Keyword: secondary school students

ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study is to investigate the anxiety levels of eighth-grade students in Nevşehir province during the high school entrance exam year and to assess the correlation between these anxiety levels and demographic factors such as gender, sibling count, parental education, and socioeconomic status. A correlational survey design was employed with a sample of 157 eighth-grade students. Data were collected using the Westside Test Anxiety Scale and a Demographic Information Form and analyzed using one-way analysis of variance, Pearson correlation tests, descriptive statistics, and SPSS version 27. The scale’s dependability coefficient was determined to be 𝛼 = 0.904. According to the studies, there were no statistically significant differences (p > 0.05) between the test anxiety levels of the students and demographic factors such as the number of siblings, parental education, and economic status. However, gender was positively and significantly associated with test anxiety, with female students exhibiting higher anxiety levels than male students (r = 0.350, p < 0.01). These results demonstrate that while most demographic variables do not predict exam anxiety, gender remains a critical factor. The study underscores the urgent need for schools and policymakers to design and implement gender-sensitive counseling programs and prevention strategies that specifically target the heightened vulnerability of female students to exam-related stress. By highlighting regional patterns in Nevşehir and integrating classical anxiety theories with contemporary educational practice, this study offers evidence-based guidance for shaping more equitable and supportive school-based mental health policies.

ABSTRACT: The study aims to explore Strategies for restrainingClassroomDisruptive BehaviorAmong Public Secondary Schools Students in Ekiti State. Specifically, it sought to examine the types of disruptive behaviors, problems encountered by the schools, and strategies to be adopted to curb disruptive behaviors perpetuated by students in the classroom during teaching and learning. Three research questions guided the study. The study adopted a descriptive research design and utilized a quantitative approach. A sample of 100 respondents involving principals and teachers was used through purposive sampling. Strategies for Restraining Students’ Disruptive Behaviors in Public Secondary Schools served as an instrument. Data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation. The analysis revealed that (1) lateness to school, irregular class attendance, fighting with each other within and outside the school, refusal to do assignments given by teachers, non-participation in-class activities, use of abusive language against one another, and operating phones during class hours were disruptive behaviors perpetrated by students. (2) The school encountered several problems such as bullying of teachers and management by the punished students, and teachers get discouraged going back to class, which causes more stress for teachers as they become detracted from academic routine. (3) The use of classroom management, allowing students to have easy access to the teachers, promptness of teachers to the discharge of their tasks of teaching profession, ensuring of appropriate seating arrangement by teachers, attentiveness of the teachers to both reported and unreported cases in class, regular checking of children by parents in schools, and maintenance of small and well-controlled
class size were strategies to be adopted to curb disruptive behaviors among public secondary schools students in Ekiti state.