GENDER ANALYSIS OF ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AMONG HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

Thesis Submitted to the University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

DEGREE OF MASTER OF HOME SCIENCE In HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

By NUTHANAP.G.

DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT COLLEGE OF RURAL HOME SCIENCE, DHARWAD UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES, DHARWAD-580005

JULY,2007

ADVISORY COMMITTEE

DHARWAD JULY,2007

(GANGA YENAGI) MAJOR ADVISOR

Approved by:

Chairman:_______________________ (GANGA YENAGI) Members:1.______________________ (PUSHPA KHADI) 2.______________________ (SHOBHA NAGNUR) 3.______________________ (ASHALATHA K.V.)

CONTENTS
Sl. No. 1 2 INTRODUCTION REVIEW OF LITERATURE 2.1. Academic achievement 2.2. Factors influencing Academic achievement 3 METHODOLOGY 3.1. Population and the sample 3.2. Research Design 3.3. Variables used for the study 3.4. Tools used for data collection 3.5. Data collection procedure 3.6. Operational definition and terminologies 3.7. Statistical analysis 4 RESULTS 4.1. Demographic characteristics of the students and parents 4.2. Study habit of boys and girls 4.3. Self-concept of boys and girls 4.4. Socio-economic status of boys and girls 4.5. Rural/urban comparison of study habits, self-concept and socio economic status 4.6. Gender, locale and academic achievement 5 DISCUSSION 5.1. Study habits of boys and girls 5.2. Self-concept of boys and girls 5.3. Socio economic status of boys and girls 5.4. Comparison of rural/urban students on study habits, selfconcept and socio economic status 5.5. Gender, locale and academic achievement 6 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS REFERENCES APPENDIX Chapter Particulars Page No.

LIST OF TABLES

Table No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Title Demographic characteristic of students Demographic characteristic of Parents Distribution of boys and girls on study habits Comparison of boys and girls on study habits Class-wise comparison of the study habits Association of study habits of boys and girls with academic achievement Correlation between Study habits and Academic Achievement Distribution of boys and girls on Self-concept Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept Class-wise comparison of the self-concept Association of self-concept of boys and girls with academic achievement Correlation of Self-concept and Academic Achievement Distribution of boys and girls on Socio Economic Status Association of socio-economic status of boys and girls with academic achievement Correlation of Socio Economic Status and Academic Achievement Distribution of rural/urban students on study habits Comparison of rural/ urban students on Study habits Distribution of rural/urban students on self-concept Comparison of rural/ urban students on Self-concept Distribution of rural/urban students on Socio Economic Status Comparison of rural/ urban students on Socio Economic Status Distribution of boys and girls on Academic achievement Comparison of boys and girls on Academic achievement Comparison of rural and urban students on Academic achievement

Page No.

LIST OF FIGURES
Figure No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Title Selection of sample for the study Distribution of boys and girls on levels of study habits Comparison of boys and girls on study habits Class-wise comparison of the study habits Association of study habits of boys and girls with academic achievement Distribution of boys and girls of self-concept Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept Class-wise comparison of the self-concept Association of self-concept of boys and girls with academic achievement Distribution of boys and girls on Socio-Economic Status Association of Socio Economic Status of boys and girls with academic achievement Distribution of rural/urban students on study habits Comparison of rural/urban students on Study habits Distribution of rural/urban students on self-concept Comparison of rural/ urban students on Self-concept Distribution of rural/urban students on Socio Economic Status Comparison of boys and girls on Academic achievement Distribution of boys and girls on Academic achievement Page No

1. INTRODUCTION
Education is the process of developing the capacities and potentials of the individual so as to prepare that individual to be successful in a specific society or culture. From this perspective, education is serving primarily as an individual development function. Education begins at birth and continues throughout life. It is constant and on going. Schooling generally begins some where between the ages four and six when children are gathered together for the purposes of specific guidance related to skills and competencies that society deems important. In the past, once the formal primary and secondary schooling was completed the process was finished. However, in todays information age, adults are quite often learning in informal setting throughout their working lives and even into retirement. Education, in its broadest sense, may be defined as a process designed to inculcate the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to enable individuals to cope effectively with their environment. Its primary purpose is to foster and promote the fullest individual selfrealization for all people. Achieving this goal requires understanding of commitment to the proposition that education is a primary instrument for social and economic advancement of human welfare (Verma, 1990). The world is becoming more and more competitive. Quality of performance has become the key factor for personal progress. Parents desire that their children climb the ladder of performance to as high a level as possible. This desire for a high level of achievement puts a lot of pressure on students, teachers, schools and in general the education system itself. In fact, it appears as if the whole system of education revolves round the academic achievement of students, though various other outcomes are also expected from the system. Thus a lot of time and effort of the schools are used for helping students to achieve better in their scholastic endeavors. The importance of scholastic and academic achievement has raised important questions for educational researchers. What factors promote achievement in students? How far do the different factors contribute towards academic achievement? (Ramaswamy, 1990). Human life, which is the best creation of god, has got two aspects: The biological and sociological or cultural. While the former is maintained and transmitted by food and reproduction, the latter is preserved and transmitted by education. It is again through education that he promotes his intelligence and adds his knowledge with which he can move the world for good and for evil according to his wishes. Education in fact, is one of the major life processes of the human beings just as there are certain indispensable vital processes of life in a biological sense. So education may be considered a vital process in a social sense. Education is indispensable to normal living, without education the individual would be unqualified for group life (Safaya, et al. 1963). School achievement may be affected by various factors like intelligence, study habits, and attitudes of pupil towards school, different aspects of their personality, socio economic status, etc. The desire of success is derived from individuals concept of himself and in terms of the meaning of various incentives as they spell success and failure in the eye of others. Thus a child who sees himself as top ranking, as scholars, may set as his goal the attainment of the highest grade in the class. A modern society cannot achieve its aim of economic growth, technical development and cultural advancement without harnessing the talents of its citizens. One of the major tasks of education is to help children to develop the skills appropriate to the age in which they live and those skills which promote a lifetime of learning. Educationists and counsellors in educational settings are often confronted with students who appear to have above average scholastic aptitude but are very poor in their studies. A recurring question baffling them has been why some students succeed in their study while others do not. This question is sometimes considered to be closely related to learning than teaching. Jamuar (1974) stated that efficient learning depends not only on good teaching methods but also satisfactory learning procedures. Anwana and Cobbach (1989) are also of the view that students do badly academically on account of factors other than low intellectual capacity. Tiwari and Bansal (1994) mentioned that a child with high academic achievement is likely to be well-treated as well behaved and independent and low achievers as incapable and deprived of employment, which may lead this to maladjustment to life.

In our society academic achievement is considered as a key criterion to judge ones total potentialities and capacities. Hence academic achievement occupies a very important place in education as well as in the learning process. Academic achievement is defined by Crow and Crow (1969) as the extent to which a learner is profiting from instructions in a given area of learning i.e., achievement is reflected by the extent to which skill and knowledge has been imparted to him. Academic achievement also denotes the knowledge attained and skill developed in the school subject, usually designated by test scores. Achievement is influenced by personality, motivation, opportunities, education and training. There are several other factors also which influence the academic achievement of student like study habit, self-concept, socio economic status, intelligence etc.

Study habits
Many students do badly academically, due to factors other than low intellectual capacity. One such factor is poor study habits, which often result in poor academic performance even among the naturally bright students. Habits are true indicators of individuality in a person. So study habits are the behavior of an individual related to studies. Which is adjudged from his study habits. In the process of learning, learners habitual ways of exercising and practicing their abilities for learning are considered as study habits of learners. The pattern of behavior adopted by students in the pursuit of their studies is considered under the caption of their study habits. Study habits reveal students personality. Learners learning character is characterized by his study habits. Study habits serve as the vehicle of learning. It may be seen as both means and ends of learning. Study habits play a very important role in the life of students. Success or failure of each student depends upon his own study habits. Of course, study is an art and as such it requires practice. Some students study more but they fail to achieve more. Others study less but achieve more. Success of each student definitely depends upon ability, intelligence and effort of students. No doubt, regular study habits bring their own rewards in the sense of achievement of success. There are many types of disadvantaged students: physically, mentally, socially & culturally, educationally and emotionally. The socially disadvantaged are not handicapped by genetic deficiency, but by the socio economic circumstances of their lives. The socio economic disadvantage prevents them from developing their basic and natural potentialities. The disadvantages are not with the individual, but with the society. Study habits refer to the activities carried out by learners during the learning process of improving learning. Study habits are intended to elicit and guide ones cognitive processes during learning. According to Patel (1976) study habits include. 1. Home environment and planning of work 2. Reading and note taking habits 3. Planning of subjects 4. Habits of concentration 5. Preparation for examination 6. General habits and attitudes 7. School environment The study habits are influenced by attitudes, personality traits, levels of aspirations, teaching methods adopted and material they are to learn. So, it is the effort of teachers to develop good study habits among students. Such habits are the best equipments with which they can live and lead their lives with confidence. If the habits are developed in the young age they will definitely cherish the joy of its fruits in the rest of their lives, because grown up children are already habituated to certain things. So they find it difficult it modify their habits and behavior. Therefore, it is better to develop study habits in secondary school students. It is the proper time and age to cultivate study habits. At this age students are quite matured. They are able to know what is good and what is bad. They can avoid bad things and invite good things with the help of teachers.

Self-concept
As a child grows and develops, he learns, not only about the world about him and his place in it, but also about himself. Each person lives with himself and hence, to some degree is always alone. No one can ever completely know the self better than any one else, although in the persuit for understanding oneself and others there has developed much of human thought and philosophy, including psychology. Man has long held the hope of answering such questions as: who am I? How did I come to be this way? And their logical consequence, the search for purpose; why am I? (Nadalmani, 2001). The psychological construct, the self-concept is essentially private even though it is in part translated into action by the beliefs we express. Sidhu (1987) defined self-concept as those perceptions, beliefs, feelings, attitudes and values which the individual views on describing himself. Personality is not a specific quality of a person but a quality of his behavior. How he behaves depends upon how he feels about himself, about other people and about his relationship with them. These feelings make up his self-concept what he thinks about himself as a person. A persons self-concept is the fundamental core of his entire personality and determines the quality of behavior. It can be predicted that the poor self-concept implying lack of confidence in facing and mastering the environment, will accomplish his performance in school. In sum, the selfconcept does appear to be related to school adjustment. Substantial evidence indicates that children and adults with poor self-concept when compared with those who have high selfconcept are more anxious and less adjusted generally and less popular, are less effective in groups and are less honest about themselves. The pattern of parental rewards and punishments seems to affect the self-concept and quite certainly, the self-concept of bright but under achieving youngsters are less positive than those of children who are doing as well as can be expected in school. Incidentally children tend to mould their self-concept according to the way they think their teachers regarded them. Adolescence is a period of biosocial transition from childhood to adulthood. This period extends roughly from 12-19 years. Now a days puberty occurs earlier than it used to be, due to improvement in nutrition and health care. This has lengthened the transition from adolescence to adulthood. A dramatic biological change occurs in adolescents. In early adolescence, they experience a growth spurt. As a result they stop thinking of themselves as children and parents begin to expect matured behavior from them. Conflicts with parents, teachers and society may arise over their demands and expectations along with this task of establishing a personal identity, which involves an understanding of self, of ones relationship with others and of ones values and roles in society. Erickson (1981) describes this as Identity crisis. Adolescents adopt many strategies to resolve this crisis by trying out different roles like good girl / boy, dutiful daughter / son, a rebel, athlete and so on. The world is becoming more and more competitive and parents desire that their children achieve high in academics. During this stage the influence of school far out weighs all others. So good schooling and effective teacher guidance are of utmost importance. Performance at school and experience in the larger world are related to the self image of students. They have to strive hard to achieve better results academically. As a result, school and studies become major stressors. Hence, adolescents tend to give up and neglect recreational activities. This has resulted in the absence of physical and mental relaxation. The best type of relaxation is one in which the students learn the skill of relaxing. Schools should provide opportunities for regular physical and mental training like yoga which is a relaxation technique which will facilitate the enhancement of study habits, self-concept and academic performance (Erickson 1981). Teachers in school should become facilitators of learning. The infinite treasure with in every learner should be discovered and nurtured. For the purpose of improving learning, effective study skills have to be taught. Study skills may involve reference, reading, listening, study habits and learning strategies. Learning improves with planning of where, when and how much to study. Teaching is not giving knowledge and skills to students, teaching is the process of providing opportunities for students to produce relatively permanent change and moulding their personality. The primary purpose of teaching which is only one of the institutional

influences in a persons education is to assist the individual to develop his and her full potential as well as to develop the knowledge, attitudes and skills to interact with the environment in a successful manner. The family, religious organizations and community also share primary responsibility in the educational process. (Nayak et al. 2004).

Socio Economic Status

Socio economic status plays an important role in the life of a person. The status opens the ways for his progress. Intelligence, attitudes, aptitudes and even interests are patterned by socio economic background of the individual. The socio economic status pays rewards and punishment both to a person. Chaudhari et al. (1998). Socio economic status refers to the position that an individual and family occupies with reference to prevailing average standards, cultural possession and participation in group activity of community. According to Chain (1944), socio economic status includes both the social and economic status of the individual in the group. The variations in achievement are also due to the differences in socio economic status of the children, differential treatment given by parents, parents educational level, influence of the surroundings and so on. The influence of socio-cultural factors on various aspects of individuals development has particularly caught the attention of educationists. Individual success and failure can also be judged by facilities and environment provided for his study, self-concept and study habits. As pointed out by survey and Telford (1964) children belonging to higher socio economic status are not only brilliant but also are provided better opportunities for developing intellectually, physically and emotionally. The type of intellectual environment in the home will definitely have an impact on the school achievement of the child and this intellectual environment in turn is determined by intellectual level of parents, parents education, occupation, income, size of the family etc. During the lifespan of an individual adolescence is a stage highly influenced by so many things around the world. Adolescents are highly influenced by society, socio economic status, self-concept, study habits, emotional maturity etc., which may enhance the academic achievement of adolescence or may disturb the academic achievement of adolescence in high school period.

Gender
Gender issue has become the talk of todays forum. Although the literacy rate is more among boys than girls; it is quite interesting to observe that girls are securing better ranks than boys in almost all competitive examinations. From the last ten years, it is very fascinating to find note the girls figure to be more often in top ten two ranks in tenth class annual examination. Earlier some of the researches reported that intelligence was the only factor that causes gender variations among high achievers. (Robinson, 1965). Later some attributed familial factors like parental aspiration beliefs and their socio economic status as the main factors that cause age and gender differences among high achievers by Malathi (1987) and she also reported a study on Harijans of villages of Karnataka reported that educational aspirations in case of girls were almost negligible causing very poor enrolment of girl children in schools. However, this trend seems to be changing in the recent past and such discriminations are not so marked. Thus the present study is an attempt to find out the gender differences if any, on the factors affecting academic achievement.

