Influence Of Birth Order And Gender On Academic Achievement Of Secondary School Students
[A CASE STUDY OF OFFA LOCAL GOVERNMENT OF KWARA STATE]

Research Hypotheses
    The following hypotheses are generated for testing in this study.
1.    There is no significant difference in the influence of birth order and gender on students’ academic achievement as perceived by respondents on the basis of gender.
2.    There is no significant difference in the influence of birth order and gender on students’ academic achievement as perceived by respondents on the basis of age.
3.    There is no significant difference in the influence of birth order and gender on students’ academic achievement as perceived by respondents on the basis of marital status.
4.    There is no significant difference in the influence of birth order and gender on students’ academic achievement as perceived by respondents on the basis of years of experience.
5.    There is no significant difference in the influence of birth order and gender on students’ academic achievement as perceived by respondents on the basis of religion.
In this investigation, the following null hypotheses will be tested at 0.05 of significant.

Purpose of the Study
    The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of birth order and gender on the academic achievement of secondary school students in Offa Kwara State.
    The study intends to find out if variables gender, age, marital status, years of experience and religion will have a difference in the perception of respondents on the influence of birth order and gender on students academic achievement.
Significance of the Study
    This research work is significant because it would be beneficial to parents, teachers, guardians, counsellors, foster parents, social welfare worker, psychologist, curriculum planners, or education planners’ society, as well as executors and education operators. The study will reveal useful information to these aforementioned groups and insight to how to manage such situation. It will enable counsellors handle cases emanating from students having known their birth order and gender as they perform or achieve poorly in school. It will give the counsellors, the counselling strategies or approaches in placement classification, referral etc. in handling such students and cases in school.
    This study will help the education planners to plan curriculum such that it will accommodate the influence of birth order and gender on students’ academic achievement in secondary schools in the Local Government under study. Educational executors like teachers would have knowledge on how to deal students better in enhancing better academic achievement. The teachers will be able to device means to sustain and improve the students and their teaching effectively; taking care of the problems behaviour in academic achievement of these students.  
    This research will as well guide educators and counsellors to know the influence of birth order and gender on academic achievement and the counselling needs of students. It will enable education planners and operators to know more about educational policies. It will enable them to know has effectively they can cater for students in planning and executing educational policy programme respectively.
    The research will enlighten parents who have excessive interest in a particular gender to know that no gender is important or superior than the other.
    The result gathered will serve as a source of information for the teachers and curriculum planners in the field of education. Also, the counsellor, teacher’s psychologist’s parents and other stakeholders in the planning of curriculum it will help them to combat the problems facing the academic achievement of students in schools.
    In our contemporary world, especially our immediate environment which is Nigeria, the rate of academic failure is been alarming and has affected the majority of the students leaving them unachieved or underachieved. Hence, the need to critically consider factors that is influencing their academic achievement either positively or negatively, if we want a better future career for these students.
    The study will provide helpful background information to other researchers that would like to investigate further into this area.