Influence Of Drug Abuse On Senior Secondary School Students Attitude Towards Learning In Yola Educational Zone, Adamawa State, Nigeria

Abstract

The widespread of drug abuse is worrisome among teenagers and the increasing scourge of this phenomenon has raised a lot of concern because of the attending negative consequences. It is against this backdrop that this study examines influence of drug abuse on senior secondary school students' attitudes towards learning in the Yola Education Zone, Adamawa State. The objectives the study was to determine the major causes of drug abuse among senior secondary school students in Yola Education Zone, Adamawa State and to determine the effect of drug abuse on mental health of senior secondary school students in Yola Education Zone, Adamawa State. The study uses the survey research design. The population of the study was the entire students of senior secondary schools in Yola Education Zone, Adamawa State, Nigeria, which consists of three local government areas (Yola North, Yola South and Fufore). Multistage sampling technique was employed to select three schools from each of the three local governments in Yola Education Zone resulting to a total of nine schools. The study further selected one hundred students from each of the nine schools using simple random based on class and sex strata, which resulted to 900 students. Data was analyzed using, independent t-test. The result of the hypothesis shows that there is no statistically significant difference between male and female students on the perceived causes of drug abuse among senior secondary school students. It further reveals that there is no significant difference rural and urban students on the perceived effect of drug abuse on students’ mental health in senior secondary school. In view of the foregoing findings, the study recommends that Government and Schools should implement comprehensive drug education programmes that correct misconceptions and beliefs about drug use and highlight its negative effects on mental health.

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