FACTORS INFLUENCING CULTISM IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS AND ITS EFFECT ON THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

INTRODUCTION

Our focus in this chapter is to critically examine relevant literatures that would assist in explaining the research problem and furthermore recognize the efforts of scholars who had previously contributed immensely to similar research. The chapter intends to deepen the understanding of the study and close the perceived gaps.

Precisely, the chapter will be considered in three sub-headings:

• Conceptual Framework
• Theoretical Framework

2.1 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Cultism

Secret cults or secret societies are organizations in which the members are usually bound by an oath of secrecy. They often require elaborate form of initiation and ritual, use of symbols, passwords and handshakes as a means of recognition among members (Encarta, 2005a). The incidence of secret cults dates back to the ancient Greece, when the Pythagoreans combined philosophy and politics. Mysteries, with unknown origin and purpose, were secret rites and ceremonies known and practiced only by people who had been duly initiated. In the12th century, some Muslim sects were founded as secret societies, notably the Assassins in Persia (now Iran) in the Middle East and parts of Asia. Unorthodox groups practice secrecy to avoid persecution and for economic protection (Encarta, 2005a and b). Some secret cults were formed in the 17th and 18th centuries for scientific inquiry or political subversion. The Rosicrucian order (AMORC) mixed science and mysticism. Others became important centres of political dissent. The Sons of Liberty was created in the Americancolonies to resist British oppression. The revolutionary secret societies, such as the Carbonari inItaly, the Fenians in Ireland, and supporters of nihilism in Russia were important political forces. Other secret cults, notably the Mafia in Sicily, were established to organize criminal activities and to protect their members (Encarta, 2005a). Secret cults are common among peoples in Melanesia, parts of Africa, and Native American tribes of North America, particularly the Pueblo and the Plains people. There is a long history of secret societies in China, perhaps partly because of strong state suppression of any openly heterodox movement. Secret cults were active in almost every major rebellion ordynastic struggle. Some secret societies in Japan were important in fostering militarism. The Japanese yakuza are among the most pervasive or criminal brotherhoods in any developed society (Encarta, 2005a). Some secret societies, such as the Knights of the Golden Circle and the Ku Klux Klan,were created in the United States of America (U.S.A.) in the 19th and 20th centuries for protection, terrorism, philanthropy and mutual benefits of members. The fraternal element is traditionally predominant in the U.S.A. Secret organizations are an important feature in university life (Encarta, 2005a). Studies by the French political philosopher, Montesquieu, and his successors relatedisorganization and criminal behaviour, such as the cultist activities, to the natural and physical environment. Many prominent criminologists attribute crime mainly to the incidence of poverty. The incidence of crime tends to rise especially in times of widespread unemployment. The

living conditions of the poor, particularly of those in slums, are characterized by overcrowding, lack of privacy, inadequate play space and recreational facilities, and poor sanitation. Such conditions engender feelings of deprivation and hopelessness and are conducive to crime as a means of escape. The feeling is encouraged by the example set by those who have managed toescape through criminal means to what appears to be a better way of life. The incidence of crime has also been related to the general state of a culture, especially the impact of economic crises, wars, and revolutions, and the general sense of insecurity and uprootedness to which these forces give rise. The crime rate tends to rise, as a society becomes more unsettled and its people more restless and fearful of the future. This is particularly true of juvenile crime, as the experience of the U.S.A. since World War II has made evident. Studies have also shown that criminal proclivities are psychological and psychiatric. About a quarter of a typical convict population is

psychotic and neurotic or emotionally unstable, and another quarter is mentally deficient

(Encarta, 2005f). Preventing crime is a better approach than punishing it. Since, both adult and juvenile crimes stem chiefly from the breakdown of traditional social norms and controls, resulting, among others, to the effects of poor housing, unemployment, and economic crises, thegovernment ought to initiate attacks on the conditions that breed crime (Encarta, 2005g).