Locale
The educators and the general public believe that students from smaller and rural schools receive an education that is inferior to that of students from larger urban or suburban schools. Until recently, there has been little empirical evidence to challenge this view. Now, however, a growing body of work has begun to examine how well students perform in and after graduation from rural schools. Sundaram (1989) studied urban and rural difference in achievement and achievement related factors such as self-concept, manifest anxiety, study habits, intelligence, adjustment problems and achievement motivation among college students. The results revealed that there was a significant difference between urban and rural students in their self-concept. The rural students had higher self-concept than urban students. But there was no significant difference between urban and rural students with respect to study habits.

Stella and Purushothaman (1993) examined the study habits of underachievers. The mean value showed that urban students had better study habits than rural students. But no significant difference was found between boys and girls. Ayishabi (1991) studied biology achievement of scheduled caste and non-scheduled caste high school pupils. The results showed that backward caste students in biology achievement differed significantly on urban sample as well as rural sample. Keeping in view the importance of study habit, self-concept, socio economic status and academic achievement high school students was taken up with following specific objectives. To analyze the study habits of boys and girls studying in VIII to X classes. To study the self-concept of boys and girls studying in VIII to X classes. To know the influence of study habits, self-concept, socio economic status on academic achievement. To compare the rural and urban students on study habits, self-concept, socio economic status and academic achievement.

Limitations
The study was confined to high school students. Moreover, the study was conducted by considering two rural and two urban schools i.e. Dharwad urban and Somapur, Amminabhavi rural schools of Dharwad district. A wider coverage was not possible due to shortage of time. Though the student investigator has taken a utmost care while collecting data, possibility of some errors creeping in cannot be ruled out.

Scope and importance of study

Study habits, self-concept and socio economic status play a very important role in bringing about the better academic achievement. The study could bring to light the importance of self-concept and study habits which are the major contributors of academic achievement.

2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE
2.1. Academic achievement
Academic achievement has become an index of childs future in this highly competitive world. Academic achievement has been one of the most important goals of the educational process. It is also a major goal, which every individual is expected to perform in all cultures. Academic achievement is a key mechanism through which adolescents learn about their talents, abilities and competencies which are an important part of developing career aspirations (Lent et al. , 2000) academic achievement and career aspirations in adolescence are often correlated (Abu-Hilal, 2000). Crow and Crow (1969), defined Academic achievement as the extent to which a learner is profiting from instructions in a given area of learning i.e., achievement is reflected by the extent to which skill or knowledge has been imparted to him.

2.2. Factors influencing Academic achievement

It has been found that the factors like parents education, parental occupation, type of family, family size, ordinal position and even gender and age of the child are found to have their impact on the academic achievement of every pupil. Studies dealing with the effect of family environment on students achievement suggest that several characteristics of family life are relevant.

2.2.1. Study habit

The efficient and effective way of learning depends upon the study habits of the students. Study habits are important they influence the academic achievement of students. So parents and teachers must help in improving the study habits of students. Some investigators have sought to determine what study habits are characteristically used by pupils when left to work by themselves with little or no direction. For this purpose used Questionnaires, Schedules, Study habits inventories etc and tried to find out the factors influencing the study habits. Teachers in schools should become facilitators of learning. The finite treasure within every learner should be discovered and nurtured for the purpose of improving learning effective study skills have to be taught. Study skills involve reference, reading listening, study habits and strategies. Learning improves with planning of where, when and how much to study. Positive attitude, proper physical condition and balanced emotional states are important factors influencing study habits (Crow and Crow, 1956). Some of such studies are reviewed in this chapter. 2.2.1.2. Study habit and Academic achievement Christian (1983) studied need achievement and study habits of the pupils of standard 10th in relation to sex, study habits inventory of Patel (1976) and TAT test of Mehta were administered on a sample of 79 girls and 68 boys. The analysis of variance revealed that girls and boys had equally good study habits. The study suggested that study habits are one of the important factors, which is helpful to achieve more in the promising field. Agarwal (1983) made a study on reading ability in relation to certain cognitive and non-cognitive factors. A sample of 200 males and 200 female students of XI grade were randomly selected from high schools in Bihar, India. The subjects completed a battery of reading ability tests, study habits inventory, general intelligence and non-verbal intelligence tests, anxiety, Eysenck personality inventory and youth adjustment inventory. The results indicated that males had a greater predisposition to better study habits, neuroticism, extroversion, favorable parental attitude and a better ideal self than females. However, females showed a higher reading ability and academic achievement than males. There were significant and positive correlations in both males and females between reading ability and their study habits. Singh (1987) investigated into the Study habits of scheduled caste adolescents in relation to their intelligence and achievement motivation. The random sample consisted of 100 boys and 100 girls of 9th standard at high and senior secondary schools of Bilaspur, Kangra and Simla districts of Himachal Pradesh in India. Study habits Inventory and general

mental ability test and TAT were used for the study. General mental ability test above the mean score were considered as high group and below the mean scores as low group. The results reported that the main effect of intelligence (F=9.03***) on study habits was very highly significant. High intelligent group had better study habits than the low intelligent group. Singh (1989-90) made an investigation into the Study habits of scheduled caste adolescents in relation to their sex and achievement motivation. The study was conducted on 150 boys and 150 girls belonging to scheduled caste from 9th classes in Himachal Pradesh, India. The F value of 5.16 for the main effect of sex on the study habits was significant at 5 percent level. It indicated that the study habits of boys and girls differed significantly. Boys had significantly better study habits than girls. Mehta et al. (1989-90) studied the psychological correlates of academic achievement at school level. The sample comprised of 300 students of 9th and 10th class. Total marks th th obtained in 8 and 9 annual examination were used as measures of academic achievement. Survey of study habits and attitudes by Brown and Holtzman (Form C., 1964) was used to measure study habits. The study reported a positive and significant correlation between study habits and academic achievement. Ramaswamy (1990) studied the relationship between study habits and academic th achievement in high and low achieving boys and girls of 11 standard in Madurai district, Tamil Nadu, India. The study habit inventory of Patel (1976) was used to measure the study habits. Product moment correlation was used to find out the relationship between study habits and academic achievement. The correlation analysis revealed significant relationship between the study habits and academic achievement variables. Misra (1992) conducted a study on assessing the level of test anxiety, self-concept, adjustment and study habits in predicting academic achievement. The study was conducted th th on a sample of 88 Oriya male students of 9 and 10 class in three schools of Bhubaneshwar and Orissa, India. To determine study habits of subjects Wrenns (1941) study habits inventory was used and total marks obtained in annual examination was used to know the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. It revealed significant and positive correlation between study habits and academic achievement. Tymms and Libbon (1992) examined the relationship between time spent on homework and exam grades among approximately 3000 students from schools and colleges in Northeast England. Average time spent was 5 hrs per week. Girls reported spending approximately 30 minutes/week more than boys. The study revealed that students who marked for long hours gained slightly better grades than those who worked for modest periods. Panda (1992) investigated study habits of disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged adolescents in relation to sex and academic achievement. The sample of the study consisted of 50 disadvantaged boys and 50 non-disadvantaged girls of 9th and 10th classes in Orissa, India. The subjects were selected randomly and matched with age, sex, area of living and birth order. Patels (1976) study habit Inventory was used in the study. The data was analyzed by applying ANOVA. The F value for sex indicated significant difference. From the mean values, it was revealed that boys had significantly better study habits than girls. Mehta and Malhotra (1993) carried out a study to find out the predictors of academic achievement among 300 arts students. Stepwise regression analysis revealed that study habits and study attitudes were the important predictors of academic achievement. Stella and Purushothaman (1993) examined the study habits of underachievers. 90 underachievers from rural and urban schools in Tamil Nadu, India were selected by using randomized block design. Patels (1976) Study Habit Inventory was used for the study. The t test indicated significant difference between urban and rural students in respect of study habits. The mean value showed that urban students had better study habits than rural students. But no significant difference was found between boys and girls. Stella and Purushothaman (1993) carried out a study on study habits of under achievers. The sample selected through randomized block design consisted of students of Standard IX from there state board schools of Tamil Nadu, India. One rural and two urban areas were selected. IQ score was taken as a blocking variable. There were 30 under

achievers from each IQ category high, average and low. Culture Fair Intelligence test scale-2 form 3 designed by Cattell and Cattell (1961) edition and study habits Inventory by Patel (1976) were used as tools of the study. The t test revealed significant difference between study habits of high and low IQ underachievers (t=3.76: P<0.05). High IQ high achievers had better study habits than low; IQ underachievers. Loranger (1994) compared the study strategies of six 16-18 year old successful and unsuccessful learners to determine if successful learners would differ in the quality of their information processing from unsuccessful learners. Each subject read and studied on article and participated in an interview. Results showed that successful students tended to be more motivated to succeed and more likely to be active, purposeful & flexible in their strategy use while less successful students perceived themselves as successful, & they lacked selfknowledge of inefficient strategy use. Verma (1996) studied the effect of study habits on academic achievement among 500 students of X class. The sample was selected from schools in Delhi by using random cluster sampling technique. Two way analysis of variance was applied to know the main and interaction effects. The F values of 13.43, 6.84 and 5.59 which were significant at 1 percent level revealed significant independent effect of study habits on performance in Hindi, English and Social Studies. This result further revealed that students possessing good study habits scored higher than students possessing poor study habits in these courses. Patel (1997) investigated the causes of under achievement in mathematics of eight grade students having high numerical ability. A sample of 35 high achievers and 40 low achievers was selected from schools in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India, based on their marks in mathematics. The chi-square analysis revealed that Study habits have tremendous effect on the achievement. High discussing important concepts / aspects of mathematics with teachers / peers and finding out solutions to their difficulties etc. Sampath and Selvarajgnanaguru (1997) studied the Study habits of higher secondary commerce students. 428 higher secondary second year commerce studying in Chidambaram taluk in Tamil Nadu were selected by using cluster sampling technique. Study Habit Inventory of Mukopadhyay and Sansanwal (1983) was used as a tool of the study. The t test indicated that there was no significant difference between study habits of boys and girls. Aluede and Onolemhemhen (2001) studied the effect of study habit counseling on the academic performance of secondary schools students in English language. The 108 senior secondary school class and two students of lumen Christ secondary school, Uromi, Edo state, Nigeria was targeted. The multi-stage stratified sampling method was used. The study habit inventory (Bakare, 1977) was taken. The findings of the study were counseling students on good study habits can bring about improvement in the students academic performance. Suneetha and Mayuri (2001) conducted a study on age and gender differences on the factors affecting high academic achievement of school children. The total sample of the study comprised of 120 children of IX and X grade drawn purposively from 10 private schools of Hyderabad. Malins intelligence scale for Indian children, study habit inventory, multidimensional assessment of personality inventory was used for data collection. The results showed boys and girls differed significantly in drilling, interaction, sets and language dimensions of study habit inventory. Sirohi (2004) conducted a study of under achievement in relation to study habits and attitudes. A sample of 1000 elementary grade students were taken from X composite schools of South District, Delhi. Tools used were general mental ability test by Jalota, teachers made achievement tests and test of study habits and attitudes by Mathur. The results found that guidance program shall lead to better results, improving the achievement of the students and thus their potentialities be maximally utilized. Sud and Sujata (2006) conducted a study on academic performance in relation to self-handicapping, test anxity and study habits of high school children (n=200) from government senior secondary school of Himachal Pradesh. The scale used were selfhandicaping questionnaire (Sujata, 2003) test anxity inventory (TAT-H, Sud & Sud 1997). Study habits inventory (Palsane & Sharma 1989) and academic performance (school marks were considered). The results revealed that boys were poorer in study habits than girls.

Yenagi (2006) conducted a study on study habits a function of self-perception among intellectually gifted and non-gifted students. A sample of 1020 pre university college students was randomly selected from colleges in and around Hubli and Dharwad cities of Karnataka state. Study habit inventory by Patel (1976) and self-perception inventory Soars and Soars (1976) were considered for data collection. The results revealed that the overall study habit was significantly differed from gifted and non-gifted groups. General habits and attitudes, planning of subjects, reading and note taking habits, habits of concentration were also found to be significant. Thus the above discussed studies indicated that study habits influence academic achievement of students. Where as in between boys and girls study habits and academic achievement was not clear so present study has taken up to investigate about gender, study habit and academic achievement.

2.2.3. Self-concept
The study of self-concept during adolescence is very important for several reasons. First, because of their growing autonomy and physical strength adolescents have a sense of freedom. It is interesting to study how they behave in such situations. Secondly, adolescents move both as children. Adolescents self-concept is built on limited experiences and it is hard for him to relate himself to change social world. According to Jersild (1954), the self-concept is a composite of thought and feelings, which constitute a persons awareness of his individual existence, his conception of who is he and his feeling about his characteristics, qualities and properties. Similarly, Combs and Snygg (1959) stated that what a person thinks and how he behaves are largely determined by the concepts he holds about himself and his abilities. 2.2.3.1. Studies on self-concept and academic achievement Ross and Parker (1980) studied academic and social self-concept of the academically gifted. They made an attempt to ascertain whether or not the discrepancies of academic and social self-concept are reflected in the gifted students. 147 intellectually gifted male and female students 5-8 grades were administered Sears self-concept inventory. The responses of both the sexes indicated that these students possessed higher academic than social self-concept. Zarb (1981) studied the relationship between academic achievement and six nonacademic variables in ten students. The sample consisted of 30 males and 98 females, from a working class urban neighborhood. The six non-academic variables studied were (i) study habit (ii) self-concept relative to peers (iii) acceptance of educational system, (iv) self-concept relative to family (v) general achievement motivation and (vi) academic self concept. The battery of measures included the academic self-concept scale, survey of study habits and attitudes. Results indicated that self-concept and study habits were significant predictors of grade point average for both males and females. These results suggested that the best students in a normal population are not necessarily those with a high self-concept and family self-concept, but those who have developed good study habits and realistically perceive themselves as academically successful. Cwiok (1996) studied the differences in the real self-images of intellectually gifted and average secondary school students. The level of intelligence of 30 intellectually gifted and 30 average male and female adolescents was measured with standard progressive matrices. Self-concept was measured with the adjective checklist. Results showed a significant difference between intellectually gifted subjects and their peers of average intelligence in self confidence, self-control ability, need of achievement, need of dominance, need of endurance, interception and need of nurturance and need of change. Klein and Zehms (1996) have done a cross sectional study of intellectually gifted females in relation to self-concept. They examined self-concept scores of 104 gifted and 30 rd th th non-gifted females in grades 3 , 5 and 8 to explore whether their Self-concept decline by grade level. The subjects were administered the Piers Harris self-concept scale. The mean total self-concept scores obtained in six Self-concept cluster areas were compared. Results showed that the total self-concept scores of gifted subjects declined significantly between

grades 3-8 and 5-8 between grades. The mean total Self-concept scores of the control group th th in grades 3-8 also decline significantly but not between 5-8 grade. 8 grade gifted subjects had a much more negative sense of self in the cluster area of behavior, intellectual and school status and popularity than non-gifted subjects in the same grade level. Pujar and Gaonkar (1997) investigated the influence of age and type of family on selfth, th concept of 142 high and 142 low achieving adolescents. The sample consisted of 8 9 and th 10 standard students. The self-concept was measured by self-concept inventory of Singh and Singh (1980). The study revealed that with the advancement of age, the level of selfconcept was increased among high and low achievers. Yenagi (2006) conducted a study on study habits a function of self-perception among intellectually gifted and non-gifted students. A sample of 1020 pre university college students was randomly selected from colleges in and around Hubli and Dharwad cities of Karnataka state. Study habit inventory by Patel (1976) and self-perception inventory Soars and Soars (1976) were considered for data collection. The results revealed that self-concept was also showed significant difference between intellectually gifted and non-gifted groups. Sood (2006) investigated the educational choice in relation to academic strees, achievement motivation and academic self-concept. There were 90 boys and 90 girls. They varied in age from 17 19 years. The tools used were sources of academic stress scale (Rajendran and Kalliappan,1991), academic achievement scale (Deo & Mohan, 1985) and academic self-concept scale (Kumar, 1980). The results reported that subjects who had high achievement motivation had high academic self-concept.

