DETERMINANTS OF ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN

PUBLIC DAY SECONDARY SCHOOLS, MANGA DISTRICT,

KENYA

BY

NAME: ONCHIRI SUREIMAN.

ADDRESS: P.O.BOX 130, NYANSIONGO- KENYA.
CODE: 40502
Email: Onchirisureiman@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine home-, school-, student- and teacher-related factors
that influenced student academic performance in public day secondary schools of Manga
District, Kenya. The descriptive survey design was adopted. The sample of seven head
teachers (7), twenty eight (28) teachers and four hundred and twenty five (425) students was
selected by proportional stratified technique. The data was collected by use of questionnaires
and observation checklists and analysed using descriptive statistics. The study revealed the
factors such as parents’ education level, parents’ financial burden, the family size, conditions
at home, parents’ attitude towards education, school infrastructure, availability of teaching
requirements, curriculum implementation, time management, student’s discipline, student’s
entry mark, teacher’s teaching experience and level of education among others have
significant impact in academic performance of a child. The author outlined some policy
option on the findings.
Key Words: Public day secondary schools, home related factors, school related factors,

student related, factors, teacher related factors and academic performance.

Background of the Study

The Kenyan education system consists of eight years of primary schools, four years of

secondary school and fours of university education (8:4:4) as it was recommended by The

Report of the Presidential Working Party in Kenya (The Mackay Report) in 1981. Secondary

schools in Kenya fall into two categories-government funded (public) and private. Public

schools are also categorized into national, provincial and district levels.

In 2008, the government introduced plans to offer free secondary to all Kenyans. Currently,

public schools receive funding from government which caters for tuition (internal

examinations, laboratory, stationery, text books, workshops, seminars, chalks and pens)and

operations (personal emoluments, administration, activity, electricity, water, and conservancy,

local transport and travelling, repair, maintenance and improvement) excluding boarding

expenses hence commonly referred to as Free Day Secondary Education. The Kenya

government also provides teachers for the public secondary schools. Private schools are run by

private organizations or individuals. Private secondary schools in Kenya are generally high

cost schools offering students an alternative system of education or more luxurious facilities

compared to public schools.

According to Lewin (2006), transition rates between primary and lower secondary schooling

are determined by selection practices and by the places available in the first year of lower

secondary. After taking the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCSE) students are

selected to secondary schools. Numbers admitted to public secondary education are generally

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limited not to those who pass but by the number of places available. Students with the highest

scores gain admission into national schools, those with average scores are selected into

provincial and those with lower scores are admitted to district schools respectively.

Sometimes quotas are used (geographic and administrative location, gender) to profile those

admitted. The reporting of admitted students sometimes is influenced by the school’s cost,

faith base, academic performance and type (mixed or single sex). Students who fail to report

to secondary schools either repeat the final primary school year or pursue technical training

opportunities.

The Kenya Institute of Education (KIE) conducts research; prepare syllabi and evaluation

materials for secondary schools. It also conduct in-service courses and workshops for teachers

involved in carrying out experiments and trials of any new syllabi and teaching materials. The

parents, education officers and teachers are involved in the curriculum implementation

process.

The Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) develops, administers and processes

examinations of secondary schools. It also awards the Kenya Certificate of Secondary

Education (KCSE) certificates to the students who meet the requirements. There are thirty one

examinable subjects, classified into five groups. A student is supposed to sit for a minimum of

seven subjects and a maximum of nine. There are two options, “A” and “B” where a student

takes either one. Similarly, the school only offers one option. Candidates for option “A”

selects the seven subjects as follows: three from Group I (English, Kiswahili, Mathematics

Alternative “A”), two from Group II (Physics, Chemistry and either Biology or Biology for

the Blind), one from Group III (History & Government, Geography, Christian Religious

Education, Islamic Religious Education, Hindu Religious Education and one subject from any

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 of the groups II, III, IV or V. The Group IV subjects include Home Science, Art and Design,

Agriculture, Woodwork, Metalwork, Building and Construction, Power Mechanics,

Electricity, Drawing and Design, Aviation Technology and Computer Studies while Group V

include French, German, Arabic, Kenya Sign Language, Music and Business Studies.