Cultism in Nigerian Educational Institutions:

In the morning hours of July 10, 1999, five undergraduates of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife lost their lives in one onslaught of cult activities on the campus. According to the judicial commission of inquiry that investigated this ugly incidence of nightmarish dimension, seven members of a specific cult took part in the killings, while 16 others, including a corporal in the Nigerian army, were recommended for further investigation to determine the level of their involvement in the episode. The commission, which visited 30 tertiary institutions nation-wide, revealed that 56 secret cults existed in the 133 higher institutions of learning (including 31 universities existing in the country at the time). The menace was fast penetrating the nation’s secondary and even primary schools (Eneh, 2000; Encarta, 2005d and The Guardian on Sunday, 2000). In a swift response to this sad, blood-chilling development, the then newly incepted Obasanjo-led federal government of Nigeria issued an ultimatum to the Vice-Chancellors of Universities, Rectors of Polytechnics and Provosts of Colleges of Education in the country to eradicate cultism from their institutions. Eight years later, the bugging issue remains unabated. In spite of pseudo confessions and dramatized renouncements of membership of cult groups here and there, many Nigerian youngsters are still being initiated into, to be entangled in cultism, embroiled in dastardly escapades that leave their parents and lager members of the society in a dilemma as agonizing as it is traumatic. The nocturnal activities of the secret cult members paralyze the academic and other activities on the campus, as they unleash horrendous terrorism on their fellow students, strict lecturers considered stingy with marks, as well as social contenders or rivals. The nefarious activities of these daredevils in blood clashes send hundreds of ‘future leaders’ to the early grave, as they are knifed, clobbered and shot in cold blood. The lucky ones are only maimed, sometimes for life (Sodeinde, 2007; Business Day, 2007a and Eneh, 2006). In spite of the efforts to eliminate cultism in higher institutions of learning, cult activities have been on the increase in the country. Reports of murderous and other gruesome activities of the campus cultists are burgeoning. The Head of Department of Geology of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) was murdered by cultists in his office in 2002. The Commissioner for Lands in Enugu State was murdered and then cut to pieces, put in the boot of his car, which was then set ablaze, and the burning vehicle pushed into a ditch where the mangled body of the Honourable Commissioner was burnt to ashes in a part of the Enugu city. Over 100 students were killed in cult wars in Enugu State alone between 1999 and 2006. The government was reported as financing the three major cults operating in the State, namely the Pirate Confraternity, Black Axe and Two-Two. On January 2, 2005, the Dean of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka was shot in his campus residence by hired assassins suspected to be cultists. In August of the same year, 50 students from various universities across the country were arrested in Ajali, Anambra State, while trying to initiate new members into their cult. On Sunday, the 1st day of July 2007, several people were killed by rampaging cultists, who took to the streets of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, shooting sporadically. On a spot at No. 1 Ojike Street alone, they hacked three men, including a 30-year old man (Newsbearer, 2006; Weekly Details, 2006 and Onoyume, 2007). Mourning and protesting the insensitive wastage of youthful lives and the attendant dread and morbid fear of the insecurity and extra-judicial killings griping the citizenry, Onoh (2006) lists the politically motivated murders by the government-paid thugs and hired assassins suspected to be campus cultists between 1999 and 2006. These had spilled the blood of over forty-seven lives in Enugu State alone. The victims, who were killed in different circumstances, included a former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, the Managing Director

of a renowned publishing outfit, a Police Commissioner, worshippers, motorcycle transport operators, etc. Onoh lamented the security conundrum, regretting that no single day passed without the news of the killing of defenseless citizens by paid thugs or hired assassins. He further bemoaned such an unprecedented, irresponsible, senseless and uninterrupted waste of human lives as was witnessed in the State since 1999. The few cases given above can only act as a tip of the iceberg. Putting the picture together for the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) of Nigeria could make a foetus skip some breaths (Eneh, 2005b and Onoh, 2006). Ajani and Igbikiowubo (2006) reported that prior to the 2003 general elections in Nigeria, a new dimension was introduced into electioneering mobilization. Whereas members of the Nigerian public were used to thugs engaging in different forms of malfeasance, what took place on the election days was crude and shocking. The thugs were not only given a token on the eve of the elections, but were armed with automatic weapons of various categories, earlier imported and stashed specifically for the purpose of securing election victory. On the election days, many voters could not venture out of their homes. The bigger and more destructive dimension to this gangland style mobilization came after the elections. The already charged thugs, with arms in tow, but no visible jobs in sight, simply transformed largely into criminal elements. Rather than abate, campus cultism is growing as the number of educational institutions grows. It has been described as a feeder for political thuggery. Nigerian politicians appear bent on the use of thugs, not only for electioneering campaigns and as body guards, but also to deal with their political opponents, by way of intimidation or outright elimination. Therefore, it might be impossible to wipe out campus cultism that supplies political thugs, hired assassins and killer-squads that serve political clandestine interests. On the other hand, the cultists use the fat cash payments from their mentors to fund their tertiary education, which has become increasingly expensive with the ailing Nigerian economy, introduction of various economic reforms, increasing population and rising demand for tertiary education in the country (Eneh,