2.2.4. Socio Economic Status

The study on the effects of socio-cultural factors on psychological characteristics of individuals has become the attention in contemporary psychological research. Family incomes, education, place of residence are the major factors, which define a condition of social advantage or disadvantage. Under Indian social set up, caste adds an unique and important dimension to it. It is widely acknowledged that a students academic achievement is influenced by his home and family background. Family income, education of parents, socio economic status, basic home amenities as well as cultural and psychological factors have all been studied for their influence on childrens academic performance, Narang (1987), Hunt (1978) and Bloom (1980). Although the relationship between socio cultural factors and educational attainment appears to have been firmly established in studies all over the world, the findings are not consistent with each other. Therefore, the research studies related to socio economic status and academic achievement have been reviewed. 2.2.4.1. Socio Economic Status and Academic achievement Verma and Sinha (1990) studied cognitive ability, academic achievement and study th habits of socially advantaged and disadvantaged adolescent students of 12 grade in Uttar Pradesh, India. Socially advantaged group was comprised of 50 students of high castes while, two socially disadvantaged groups were comprised of 50 students of backward caste and 50 students of scheduled caste. The significant t values for cognitive ability, academic achievement and study habits indicated that all the three factors were definitely affected by social disadvantage. Socially advantaged group exhibited higher levels of intelligence, academic achievement and good study habits. Kaur (1991) studied the effect of home and school environment on study habits of 80 male and 80 female high school students in India. Self-designed questionnaire was used. The first part of the questionnaire consisted of information such as age, class, fathers education and occupation, mothers education and occupation, family type, etc. The second part consisted of questions regarding study habits, home environment and school environment. Percentages were calculated to analyze the data. It revealed that 85.00 per cent of boys studied at home according to a planned schedule. Among girls who had more housework responsibilities than did boys 82.50 per cent used a planned schedule 72.50 per cent of parents of girls and 68.75 per cent of parents of boys were interested in their childrens homework. Wnagoo and Khan (1991) conducted study on socio economic status and academic achievement A comparative study of government and private school students. The sample

of 180 female students from 10 government and 10 private schools within the age group of 13 years were selected from Srinagar. Kapoors socio economic status scale was administered and the mean of two annual examination results was considered as the criterion for the academic achievement. The results revealed that government and private school students differed significantly, so far as their socio economic status is concerned. Significant difference in academic achievement was found between students from private and government schools. The relationship between academic achievement and socio economic status when computed on total sample was statistically significant. Choudhary and Muni (1995) reported that parental support had positive effect on their children academic performance. They carried out a study on the role of parental support in childrens need satisfaction and Academic achievement. The sample consisted of fifty children from 7th grade to 9th grade of equal number of boys and girls. Family effectiveness and need satisfaction inventory and academic marks were used as measures in this study. Singh and Singh (1995) investigated the study habits of advantaged and disadvantaged college students. Based on socio economic status criteria family income, education and occupation of the parents, caste, rural urban residence 150 advantaged and 150 disadvantaged male college students were identified. The study habits questionnaire used was developed by the authors. The chi-square test indicated significant difference between two groups. The advantaged group compared to disadvantaged group, had better study mechanisms, regularity in study, attentiveness in the classroom and habit of seeking help from teachers and classmates. Patel (1997) investigated into the causes of underachievement in mathematics among pupils having high numerical ability. Based on scores of subjects on marks obtained in mathematics in terminal examination, a sample of 35 high achievers and 40 low achievers was selected by stratified cluster sampling method. The investigator collected information from pupils as well as parents. The chi-square test showed that parental income, occupation and education had a large impact on the academic achievement. Chaudhari et al. (1998) conducted experimental study to see the effect of teaching strategies Synectics Models ( SM), Gaming Strategy (GS) and Traditional Method (TM) and socio economic status towards self concept. A sample of 162 learners of VI grade was divided into two experimental and one control group. The experiment was carried out for the period of 4 months. Three treatments namely Synectics model, Gaming strategy and traditional method of teaching were taken as independent variables. Intelligence and age were taken as controlled variables. Interaction between treatments and socio economic status was not significant. Khan and Jemberu (2002) studied the influence of family socio economic status on educational and occupational aspirations of high and low achieving adolescents. The present study was an attempt to investigate the influence of socio economic status on the educational and occupational aspirations of adolescents. The sample consisted of 80 students, selected from four groups middle status / high achieving, middle status / low achieving, lower status / high achieving and lower status / low achieving occupational and educational aspiration scales were administered for data collection and data were analyzed by means of ANOVA. Results showed that the impact of socio economic status on education aspiration was minimal, its influence an occupational aspiration was larger. Achievement highly influenced educational aspirations, but its impact on occupational aspiration was insignificant. Devi and Mayuri (2003) reported that a study of family and school factors that affect the academic achievement of residential school children studying IX and X classes. The sample consisted of 120 children of Hyderabad city. An interview schedule was developed by the investigator to study the family factors, the questionnaire administered to the teachers was developed by the second author to study school factors. The result indicated that girls were superior to boys. Family factors like parental aspirations and socio economic status significantly contributed to academic achievement. Thus, the studies discussed above have pointed out that better socio economic status better the academic achievement.

2.2.4.2. Parental education and Academic achievement Felner et al. (1995) revealed that youth from families in which neither parent had graduated exhibited significantly worse socio emotional and academic adjustment compared to those youth from families who were graduated. The sample consisted of 398 early adolescents of South Eastern United Status. The family environment scale developed by Moas, Insel and Humpheys (1974) and parents acceptance and rejection questionnaire developed by Rohner (1989) and adolescents adjustment in terms of anxiety and depression were measured by the childrens De Manifest Anxiety Scale Revised (Reynolds and Richmond, 1978) and the childrens depression inventory (Kovacs, 1981) and perceived competence scale (Harter, 1982). Pal et al. (1996) studied socio-psychological factors, which promote students mathematics competence among urban and tribal students. A sample comprised of 194 urban and 132 tribal students was administered mathematics achievement test developed by National council of Educational Research and Training. It consisted of three parts. First part contained information regarding age, caste, parental education and occupation, family, gender etc. Second and third section measured Self-concept and locus of control respectively. The test of significance revealed that mathematics competence of urban students was positive and significant relationship between fathers education and mathematics competence. Urban students whose fathers had higher educational status performed better in mathematics. 2.2.4.3. Parental occupation and Academic achievement Sundararajan and Lilly (1991) analyzed the Study habits of 9 standard pupils sample of 480 (210 females and 270 males) students was selected by using cluster sample technique from two urban and two rural schools in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India. Study Habit Inventory of Mukopadhyaya and Sansanwal (1983) were used in this study. The test of significance revealed that girls had significantly better Study habits than boys. But no significant difference was found between rural and urban students with respect to their Study habits. Mallik and Katyal (1993) they found that daughters of working mothers exhibited more frustration as compared to the daughter of non-working mothers. The first possible reason for such findings could be that the mother who is working loses of lot of valuable time due to employment, which otherwise who would have devoted to her girl child. Muller (1995) examined how parental involvement intervenes in the relationship between maternal employment status and mathematics achievement in terms of educational th adjustment of 8 grades. Data on 13,831 students and their parents from the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS, 1988), base year and 1st year followed up were analyzed. The findings showed that part time employed mothers generally had the highest levels of involvement. Children performed better on base year tests when mothers were employed part time or not employed. Singh (1996) studied on personality characteristics of school adolescents in relation to their mothers employment. A sample of 200 students drawn from schools of Agra (Bihar) of age 18-21 years were in 100 students was of working mothers group and 100 of housewives. Hindi adaptation of 16 PF questionnaires was used. The results revealed that subjects of working groups of mothers generally seemed to be out going, open minded, emotionally more stable, bold, venture some, adaptive to change, independent in decision making and active, while students of non-working group of mothers were found more reserved, less out going, emotional, shy, conservative, withdrawing, traditional oriented and depending. Budhdev (1999) conducted a study, which was designed to compare academic achievement among children of working and non working mothers studying in secondary schools of Saurashtra region. Sample included 307 girls of non-working mothers. Academic achievement of the children of working mother was greater than the children of non-working mothers.
th

2.2.4.4. Parental income and Academic achievement The income of the family frequently determines the familys social status. The children living in poor environment cannot develop their potentials and skills to the maximum extent which do effect negatively on their performance in schools and achievements in social life, children from well to do families show superior cognitive abilities, competence and other similar skills. It was researched that poor children lag behind in all the activities involving cognitive abilities than children from middle and upper section of the society. Grewal (1985) carried out a study to find out the effect of socio-economic status on academic performance of children. The sample consisted of 550 students (355 boys and 200 girls) from 16 higher secondary schools of Bhopal studying in class XI, with modal age of 16, socio economic status of parents was assessed by using Kuppuswamys socio economic status scale. The results revealed that academic performance was influenced by socio economic status of the subjects. Nagaraju et al. (2002) studied the study habits of IX class pupils in relation to certain sociological factors. Pupils studying IX class were selected for this study. The total sample for final study was 460. Results revealed that fathers and mothers educational qualification have significant influence on the study habits. Annual income of the family has no significant influence on the study habits of IX class pupils. 2.2.4.5. Size/Type of family and academic achievement The size of the family has been found to play an important role in the childs academic performance. Raj and Krishnan (1980) carried out a study to determine the relationship between academic achievement with family size. The sample consisted of 300 pupils (149 boys and 151 girls) studying in standard IX of 8 secondary schools in Trivendrum city. The results revealed that the correlation between academic achievement and family size was negative and significant. Similarly, Cherian (1990) study revealed a negative relationship between family size of children and their academic achievement. He conducted a study on family size and academic achievement of children. The sample consisted of 369 boys 652 girls in the age range of 13 to 17 years who represented total 7 standard external examination conducted by the Department of Education of the Government of Transkei was taken. 2.2.4.6. Locale and Academic achievement Sundaram (1989) studied urban and rural difference in achievement and achievement related factors such as self-concept, manifest anxiety, study habits, intelligence, adjustment problems and achievement motivation among college students. The sample of the study included 490 final year degree class students from 14 colleges of Madras University. Among 490 students, 291 were students from urban colleges and 199 from rural colleges. The CR technique was used to know the difference between urban and rural students in achievement related variables. The results revealed that there was a significant (0.01) difference between urban and rural students in their self-concept. The rural students had higher self-concept than urban students. But there was no significant difference between urban and rural students with respect to study habits. Ayishabi (1991) studied biology achievement of scheduled caste and non-scheduled caste high school pupils. The study was conducted on 910 students of standard IX in Kerala, India selected through stratified random sampling method from rural and urban schools. Thus the sample consisted of 134 scheduled caste, 199 forward caste and 577 backward caste students. Biology achievement, verbal test of intelligence and socio economic status scale were used for the study. The scores were subjected to mean; SD and critical ratio. The results showed that backward caste students in biology achievement differed significantly on urban and rural sample. Stella and Purushothaman (1993) examined the study habits of underachievers. 90 underachievers from rural and urban schools in Tamil Nadu, India were selected by using randomized block design. Patels (1976) Study Habit Inventory was used for the study. The t test indicated significant difference between urban and rural students in respect of study

habits. The mean value showed that urban students had better study habits than rural students. But no significant difference was found between boys and girls on study habits. Joshi (2000) conducted a study on neuroticism, extraversion and academic achievement as related to gender and culture. The sample chosen for the study was 400 students of VIII class belonging to urban and rural area. Eysencks personality inventory was used for data collection. Results revealed a significant difference between boys and girls of rural areas on academic achievement. 2.2.4.7. Gender and Academic achievement The performance of every individual is not equal. There is a lot of variability and dispersion. The variability cannot be attributed to a single factor, but it is the outcome of number of factors as intelligence, study habits, self-concept, creativity, aptitude interests, socio economic factors, area etc. Along with these gender of the child is also an influencing factor on Academic achievement of the child. Singh (1984) made a survey of the study habits of high, middle and low achieving adolescents in relation to their sex, intelligence and socio economic status and found that study habits of boys and girls differed significantly at different levels of academic achievement. Vijayalaxmi and Natesan (1992) studied factors influencing academic achievement. From Coimbatore, 100 students studying in XI standard were selected for the study of which 50 were boys and 50 were girls. To assess the socio economic status of the subjects, the socio economic status scale developed by Vendal (1981) was used. To assess the academic achievement of the subjects, the total marks obtained by the subjects in the quarterly and half yearly examination was taken. Findings showed that girls had a higher mean academic achievement compared to boys. However, Kaur and Gill (1993) revealed that achievement in English and total achievement was independent of sex, but boys scored higher than girls in achievement in Punjabi, Mathematics and Science. Ahmed (1998) reported that the influence of sex on achievement motivation was found to be statistically non-significant. He carried out a study on Achievement Motivation differences among adolescent boys and girls of various ordinal positions. The study was over conducted on sample of one hundred and twenty students belonging to the age group of 13-18 years, studying in co-educated English medium institutions confined to the suburbs of Mumbai city. The tool used for data collection was Shafis Achievement Motivation Scale. The find out the influence of various variables, the technique analysis of variance was used. 2.2.4.8. Ordinal position and Academic achievement Ordinal position is another variable which affects the academic achievement. The first born child occupies a unique position in the family structure. For at least a year and probably more, he is the only child and receives all the attention that would normality be disturbing among the children in the family. Due to increased contact with adults and expected responsibility, one might expect the first born to have a high achievement motivation (Miner, 1968). Miner (1968) conducted a study to find the relationship between birth order and the academic achievement of the children. The results revealed that first born children and children in small families achieved a higher level than later born children in large families. Munroe and Munroe (1984) conducted a study on birth order and intellectual performance in three east African societies. The sample consisted of 147 secondary school girls in the Gursii, kipsigis and logli tribal areas in East Africa. The results indicated that Logli tribal areas in East Africa. The results indicated that overall school grades and performance were negatively related to birth order in all the 3 societies indicating that birth order was negatively related to Academic achievement of children. Sputa et al. (1995) conducted a study on birth order and family size influences on adolescent and related parenting behaviors. Subjects were 195 IX grade boys and girls and their parents from urban, suburban and rural communities in south east and Midwest Asia. Questionnaire measures of adolescent and parents perception of parenting style and parental involvement were used. Results showed birth order and family size influence adolescent academic achievement.