Candidates for option “B” selects three subjects from Group I (English, Kiswahili,

Mathematics Alternative “B”), one from group II (General Science), two from Group III and

one from group III, IV or V.

The grading system in each subject is done on a 12-point scale as follows: A(12), A-(11),

B+(10), B(9), B-(8),C+(7), C(6), C-(5), D+(4), D(3), D-(2) and E(1). A student can score a

maximum of eighty four (84) points in the seven subjects which can also be categorized in the

12-point scale.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Sessional Paper No 1 of 2005 on a

Policy Framework for Education, Training and Research noted that secondary education has

been characterized by poor performance in national examinations especially in core subjects

such as Mathematics and Sciences. The analysed result of academic performance available

from Manga District office also revealed that Manga District secondary schools perform

poorly with public day schools being worse (See table 1).

Table 1: KCSE Analysis, 2008-2009.

YEAR Type A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D+ TO E Entry Mean
No. 0 10 41 50 85 92 98 86 149 612 6.25
PB
2008 % Rank 100 100 98 92 83 69 54 38 24

No. 0 0 7 20 30 47 78 121 779 1082 3.78

PD
% Rank 100 100 100 99 98 94 90 83 72

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 No. 0 10 52 54 66 95 80 79 163 599 6.21
PB
2009 % Rank 100 100 98 90 81 70 54 40 27

No. 0 1 12 8 29 46 59 100 798 1053 2.79

PD
% Rank 100 100 99 99 98 95 91 85 76
PB- Public Boarding, PD-Public Day
Source: Manga District Education Office

Generally, the table 1 shows that majority of the students attained a grade of a D+ (plus) and

below (2008, 72% and 2009, 76%) which is considered as a wastage grade. Most of these

students may not continue with their studies. This trend will not only deny Kenya the

professionals required in various fields, but also the critical leadership required for a fast

growing economy. Therefore, there was need for a research to determine the factors that

influence such poor academic performance of public day secondary schools in Manga district.

Statement of the Problem

Despite the Kenyan government’s efforts to provide Free Public Day Secondary

(FPDS) education, the subsector continues to face the challenge of the poor academic

performance. Others include low participation rates, low transition rates from primary to

secondary and from secondary to tertiary, as well as gender and regional disparities.

Following are some reasons why it was timely to establish the factors that influence the

academic performance of public day secondary schools of Manga District.

Poverty and hunger reduction has direct links with academic performance. Success in

Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education will continue to be highly correlated with

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subsequent employment and income distribution patterns. Many groups are marginalized from

further studies and consequently from employment by poor academic performance.

The achievement of Universal Primary Education depends on adequate supply of

qualified primary teachers (Lewin and Stuart, 2003). Quality, achievement and persistence

will decline without adequate qualified numbers successfully completing secondary schooling

and electing to train as teachers.

To achieve gender equality, tertiary education, which is normally an extension of good

secondary academic performance, is needed. Also are other MDGs and the Dakar Goals.

National competitiveness, especially in high value added modern sector economic activity,

depends on knowledge, skills, and competencies associated with abstract reasoning, analysis,

language and communication skills, and the application of science and technology (Lewin,

2000). Without this competitiveness, government revenues will stagnate, and public

educational financing at all levels will be problematic. Those with secondary schooling

increase their chances of formal sector employment and informal sector livelihoods and

acquire useful skills from secondary schooling. The present study therefore sought to find out

the home, school, student and teacher related factors that influence the academic performance

in public day secondary schools in Manga District.

Objectives of the Study

The objectives of the study were:

i) To determine the influence of home related factors on academic performance of students in

public day secondary schools.