2005a). The incidence and activities of secret societies, examination malpractice and other social vices associated with Nigerian undergraduates were unheard of in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions of learning before the mid-1980s. The visions, goals and modus operandi of the few social clubs, often taken for cults, that existed then in a few higher educational institutions were clearly different from what obtain today. The tertiary institutions of learning were rich with equipped libraries stocked with books and journals, standard laboratories equipped for research, hostels furnished like hotels and attended by government-paid cleaners to change the bedding and clean the interior and exterior, standard cafeteria to feed the students, regular water and electric power supplies (Onyekakeyah, 2007). Early 1980s, the federal government slammed stringent austerity measures on the nation as part of its response to the recession in the world price for crude petroleum oil, which had led to a drastic decline in Nigeria’s oil revenue from over US$20 billion in 1980 to less than US$10 billion in 1982. In particular, the catering and hostel services and the food subsidy for the students of the tertiary educational institutions were withdrawn in 1984 by the government. Consequently, the university cafeterias were closed down. Students began to scavenge for food from the unhygienic ‘bukateria’ that soon replaced the cafeteria. Hostels began to stink. As the number of students increased, the hostel population exploded, with the concomitant stress. Laboratories, libraries, lecture halls and other facilities for effective studies and sports got

outstretched without maintenance, replacement or addition of new ones. Starvation and stress multiplied on the campuses, changing the culture of sanity to negative tendencies and inclinations. Hungry students abandoned good conduct for all manner of misdemeanor on the campus. On their part, the lecturers left in their drones for foreign universities with better conditions of service and prepared learning environment. First to leave were the expatriate lecturers, followed by the indigenous ones. This signaled the beginning of the brain drain malaise that has robbed the Nigerian universities of crack academics, leading to the much decried production of half-baked and unemployable graduates (Encarta, 2005c and Onyekakeyah, 2007). Graduate unemployment was also peaking this period, when industries began operating below installed capacities and laying off workers, because of the austerity measures that led to sky-rocketing exchange rate and unaffordable importation of foreign machine spare-parts and raw materials. Sani (2007) reported that unemployment rate hit 18.01% in year 2000 and that 10.2 million jobs needed to be created annually till 2020, against the backdrop of 5.1 million people churned out from the nation’s education system. The students, whose living conditions and learning environment kept deteriorating on the campuses, were left with little hope for employment after all the hassle. No wonder, frustrated by the ineffectiveness of their nation, they began to daily surrender themselves to new godfathers in cults, secret societies, etc. By the nineties, the cult virus, like a wild fire in harmattan, had spread to all nooks and crannies of the higher educational institutions and penetrated the secondary education system in Nigeria, leaving in its trail disappointments, dashed expectations

and bereavements of unprecedented proportion (Kukah, 1998; Eneh, 2005a and The Guardian on Sunday, 2000). The cult devotees, faithful and loyal are promised power, fame, pleasure, provisions, protection, promotion, freedom, adventure, money, girls, good grades, and good life. The appeal usually leads to a covenant between the giver and the taker of these mirages. Even when these gifts come, they are illusory, figments of imaginations. The cultist’s academic performance deteriorates very badly as he abandons burning the midnight oil for night cult heinous activities. He soon becomes a belligerent recluse, having been turned into a sadistic and psychopathic human bloodsucker during the initiation ceremony. He soon gets disillusioned, discouraged, dejected, depressed, empty and wasted. The provisions he gets from his false master are so transitory and ephemeral that they soon fly away, leaving him much worse than when he joined

