Abstract:
Littering is a problem worldwide, Ghana being no exception. The purpose of the study was therefore to investigate the attitude of JSS 3 students in the Cape Coast municipality towards littering. Two hundred and forty students were sampled from a population of 2,398 using the stratified random sampling technique. The sample comprised 120 males and 120 females. A 52-item questionnaire was used to gather information relating to the attitude of students towards littering as well as their awareness on the effects of littering. The internal consistency of the instrument was 0.83 using Cronbach alpha reliability.
The data collected were analyzed using percentages, means and independent t-test at a significance level of 0.05. The results revealed that JSS3 students were against littering and were aware of the effects of littering. Littering was also found to be an important environmental concern among students.
The conclusions of the study are:
1) Male and female JSS 3 students are aware of the effects of littering to a very large extent.
2) Urban and rural JSS 3 students are aware of the effects of littering to a very large extent.
3) There is no significant difference between male and female JSS 3 students in their attitude towards littering.
4) There is no significant difference between urban and rural JSS 3 students
in their attitude towards littering.
Students indicated that they were against littering. Such a positive attitude would be a good starting point for more education of pupils on the topic and for developing proper practices of waste disposal as far as littering is concerned. Efforts should therefore be made to increase awareness among students on the effects of littering