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ii) To find out the influence of school-based factors on the academic performance of students

in public day secondary schools.

iii) To assess the influence of student related factors on academic performance of students in

public day secondary schools.

iv) To establish the influence of teacher related factors on the academic performance of

students in public day secondary schools.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study was to provide useful information to educational planners,

policy makers, managers and administrators on policies that will promote access, retention,

completion, academic performance, efficiency and effectiveness of secondary education cycle.

This information may also be used to enlighten parents and society in general on the

importance of education, for example in breaking vicious cycle of poverty so that they can

participate fully in the provision of educational facilities in public day secondary schools.

REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Home Related Factors

The background of the pupil is one of the variables that is referred to in many studies as being

related to the pupils’ performance. The knowledge, skills, aptitudes, attitudes and values the

pupils leave school with are to a great extent influenced by the knowledge, skills, aptitudes,

attitudes and values they had when they entered school. They are the result of an intricate and

complex combination of their genetic composition and their home background (Anderson,

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1991). Pupils’ socio-economic status (SES) has been shown to strongly impact on learning

achievement (UNESCO, 2008). Research by Mullis and others (2004) consistently shows a

strong positive relationship between pupils’ performance and SES, or indicators of SES such

as the parents’ or caregivers’ occupation or level of education.

According to Psacharopoulos (1985), dropouts and repetition appear to be most common

among students from low socio-economic background and are more prevalent in the rural

areas than the urban areas and among female students than male students. At the same time,

increased dropouts, absenteeism and repetition occasioned by the financial inability of poor

families to sustain their children in schools undoubtedly affect the internal efficiency of public

schools( Orodho: 2002).

Studies conducted by World Bank (2001) found that it is more difficult for poor families to

provide educational inputs for their children and the disparity in the ability of parents to meet

direct costs as contributed to the disparity in the school resources.

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According to Douglas (1964), unskilled parents are of low educational attainment, take little

interest in their children’s work, have larger families, live in grossly overcrowded homes,

lacking amenities and tend to send their children to schools which are ill equipped. On the

same note, Bredemier (1978) attributes parental occupation as a basis for academic excellence.

Nevertheless, Hurlock (1956) asserted that the middle class children are likely to become

overachievers because middle class parents place high value on educational achievements, and

the opposite is true to the lower-class parents. He further argues that, a low home status is

unfavorable for a child to study well.

School Related Factors

Poor quality teaching, curriculum, instructional materials and school infrastructure can have

an adverse effect on student learning (Chowdhury, 1995). However, pupils living in urban

areas tended to perform better than their counterparts living in rural areas. Usually schools in

the cities had better buildings, equipment, and better qualified and experienced teachers than

those in rural areas. These conditions are associated with the pupils’ socio-economic status

which is usually higher in towns or urban areas than in rural areas, and contributes to better

pupil performance. As confirmed by Elley (1992), a pattern emerged in the study at the 9 year-

old level. In a group of seven countries with predominantly lower national economic

indicators, the low performance levels in rural schools became progressively higher as the size

of the community increased. As a result, pupil performance is influenced by the context and

socio-economic status. In contrast, students in cities were typically more proficient than

children from small villages, by half a standard deviation (Elley, 1992). In order to attract

teachers to depressed or rural areas, the World Bank has supported the construction of

teachers’ houses and has offered cash incentives for the recruitment of local people,

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especially females, as teachers in rural areas (World Bank, 2006) in an attempt to raise the

standards in such areas. Mullis and others (2003) noted that in most countries, reading

achievement is highest for students in urban schools, lower in suburban settings and even

lower in rural schools.