the bad group. The power he gets destroys both himself and his target. Thus, he ventured into cultism whole, but must come out of it fragmented or dismembered or even dead. Indeed, all that glitters is not gold. The amount of youthful blood spilled in the nineties to illusions of cultism in the institutions of higher learning in Nigeria is too frightening to estimate (Eneh, 2000). Achebe (1998) submits that there is nothing wrong with the geographical entity called Nigeria, nor is there anything wrong with the citizens. Rather, the trouble with Nigeria is inept leadership. The Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) has declared that development will continue to elude Nigeria as long as corruption remains unchecked. The fight against corruption in Nigeria has been more of lip-service. It started with 5 majors of the Nigerian army replacing the corrupt civil rule with military rule in 1966, on the ground that the disciplined military men would not succumb to the lure of lucre. Now we know that the lure of lucre is no respecter of persons or the colour of their clothes. Most of the military men who fought the war against corruption for the long and harrowing 34 years of military rule in Nigeria were badly defeated by corruption itself for the simple reason that they were unable to control the movement of their fingers and the dance of their throats to the satanic music of avarice. Afflicted with the same disease of corruption, they could not keep their fingers from the public till. Despite the anticorruption laws and anti-graft agencies, the Nigerian public officers keep walking on hollow grounds of public till. The worm of corruption remains buried in the apple (Agbase, 2001; Eyoboka, 2007 and Newswatch, 2001). Sobowale (2007) and Mamah (2007) reported that the federal, states and local governments and the FCT had N16.5 trillion from the federation account from 1999 to 2007. They further tabulated (Table 1) the allocations to the FCT, States and Local Governments, totaling N9.1 trillion, while the federal government had the rest, N7.4 trillion, to spend. The 36 States and the FCT got N5.7 trillion, while the 774 Local Governments received N3.3 trillion within the period, which started June 1999 and ended May 2007. The maximum total allocation, N622 billion, went to Rivers State, while the minimum, N145 billion, went to Nassarawa State. These income figures excluded the internally generated revenues of the FCT, state and local governments as well as the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and other secret oil accounts operated by the federal government

during the period.

Cultism as Security Threat beyond the Campuses

Cult groups have become synonymous with anarchy which remains the order of the day in cities like Lagos, Eket, Owerri, Port Harcourt, Uyo, Warri, Owerri, Akure, Benin City and many others. With obvious linkages between cultism, crime and violence in the country, the incidents of cultism across Nigeria since the Fourth Republic have revealed that cult groups now comfortably operate outside the campuses and have safe havens even in the cities. This has contributed to the level of insecurity in various cities where

cult groups engage themselves in shootout which also affect nonmembers of cult groups. One of the factors responsible for the spread of cult clashes is the search for safe areas in the city away from campuses where members cannot easily be spotted by either rival cult members or the members of university community who may know some of them as

course mates or relatives. The availability of such locations makes it easier for them to operate on campus and quickly rush to their safe havens. Another factor is the desire to spend their money in night clubs, supermarkets and other recreational facilities in cities. In fact, some of their wealthy sponsors reside in the cities and require the convenience of

the location for meetings with members. Most cities usually witness temporary shutdown whenever there is rival cult war between cult groups as people scamper for safety to avoid being gunned down by stray bullets in the process. During this period, businesses are crippled until normalcy returns. This creates an atmosphere of negative peace even days after order has been restored. The death threat associated with cult related clashes makes it a source of insecurity in Nigerian cities.For instance, when a Lecturer was assassinated in Calabar, the entire city was held hostage as a result of attack and counter attacks by cult groups in the city. The situation in Uyo, Port Harcourt, Owerri, Lagos,