3. METHODOLOGY
A study on Gender analysis of academic achievement among high school students was carried out in Dharwad urban and rural areas of Karnataka state during the year of 200607. The material and methods used for collecting and analyzing the data are explained under the following headings: 3.1. Population and the sample 3.2. Research Design 3.3. Variables used for the study 3.4. Tools used for data collection 3.5. Data collection procedure 3.6. Operational definition and terminologies 3.7. Statistical analysis

3.1. Population and the sample

The sample for the present study was 600 students. Out of these 300 were drawn from rural and 300 were from urban. Two schools each were selected randomly from 15 urban English medium schools and for rural, in 100 villages of Dharwad taluqa two villages were selected areas, totally four schools. Further from each school 150 students, with 50 in each of the classes VIII, IX and X were randomly selected (fig. 1). Of the total sample there were 325 boys and 275 girls. The study was conducted in two schools of Dharwad city namely Saint Joseph Convent and Bassel Mission English medium high schools. From two villages of Dharwad Taluka namely Bharathi Vishwa Sewa Sadana High School, Somapur and S. S. High School, Amminabhavi. The distribution of students school wise and gender wise are presented in tabular form as bellow. Gender Boys Girls Total Rural VIII 49 51 100 IX 50 50 100 X 50 50 100 Urban VIII 57 43 100 IX 67 33 100 X 52 48 100

3.2

Research Design

Research Design as defined by Kerlinger (1995) is the plan and structure of investigation so conceived as to obtain answer to research questions. The Ex-Post Facto research design was followed for conducting the study. Robinson(1976)defined ex post facto research design as any systematic empirical enquiry into which the independent variables has been directly manipulated because they had already occurred or they are inherently not manipulable. Keeping this in view, the adaptability of the proposed design with respect to the type of study, variables under consideration, size of respondents and phenomenon to be studied, the ex post facto was selected as an appropriate research design.

3.3. Variables used for study:

The purpose of the study was to analyze self-concept, study habits and socio economic status and their influence on academic achievement. The independent variables selected for the study were study habits, self-concept and socio economic status. The dependent variable was academic achievement.

3.4. Tools used for data collection

The tools employed for the study are enumerated below. 1. Self Concept Scale developed by Singh and Singh (1988) 2. Study Habit Inventory developed by Patel with slight modification (1976) 3. Socio Economic Status scale developed by AICRP-CD (2002)

600 Schools

Urban

Rural

A1 School (150-Students)

A2 School (150-Students)

A3 School (150-Students)

A4 School (150-Students)

8th

9th

10th

8th

9th

10th

8th

9th

10th

8th

9th

10th

Fig. 1. Selection of sample for the study

Fig.1. Selection of sample for the study

4. Grades in final examination (Academic achievement) Average grades of two previous years a) Study habits The original study habit inventory of Patel (1976) consisted of 45 statements. Since some of the statements were ambiguous to the students it was slightly modified 39 statements were retained. The concurrent validity by corroborating with study habit inventory of Yadav (1986) on a non-sample of 70, 9th class students was found to be 0.74. The reliability was also calculated by using split half method and it was 0.77.The modified study habit Scale consisted of 39 statements of which 24 statements were positive and 15 statements were negative which had to be checked on 5 point scale. For each statements the numerical values 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 were given for five responses namely strongly agree, agree, undecided, disagree and strongly disagree respectively in case of positive statements. The scoring was reversed in case of negative statements. The Study habit inventory consists of seven dimensions 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Home environment and planning of work (Sh1) Reading and note taking habits (Sh2) Planning of subjects (Sh3) Habits of concentration (Sh4) Preparation for examination (Sh5) General habits and attitudes (Sh6) School environment (Sh7)

Higher the score better is the study habit. A maximum score of 195 and minimum score of 39 could be obtained on this scale. For each student scores are summed to obtain the total score. According to scale the respondents were grouped into three categories. Study habit Poor Average Good b) Self Concept The self concept scale (Singh and Singh, 1988) consisting of 22 statements, in which 18 statements were positive and 4 statements were negative which had to be checked on five point continuum. For each statement the numerical values 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 were given for five responses namely, strongly agree, agree, undecided, disagree and strongly disagree respectively in case of positive statements. The scoring was reversed in case of negative statements. Higher is the score, greater the degree of self-concept. A maximum score of 110 and minimum of 22 could be obtained on this scale. For each student scores are summed to obtain the total score.The self-concept and study habit scale were administered either in kannada or in English depending upon the medium of instruction of the school in which they were studying. For this purpose the self-concept and study habit scales were translated into regional language i.e. kannada. Scales in both the languages were pre-tested for reliability on a sample of 53 students each. The reliability for kannada version was found to be 0.57 each for self-concept and study habit. The reliability for English version of self-concept was 0.49 and for study habit 0.77. According to scale the respondents were grouped into three categories. Self-concept Low Medium High Range 22-86 87-94 95-110 Range 39-141 142-161 162-195

After finalizing questionnaire the pilot study was carried out on a non-sample group of th 120 students of 10 standard. To know whether any lacuna is present in regard to the study. 3. Socio-Economic Status of the Family Other independent variables: Age: Date of birth of the students was obtained from the students and cross checked with school records. They were categorized as follows. 13 years 14 years 15 years Gender The students were classified as follows Category Boys Girls Score 1 2

Ordinal Position of the Child The importance of family constellations in the patterning of Childs personality was introduced by Ansbacher and Ansbacher, (1956). One major component of constellation is birth order. On the basis of birth order of the children they are categorized on basis of SES scale developed by AICRP (CD, 2002) as followsCategory First born Middle born Last born Locale The student were selected according to rural and urban area Category Rural Urban Type of family The students were grouped into two categories of family type viz., nuclear family and joint family based on composition of the family. As per AICRP (CD, 2002) Category Nuclear Joint Family type Family with parents and children Family with more than two couples and their children Score 1 2 Score 1 2 3

Size of Family The information collected regarding size of the family was categorized as follows: Category Small family Medium family Large family Education of Parents According to level of education of the parents the categorization and quantification was made a shown below using Socio Economic Status Scale developed by AICRP (CD, 2002). Category Illiterate Primary High School PUC Graduates Post-Graduates Occupation of Parents By using socio economic status scale developed by AICRP (CD, 2002), the following categories of occupation of parents has been made. Occupation of father Category Unemployed Labor Caste Occupation Small business, Shop, Govt. Job (4th grade) Business, Agriculture, Govt. Services (2-3rd grade) Professionals: Doctor, Engineer Occupation of Mother In the present day world, mothers education and employment are affecting the childrens development in various aspects. Hence mothers education, occupation and income are also considered in the present study.
Category House wife Labourer Caste occupation Government employee Score 1 2 3 4

Number of Members 1-4 5-8 9 & above

Score 1 2 3 4 5 6

Score 1 2 3 4 5 6

Family Income Income of the family was determined by considering annual income and categorization was made by using the formula X + 0.425XSD. The categorization was as follows. (Bailur, 2006) Category Low (<50,988) Medium (50,989-1,46,000) High (>1,46,000) Socio Economic Status The students were grouped into three categories of Socio Economic Status viz., low, medium and high Socio Economic Status (Bailur, 2006). Score 1 2 3

Category Low Average High

Score 12-23 24-34 35-45

4. Academic Achievement The annual grades of students for two previous years have been taken as academic achievement scores. The grades were converted into percentages and they are categorized as per the report cards of the students Category Excellent Good Average Poor Percentage 75-100 60-74 50-59 49 & below

3.5 Data collection procedure Permission of the principal/ head of the institution was sought. Data were collected from 8th, 9th & 10th from above said schools. The questionnaire were distributed and the students were asked to respond to all the statements in one sitting 3.6. Operational Definition Study Habits It is a planned program of subject matter mastery. Seven dimensions of study habit are studied in the present study. They are 1. Home environment and planning of work It deals with whether the students study regularly and according to time schedule, whether they do home work regularly, join tuition classes and which place they prefer to study.

2. Reading and note taking habits As the name indicates it is concerned with the way the students make note of points during reading, use dictionary, take down notes during the class and discuss with teachers for clarification of doubts. 3. Planning of subjects It deals with how the students plan the subjects before the study, whether they pay more attention to difficult subjects or to the subjects in which they are weak, whether they study one subject for long time and they study only the subject in which they are interested. 4. Habits of concentration It is concerned with whether the students study with deep concentration, do not feel like studying, day dream and lack memory power. 5. Preparation for examination It deals with whether the students think about the answers of the questions before they start writing at the time of examination get nervous, read till late at night. 6. General habits and attitudes It deals with whether the students memorize definition, maxims, formulae etc., discuss the subjects with friends, read loudly and review. 7. School environment It is concerned with how the students spend their leisure time at school, whether they go to library, participate in class0room discussion and answer the questions asked by the teachers. Self Concept This refers to the students understanding of what actually he is with regard to academic performance, trust worthiness, independence, sociability, satisfaction, patience and coverage. Academic achievement The grades obtained during final examination were considered. Average of two previous years grades were converted into percentages. 3.7. Statistical Analysis a. Frequency and percentages were calculated to interpret the demographic characteristics of the students. b. The t test was used for the comparison between two groups i.e., gender and locale on study habits and self-concept and academic achievement with the help of following formula. t = / X1 X2 / S2 (1/n1 + 1/n2)

where

S = {(n1 1- S1 + (n2 - 1) S2 } (n1 + n2 2)

st

X1 = mean of the 1 group X2 = mean of the 2nd group n1 = Number of observations in the first group n2 = Number of observations in the second group S1 = Variance of first group S22 = Variance of second group S = Pooled Variance of S1 & S2 c.
2 2 2 2

To find out the association between self-concept and academic achievement, study habits and academic achievement, socio economic status and academic achievement. Chi-square test was applied using the formula.

 ( 0i Ei)2 = Ei Where, Oi = Observed Frequency Ei = Expected Frequency The 2 value was compared with table values for (r-1) (c-1) degrees of freedom (df) r denoting the number of rows, c denoting number of columns in the contingency table. d. Modified Chi-square: Modified chi-square test of independence was applied to determine the association between dependent variables wherever the frequencies were less than 5 using formula. Modified 2 = { 1 1 (`-d/2 )} X 2 d 0.05 n at 5% level
2

Where,
2 d 0.05

is table value at d degrees of freedom for 5 percent level significance.

n = Grand total e. To test the correlation between independent and dependent variables, Pearsons correlation coefficient was computed using the following formula. nxy x y r = (nx2 (x)2 ) (ny2 (y)2 ) Where, n = Number of observation X = Sum of independent variables Y = Sum of dependent variables x2 = Sum of the squares of x values y2 = Sum of the squares of y values xy = Sum of the product of values of independent and dependent variables f. To compare self concept, study habits, socio economic status and academic achievement of high school children, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) technique was used.

4. RESULTS
The results of the study entitled, Gender analysis of academic achievement among High school students are presented under the following sub-headings. 4.1. Demographic characteristics of the students and parents : 4.2. Study habit of boys and girls 4.3. Self-concept of boys and girls 4.4. Socio-economic status of boys and girls 4.5. Rural/urban comparison of study habits, self-concept and socio economic status 4.6. Gender, locale and academic achievement

4.1. Demographic characteristics of the students and parents

4.1.1. Characteristics of the students
The demographic characteristics of the sample are presented in the Table 1. It showed that the age of the students ranged from 13-15 years. Among the students 30.50 per cent of boys were in the age group of 13 years followed by 35.10 per cent in the age group of 14 years and 34.50 per cent were in the age group of 15 years. Among the girls 36.70 per cent were 13 years old, followed by 31.30 per cent in age group of 14 years and 32.00 per cent in age group of 15 years. It is observed that there were 32.60 per cent of boys and 34.20 per cent of girls from 8th standard where as 36 per cent of boys and 30.20 per cent of girls were from 9th standard. th The 10 standard comprised of 31.40 per cent boys and 35.60 per cent girls. The area wise distribution of sample indicated that there were 45.80 per cent boys and 54.90 per cent girls from rural area while, 54.20 per cent of boys and 45.10 per cent of girls were from urban area. The table also reveals with respect to ordinal position of students. 38.80 per cent of boys and 46.90 per cent of girls were first born, 37.50 per cent of boys and 30.90 per cent of girls were middle born and 23.70 per cent of boys and 22.20 per cent of girls were last born. It is observed that there were 75.40 per cent of boys and 74.90 per cent of girls from nuclear families. Only 24.60 per cent of boys and 25.10 per cent of girls were from joint families. It is revealed that 50.50 per cent of boys and 47.60 per cent of girls belong to small size families, where as, 40.30 per cent of boys and 38.50 per cent of girls were from medium sized families. 09.20 per cent of boys and 13.80 per cent of girls were from large sized families.

4.1.2. Characteristics of the Parents

The characteristic of the sample is presented in the Table 2. It is showed that 13.80 per cent of boys fathers and 14.90 per cent of girls fathers were illiterate, 20.30 per cent of boys fathers and 21.80 per cent of girls fathers had primary school education. About 10.80 per cent of boys fathers and 14.90 per cent of girls fathers are educated high school. More over 12.00 per cent of boys fathers 0.90 per cent of girls fathers had college education. Around 25.20 per cent of boys fathers and 23.30 per cent of girls fathers had degree education. However 17.80 per cent of boys fathers and 14.20 per cent of girls fathers had post graduation. It is observed that 21.80 per cent of boys mothers and 24.40 per cent of girls mothers were illiterate. About 21.50 per cent of boys mothers and 21.80 per cent of girls mothers had primary education. Moreover 17.20 per cent of boys mothers and 16.40 per cent of girls mothers had high school education. Around 13.50 per cent of boys mothers and 12.00 per cent of girls mothers had college education. About 20.30 per cent of boys mothers and 18.20 per cent of girls mothers had degree. However 5.50 per cent of boys mothers and 7.30 per cent girls mothers had completed post graduation.