According to Elley (1992), these gaps have been reduced in some countries by providing rural

library facilities. For instance, the availability of books in places such as the school library or

the classroom book corner and the number of books at home, as well as the possibility of

borrowing books from the library, are variables that make a difference to pupil performance,

as reported by Fuller (1987 in Elley, 1992): “Surveys of achievement in a number of countries

have shown that the number of books available to students is a key factor influencing their

level of reading ability.” In addition, it has been found that the “book flood” (Elley, 1992) or

supply of large numbers of high interest books in schools in six countries had consistently

beneficial effects. Good readers require a plentiful supply of books (Elley, 1992). The number

of books in the classroom, in a school library and at home, therefore, has a positive impact on

pupil performance. Instructional material and technology are also relevant to the development

of reading literacy, including the extent of the reading material available to pupils. Even where

it is quite difficult for developing countries to provide basic materials for school such as

textbooks, blackboards and desks, books are a variable which policymakers can influence.

According to Bishop (1985), human resources are important in curriculum implementation

and attainment of the syllabus objectives. According to Ayot and others (1988), for proper

implementation of a curriculum innovation, there must be availability of adequately trained

manpower in the area but noted that many schools suffer an acute shortage of teaching

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personnel. This concurred with Mbiti (1981) who noted that certain subjects in the school

curriculum were not taught as they lacked manpower. According to Boardman (1985), two

very different teachers may cause the same syllabus to appear very differently in the eyes of

the children who are learning. On the same note, Eshiwani (1988), inadequate school

resources can be blamed for poor academic performance. Kinyanjui (1985), assert that the

quality of education can be judged by assessing among other factors the adequacy of basic

supplies like books, blackboards and by analyzing examinations results.

Other school variables which have been shown to have an impact on pupil achievement are,

school management, teacher attributes and physical factors, which would include availability

of libraries, visual aids, and basic equipment such as tables and chairs (Arriagada ,1983)

Student Related Factors

Agwata (1996) conducted a study in secondary schools in Nairobi and noted that students who

had dropped economics held that the subject was too difficult and abstract for their level. It is

often true that students’ attitude towards a subject will affect the overall outcome in national

examinations. Nkosana (1998) asserts that if teachers feel that the subject is not important to

the extent that they do not emphasize teaching it, students may not be blamed for having the

same attitude.

Abuyeka (2006) contends that the manner in which a teacher presents a subject greatly

influences a student’s attitude towards that particular subject. Coupled with a suitable

environment for teaching and learning, a student’s right attitude towards learning greatly

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influence the learner’s performance in examinations. Mbithi (1980) is quick to note that the

right attitude and commitment enables any worker (learner) to work (learn) better. However,

many children from poor families, who form the majority in day secondary schools, do not

realize the worth of education. They have no desire to improve themselves and the do not care

much about school. This means that the learners need to be intrinsically motivated for them to

be able to realize their full potential. That inner desire for personal improvement activates the

self-drive to study and aim at better grades. A learner who is contented with his status finds

learning very unwelcome.

Teacher Related Factors

According to Lundberg and Linnakyla (1993), there is a relationship between teaching

experience and student achievement. Teaching is a complex and demanding profession that

requires skill in management and fast decision making, independent judgement, patience,

empathy, communication skill, careful planning, stress tolerance, deep subject knowledge and

psychological insight. One cannot acquire a high level of expertise within only a few years of

practical teaching experience. Therefore, the more experienced the teacher is the better

performance that can be expected from students.

Gopsill (1966) noted that one of the problems faced by a teacher is that of keeping abreast

with new knowledge, techniques and outlooks affecting his subject. According to him, schools

can not remain static and as new insights into child nature, greater refines in aims and purpose

and more complicated equipment and apparatus come along, classroom practice must

constantly be modified if the best is to be made of them.

According to Husen and others (1978), all factors constant, it’s generally agreed that a

teacher gains skills through experience and that the more experienced the teacher is, the more

1
successful he will be in his work. It therefore appeared that the effect of teacher’s experience

was important for effective teaching and learning to take place. There was, therefore, need to

assess the relationship between the geography teachers’ experience and students’ enrolment.

