Waste Management Practices as Perceived by Secondary School Physics Students in Ilorin Metropolis, Kwara State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated perception of physics students on waste management practices by secondary school students in Ilorin metropolis, Kwara State, Nigeria. The research also focused on the students’ perception on recycling, reducing and reusing wastes as practices for waste management. Using a descriptive survey design, data were collected from a sample of 340 respondents obtained through multi-stage sampling procedure from a population of secondary school students in public secondary schools in Ilorin metropolis. A 25-items structured questionnaire validated by experts was used for data collection with coefficient of internal consistency of 0.72 calculated using Cronbach Alpha. Four research questions and one hypothesis were formulated to guide the study and data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics of frequency, mean, standard deviation and analysis of variance.. Findings showed that the respondents perceived that waste management is a significant environmental issue, proper waste disposal can prevent diseases, waste management education is important in school curriculum, waste management can reduce environmental degradation, .effective waste management can improve the quality of life among others. Findings also showed that recycling and reusing are effective ways to manage waste while reducing is the least effective way of managing waste as perceived by the respondents. The study recommended that existing curriculum at all levels of education should be reviewed to include waste management education backed up with relevant cultural ethics that supports environmental consciousness.