Benin City, Enugu, Ibadan and many other cities also point to the danger of youth cultism which has remained a driver of crime and lethal violence in the country. This is aggravated by their use of small arms and light weapons. Cult groups have also been categorised as non-state armed securityactors together with ethnic militias (militants) and the gangs that raise funds through oil bunkering, kidnapping, drugs running, arms for hire,political patronage, community vigilante, security services for oil multinationals, and robbery then administer the funds for their welfare and further operations to the detriment of society (Wilson, 2018). The success of their operations greatly determines increase of the groups’funding and this gives them further strategic advantage to the detriment of society. While various state governments have made efforts to contain the threat of cultism through the use of anti-cultism police unit and the offerof amnesty for them to surrender their arms and renounce cultism, the Federal Government has also been advocating against cult relatedactivities through the National Orientation Agency. In May 2015, the Police in Benin City arrested 14 Junior Secondary School students overtheir alleged involvement in cultism. As a result of the arrival of

detectives from Abuja, over 98 youths were arrested in Edo State for attending initiation ceremony in Auchi. From observation, it appears that the carrot and stick mechanism of

the government totally contained the menace of cultism as many individuals and groups still remain adamant to the efforts by stakeholders to persuade them to shun their deviant acts. Recent events have shown that encouraging those involved in cultism to renounce their membership has not stopped their activities. Nigerian cities are prone to cult related activities due to various reasons one of which is high population density as well as the attractive nature of urban areas to crime. Thus, most cult members view executing operations and establishing presence in the cities as more lucrative than the rural areas even though some of them still prefer to hide in rural areas during periods of instability or manhunt for them. The use of cult groups by politicians is one of the reasons why they

have high footprints in the cities. This offers them the opportunity to operate for politicians and also seek for ways of sustaining their relevance even after assisting political office holders achieve their goals. Accordingto Asuni (2009:8) “many of the politicians in the Niger Delta, especially Rivers and Bayelsa states, are known to be members of confraternities,particularly the Vikings.” In some parts of Nigeria, desperate politicians usually promise to empower the youths after using them to achieve their

political goals, but they become restive after failed promises (Dikewoha, 2016). While there have been instances when some cult groups established cordial relationship with some leaders who offer cash to prevent them from threatening the peace in some towns, it is obvious that the inability of political class to prevent attacks and counter attacks

sustains the struggle for supremacy among the groups.

Cult Groups and Lethal Violence

Cult groups are violent social organisations that use revenge and attack to exhibit power with violence as an entrenched attribute of the groups. How cult groups engage in lethal violence can be situated within their characteristics which reveal their modus operandi. For many groups, it is as if their mission is violence and also sustained by violent acts in

pursuance of their goals. Onwuemeodo and Nwosu (2015) have listed some characteristics of cult groups, namely their secretive nature as they hold secret meetings in hidden places mainly at nights; disregard for the sanctity of life particularly during clashes with rival cult groups; initiation of new members through various phases such as jumping from tall trees and beaten mercilessly, stabbing of the new members by the leader usually called Chief; most cult members with the support of their colleagues have an attitude of intimidating people especially in their bid to influence their decisions by using threat of violence. Members also take advantage of their bravery to intimidate individuals they target for recruitment. Peterside (2005) outlined the two main modes of recruitment into cult groups, namely voluntary initiation and forced initiation through

abduction or kidnapping. The author revealed that youths admitted into cultism through forced initiation are victims and are prone to intimidation as a result of their popularity as youths who appear at intimidation ground after initiation. For this category, cult members do not relent in reminding them the benefits of accepting the offer. While the drinking of human blood and administering of oath usually seal the initiation process, the survival of the new member is very critical as this would mark the success of the spiritual affair. This indicates that the initiation is more like a ritual than mere gathering of colleagues. According to Elechi (1982), the religious undertone of secret societies manifests in the swearing of oaths by members who profess their loyalty to deities, not to reveal the activities of the cult group they belong. Spiritual influence enhances their operation as they fortify themselves with charms which are believed to protect them from attacks (Wilson, 2018). The concern of such groups is to organise initiations at locations that cannot be easily reached by either security operatives or unsuspecting

people. From the foregoing, it is obvious that an individual forced to undergo initiation would experience more life threatening brutality than a person that willingly surrenders himself for admission into a group. Wilson (2018) revealed that they have means of identification such as initiation marks on their body, common language and slangs, and

greeting signs and slangs. While initiation functions as a channel of enhancing numerical increase of cult groups, it also strengthens the brevity of members. By implication, the death of some young Nigerians during initiation shows how brutal cult leaders can be.

