Abstract:
Students with hearing impairment have not benefited from inclusive classrooms because they consistently perform poorly academically. It is in everyone's best interest for educators, parents, schools, and other stakeholders to look into all the factors that contribute to academic failure and establish the best learning environments for students with hearing impairment because the effects of poor academic performance also have an effect on an individual's overall quality of life. The study was conducted to ascertain the perceived factors influencing the academic progress of students with hearing impairment in inclusive settings, taking into consideration self-esteem, parental involvement, teacher-student interaction, and peer group. Four research questions and one hypothesis were created for the study. The descriptive survey research design was chosen for this investigation. All secondary students in Ilorin metropolis schools that practice inclusive education who have hearing impairment made up the study's population. Within the three Local Government Areas, 50 respondents were chosen using the proportional sample technique. The Perceived Factors Influencing the Academic Performance of Students with Hearing Impairment Questionnaire was the questionnaire used to collect the data. The reliability test of PFIAPSHIQ yielded a coefficient of 0.77. The instrument was both face and content validated by the researcher's supervisor and lecturers in the department of Special Education, Kwara State University, Malete and experts in test and measurement. The demographic data of the respondents were analysed using frequency counts and percentage. The research questions were analysed using descriptive statistics of mean, percentage and frequency count; while independent sample t-test was used to test the null hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. The results of the study revealed that, parental involvement influence the academic performance of students with hearing impairment to a high extent (mean= 2.84). It was revealed that teacher-student interactions influence the academic performance of students with hearing impairment to a high extent (mean= 3.13). it was revealed that peer group influence the academic performance of students with hearing impairment is to a high extent (mean= 3.16). The study also showed that self-esteem influence the academic performance of students with hearing impairment in inclusive settings to a high extent (2.73). However, it was revealed that there exists no significant difference on the perceived factors influencing the academic performance of students with hearing impairment based on gender (P>0.05). It was recommended, among others, that parents of students with hearing impairments should have frequently communicate with teachers and school management in order to discuss the academic challenges of their children.
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