An Analysis of the Impact the Media Has on the Academic Performance of Students Majoring in Islamic Studies in Secondary Schools

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Education can be viewed as a beacon that points people in the proper way as they progress through life. If the act of teaching does not have an impact on the students’ understanding, then the teachers, who are at the heart of the entire process of teaching and learning, must have failed to utilise the right technique and resources to drive home the goals. It is expected of teachers that they will turn teaching and learning into a sport, and that they will make the process interesting and appealing to pupils in order to stimulate them (Ahmed, 2022).

The religion of Islam places a significant emphasis on learning and education for its followers. The first injunction that was given when the revelation of the Qur’an began was “Iqra,” which can be translated as “Read.” (Qur’an 96 verse 1).

This demonstrates how important education is in the Islamic faith. It is both the beginning and the end of the journey that leads to human evolution.

Instead of being a chore and a source of boredom for children, education ought to be exciting and challenging (Damodharan & Rangarajan, 2022).

The use of various pedagogical tools by educators, who are tasked with assisting students in comprehending various ideas and principles, is made more obligatory by the adoption of more recent pedagogical practises. Producing competent professionals who are able to make learning easier for pupils is one of the primary objectives of the teacher education programme (Ahmed, 2022). This goal is one of the fundamental goals of the programme. The degree to which a teacher engages with and makes consistent use of educational media influences the degree to which that teacher’s students are able to develop and make use of apparatus and materials for the purposes of learning. The utilisation of educational media in the context of the teaching and learning process is recommended in order to ensure the most efficient delivery of goals. Educational technology and multimedia can be useful tools if they are incorporated into the curriculum in an appropriate manner to produce learning gains. This is especially true when educational technology and multimedia are paired with a curriculum designed for the twenty-first century (Danladi, 2022).

It is a widely held view that incorporating different forms of media into educational settings leads to more constructivist learning, as well as an increase in students’ levels of activity and higher responsibility overall. This restricts the responsibility of the professors so that they focus more on providing support, advice, and coaching for the students rather than simply passing on their knowledge.

According to Blessing Adeoye (2022), the usage of media in educational settings is done for a variety of different reasons. When technology is used extensively in the classroom, often the responsibilities that teachers play shift. Some prognosticators of the future have even proposed that kids would no longer need teachers since technology will make it feasible for them to engage with subject matter in a personalised and direct manner.

Teaching and learning strategies that are both successful and inventive are very necessary in order to accomplish this goal, particularly in light of the advent of the digital age. One unforeseen consequence has arisen as a direct outcome of the digital revolution. The children of today are far more reliant on various forms of media than past generations were (Shelly & Gunter, 2022). Many people believe that the brains of today’s youth have actually become rewired to accommodate the thousands of hours that they spend in front of computer screens watching video, creating video, listening to music, and playing computer games. This is due to the fact that the brains of today’s youth spend so much time in front of computer screens. It has also been argued that the youth of today genuinely communicate through digital means. Because of this, it is not surprising that many people refer to this new generation as the “digital generation.”

Students are more likely to be interested in a topic when it is presented via media, which is an interactive tool that incorporates a range of components such as text, images, audio, video, and animation (Shelly & Gunter, 2022).

In order to make understanding Islamic studies more tangible, educators need to make some modifications to the way the subject should be taught. These modifications involve the way the subject should be taught.

According to Abdulsalami (2022), the problem of students in secondary schools having a negative attitude toward the subject of Islamic studies can be helped by the utilisation of media resources in the course of teaching and learning about Islamic studies as a subject in secondary schools. At the moment, the majority of subjects, including Articles of Faith, Hajj, and Battles of the Prophet, are taught without the utilisation of any media tools, such as audio tapes, television, projectors, slideshows, and so on. Because of this, the vast majority of students perceive Islamic studies to be uninteresting and dull. The utilisation of various media resources will make the topic more appealing, attractive, and engaging to the students, and ultimately, the students will have a more in-depth comprehension of the idea that is being conveyed to them (Abdulsalami, 2022). The purpose of this study, then, is to determine the extent to which the incorporation of various forms of media into the instruction and study of Islamic studies in secondary schools constitutes a significant influence.

 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The professors of Islamic studies in our secondary schools aren’t aware that the subject has a variety of distinct approaches and strategies that can be used to help students comprehend it more completely through the application of various forms of media. No matter how skilled a teacher may be, he or she is unable to perform the critical task of responding on the learner’s behalf in order to elicit a favourable reaction to the educational experience (Sanni, 2022).

It would appear that the use of media in the educational system has improved both teaching and learning, but a lack of teachers who are proficient in the use of media resources presents a challenge for the application of media resources in the teaching and learning of subjects related to Islamic studies. On the other hand, this has resulted in a significant gap between the use of educational media and the subject matter that is intended to be covered in Islamic studies.

 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The primary objective of this study is to analyse the impact the media has on the academic performance of students majoring in Islamic studies in secondary schools. Other aims of this study are:

i.          To determine the extent the media is used for teaching in secondary schools.

ii.        To find out the types of media used for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools.

iii.      To find out whether the use of media for teaching has an impact on students academic performance of students majoring in Islamic studies.

iv.      To examine the challenges of using media for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following questions which are in line with the objectives of this study will be answered:

i.          To what extent is the media used for teaching in secondary schools?

ii.        What are the types of media used for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools?

iii.      Does the use of media for teaching have an impact on students academic performance of students majoring in Islamic studies?

iv.      What are the challenges of using media for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools?

 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study is significant because it aims to equip graduating students of Islamic studies as well as Islamic studies teachers who are already working in the field with the invaluable knowledge of the impact that the utilisation of media resources can have on the process of teaching and learning Islamic studies.

In addition to this, the study will shed light on the importance of educational media to the process of putting together a curriculum for Islamic studies for educational specialists.

 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study focuses on the analysis of the impact the media has on the academic performance of students majoring in Islamic studies in secondary schools. Specifically, this study focuses on determining the extent the media is used for teaching in secondary schools, finding out the types of media used for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools, finding out whether the use of media for teaching has an impact on students academic performance of students majoring in Islamic studies and examine the challenges of using media for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools.

Islamic studies teachers and students of selected secondary schools in Kaduna, Kaduna State will serve as the respondents of this study.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study is limited to the analysis of the impact the media has on the academic performance of students majoring in Islamic studies in secondary schools. Specifically, this study focuses on determining the extent the media is used for teaching in secondary schools, finding out the types of media used for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools, finding out whether the use of media for teaching has an impact on students academic performance of students majoring in Islamic studies and examine the challenges of using media for teaching Islamic studies in secondary schools.

Islamic studies teachers and students of selected secondary schools in Kaduna, Kaduna State will serve as the respondents of this study thus further studies needs to be carried out before the findings of this study can be used for other areas.

 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Impact: A marked effect or influence

Media: Media are the communication outlets or tools used to store and deliver information or data.

Academic Performance: Academic performance is the measurement of student achievement across various academic subjects.

Islamic Studies: A discipline that seeks to explain what the Islamic world has achieved in the past and what the future holds for it.