Howson (1982) adds that other than pre-service training, important though that is, there must

also be provision for in-service training, for the constant up-dating of professional knowledge.

A shortage of such trained teachers was identified as one of the major obstacles to good

performance in schools.

According to Sidho (1982) when a teacher is overloaded, he tends to follow the way of least

resistance. He does not emphasize learning and can not cater for individual differences since

he has no spare time. He may not make use of teaching aids – leave alone making them

Bishop (1985) postulated that training of teachers, which is mainly attached to one’s

qualification, goes along way in equipping teachers with skills to enable them handle the tasks

a head of them. He added that qualification has been identified to have an impact on teaching.

Bishop (1985) indicated that a teacher’s experience has an impact on teaching and the

importance we attribute to understanding the influence of his / her past experience to learning

should be enhanced.

According to Mse (1986), the effectiveness of any curriculum depends on the quality of the

teachers that are there to translate the document (syllabus) into practical instructional materials

in class. He further noted that many schools had an acute shortage of trained teachers in many

subject areas.

Eshiwani (1988) is quick to point out that the teachers handling large numbers of students

could be overworked and thus affect the performance and achievement of the students. He

1
concludes that the class size creates a big problem in managing behavior in the class. Some

students in such a class become undisciplined during the instruction and this distracts the

attention of other learners.

Proper teaching therefore demands for increased contact between the teacher and the learner,

where the teacher has enough spare time not only to prepare for the lessons but also to check

the learners’ work covered, as a means of developing their manipulative and cognitive skills in

class. This will improve their retention of knowledge and hence performance in examinations.

In summary, the extent to which each of these factors has been studied and has been shown to

contribute to pupil achievement is varied and often inconsistent across studies, however there

is evidence that these factors are associated with pupil achievement. It was deemed

worthwhile to explore if this were the case in Manga District, Kenya.

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

Descriptive survey design was used in the research. According to Mugenda and Mugenda

(2003), surveys could be used to explain or explore the existing status of two or more

variables. This design was appropriate because it involves collecting data in order to test

hypothesis or answer questions concerning the current status of subjects under study. Factors

influencing academic performance are already in existence; hence through survey effect on

academic performance was determined without manipulating the variables.

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Sample and Sampling Procedure

The population under study constituted twenty one (21) public day secondary schools, twenty

one (21) head teachers, two hundred and seventy three (273) classroom teachers and four

thousand, two hundred and forty four (4244) students. A sample size of seven (10%) head

teachers, twenty eight (10%) classroom teachers and four hundred and twenty five (10%)

students was selected. Proportional stratified sampling was used in the sampling process. The

researcher ensured proportional representation at school and class levels for both teachers and

students.

Data Collection Instruments

To collect data, the researcher used questionnaires and observation checklist.

Questionnaires for students, teachers and head teachers contained open and closed items,

which generated information on home related factors, school related factors, student related

factors, and teacher related factors and environmental factors and their influence on the

academic performance of public day secondary schools. Further the teacher’s questionnaire

sought to inquire about the teacher’s level of education and working experience. In addition,

head teacher’s questionnaire also sought to know the number of teachers employed by school

boards, school infrastructure and school enrollment. It collected information pertaining to

performance of schools, adequacy of teaching and learning facilities, adequacy of finance and

human resources, utilization of time in schools and other resources.

Observation check list guided the researcher when moving around sampled schools to observe

and record physical facilities and equipment that were available in the schools to establish the

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extent to which schools were equipped in terms of number of functional laboratories, libraries

and their physical conditions.

Piloting of the Study

The class teacher, Head teacher and student questionnaires were piloted in four of the schools

in the neighbouring Nyamira district. The researchers scrutinized the instruments to ensure the

items in the questionnaires were a representative of all areas that could be researched on.