Although some cult groups like Deebam, Deewell, and others have rural community base in launching operations (Wilson, 2018), most of their activities threaten the safety of residents in Nigerian cities as they sometimes embark on manhunt for members of rival cult groups in different towns. The deadly nature of cult members manifests during hit operations usually initiated in their bid to demonstrate their supremacy by attacking their targets. This creates pandemonium as both cult members and innocent people tend to scamper for safety. Although some cults are arguably involved in prescribing and

enforcing laws within and outside the societies, such laws are also seen as being devised for the convenience of only the members who usually protected at all cost from external threats and this offers the groups psychological strength over the entire society (Amadi, 1982). They operate like outlaw security providers, protecting members, relatives and

their friends. The moral benefits of cult groups’ laws remain to be seen considering how they punish offending members and perceived enemies in the larger society with violence. This means that their laws enhance the security guarantees for loyal members that also pay their dues. They cause lethal violence in their bid to protect members from

harm of any group, retaliate over intimidation of members. In most cases, their access to sophisticated weapons makes it more deadly. The struggle for supremacy in the areas of strategic advantage and influence makes them more brutal. All these explain why most groups engage in armed robberies and kidnapping as means of raising funds to achieve

their planned objectives. Unfortunately, the assurances of safety, protection, success in the society and influence by members when they join do not always materialise as desired. Fatal incidents indicate that membership of cult groups is no antidote to associated lethal violence in many Nigerian cities. Apart from hit operations, various cult groups sometimes use their arms to threaten the safety of people in various cities particularly the streets that are far from the presence of security agencies. Some of this

not overrun Yenagoa despite exhibiting threatening force in Port Harcourt. While some cult groups are more deadly than their counterparts, it is worthy to note that leadership and strategies of the groups greatly determine their lethality. They achieve this through their various units which include executioners, strikers, intel or intelligence, briefing

chairman among others. A critical unit in most of the groups is the intelligence which remains crucial in coordinating attacks, enabling the groups to strategise on ways of defending themselves from enemies and also identifying areas to avoid or use for operations. On 18 September, 2017, about 850 cultists renounced their membership of various secret cult groups in Akure, in the presence of traditional chiefs, religious leaders, youths and traditional priests, among others. The Deji of Akure administered a liquid substance at his palace to prevent killings caused by incessant clashes by rival cult groups. According to the report, “The palace adopted the means to curb the killing and violence among the cult groups. Many of them have been going to the palace to drink the water and immediately renounced membership. They will also drop their weapons. If after drinking the water, the person goes back to cult, he will die mysteriously. This was a cleansing exercise” (Gbolagunte, 2017:5). If all cult groups are able to tolerate themselves and avoid clashing, they can easily manage their differences without engaging in lethal violence.

Academic performance

Academic performance really means three things; the ability to study and remember facts, being able to study effectively and see how facts fit together and form larger patterns of knowledge and being able to think for yourself in relation to facts and thirdly, to be able to communicate (Coulson, 2008). According to Pruett (2010) is the level of achievement attain via the combination of inputs from student motivation and conduct. In views of Adediwura and Tayo (2007) academic performance is generally referred to how well a student is accomplishing his or her tasks and studies, but there are quite a number of factors that determine the level and quality of students‟ academic performance. This no doubt supports the view of Nicholas (2004) that the most current information on improving academic performance shows that there are three environmental influences linked to levels of academic performance among schoolstudents. These influences according to the information includes high quality parenting (the degree to which a young star is provided with an enriched, warm and responsive learning environment which includes appropriate control and discipline over children, and are closely associated with both higher grade reading and mathematics skills); high quality child-care environments (stimulating activity and nurturing as reflected in high quality parenting) and high quality first- grade classrooms (with a focus on literacy instruction, evaluative feedback, instructional conversation, and encouraging child responsibilities). Academic Performance Index (2010) revealed that academic performance is how students deal with their studies and responsibilities given to them by their teachers. Louis (2012) academic performance is the ability of students to obtain high grades and standard test scores in school courses, especially courses that are part of the core academiccurriculum.

