Students’ interests in the study of social studies -a case study of Junior High Schools within the New Juabeng North Municipality

Abstract

This study examined students’ interest in Social Studies at the Junior High School (JHS) level in selected schools within the New Juaben North Municipality of Ghana. The study was motivated by concerns about declining student engagement in Social Studies despite ongoing curriculum reforms aimed at promoting critical thinking, civic competence, and practical life skills. The research adopted a positivist paradigm and employed a quantitative descriptive cross-sectional survey design. The target population comprised JHS students and Social Studies teachers in public and private schools within the municipality. Using Yamane’s sample size determination formula, 359 students and 112 teachers were selected through purposive and convenience sampling techniques. Data were collected using structured questionnaires designed to measure levels of student interest, identify topics that generate high interest, determine topics that pose teaching challenges, examine topics that present learning difficulties, and explore factors contributing to challenges in learning Social Studies. The collected data were analysed with descriptive and inferential statistics including frequencies, percentages, means, Relative Importance Index, One-Way Analysis of Variance, independent samples t-test, and Pearson correlation, using SPSS version 26. The findings indicated that topics such as adolescent reproductive health, independent Ghana, and socialisation generated high student interest, whereas the 1992 Constitution, tourism, and conflict prevention presented major teaching challenges. Students experienced notable learning difficulties with abstract civic and constitutional topics. The factors contributing to challenges included difficult concepts, language barriers, inadequate instructional resources, limited teaching time, and low relevance of subject. The study concluded that misalignment between curriculum expectations and classroom practices undermines student interest.