Table 1. Demographic characteristic of students Boys (325) Characteristics Category N Age 13 14 15 Class 8 9
th th

Girls (275) N 101 86 88 94 83 98 129 85 61 151 124 206 69 131 106 38 % 36.70 31.30 32.00 34.20 30.20 35.60 46.90 30.90 22.20 54.90 45.10 74.90 25.10 47.60 38.50 13.80 N 200 200 200 200 200 200 255 207 138 300 300 451 149 295 237 68

Total % 33.33 33.33 33.33 33.33 33.33 33.33 42.50 34.50 23.00 50.00 50.00 75.20 24.80 49.20 39.50 11.30

% 30.50 35.10 34.50 32.60 36.00 31.40 38.80 37.50 23.70 45.80 54.20 75.40 24.60 50.50 40.30 9.20

99 114 112 106 117 102 126 122 77 149 176 245 80 164 131 30

10th Ordinal position First born Middle born Last born Area Rural Urban Type of family Nuclear Joint Family size 1-4 small 5-8 medium >9 big

Table 2. Demographic characteristic of Parents Boys N Fathers education Illiterate Primary High school College Degree Post graduation Illiterate Primary High school College Degree Post graduation Unemployed Labourer Caste occupation Small business Business Professionals House wife Labourer Caste occupation Government job Low Medium High Low Medium High 45 66 35 39 82 58 71 70 56 44 66 18 8 64 12 74 86 81 217 66 2 40 169 86 63 76 23 14 % 13.80 20.30 10.80 12.00 25.20 17.80 21.80 21.50 17.20 13.50 20.30 5.50 2.50 19.70 3.70 22.80 26.50 24.90 66.80 20.30 0.60 12.30 52.00 26.50 19.40 23.40 7.10 4.30 N 41 60 41 30 64 39 67 60 45 33 50 20 1 62 8 88 65 50 161 68 1 45 156 78 36 78 24 12 Girls % 14.90 21.80 14.90 10.90 23.30 14.20 24.40 21.80 16.40 12.00 18.20 7.30 0.40 22.50 2.90 32.00 23.60 18.20 58.50 24.70 0.40 16.40 56.70 28.40 13.10 28.40 8.70 4.40 N 86 126 76 69 146 97 138 130 101 77 116 38 1 126 20 162 151 131 378 134 3 85 325 164 99 154 47 26 Total % 14.30 21.00 12.70 11.50 24.30 16.20 23.00 21.70 16.80 12.80 19.30 6.30 0.20 21.00 3.30 27.00 25.20 21.80 63.00 22.30 0.50 14.20 54.20 27.30 16.50 25.70 7.80 4.30

Characteristics

Category

Mothers education

Occupation of father

Occupation of mother

Fathers income

Mothers income

It is revealed from table that 2.50 per cent of boys fathers and 0.40 per cent of girls fathers were unemployed, 19.70 per cent of boys fathers and 22.50 per cent of girls fathers were labourers, 3.70 per cent of boys fathers and 2.90 per cent of girls fathers were having caste occupation, 22.80 per cent of boys fathers and 32.00 per cent girls fathers were having small business, 26.50 per cent of boys fathers and 23.60 per cent of girls fathers were running business and 24.90 per cent of boys fathers and 18.20 per cent of girls fathers were professionals. It is showed from the table that 66.80 per cent of boys mothers and 58.50 per cent of girls mothers were housewife, 20.30 per cent of boys mothers and 24.70 per cent of girls mothers were labourers, 0.60 per cent of boys mothers and 0.40 per cent of girls mothers were involved in caste occupation and 12.30 per cent of boys mothers and 16.40 per cent of girls mothers were having government job. It is revealed that 52.00 per cent of boys father and 56.70 per cent girls father belong to the low income category. Moreover 26.50 per cent of boys father and 28.40 per cent of girls father had medium income 19.40 per cent of boys father and 13.00 per cent of girls father had high income. It is seen that 23.40 per cent of boys mothers and 28.40 per cent of girls mothers had low income. About seven per cent of boys mothers and nine per cent of girls mothers had medium income and four per cent of boys mothers income and 4.00 per cent of girls mothers had high income.

4.2. Study habits of boys and girls

4.2.1. Distribution of boys and girls on study habits 4.2.2. Comparison of boys and girls on study habits 4.2.3. Class wise comparison of study habits 4.2.4. Association of study habits of boys and girls with academic achievement 4.2.5. Correlation between study habits and academic achievement

4.2.1. Distribution of boys and girls on study habits

From Table 3 it is revealed that 14.20 per cent of boys and 12.70 per cent of girls had good study habits, where as, 47.10 per cent of boys and 48.70 per cent of girls had average study habits. Further 38.80 per cent of boys and 38.50 per cent of girls had poor study habits. The association between boys and girls on study habits found to be non-significant ( = 0.31).

4.2.2. Comparison of boys and girls on study habits

It is observed from Table 4 that the observation of mean scores of boys and girls had almost similar study habits. The perusal oft scores on dimensions of study habits showed that both groups differed significantly on preparation for examination (t=4.41, p<0.01 level) where boys performed better than girls with mean score (17.99 and 16.84 respectively) for boys and girls. Girls had significantly better reading and note taking habits compared to that of boys (33.18 and 32.15 respectively), and better home environment & planning of work (t=2.03, p<0.05 level). The mean scores indicated that boys had significantly better home environment & planning of work compared to that of girls (18.34 and 17.81 respectively). The other dimensions like general habits & attitudes, planning of subjects, habits of concentration and school environment were found to be non significant. So the boys and girls did not differ significantly on overall study habits as the t-value of 0.07 is found to be non significant.

4.2.3. Class wise comparison of study habits

The class wise comparison of study habits is present in Table 5. It revealed that all the three groups differed significantly on overall study habits as the F-value of 7.69 was th significant at 5 per cent level of probability. Further it was noted that 8 standard students had th th significantly better study habits (147.47) as compared to 9 and 10 standard students (144.11 and 142.01 respectively). In study habits dimensions there was also significant

Table 3. Distribution of boys and girls on study habits 2

Boys Study habits N % N

Girls

Poor

126

38.8

106

38.5
NS

Average

153

47.1

134

48.7

0.31

Good

46

14.2

35

12.7

Total

325

100.0

275

100.0

Boys

14.2 38.8 Poor Average Good

47.1

Girls

12.7 38.5 Poor Average Good

48.7

Fig. 2. Distribution of boys and girls on levels of study habits

Fig.2. Distribution of boys and girls on levels of study habits

Table 4. Comparison of boys and girls on study habits Sl. No Study habits Mean 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Home environment and planning of work Reading and Note taking habit Planning of subjects Habits of concentration Preparation for examination General habits and attitudes School environment Over all study habits 18.34 32.15 15.15 13.81 17.99 23.39 23.73 144.57 SD 3.13 4.54 2.39 3.39 3.30 3.57 3.96 14.49 Mean 17.81 33.18 15.37 13.69 16.84 23.75 23.84 SD 3.27 4.26 2.49 3.50 3.06 3.74 3.76 2.03* 2.84** 1.12 0.41 4.41** 1.19 0.34 0.07 Boys (n=325) Girls (n=275) t value

144.48 13.86

**p<0.01 level *p<0.05 level

Boys

35

Girls

30

25

20

15

10

0 SH1 SH2 SH3 SH4 SH5 SH6 SH7

Fig. 3. Comparison of boys and girls on study habits

Fig.3. Comparison of boys and girls on study habits

Table 5. Class-wise comparison of the study habits VIII (n=200) Study habits Mean SD 3.15 Mean 18.47 SD 3.05 Mean 17.24 SD 3.25 11.31 9 0.21 0.51 IX (n=200) X (n=200) F SEm CD

Sl. no

1. Home environment 18.60 and planning of work 2. Reading and Note taking habit 3. Planning of subjects 4. Habits of concentration 5. Preparation for examination 33.42

4.44

32.10

4.65

32.34

4.12 5.116

0.31

0.70

15.50

2.40

15.10

2.50

15.16

2.40 1.557

0.16

NS

12.88

3.33

14.47

3.44

13.92

3.37 11.47 2 3.28 4.364

0.22

0.55

16.92

3.22

17.73

3.17

17.75

0.23

0.49

6. General habits and 22.21 attitudes 7. School environment 8. Study habits *p<0.05 level 23.15

3.03

23.71

3.87

24.74

3.57 26.30 6 4.00 4.103

0.25

0.58

3.73

24.17

3.81

24.03

0.27

NS

147.47 14.92 144.11 13.77 142.01 13.36 7.699

0.94

2.26

35

VIII

IX

30

25

20

15

10

0 SH1 SH2 SH3 SH4 SH5 SH6 SH7

Fig. 4. Class-wise comparison of the study habits

Fig.4. Class-wise comparison of the study habits

difference between the three groups on general habits & attitudes (F=26.31, P<0.05 level), habits of concentration (F=11.47, P<0.05 level), home environment & planning of work (F=11.32, P<0.05 level) preparation for examination (F=4.36, p<0.05 level) and reading & note taking habits (F=5.12, P<0.05 level). The examination of mean scores of the three th th groups on all the dimensions of study habits pointed out that the 8 standard and 9 standard group had better home environment and planning of work (18.60 and 18.47 respectively) than 10th standard group (17.24). With respect to reading and note taking habits 8th standard was th th better (33.42) while 9 and 10 standards had almost similar reading and note taking habits (32.10 and 32.34 respectively). The habit of concentration was significantly better among 9th th th standard students (14.47) as compared to 8 and 10 standard (12.88 and 13.92 respectively). The preparation for examination was more adequate among 9th and 10th th th standard (17.73 and 17.75 respectively) as compared to 8 standard i.e., 16.92. The 10 th th standard group had significantly better habits & attitudes (24.74) as compared to 8 and 9 standard (22.21 and 23.71 respectively). However the three groups did not differ significantly on planning of subjects and school environment.

4.2.4. Association of study habits of boys and girls with academic achievement
Table 6 revealed that 15.40 per cent of boys & 17.80 per cent of girls with good study habits, 49.70 per cent of boys & 50.00 per cent of girls with average study habits and 34.90 per cent of boys & 32.00 per cent of girls with poor study habits had excellent academic achievement. About 14.00 per cent of boys & 4.00 per cent of girls with good study habits, 42.00 per cent of boys and 54.00 per cent of girls with average study habits and 44.00 per cent of boys & 41.00 per cent girls with poor study habits had good academic achievement. Where as 5.00 per cent of boys & 12.50 per cent of girls with good study habits, 57.00 per cent of boys & 28.00 per cent of girls with average study habits and 38.00 per cent of boys & 59.40 per cent of girls with poor study habits had satisfactory academic achievement. However 9.00 per cent boys & 50.00 per cent of girls with good academic achievement, 27.00 per cent of boys with average academic achievement and 63.60 per cent of boys & 50.00 per cent of girls with poor study habit had poor academic achievement. The association of study 2 habits of girls with academic achievement was significant ( =20.43, p< 0.01 level). The association between study habits of boys with academic achievement was not significant (2 =7.13).

4.2.5. Correlation between study habits and academic achievement

Table 7 showed the correlation coefficients between study habits and academic achievement. It was revealed that the overall study habits had significant correlation with academic achievement (0.16, P<0.01 level respectively). There was also significant relationship between reading & note taking habit with academic achievement. Similarly habits of concentration & academic achievement was significantly related (0.16 P<0.01 level respectively). Further preparation for examination also had significant relationship with academic achievement as the correlation coefficient was 0.13 at 1 per cent level. However other study habit dimensions like home environment & planning of work, planning of subjects, general habits & attitude and school environment had non significant relation with academic achievement.

4.3. Self-concept of boys and girls

4.3.1. Distribution of boys and girls on self-concept 4.3.2. Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept 4.3.3. Class wise comparison of self-concept 4.3.4. Association of self-concept of boys and girls with academic achievement 4.3.5. Correlation between self-concept and academic achievement

4.3.1. Distribution of boys and girls on self-concept

Table 8 revealed that 61.20 per cent of boys and 37.80 per cent of girls had developed high self-concept, where as 29.50 per cent of boys and 29.5 per cent of girls had

Table 6. Association of study habits of boys and girls with academic achievement Academic achievement Total Study habit Excellent Boys Poor 68 (34.9) 97 (49.7) 30 (15.4) 195 (100.0) Girls 47 (32.2) 73 (50.0) 26 (17.8) 146 (100.0) Boys 43 (43.9) 41 (41.8) 14 (14.3) 98 (100.0) Good Girls 39 (41.1) 52 (54.7) 4 (4.2) 95 (100.0) Satisfactory Boys 8 (38.1) 12 (57.1) 1 (4.8) 21 (100.0) Girls 19 (59.4) 9 (28.1) 4 (12.5) 32 (100.0) Boys 7 (63.6) 3 (27.3) 1 (9.1) 11 (100.0) Poor Girls 1 (50.0) Boys 126 (38.8) 153 (47.1) 46 (14.2) 325 (100.0) Girls 106 (38.5) 134 (48.7) 7.13 Good 1 (50.0) 2 (100.0) 35 (12.7) 275 (100.0)
NS

Chi-square

Boys

Girls

Average

20.43**

Total

** p<0.01 level Parenthesis indicate percentage

Poor
70

Average

Good

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 Boys Girls Boys Girls Boys Girls Boys Girls

Excellent

Good

Satisfactory

Poor

Fig. 5. Association of study habits of boys and gilrs with academic achievement

Fig.5. Association of study habits of boys and girls with academic achievement

Table 7. Correlation between Study habits and Academic Achievement N=600 Sl.no 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. ** p< 0.01 level verage self-concept. Low self-concept was found to the extent of 9.20 per cent in boys and 32.70 per cent in girls. The association between boys and girls on self-concept was significant ( = 0.54, P<0.05 level). Study habit Home environment and planning of work Reading and Note taking habit Planning of subjects Habits of concentration Preparation for examination General habits and attitudes School environment Over all study habits r value 0.051 0.127** 0.013 0.157** 0.130** 0.062 0.087 0.160**

4.3.2. Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept

From Table 9 it is revealed that boys and girls did not differ significantly on selfconcept as the t value of 1.75 is found to be non significant. The observation of mean scores revealed that boys and girls had almost same level of self-concept (89.47 and 90.63 respectively).

4.3.3. Class wise comparison of self-concept

It is observed from the Table 10 that all the three groups differed significantly on selfconcept as the F-value of 6.16 was found to be significant at 1 per cent level of probability. th Further it was noted from mean scores that 8 standard students had better self-concept th th (91.43) as compared to 9 and 10 standard students (89.96 & 88.63 respectively).

