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Empirical Paper
Assistive Technologies and Learning Environment as Predictors of Academic Performance in Private Schools in Rivers State

Patricia Ella Okim Agbor, Gobi Felix Ferdinand*

Department of Guidance and Counselling – Educational Psychology Faculty of Education, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, 5000102 Nigeria


STEM Education Review 2026, 4(1),1-10; https://doi.org/10.67229/stemer.26080006
Submitted07 Mar 2026
Revised11 Mar 2026
Accepted01 Jul 2026
Published27 Aug 2026
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Cite This Article
(2026). Assistive Technologies and Learning Environment as Predictors of Academic Performance in Private Schools in Rivers State. STEM Education Review , 4(1), stemer26080006. https://doi.org/10.67229/stemer.26080006
Abstract

This study investigated assistive technologies and the learning environment as predictors of academic performance for SDG 10 in private schools in Rivers State. The study was guided by three research questions and three null hypotheses. A descriptive survey research design was adopted with a population of 396 principals and 4,872 teachers, giving a total population of 5,268. A sample of 200 principals and 272 teachers was drawn using multistage sampling techniques, giving a total sample of 472 respondents. Data were collected using a self-constructed and validated questionnaire titled ‘Assistive Technologies and Learning Environment as Predictors of Academic Performance Questionnaire (ATLEPAPQ)’ with a Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient of 0.84. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions, while Multiple Regression Analysis was used to test the null hypotheses at the 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that assistive technologies and learning environment each significantly predicted academic performance for SDG 10 in private schools in Rivers State. Jointly, both predictors accounted for 54.2% of the variance in academic performance (R² = 0.542, F(2, 469) = 277.51, p < 0.05). Assistive technologies emerged as the stronger predictor (Beta = 0.482, p < 0.05), followed by learning environment (Beta = 0.348, p < 0.05). Based on the findings, it was recommended, among others, that proprietors of private schools in Rivers State should invest in a minimum package of assistive devices and make classroom environments physically and socially accessible to every category of learner.


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