.

Nyarko (2011) considered that in order to curb the difficulties in education system, then there must be the appropriate parenting which children should be given so as to assist in lifting the quality of education. Tan-Kuick &Ng, (2011), believed that one of the parent is created as the child lack the supports from the parents. Addo Adeku, Opare and Banini (2003) confirmed that single parenting is caused by divorce or death of one partner which later on leaves everything in the hands of a single parent.

Zill, (1996), also believed that both parents must be available so that they won’t be affected with anything that may hinder them from performing well in their academics, but when a parent misses to provide the child’s necessities then the child may be affected. Salami and Alowade (2000), also believed that single parenting is brought about by death, divorce, separation which leaves the responsibilities and the roles in the hands of a single parent.

Zill, (1996) asserted that a student who comes from a family where he or she has both parents perform well in their academics while students who comes from a family where he or she has a single parent tend not to perform well in academics. Nyarko , (2011), he believed that a child who lacks parents to watch over their academics and also supervising their work tend not to perform well in academics.

Aug 26

PSYCHOSOCIAL EFFECTS OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND ITS HEALTH IMPLICATIONS AMONG EMPLOYEES

INTRODUCTION

Laver (2021)described drug abuse as simply the incorrect use of drugs to the point where the effects are harmful to the user or the community. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), drug abuse is the recurrent use of a drug that results in a condition of periodic or chronic intoxication that is harmful to both the individual and society (natural or synthetic). Drug abuse is the use of drugs for reasons other than medical needs, which has a detrimental impact on the person’s physical, mental, or social well-being.

Paschall (2015). Drug misuse is to blame for lost income, property damage in schools, skyrocketing health care costs, and disintegrated families. It is an issue that has an impact on all of us, including parents, kids, teachers, government employees, taxpayers, and workers.
Cannabis, sativa (also known as marijuana or Indian hemp), cocaine, heroin, morphine, opium, tobacco, and alcohol are among the drugs that are frequently abused. In Nigerian society and in global communities, the selling and usage of these substances has resulted in numerous issues. Due to this, the majority of narcotics are deemed unlawful by law, and both national and international organizations have been set up to monitor and regulate the illicit drug trade. To combat drug misuse and trafficking in the nation, the Federal Government established the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in 1980. Since then, it has detained numerous individuals involved in drug trafficking and seized varying amounts of hard substances.

Aug 22

The Amazing Ways Alibaba Uses Artificial Intelligence

The following are some of the AI applications that were utilized:

Tmall Smart Selection

This artificial intelligence (AI)-powered algorithm, which is also assisted by deep learning and natural language processing, assists in proposing products to customers and then notifies stores to enhance inventory in order to fulfill demand.

Dian Xiaomi

According to Alibaba, this chatbot that is driven by AI can understand more than 90 percent of the queries that users ask, and it provides assistance to more than 3.5 million individuals on a daily basis. The most recent incarnation of the chatbot is able to comprehend the feelings of a client, and it can prioritize the difficulties that the customer is having as well as notify human customer service staff when they are needed to step in.

Robotic Supply Kits

The packaging will be handled by robots, while the delivery will be completed by drones. The more than 200 robots that are located in automated warehouses have the capacity to process over one million different shipments of freight every single day. Immediately following the placement of the orders on Singles Day, the robots rapidly wrapped and sent out the goods. Because of the great level of efficiency they operate at, the robots were sometimes able to ship the orders on the exact same day they were placed. Additionally, Alibaba made several deliveries using drones for some of its packages.

Aug 21

THE ROLE OF FIELD WORK IN THE IN THE TEACHING AND LEARNING OF GEOGRAPHY IN NIGERIA

THE ROLE OF FIELD WORK IN THE IN THE TEACHING AND LEARNING OF GEOGRAPHY IN NIGERIA

The relevance of a geography instructor in implementing field activities, the value addition of which cannot be disputed as an addition to geographical lessons, spelled out goodness for the student. The monotony of sitting in a classroom caused some students to lose interest in a particular topic, which is why Sarah (1996) emphasizes the benefits of learning outside of a traditional setting through fieldwork. According to her, during the course of the field research, the participants will have the opportunity to go the extra mile and obtain as much information as they desire and are capable of. She explains that classroom instruction tends to be more broad and frequently neglects the students who are acquiring the material at the slowest pace, but field activity presents unique obstacles that allow for more individualized learning. She goes on to say that it provides students with the opportunity to get to know one another and communicate in a setting that is less stressful, since there is no need to worry about grades or the confines of traditional classrooms. In addition, she asserts that one can gain first-hand knowledge of geographical facts through participation in fieldwork. She notes in the course of her research that a variety of pedagogical approaches, including visual, auditory, and tactile learning, are acknowledged to be valid by professionals. She concludes by stating that kids learn better through touch, also known as kinesthetic learning, which greatly benefits from the utilization of field study because it is an environment in which the senses are engaged to a much greater extent than they ever would be in a classroom setting.

 

Jansen (2007) pointed out the use of fieldwork as something which enhanced empirical knowledge and theoretical insight. He said that this was the case because fieldwork provided direct experience. He went on to say that it was a convenient location for and economic shifts in the characteristics of the environment, as well as the proactive and independent exploration of new territory and the accurate recording of navigational patterns.

Fieldwork provided research findings that elucidated the mental processes that lie behind such geographical tasks, as stated by Ishikawa and Kanstens (2005). He went on to hypothesize that the tasks involved in reading maps were made public, and that these tasks included knowing three constituents: representational correspondence, configuration correspondence, and directional correspondence.

In his article, “Fieldwork Provides a Perspective on Spatial Information That Is Importantly Different from the Perspective Gained Through Direct Experience Navigating in the World,” Uttal (2000) mentioned that the perspective on spatial information that was gained through fieldwork was significantly different from the perspective gained through direct experience navigating

According to Swenson and Kanstens (2011), when learners typically see for themselves, it enables these students to examine the evidence that is used to build scientific arguments and test theories, even when the underlying data set is large or complicated. This is the case even when it is the case that learners typically see for themselves. The majority of the time, learners do not gather the data that is visualized and presented to them; as a result, instructors and instructional designers need to understand how students perceive and interpret such visualizations. The teachers would be better able to analyze the nature of the students’ interpretations of a colored, shaded-relief, global digital elevation map, which is valuable for thinking about a wide range of earth processes, if they moved the lesson out of the classroom and into the field.

Even when the learners were working with maps or photos of a known reference place, Liben and Yekel (1996) found that the learners demonstrated signs of difficulty when seen from an oblique perspective point.

Although the point did not improve performance, practicing on the oblique map before moving on to the plan map did help subsequent performance. Therefore, they require outdoor studies in order to become orientated.

From the information presented above, it is clear that the instructor has the potential to make effective use of field work depending on the setting, the goal, the objective of the lesson, the availability of the very resources, and the characteristics of the learner, most notably the learner’s background and their behavior upon entering the classroom.