4.3.4. Association of self-concept of boys and girls with academic achievement

Table 11 revealed that 66.80 per cent of boys and 62.00 per cent of girls with high self-concept, 52.00 per cent of boys and 37.60 per cent of girls with average self-concept and 40.00 per cent of boys and 42.90 per cent of girls with poor self-concept were having excellent academic achievement. Where as, 25.00 per cent of boys and 32.00 per cent of girls with high self-concept, 39.60 per cent of boys and 42.00 per cent of girls with average self-concept and 33.30 per cent of boys and 23.80 per cent of girls with low self-concept had good academic achievement. About five per cent of boys and 4.70 per cent of girls with high self-concept, 6.30 per cent of boys and 20.00 per cent of girls with average self-concept and 16.70 per cent of boys and 33.30 per cent of girls with low self-concept had satisfactory academic achievement. However three per cent of boys and 1.20 per cent of girls with high self-concept, two per cent of boys with average self-concept and 10.00 per cent of boys with low self-concept had poor academic achievement. The association of self-concept of boys and girls with Academic Achievement was significant (19.07 and 31.04 p<0.01 level respectively).

Table 8. Distribution of boys and girls on Self-concept

Boys Self-concept N % N

Girls

Low

30

9.2

21

32.7

Medium

96

29.5

85

29.5

0.54*

High

199

61.2

169

37.8

Total

325

100.0

275

100.0

Boys

9.2 29.5 Low Medium High

61.2

Girls

37.8

32.7 Low Medium High 29.5

Fig. 6. Distribution of boys and girls of self-concept

Fig.6. Distribution of boys and girls of self-concept

Table 9. Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept Boys N Mean SD N Girls t value Mean SD

Self-concept

325

89.47

7.99

275

90.63

8.12

1.75NS

NS- Not significant

90.8 90.6 90.4 90.2 90 89.8 89.6 89.4 89.2 89 88.8 Boys Girls

Fig. 7. Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept

Fig.7. Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept

Table 10. Class-wise comparison of the self-concept N=600 VIII Mean SD IX Mean SD Mean X SD Total F Mean SD CD

Selfconcept

91.43

8.61

89.96

8.00

88.63

7.33

90.00

8.06

6.16**

0.57

**p<0.01 level

91.5 91 90.5 90 89.5 89 88.5 88 87.5 87

VIII

IX

Fig. 8. Class-wise comparison of the self-concept

Fig.8. Class-wise comparison of the self-concept

4.3.5. Correlation between self-concept and academic achievement

The Table 12 presents correlation coefficients between self-concept and academic achievement. It was found that self-concept had positive and highly significant relationship with academic achievement. (0.139 p< 0.01 level respectively).

4.4. Socio economic status of boys and girls

4.4.1. Distribution of boys and girls on socio economic status 4.4.2. Association of socio economic status of boys and girls with academic achievement 4.4.3. Correlation between socio economic status and academic achievement

4.4.1. Distribution of boys and girls on socio economic status

The distribution of boys and girls with respect to socio economic status is shown in Table 13. It is observed that 45.00 per cent of boys and 48.00 per cent of girls were from low socio economic status. Where as 50.00 per cent of boys and 42.00 per cent of girls from medium socio economic status. However only 5.50 per cent of boys and 10.00 per cent of girls belonged to high socio economic status. Association between boys and girls on socio economic status was significantly related ( = 6.37, p<0.05 level).

4.4.2. Association of socio economic status of boys and girls with academic achievement
Table 14 revealed that 77.80 per cent of boys and 71.40 per cent of girls with high socio economic status, 67.90 per cent of boys and 59.50 per cent of girls with medium socio economic status and 49.00 per cent of boys and 43.50 per cent of girls with low socio economic status had excellent academic achievement. About 17.00 per cent of boys and 10.70 per cent of girls with high socio economic status, 25.30 per cent of boys and 24.10 per cent of girls with medium socio economic status and 37.20 per cent of boys and 48.90 per cent of girls with low socio economic status had good academic achievement. About 6.00 per cent of boys and 18.00 per cent of girls with high socio economic status, 5.00 per cent of boys and 16.00 per cent of girls with medium socio economic status and 8.00 per cent of boys and 6.00 per cent of girls with low socio economic status had satisfactory academic achievement. About 2.00 per cent of boys with medium socio economic status and 5.50 per cent of boys and 1.50 per cent of girls with low socio economic status had poor academic achievement. The association levels of socio economic status and academic achievement of boys and girls had significant association (29.75, p<0.01 and 15.36, p<0.05 respectively).

4.4.3. Correlation of socio economic status and academic achievement

The Table 15 presents correlation coefficient between personal characteristics and academic achievement. It was found that the locale of the students had significant correlation with their academic achievement (0.17, p< 0.01 level). There was also significant relationship between fathers education and academic achievement (0.24, p<0.01). Similarly mothers education was significantly related to academic achievement (0.19, p<0.01 level). Further fathers as well as mothers income had highly significantly relationship with academic achievement as the correlation coefficients was 0.24 and 0.12 respectively significant at 1 per cent level. However there was negative but significant relationship between family size and academic achievement as the correlation coefficient was -0.09 significant at 1 percent level. There was highly significant relationship found between fathers occupation with academic achievement as the correlation coefficient was 0.26, p<0.01 level. Age, mothers occupation were found to be non significant with academic achievement of the students.

4.5. Rural/urban comparison of study habits, self-concept and socio economic status
4.5.1. Distribution of rural and urban students on study habits 4.5.2. Comparison of rural and urban students on study habits

Table 11. Association of self-concept of boys and girls with academic achievement Academic achievement Total Self-concept Excellent Boys Poor 12 (40.0) Medium 50 (52.1) High 133 (66.8) Total 195 (60.0) ** p<0.01 level Parenthesis indicate percentage Girls 9 (42.9) 32 (37.6) 105 (62.1) 146 (53.1) Boys 10 (33.3) 38 (39.6) 50 (25.1) 98 (30.2) Good Girls 5 (23.8) 36 (42.4) 54 (32.0) 95 (34.5) Satisfactory Boys 5 (16.7) 6 (6.3) 10 (5.0) 21 (6.5) Girls 7 (33.3) 17 (20.0) 8 (4.7) 32 (11.6) Boys 3 (10.0) 2 (2.1) 6 (3.0) 11 (3.4) 2 (1.2) 2 (0.7) __ Poor Girls __ Boys 30 (100.0) 96 (100.0) 199 (100.0) 325 (100.0) Girls 21 (100.0) 85 (100.0) 19.07** 31.14** 169 (100.0) 275 (100.0) Boys Girls Chi-square

80

70

Poor Self-concept Average Self-concept

60

High Self-concept

50

40

30

20

10

0 Boys Excellent Girls Boys Good Girls Boys Satisfactory Girls Boys Poor Girls

Fig. 9. The association of self-concept of boys and girls on academic achievement

Fig.9. The association of self-concept of boys and girls on academic achievement

Table 12. Correlation of Self-concept and Academic Achievement N=600 Mean SD r-value

Self-concept

90.00

8.06

0.139**

** p< 0.01 level

Table 13. Distribution of boys and girls on Socio Economic Status

Boys Socio economic status N % N

Girls

Low

145

44.6

131

47.6

Medium

162

49.8

116

42.2

6.37*

High

18

5.5

28

10.2

Total

325

100.0

275

100.0

Boys

5.5 44.6 Low Medium High

49.8

Girls

10.2 47.6 Low Medium High

42.2

Fig. 10. Distribution of boys and girls on Socio Economic Status

Fig.10. Distribution of boys and girls on Socio Economic Status

Table 14. Association of socio-economic status of boys and girls with academic achievement Academic achievement Socio economic status Total Excellent Boys Low 71 (49.0) Medium 110 (67.9) High 14 (77.8) Total 195 (60.0) Girls 57 (43.5) 69 (59.5) 20 (71.4) 146 (53.1) Boys 54 (37.2) 41 (25.3) 3 (16.7) 98 (30.2) Good Girls 64 (48.9) 28 (24.1) 3 (10.7) 95 (34.5) Satisfactory Boys 12 (8.3) 8 (4.9) 1 (5.6) 21 (6.5) Girls 8 (6.1) 19 (16.4) 5 (17.9) 32 (11.6) 11 (3.4) 2 (0.7) Boys 8 (5.5) 3 (1.9) __ __ Poor Girls 2 (1.5) __ Boys 145 (100.0) 162 (100.0) 18 (100.0) 325 (100.0) Girls 131 (100.0) 116 (100.0) 29.75** 28 (100.0) 275 (100.0) 15.36* Boys Girls Chi-square

** p<0.01 level * p<0.05 level Parenthesis indicate percentage

90

Low SES Medium SES High SES

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 Boys Excellent Girls Boys Good Girls Boys Satisfactory Girls Boys Poor Girls

Fig. 11. The association of Socio Economic Status of boys and girls on academic achievement
Fig.11.The association of Socio Economic Status of boys and girls on academic achievement

Table 15. Correlation of Socio Economic Status and Academic Achievement N=600 Socio Economic Status r value

Age

-0.017

Locale

0.174**

Fathers Education

0.237**

Mothers Education

0.195**

Father income

0.242**

Mothers income

0.120**

Family Size

-0.086*

Occupation of Father

0.259**

Occupation of Mother

0.042

** p< 0.01 level *p< 0.05 level

4.5.3. Distribution of rural and urban students on self-concept 4.5.4. Comparison of rural and urban students on self-concept 4.5.5. Distribution of rural and urban students on socio economic status 4.5.6. Comparison of rural and urban students on socio economic status

4.5.1. Distribution of rural and urban students on study habits

Table 16 indicated that 16.70 per cent of rural student and 10.30 per cent of urban student had good study habits. Around 54.00 per cent of rural and 41.70 per cent of urban students had average study habits. However 29.30 per cent of rural and 48.00 per cent of urban student had poor study habit. The association was found to be significant on levels of study habits and rural/urban students (22.74, p<0.01 level).

4.5.2. Comparison of rural and urban students on study habits

Table 17 shows that rural and urban students differed significantly on study habits. The perusal of t scores on dimensions of study habits showed that both groups differed significantly on home environment & planning of work (t=3.17, p<0.01 level), reading & note taking habits (t=3.42, p<0.01 level), habits of concentration (t=3.74, p<0.01 level) preparation for examination (t=2.46, p<0.01 level), general habits & attitudes (t=8.99, p<0.01 level) and school environment (t=2.70, p<0.01 level) were found to be significant. The mean scores indicated that rural students had significantly better home environment & planning of work (18.51 and 17.69 respectively), reading & note taking habit (33.24 and 32.01 respectively), habits of concentration (14.27 and 13.23 respectively) general habits & attitudes (24.81 and 22.29 respectively), preparation for examination (17.79 and 17.14 respectively) and school environment (24.21 and 23.36 respectively) compared to that of urban students. Only on planning of subjects, both the groups did not differed significantly on rural and urban students. The overall study habits had significant relationship with rural/urban as the t-value of 6.07 was found to be significant at 1 per cent level. The observation of mean scores revealed that rural students had higher means when compared to urban students (147.94 and 141.11 respectively).

4.5.3. Distribution of rural and urban students on self-concept

Table 18 revealed that 66.00 per cent of rural and 56.70 per cent of urban student had high self concept. About 27.00 per cent of rural and 33.30 per cent of urban student had medium self-concept. Where as 7.00 per cent of rural and 10.00 per cent of urban students had low self-concept. The association between self-concept of rural/urban students were differed significantly (5.71, p<0.05 level).

4.5.4. Comparison of rural and urban students on self-concept

Table 19 showed that rural and urban students differed significantly on self-concept as the t-value of 6.71 is found to be significant at 1 per cent level. Further the mean scores indicated that rural students had better self-concept (92.14) as compared to that of urban students (87.87).

4.5.5. Distribution of rural and urban students on socio economic status

Table 20 revealed that 85.00 per cent of rural students and 7.00 per cent of urban students had low socio economic status, where as, 14.70 per cent of rural and 78.00 per cent urban students had medium socio economic status. However 0.30 per cent of rural and 15.00 per cent of urban students had high socio economic status. The association between socio economic status with rural/urban students was found to be significant at (370.33, p<0.01 level).

4.5.6. Comparison of rural and urban students on socio economic status

Table 21 showed that rural and urban students had differed significantly on socio economic status with t-value 28.66 at 1 per cent level. The observed mean scores indicated that urban were having higher mean compared to rural students (29.31 and 20.47 respectively).

Table 16. Distribution of rural urban students on study habits N=600 Rural Study habits N % N % Urban
2

Poor

88

29.3

144

48.0

Average

162

54.0

125

41.7

22.74**

Good

50

16.7

31

10.3

Total

300

100.0

300

100.0

Rural

16.7

29.3 Poor Average Good 54

Urban

10.3 48 Poor Average Good

41.7

Fig. 12. Distribution of rural/urban students on study habits

Fig.12. Distribution of rural/urban students on study habits

Table 17. Comparison of rural/ urban students on Study habits N=600 Sl.no Study habits Rural Urban t value Mean SD Mean SD

1.

Home environment and planning of work

18.51

2.86

17.69

3.47

3.17**

2.

Reading and Note taking habit

33.24

3.83

32.01

4.90

3.42**

3.

Planning of subjects

15.11

2.47

15.39

2.40

1.41

4.

Habits of concentration

14.27

3.43

13.23

3.38

3.74**

5.

Preparation for examination

17.79

3.37

17.14

3.08

2.46**

6.

General habits and attitudes

24.81

3.53

22.29

3.33

8.99**

7.

School environment

24.21

4.05

23.36

3.63

2.70**

8.