evaluation academicperformance

Students are motivated to learn when they receive feedback on their work. When students know that their learning will be measured and that their successes and accomplishments will be acknowledged, they are more motivated to study more seriously. According to Elsevier (2010), assessment is more concerned with determining the merit or worth of a learning process as well as the success with which it is carried out. He claims that two specific areas are normally assessed. The first is a student's accomplishment in relation to the theory and goals of the education he or she is pursuing.The second is how well the curriculum goals are been realized for the level of education. Evaluation is the systematic process of determining the extent to which instructional objectives are achieved by students. Consequently, examination results and teacher‟s judgment are used to categorize or classify students. Irreversibly decisions are made regarding the students‟ worth and his future in the educational system. By this system of categorizing students, some are made to feel that they are deficient, bad and undesirable, while others feel that they are able, good and desirable. This labelling of individuals may likely have some unfavourable influence on a persons‟ self- concept. Yusuf (2012) described evaluation as the collection and use of information as a basis for rational decision making on the curriculum which need to be improved, modified or terminated as the case may be. It is a quality control exercise to ensure that resources are used maximally. It is true that the process will yield information regarding the worthiness, appropriateness, validity, etc of something for which a reliable measurement or assessment has beenmade. However, various assessment or measurement tools and techniques may be used in evaluating teaching-learning process as well as the outcomes associated with it. Yusuf (2012) has identified instruments to be used in evaluating teaching learning process as test, observation, project,questionnaire, interview, checklist and sociometric technique or sociometry. Alabi (2011) asserted that test is an important aspect of the educational process. It is the stage atwhichthelearners‟knowledge,skill,abilityandcompetenciesareassessed,and judgement is made about such performance. The outcomes of such judgement are used in diagnosing as well as placement ofstudents. Assessment of a person‟s performance when confronted with a series of questions, problems, or tasks set for him in order to ascertain the amount of knowledge that he has acquired, the extent to which he is able to utilize it, or the quality and effectiveness of the skills he has developed. Scott (2001) stated that measuring academic performance can occur at multiple levels and serves multiple purposes. For example, classroom teachers often conduct formative and summative tests to evaluate students‟ mastery of course content and provide grades for students and parents. States tests are designed primarily to measure progress of the school and school district level. Standardized observational assessment can guide teachers and administrators in promoting effective teaching and learning, enhance students social and academic development as well as assessing their level of academic outcomes (Megan, 2011). Centre for American Progress (CAP) (2012) advanced that students‟ performance can be measured through administrating achievement test, analysing stated testing results, use informal surveys to measure academic achievement and look at grade reports.

Effect of cultism on academic performance

The effects of secret cult on the academic performance of students in Nigerian cannot be overemphasized as both the intra and inter-cult activities negatively affect students in amazing proportions. Thus, cult clashes lead to outbreak of violence on campuses which leave many students wounded, maimed or killed as the case may be. Such situations may lead to the incarceration, rustication or expulsion of students which usually affect the learning process of the institution. The situation also sometimes, results in the closure of the University for quite a long time and this has negative effect on the implementation of academic programmes. There is no gainsaying that cult clashes adversely affect the psyche of the students and peace on the campus thus, affecting learning of the students. Activities of secret cult groups may be so serious that the destruction of basic infrastructures and other resources will be colossal and eventually, the money that would have been spent on the provision of other facilities and infrastructures on the campus are now used in replacing the damaged ones. This definitely results in the reduction of the quality and quantity of education in the Universities. Cult members hardly have time for studies. As a result, most of them fail their examinations and are expelled from school. Ranking of the opinion of 150 teachers on activities of students which constitute tendencies toward secret cult, by Efiom (1997) placed dislike for academic activities 10th. Whenever a member is expelled from school on grounds of poor academic performance, cult members most times generate troubles which cause other students to riot. The situation often results in destruction of the school properties. Cultists are not always in classes, these results in not knowing what the class is doing and where the classmates are, hence they end up as examination cheats and also perform very poorly in their courses. In most cases, they are caught for examination malpractice offences and are rusticated consequently (Otoibhi, 1999; Igborgbor, 2006). As reported by Igborgbor, (2006), for cult members to have their way, they disrupt examinations whenever they are not ready. A case of Delta State University comes to mind, when a male student of University of Benin was hired to write an examination for the girl friend. To escape arrest, he fired gun shots in the examination hall, thereby causing confusion and so disrupted the examination.

