The study attempted to assess the reading habit among students and its impact on their academic performance. The study was conducted at the Koforidua Polytechnic Institute, which is located in the eastern region of Ghana. The questionnaire was used to collect the data. The data collected were analyzed quantitatively using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS).
Figures and tables were used to present the research results. Of the total number of 1052 copies of the distributed questionnaires, 1000 copies, which is 95.0%, were completed and returned. The data obtained showed that the majority of respondents did not recognize the importance of reading, 81.9% of respondents neither read, nor novels, nor fiction during the last two semesters, while 62.0% of respondents used reading only for the purpose of passing the exam. The study confirmed that reading habit has an impact on academic performance and there is a link between reading habit and academic performance. The study recommends, among other things, that teachers should keep in mind to stop providing handouts to students, but rather to encourage them to use the library for scientific research as well,
Keywords: interest in reading, academic performance, academic libraries, students, higher education institution
Introduction
The reading habit is a well-planned and deliberate research model that has reached the form of consistency on the part of students in understanding scientific disciplines and passing them on exams. Reading habit largely determines the academic achievement of students. Readings and scientific advances are interrelated and interdependent. Students often come from different environments and locations with varying levels of achievement. Thus, they differ in the structure of their reading skills. While some students have good reading habits, others tend to exhibit bad reading habits. Academic achievement refers to how much knowledge an individual has acquired from school (Bashir & Mattoo, 2012).
The creative and pragmatic aspect of education includes the habit of personal inquiry. The act of personal inquiry requires self-study in order to follow independent thinking and analysis. Self-study, otherwise known as voluntary reading, requires a habit known as the reading habit. Reading creates a path to better understanding of your own experience, and it can be an exciting journey towards self-discovery. “The reading habit is best formed at an impressionable young age in school, but once formed, it can last a lifetime” (Green, 2001).
Reading and scientific achievement are essential for academics and educators to know that every child can be gifted, average, normal, etc., and must be educated in their own way, but if he or she has good research habits, then he or she can perform well academically and in any situation. It is a reading habit that assists the student in gaining meaningful and desired knowledge. Good reading habits act as powerful weapons for students to succeed in life (Bashir & Mattoo, 2012).
According to Palani (2012), reading habits are essential and essential for creating a literate society in this world. It shapes the personality of people, and it helps them develop the right methods of thinking, and also creates new ideas. Nevertheless, the development of events in the media continues to influence the interest in reading (hard copies of literature, such as …) books, magazines and novels, among other materials.
Palani (2012) believes that effective reading is an important means of effective learning and that reading is intertwined with the overall learning process and therefore success requires an educational successful reading habit. He believes that reading is the identification of symbols and the combination of the corresponding meaning with them. This requires identification and understanding. Comprehension skills help the student understand the meaning of words in isolation and in appropriate context.
Before the advent of television, both young and old found enough time to read. In addition to teachers, other professionals are used to spending their free time reading in English and common literature. English high schools almost always required additional reading from their students. But all this has become a thing of the past. Palani (2012) also added that, at present, the reading habit has lost its meaning, as both young and old are glued to the television. As far as educational institutions are concerned, coaching students for exams seems to be the end of our entire education system.
Many researchers like Ogbodo (2002), Bhan & Gupta (2010) and Singh (2011) have done work on reading, especially how it affects student achievement. However, most of this work is from the international community. Few of them, such as Ward (1997), Agbezree (2001), held in Ghana were limited to primary and secondary education. It is against this backdrop that it has become necessary to conduct a similar study in Ghana to examine the impact of reading skills on the academic performance of students in tertiary education in Ghana, with particular emphasis at the Koforidua Polytechnic.
*
Be the first to comment.