Over all Study habits

147.94 12.88 141.11 14.64

6.07**

** p< 0.01 level * p< 0.05 level

Rural

35

Urban

30

25

20

15

10

0 SH1 SH2 SH3 SH4 SH5 SH6 SH7

Fig. 13. Comparison of rural/ urban students on Study habits

Fig.13 Comparison of rural/urban students on study habits

Table 18. Distribution of rural/urban students on self-concept N=600 Rural Self-concept N % N % Urban 2

Low

21

7.0

30

10.0

Medium

81

27.0

100

33.3

5.71*

High

198

66.0

170

56.7

Total

300

100.0

300

100.0

* p< 0.05 level

Rural

7 27

Low Medium High

66

Urban

10 Low Medium High

56.7

33.3

Fig. 14. Distribution of rural/urban students on self-concept

Fig.14. Distribution of rural/urban students on self-concept

Table 19. Comparison of rural/ urban students on Self-concept N=600 Rural Urban t value Mean SD Mean SD

Self-concept

92.14

7.94

87.87

7.63

6.71**

** p< 0.01 level

93 92 91 90 89 88 87 86 85 Rural Urban

Fig. 15. Comparison of rural/ urban students on Self-concept

Fig15. Comparison of rural/urban students on self-concept

Table 20. Distribution of rural urban students on Socio Economic Status

Rural Socio Economic Status N % N

Urban %
2

Low

255

85.0

21

7.0

Medium

44

14.7

234

78.0

370.33**

High

0.3

45

15.0

Total

300

100.0

300

100.0

Rural

14.7

0.3 Low Medium High 85

Urban

15

7 Low Medium High 78

Fig. 16. Distribution of rural/urban students on Socio Economic Status

Fig.16. Distribution of rural/urban students on Socio Economic status

Table 21. Comparison of rural/ urban students on Socio Economic Status

Rural

Urban t-value

Mean

SD

Mean

SD

Socio economic status

20.47

3.15

29.31

4.32

28.66**

** p< 0.01 level

30

25

20

15

10

0 Rural Urban

Fig. 17. Comparison of rural/ urban students on Socio Economic Status

Fig.17. Comparison of rural/urban students on socio Economic Status

4.6. Gender, locale and academic achievement

4.6.1. Distribution of boys and girls on academic achievement 4.6.2. The comparison of boys and girls on academic achievement 4.6.3. The comparison of rural and urban students on academic achievement

4.6.1. Distribution of boys and girls on academic achievement

Table 22 showed that 60.00 per cent of boys and 53.00 per cent of girls were having excellent academic achievement where as, 30.20 per cent of boys and 34.50 per cent of girls had good academic achievement. Around seven per cent of boys and twelve per cent of girls had satisfactory academic achievement. However 3.40 per cent of boys and 0.70 per cent of girls had poor academic achievement. The association between levels of academic achievement with boys and girls found to be significant at 1 per cent level (11.51)

4.6.2. Comparison of boys and girls on academic achievement

Table 23 showed that boys and girls did not differ significantly on academic achievement as the t-value 1.26 was found to be non significant. The observation of mean scores revealed that boys and girls had almost similar academic achievement (74.94, 73.74 respectively).

4.6.3. Comparison of rural and urban students on academic achievement

Table 24 revealed that rural and urban students differed significantly on academic achievement as t-value (t=4.31 p<0.01 level). The observation of mean scores revealed that urban students were having higher academic achievement than rural students (76.40 and 72.37, respectively).

Table 22. Distribution of boys and girls on Academic achievement

Boys Academic achievement N % N

Girls %
2

Excellent

195

60.0

146

53.1

Good

98

30.2

95

34.5 11.51**

Satisfactory

21

6.5

32

11.6

Poor

11

3.4

0.7

Total

325

100.0

275

100.0

Boys

6.5

3.4 Excellent Good Satisfactory Poor

30.2 60

Girls

11.6

0.7 Excellent Good Satisfactory Poor

34.5

53.1

Fig. 18. Distribution of boys and girls on Academic achievement

Fig.18. Distribution of boys and girls on Academic achievement

Table 23. Comparison of boys and girls on Academic achievement

Boys (n=325)

Girls (n=275) t value

Mean

SD

Mean

SD

Academic achievement

74.941

11.913

73.740

11.228

1.262NS

NS- Not significant

77

76

75

74

73

72

71

70 Rural Urban

Fig. 19. Comparison of rural and urban students on Academic achievement

Fig.19. Comparison of rural and urban students on Academic achievemen

Table 24. Comparison of rural and urban students on Academic achievement

Rural

Urban t value

Mean

SD

Mean

SD

Academic achievement

72.37

11.22

76.40

11.66

4.31**

** p< 0.01 level

5. DISCUSSION
The findings are discussed under the following sub-headings. 5.1. Study habits of boys and girls 5.2. Self-concept of boys and girls 5.3. Socio economic status of boys and girls 5.4. Comparison of rural/urban students on study habits, self-concept and socio economic status 5.5. Gender, locale and academic achievement

5.1. Study habits of boys and girls

5.1.1. Distribution of boys and girls on study habits
From Table 3 it is revealed that about half of the boys & girls were in average study habits category. The association between boys and girls on study habits was not significant. It may be due to equal opportunities given to both boys and girls by their parents and their may be equal efforts shown by students. The result was supported by Stella & Purushothaman (1993), Sampath & Selvarajgnanaguru (1997)

5.1.2. Comparison of boys and girls on study habits

The comparison of study habits of boys and girls are given in Table 4. The two groups did not differ significantly on over all study habits. Both the groups had almost similar study habits. This may be attributed to highly competitive nature of the present education. Both the groups might have put equal amount of efforts towards developing study habits. The studies is in line with Agarwal (1983), Christian (1983), Singh (1989-90), Mehta and Malhotra (1993), Panda (1992), Stella Purushothaman (1993), Sampath and Selvarajgnanaguru (1997) and Aruan (1994). Although there was no significant difference between boys and girls on overall study habits, significant difference was found on preparation for examination, reading and note taking habits, home environment & planning of work. Boys had significantly more adequate preparation for examination and better home environment and planning of work than girls. This might be due to that generally boys will be more career oriented and practical oriented. Hence, they might have concentrated more towards preparation of examination. Since they dont bother much about the household work they find more time for preparation of examination and parents usually assign more household work to girls. The home environment for boys would also therefore be more congenial. This ultimately might have contributed to better planning of work. The girls had significantly better reading and note taking habits as compared to boys. Girls are usually more home bound due to cultural factors. Hence, they spend more time at home than boys. This would have influenced them to develop better reading and note taking habits.

5.1.3. Class wise comparison of study habits

The class wise comparison of study habits (Table 5) revealed that the three groups th th th th i.e., 8 , 9 and 10 standards differed significantly on overall study habits. The students of 8 th th. standard had significantly better study habits than 9 and 10 students. Since it is early adolescent period the maturity level will be little low and hence instruction given by parents and teachers will be easily accepted by these adolescents. This might have contributed the th 8 standard students in developing good study habits. The same reason might be attributed th th to 9 standard students. Generally by the time students enter into 10 standard their maturity level is increased. With this maturation they will become more independent. Some times they may not accept the guidance of parents and teachers, which might have led them to have decreased level in study habits. The t-values of all the dimensions of study habits indicated that the three groups differed significantly from each other on general habits & attitudes, habits of concentration, home environment & planning of work, reading & note taking habits and preparation for examination. The dimension home environment & planning of work and th th reading & note taking habits, eight standard was better compared to 9 and 10 . It may be th due to 8 standard students might have come from different medium of instruction. They may

plan to study in better way due to change of medium. The observation of mean scores th indicated that 10 standard students had significantly better habits and attitudes as compared th th to 9 and 8 students. Since 10th standard is a preparatory stage for college education the students need to develop analytical and in depth reading, reviewing, comparing the things with one another and improved memorizing methods. The group of 10th standard students in the present study might have achieved this and hence scored high on this dimension. Similar th trend was found on habits of concentration and preparation of examination. The ninth and 10 standard students had significantly better habits of concentration and adequate preparation th for examination as compared to 8 standard students. As the students are having board examinations, semester system and attending of tuition classes might influence on habits of concentration and preparation for examination. The result is supported by Christian (1983).

5.1.4. Association of study habits of boys and girls with academic achievement
Table 6 pointed that there was significant association between study habits and academic achievement among girls where as, no significant association was found between study habits and academic achievement of boys. Generally girls are more home bound, they are sincere and punctual at reading and note taking habits as revealed in the present study. Since 4-5 years in the board examination, the results of 10th and PUC girls have outperformed boys. This might have encouraged the girls to develop good study habits, which facilitate better academic performance. The similar results are reported by Stella and Purushothaman (1993) and Singh (1984).

5.1.6. Correlation between study habits and academic achievement

Table 7 shows that the overall study habits were significantly related with academic achievement. The good study habits were might have contributed to academic achievement. There was also significant relation between habits of concentration, reading & note taking habits and preparation for examination with academic achievement. As the group is mature they are better at reading & note taking habits. As they are going to face the board exam they are preparing well for the examination. Thus ultimately increases their concentration which contributed to better academic achievement. The results were in conformity with Christian (1983), Singh (1989-90), Mehta and Malhotra (1993), Panda (1992), Stella and Purushothaman (1993). However study habit dimensions like home environment and planning of work, planning of subjects, general habits and attitudes and school environment had no relation with academic achievement.

5.2. Self-concept of boys and girls

5.2.1. Distribution on self-concept of boys and girls
Table 8 revealed that association of gender on self concept was significant at 5 per cent level (0.54, P<0-.05 level). It may be due to difference in thinking, decision making, relation with parents, teachers and friends might have contributed to difference in selfconcept.

5.2.2. Comparison of boys and girls on self-concept

From Table 9 it is seen that the two groups did not differ significantly on self-concept as the t value was not significant. Both boys and girls had an almost same level of selfconcept. As there is changing trend in present day education both boys and girls are becoming more competitive, venturesome, bold, open-minded, outgoing and independent. Both the groups are equally participating in all activities. So there might be same level of selfconcept among boys and girls. As self-concept is the image of people about themselves, everyones personality represents and is a blend of masculinity and feminity. Although, each sex possess is a relatively greater proportion of traits appropriate to its own role (Bennett and Cohen, 1959). Maccoby and Jacklin (1974) suggest that both the sexes have a similar self regard throughout childhood and adolescence. Although they differ in the areas in which they feel self-confident.

5.2.3. Class wise comparison of self-concept

The class wise comparison of self-concept (Table 10) showed that the three groups i.e., 8th, 9th and 10th standards differed significantly on self-concept. It has been found that 8th th th standard students exhibited higher level of self-concept than 9 and 10 standard students. The self-concept of students develops under the continuous influence of the family, the school & teacher and friends & classmates. These factors may affect the development of selfconcept in later stage because of exam tensions. The results of this study were in conformity with Bajpai (1998).

5.2.4. Association of self-concept of boys and girls with academic achievement

Results of Table 11 revealed a significant association between self-concept and academic achievement among boys and girls at 1 per cent level. The students with high selfconcept are confident about their abilities, to accomplish their goals, possess high academic competence, have a clear sense of self and are independent. These qualities might have influenced the boys and girls to attain better academic performance. Sirohi (2004) reported significant association between self confidence and academic achievement.

5.2.5. Correlation between self-concept and academic achievement

A perusal of Table 12 showed that self-concept was significantly and positively related to academic achievement. As self-concept enhances academic performance also improves. A person with positive self-concept always adjusts with changes that takes place in the home or school, sticks to his rights; is trust worthy, relaxed, happy friendly, satisfied & optimistic, courageous & social and has patience. These characters naturally help him towards better academic achievement. Positive self-concept is presumed to be a significant contributor to academic success (Purkey 1970 ; Hummell and Roselli 1983), on the other hand low selfconcept has been found to be associated with poor scholastic performance (Rosenberg and Gaier 1977). This result is supported by Ross and Parker (1980) and Cwiok (1996).

5.3. Socio economic status of boys and girls

5.3.1. Distribution on Socio Economic Status of boys and girls
The distribution of boys and girls with respect to socio economic status is shown in Table 13. It is observed that boys and girls family status was different and most of them were in low and medium socio-economic status. This may be the reason for boys and girls differed significantly on socio-economic status.

5.3.2. Association of socio economic status of boys and girls with academic achievement
Results of (Table 14) revealed significant association between socio economic status and academic achievement among boys and girls at 1 per cent level. This can be explained that higher socio economic status is a facilitating factor of academic achievement. It is quite natural that parents with high and moderate socio economic status are able to provide all the amenities required by the children for facilitating their academic performance. Hence, it appears to be the best predictor of academic achievement among boys and girls. Similar results was reported by Mohan R. (1997) and Pramanik (1996)

5.3.3. Correlation between socio economic status and academic achievement

The correlation coefficient between socio economic status and academic achievement are presented in Table 15 It is noted that the socio-economic status of the student was significantly related to academic achievement. The performance of urban students was better compared to rural students. This might be due to the reason that urban students get all. l the facilities like good school environment with library, tutorials, guidance from parents and other remedial materials while rural students do not get the same. The result is supported by Pal (1997), Pal et al. (1996). It is also seen from table that education of parents was positively and significantly related to academic achievement. This might be due to the fact that educated parents seems to value education and provide all facilities including coaching. This result is inline with Saini (1977) who reported that children (both sons and

daughters) whose parents had higher educational status also had high Academic Achievement than those with lower educational status. Bhatnagar and Sharma (1992) reported that the children whose parents attended school performed at significantly higher academic level than those who did not have school education. The occupation of father had positive and significant influence on academic achievement. The results are in support with Mallik and Katyal (1993) Muller (1995) Panda and Jena (2000) which revealed that students belonging to service group had significantly better achievement motivation than non-service group. Gill and Sidhu (1988) reported that occupation of parents influenced the school performance of their children. Chatterje et al.(1972) study revealed that fathers occupation was consistently related to childrens achievement. The table also revealed that parental income was positively and significantly related to academic achievement. This may be due to the parents of high income are naturally able to provide all the facilities to their children which facilitate their academic achievement. A similar result was report by Bailur (2006). There was significant but negative relationship found between family size and academic achievement. This could be because the present day children are more comfortable with the small family. The result is supported by Raj and Krishnan (1980) and Varghese (1991). However the factors like age, occupation of mother were not significantly related to th th th academic achievement. This can be explained by the fact that the students of 8 , 9 and 10 standards all belong to the adolescent period. Where marked change takes place during this period. In the present day education, equal opportunities and treatment are being given to both boys and girls. Now a days all families either have only a single child or two children. Hence, the children are treated equally irrespective of birth order. The results were in conformity with Devi and Prashanti (2004). In earlier times woman only played a role of house wife and the society expected the same from them. But in recent times or she has begun to work at outside also and she is balancing both the roles equally well. The present generation has accepted their mother working out side. Thus these factors in the present study were not related.

5.4. Rural/urban comparison on study habits, self-concept and socio economic status
5.4.1. Distribution of rural and urban students on study habits
Table 16 indicated that association between study habits with rural/ urban students was significant at 1 per cent level. Rural students were having better study habits compared to urban students. Better teaching facilities and trained teachers might have contributed to better study habits of rural students.

5.4.2. Comparison of rural and urban students on study habits

The rural and urban students differed significantly on overall study habits (Table 17). The rural students were having better study habits than urban students. It might be due to possession of positive self-concept. The students with a positive self-concept are generally socially acceptable and keep harmonious relationships with parents, teachers, friends and peers. They may also be good at decision making. These characteristics might have helped them to inculcate good study habits and attitude compared to urban students. The above finding is supported by the studies of Sundaram (1989), Ayishabi (1991) and Sundararajan and Lilly (1991). The t values also revealed significant difference between the two groups on general habits & attitudes, habit of concentration, reading & note taking habits & home environment and planning of work, preparation for examination and school environment. It is also noted that rural students were better than urban students on these dimensions. In the present day education, the government is conducting educational improvement programs which involve provision of library in the school, trained teachers and other facilities.