The quality of education in Nigeria is the interest of the citizenry. Education should

be seen as a dynamic thing and not static, therefore should promote excellence in

standard and fitness of the graduates to the changing needs of the society. It is rather

observed that, the activities of secret cult groups are turbulent and constitute a clog in

the wheel of educational progress. Cult related activities in Nigerian universities result

in producing graduates who know next to nothing in their various field of study

(Kpangban, Umudhe and Ajaja, 2008).

2.2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Social control theory

Theoretically, this study is anchored on social control theory. It is relevant to this study because it offers more insights into the spatial spread and ways of containing the organised criminal behaviour. Social control theory is also described as social bond theory. Notably, it was propounded by Travis Hirschi in 1969 to explain the causes of

delinquency. Social control, which is as old as the human society, focuses on the check on deviance to prevent it through sanctions. Due to the fact that deviance undermines credibility and the foundation of social life such as peaceful human relations and co-existence which is the reason human groups developed a system of social control (Onyima, 2015). Also, it has been explained by Intravia (2009:4), as how social groups

and institutions make norms effective in rules that an individual will follow; pointing to the fact that whether formal or informal, social control regulates the actions of people in every community especially when institutions establish and reinforce non-delinquent behaviour. Travis Hirschi argues that without intimate attachments and acceptance of conventional norms, the opinions of others do not matter and the individual is free to violate norms without fear of social disapproval (Dahlback, 2016; Rankin and Kern, 1994). As a theory that has four elements namely attachment, involvement, belief and commitment, there is a probability that delinquency would increase when attachment to

parents or regard for authorities weakens (Chriss, 2007). This also easily occurs among people that experience family disintegration. It is believed that people that are easily encouraged to engage in criminal acts when they disregard or lack the attachments that would have reminded them the punishment associated with criminal acts, the need for integrity. In the pre-colonial African society, cult groups were a source of control (Akinpelu, 2015). Unfortunately, their propensity for violence in the 21 Century makes them a threat that requires revival of social control institutions to contain cultism as youths have dominated such groups to foment trouble. The relevance of this theory to the study is the assertion that focuses on causality of delinquency which has to do with the

weakness of social bonds. Some stakeholders including the family institution are blamed for not sustaining the bond as expected. It is believed that when people are closely attached to family, the temptation of being involved in deviant acts like gang criminality would be minimal considering how the attachments prevents them from indulging in

lawless acts that have the capacity to make them the enemies of the society (Onyima, 2016). According to Albert (2003:56), “most of the criminals whose anti-social behaviour increased the rate of street crimes in West African cities since 1970s are from broken homes that create single parent families.” The major causes of cultism in tertiary

institutions are the influence of peer group, parental background, societal decadence, erosion of education standards, militarization of the Nigerian polity, lack of recreational facilities, quest for power and protection among others (Ajayi, Ekundayo, and Osalusi 2010). From the foregoing, it is obvious that majority of cult members are people whose families have already lost control over them as they are neither answerable to their parents nor elders in the community or quarters where they live. By implication, the fear of punishment or beingquestioned is no longer in them. With this weakness of social control,they easily become targets and ready to be recruited by the cult groups which tend to promise them safety guarantees and enrichment. Theconnection between this theory and the study is that when social control is given adequate priority, the menace of cultism would be suppressed considering the bond and punishment of deviance can discourage deviant behaviours which can also become the norm when individuals are not given required monitoring. The prevalence of cultism in Nigerian cities is traceable to weak social control beginning from the home settings, as well as the institutional lapses that would have been contained through early response to the crime