INFLUENCE OF TEACHERS' CHARACTERISTICS ON STUDENTS ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE IN SELECTED SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN OYO METROPOLIS, OYO STATE, NIGERIA

This study aims to identify the characteristics of teachers as a predictor of agricultural science students' academic achievement in selected senior secondary schools in Oyo metropolis of Oyo state. Two research questions and two null hypotheses served as the study's guide. With a sample of 200 agricultural science subject teachers from 40 senior secondary schools spread over Oyo East, Oyo West, Afijio, and Atiba local government districts of Oyo state, the study used a correlational research methodology.The Agricultural Science Subjects Teachers’ Characteristics Questionnaire (ASSTCQ), a structured questionnaire developed by the researcher, served as the data gathering tool. Cronbach's Alpha coefficient was used to determine the questionnaire's reliability, and the instrument's total reliability index came out to be 0.88. Regression analysis and Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) were used to examine the study's data.The findings showed that the academic success of agricultural science students at Oyo metropolis has a strong positive correlation with the age of the teachers, and that there is a strong positive correlation between the attitude of the teachers and the academic success of agricultural science students.Therefore, it was suggested that policymakers and educational stakeholders give teachers' age top priority when hiring new teachers because it is thought to be a significant influence in raising students' academic performance in agricultural science classes. Additionally, it was suggested that the government enact laws that would provide incentives to educators in order to increase their morale and, consequently, the academic achievement of students studying agriculture.