5.4.3. Distribution of rural and urban on self-concept

Table 18 revealed that the association between self-concept of rural/ urban students was positively significant at 5 per cent level. The rural students were having high self-concept than urban student. The rural student might be having positive self-concept, they may be good at decision making, socially acceptable and keep harmonious relationship with parents, teachers and friends. This may be the reason for self-concept in rural student than urban student.

5.4.4. Comparison of rural and urban students on self-concept

Comparison of self-concept between rural and urban areas is presented in the Table 19 there was significant difference between rural and urban students on self-concept. Rural students had significantly better self-concept compared to those of urban students. The government has made provisions for reservation of rural students in admissions for higher education. These factors might have made rural students more confident hence they might here developed better self-concept compared to urban students. The result is supported by Sundaram (1989).

5.4.5. Distribution of rural and urban students on socio economic status

Table 20 revealed that most of the rural students were in the category of low socio economic status and seventy eight per cent of urban student were in the category of medium socio economic status. The association between the socio economic status with rural/urban students was found to be significant. As the urban students family was having better educated parents, occupation and consisted of medium/high income may be the reason for urban students to have better socio economic status.

5.4.6. Comparison of rural and urban students on socio economic status

Table 21 pointed that thet value of socio economic status between rural and urban students expressed significant difference. Urban students had better socio economic status than compared to rural students. Education of parents, their occupation and higher family income might have raised the socio economic status among urban students when compared to rural students.

5.5. Gender, locale and academic achievement

5.5.1. Distribution of boys and girls on academic achievement
Table 22 showed that association between levels of academic achievement with boys and girls found to be significant at 1 per cent level. Boys were better in academic performance than girls. This may be due to present day competition.

5.5.2. Comparison of boys and girls on academic achievement

Comparison of t-value of boys and girls (Table 23) on academic achievement was found to be non significant. The boys and girls were having same performance on academic achievement. This might be because of present day competitive education which provides equal opportunities to both boys and girls. This naturally enhances the level of aspirations, expectations, which ultimately increases the competitive spirit. This some times results into increased parental expectation about the children. Hence now days parents are providing equal opportunities and encouragement for both daughters and sons. The results are on line with studies of Kaur and Gill (1993), Ahmed (1998) and Joshi (2000).

5.5.3. Comparison of rural and urban students on academic achievement

Table 24 revealed that the comparison of rural and urban students on academic achievement was significant at 1 per cent level. The urban students performance was better compared to rural students. The urban groups will have highly educated parents, with better occupation and income. These parents can afford to provide all possible facilities that are needed for their childrens successful education such as separate room to study, books required and provide them the best tutorial. Rural students generally lack these facilities. This might be the reason that urban students academic achievement is high.

6. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

Study on Gender analysis of academic achievement among high school students was undertaken during 2006-07. This study was carried with the following objectives. 1. To analyze the study habits of boys and girls studying in 8th, 9th and 10th classes. 2. To study the self-concept of boys and girls studying in 8 , 9 and 10 classes. 3. To know the influence of study habits, self-concept, socio economic status on academic achievement. 4. To compare the rural and urban students on study habits, self-concept, socio economic status and academic achievement. The study was carried out in two schools each of rural and urban areas of Dharwad taluka and Dharwad city. One hundred and fifty (150) students from each of the schools were th th th selected of the 150 students 50 each were selected from 8 , 9 and 10 class. The total sample for the study was 600 students. In order to know the academic achievement level of the students the average of the final exam grades of two previous consecutive years were considered. To measure the selfconcept, self-concept scale developed by Singh and Singh (1988) was used. To analyze the study habits of students, study habit inventory developed by Patel (1976) was used with modification. The scale consists of seven dimensions they are 1. Home environment and planning of work 2. Reading and note taking habits 3. Planning of subjects 4. Habits of concentration 5. Preparation for examination 6. General habits and attitudes 7. School environment To assess socio economic status of students socio economic status scale developed by AICRP-CD (2002) was used. To know the difference between study habits and selfconcept of boys and girls of rural and urban students, the t-test was used. ANOVA was used for the class wise comparison. 2 was used to know the association between independent and dependent variables. Pearsons correlation method was carried out to know the relationship between independent and dependent variables.
th th

Salient finding of the study

a. Study habits of boys and girls There was no association between boys and girls on study habits. Boys and girls did not differ significantly on overall study habits. But they differed significantly on two dimensions of reading & note taking habits & preparation for examination. 8 , 9 and 10 standard students differed significantly on study habits. Mean of overall study habits of 8th standard was higher compared to 9th and 10th standard. There was significant association between study habits and academic achievement of girls. There was no significant difference between study habits and academic achievement of boys. There was significant relation between study habit and academic achievement b. Self-concept of boys and girls There was association between boys and girls on self-concept. Boys and girls did not differ significantly on self-concept
th th th

8 , 9 and 10 standard students differed significantly on self-concept. Mean selfth th th concept of 8 standard students was higher compared to 9 and 10 standard students. There was significant association between self-concept and academic achievement among boys and girls. There was positive and significant relation between self-concept and academic achievement. c. Socio economic status of boys and girls An almost equal per centage of boys and girls were found to belong to low and medium socio economic status while a small per centage of boys and girls belonged to high socio economic status. There was significant association of socio economic status with academic achievement among both boys and girls Locale, parental education, income and fathers occupation were positively and significantly related to academic achievement. Family size was inversely related to academic achievement. d. Study habits, self-concept and socio economic status on rural / urban students. Significant association was found between study habits and rural/urban students. Rural and urban students differed significantly on overall study habits. They also differed significantly on dimensions of home environment & planning of work, reading & note taking habits, habits of concentration and general habits & attitudes. Rural students had better self-concept and study habit than urban students. About 50 per cent of rural students had high self-concept, where as about 22 per cent of urban students had high self-concept. Significant relationship was found between rural and urban students with selfconcept. Seventy five per cent of rural students belong to the category of low socio economic status and seventy eight per cent of urban students belong to the category of medium socio economic status. There was found to be significant association between socioeconomic status and overall urban students. Rural / urban groups had significant difference on socio economic status. Urban students had significantly better socio economic status than rural students. e. Academic Achievement of boys and girls Majority of boys and girls belonged to the category of excellent academic achievement and significant association was fund between academic achievement with boys and girls. There was no difference between boys and girls academic achievement The socio economic status of the family had significant influence on the academic achievement of the boys and girls. There was significant difference of boys and girls between rural and urban students with respect to academic achievement.

th

th

Future line of research

1. Further research could emphasize on the needs of average and under achievers. 2. Behavior modification studies could further strengthen the findings of present study. 3. There is need to conduct studies which should consist of individual counseling programs with respect of enhancement of self-concept and improving of study habits. 4. Intervention strategies need to be developed to enhance self-concept and improve study habits.

Implications and recommendation Study habits influence the academic achievement of the students. So introduction of creative work, various mental problems solving games and exercises should be considered on a larger scale and enforced with a spirit of competition. Which improve the study habits skills. Self-concept has direct relation with academic achievement. So schools should make provisions for good training programme for personality development. Individual counseling can serve as an effective intervention to improve their self-concept. Self-concept and study habits of rural students were better than urban students. High school period is a critical stage where drastic changes may occur in their personality which may or may not improve their study habits. So precautions must be taken to enhance the self-concept and to inculcate better study habits. Group guidance procedures can be used to improve their study habits and self-concept. Academic achievement of urban students was better than rural students. So teachers and parents of rural areas need to provide better environment for better academic achievement.

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APPENDIX
INTERVIEW SCHEDULE
Name: School: Date of birth: Gender: boy / girl How many children do your parents have: Your ordinal position: Class: Place: rural/urban/mixed Sl.no Name of family members Gender Relation with respondent Age

Age:

Education

Occupation

Annual income

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Family: nuclear/joint Family size: 1-4 small 5-8 Medium 9 or more big Parents education: fathers 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. mothers illiterates Primary High school College Degree Post graduation Mothers House Wife Labour Govt Job Doctor, Engineer

Illiterates Primary High school College Degree Post graduation

Parents occupation: Fathers 1. Labour 2. Own business 3. Shop, Govt Job 4. Business 5. Doctor, Engineer Previous two years marks in percentage:

ifP - DyP jw wPAi Pjv g : nz AP : AU : Ai Aidi g : PlAz g : C. A Ai zg g AU CgAU AAzs Ai Pt GzU DzAi Ai : : nz AS :

wAU 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. v z zs Aigg AS : :

CsP / sP Jg Pr / vAz v iv 1-4 - aP 5-8 - zs 9 QAv Z - zq

Pg Pt

: vAzAi vAi 1. CPg g CPg g 2. x P x P 3. 4. Pd+(z ) Pd+(z ) 5. z z 6. vPvg z vPvg z : vAzAi vAi 1. Aiiz GzU Ut 2. P P P P 3. P P P P 4. t G, CAUr, Pj P (P 4) 5. g, Av z P Pj P (P 2 v 3) 6. qPg, EAdAig Self concept

Pg GzU

Sl. No. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

I am friendly f I am happy T I am kind zAii I am brave zsAiAv I am honest itP I am likable

 gAig z Eq U Aiz Q 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. I am trustful AU I am good MAi I am proud U / dAUg / zgAPj I am lazy ij I am loyal Av I am co-operative P j I am cheerful Gv I am thoughtful ZgAv I am popular dAi I am courteous Pgu I am jealous CAi I am polite Ai I am bashful APZ sz I am clean aAiiz Q I am helpful g U I am obedient zs Ai Study habit I frame my own timetable to study at home Ai Nz nAi QPv I work according to my timetable P nAi Pg iqv I prepare almost all my subjects before going to school & read them again at home whatever is done in the class U U AZ J AiU U zv irPv v Ai Pz U Az : Nzv I join tuition classes o / l U gv I cannot study well as I keep my self-engaged in the domestic work Ai g PU gzjAz U ZV Nz DU I make note of important points during reading NzU Rz CAU Ugv ir ElPv I use dictionary to look up meaning of new words z Cx wAi P / rP j qv I pay more attention to new words while studying NzU U U Z U Pqv I take down detailed notes of what is being taught in the classroom Ai Pz J CAU gzPv

Sl. No. 1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

10.

The doubtful points, which arise during reading, are referred to the subject teacher for clarity NzU Az AAiz AiU DAii PP g P Uj Pv I miss important points while taking Ai m gzPz Rz CAU l qv I read annotations (guides) rather than textbooks oP Q Av iWzAi Nzv I underline the important points in my textbooks while reading oP NzU Rz AiU Czg Ai UgwPv I pay more attention to the subjects I find difficult U P z AiUU a v Pqv I devote more time to study subjects in which I am weak Pr e g AiUU a v Pqv I read the same subject repeatedly MAz Ai : : Nzv I study only that subject I am interested in and leave out the subject, which I find uninteresting U Ez Ai Z Nzv v U Ez AiU l qv I study with concentration KPUv Az Nzv I feel I dont study at all U , Nzz E JAz Cvz My mind goes astray when I read Nz PvU U g Pq jAivz I understand what I read but I dont remember it Nz CxirPv Dzg lP In examination I think of the answers of the questions before writing jPAi wPAi J GvgU z Aia Avg gAiv I get nervous at the time of examination jPAi Aiz UjUv I read till late at night at the time of examination jP Aiz gw wgg U Nzv I read class-notes at the time of examination jP Aiz Ai l Nzv I do not study regularly for I get important questions and suggestions at the time of examination U Rz U U U zgPzjAz jP Aiz AivV Nz I do not prepare questions occurred (asked) at previous examination thinking that they would not be set again Az Pz U v gQ Az CU Nz I memories definitions, maxims, formulae etc., after understanding them wAiAz z U Pz Cx, SU U vU jAiiV wzPAq Nzv I discuss the subjects read with my friends Nz AiU vgAU Zav I read while reclining on a bed U MgVPAq Nzv I read aloud (loudly) egV Nzv I ruminate over all things I read Nz Ai iqv Before I start reading new lessons I briefly revise the lesson read o Nz Pzg Az Nz Ai AQ V gP iqv I spend my leisure time at school in reading Ai q Ai Nzv I use books from the library

11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17.

18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26.

27.

28.

29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35.

 UAxAiz PU GAiVv 36. 37. 38. 39. I read newspaper and other books too w P v g PU Pq Nzv I participate in the classroom discussion U z qAi ZZ Ai sUv I answer the questions asked by the teacher while teaching PPg o iqU Pz UU Gvj v I can not progress in my study due to my dislikes for certain teachers and subjects PAz PP g U AiU Eq g Pgt, Csz KUAi Az zsU

INSTRUCTIONS There are 22 questions in the questionnaire which consist of positive and negative statements. This is to know about your personality. So give response to all the questions according to your response. Response sheet for self-concept Sl. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Strongly agree Agree Undecided Disagree Strongly disagree

INSTRUCTIONS There are 39 questions in the questionnaire which consist of positive and negative statements. This is to know about your study habits. So give response to all the questions according to your response. Response sheet for study habits Sl. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 Strongly agree Agree Undecided Disagree Strongly disagree

GENDER ANALYSIS OF ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AMONG HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

NUTHANA P.G. 2007 Dr. GANGA YENAGI MAJOR ADVISOR

ABSTRACT
Academic achievement is considered as key criteria to judge ones total Academic achievement is considered as key criteria to judge ones total potentialities and capacities. The performance of every individual is not equal. It may be attributed to number of factors as intelligence, study habits, self-concept, socio economic factors, area etc. So the study was carried out to make gender analysis of academic achievement among high school students on sample of 600 students studying in 8th, 9th and 10th standards of which 325 boys and 275 girls. The sample was selected randomly from two schools of rural and two of Dharwad city, Karnataka state. To measure study habits and self-concept of students, Patels (1976) study habit inventory and self-concept scale of Singh & Singh (1988) were used. To collect the general information of students socio economic status scale developed by AICRP-CD (2002) was used and average of grades of two previous years was taken from school records as a measure of academic achievement. The data thus collected was subjected to mean, SD, ttest, 2-test and correlation. The results revealed that majority of the students had good study habits and possessed high self-concept. Academic achievement was excellent among boys and girls. They did not differ on study habits, self-concept and academic achievement. Class wise comparison of study habits and self-concept revealed that 8th standard students were th th better than 9 and 10 standards. There was significant association between study habits, self-concept, socio economic status and academic achievement among boys and girls. Study habits, self-concept and socio economic status were significantly related to academic achievement. Rural students had better study habits and self-concept than urban students. Urban students had higher academic achievement than rural students.