To confirm the reliability of the instruments test retest method was used to determine the

reliability index of the research instruments. The researcher visited the four piloting centres

and administered the research instruments to four head teachers, twelve teachers and thirty

students. After a time lapse for ten days between the first and the second test the results of the

piloting were analyzed and the reliability coefficient was determined using the Spearman

Brown Prophecy formula which correlated the two sets of tests. Reliability coefficients of

0.91, 0.84 and 0.93 for head teachers, teachers and students respectively signified high internal

consistence of the instruments.

Data Collection Procedure

The researchers obtained a research permit from the Ministry of Education. The researcher

administered seven (7) head teacher’s questionnaires, twenty eight (28) teacher’s

questionnaires and four hundred and twenty five (425) student’s questionnaires. All the head

teacher’s and teacher’s questionnaires were returned complete but only four hundred twelve

(97%) for students were returned with three hundred and sixty (85%) being complete. The

researchers used observation checklist to make observation on equipments and facilities. They

also reviewed and analyzed attendance registers, enrolment records and progressive records.

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Data Analysis Plan

Collected data was categorized into information that could help the researcher achieve the

objectives of the study. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as

frequencies, percentages, means and tables. Qualitative data was subjected to thematic analysis

that is analyzing the responses in themes based on research objectives and questions. Thereafter

conclusions and recommendations were drawn.

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

Home Related Factors that Influence the Academic Performance of Public Day
Scholars
in Secondary Schools within Manga District

The researcher sought to find out how the parent’s education level, the parent’s financial

burden, the family size, the amount of work at home, the home conditions, as the home

related factors affect the academic performance of the day scholars within Manga District.

The table 1 illustrates the findings from the questionnaires administered.

Table 1: Responses on home related factors

Factor Respondents SA A NS D SD
% % % % %
Parents’ Education Level Students(N=360) 55 39 1 3 2
Teachers(N=35) 80 17 0 2 1
Parents’ Financial Students(N=355) 41 52 4 2 1
Burden Teachers(N=35) 75 10 8 3 4
Family Size Students(N=356) 85 6 2 5 3
Teachers(N=35) 20 60 0 13 7
Amount of Work at Students(N=360) 62 14 1 21 2
Home Teachers(N=35) 56 38 0 6 0
Home Conditions Students(360) 63 18 10 5 4
Teachers(N=35) 38 54 0 7 1

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From the table 1 above, majority of students (55%) and teachers (80%) strongly agree that

parents’ education level have an effect in the performance of their children. Majority of the

public day school students come from families whose fathers (84%) and mothers (94%) did

not go beyond secondary education level (table 2). This indicates that this situation is

responsible for the poor academic performance of the public day secondary schools.

Table 2: Parents’ education level

Education Level None Primary Secondary College University
Father’s Education (N=270) 3 36 45 14 2
Percentile Rank 3 39 84 98 100
Mother’s Education(N=312) 12 66 16 6 0
Percentile Rank 12 78 94 100 100

Among those who responded, a relatively high proportion of the students (52%) agree that

parents’ financial burden has a negative impact on academic performance when majority of

teachers (75%) strongly agree with this fact. Given that most parents and guardians were

peasants who struggle to educate their children, this result is consistent with results of World

Bank (2001) that it is more difficult for poor families to provide educational inputs for their

children and the disparity in the ability of parents to meet direct costs contributes to the

disparity in the school resources.

High proportion of the students (85%) strongly agreed that family size has an effect on the

performance of the public day school students as majority of the teachers (60%) agree with it.

Further analysis of the data (table 3) indicated that majority of the families (62%) had at least

six children and minority (38%) had utmost five children. This indicated most public day

school students of Manga District come from large families where they scramble for meager

family resources. This justified their enrolment in public day secondary schools where the

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educational cost is likely to be relatively low since the government subsidizes a large

proportion of the expenditure. It could also imply that the families strain to provide learning

resources. The findings indicated that the size of the family where a student comes from has

an influence on the academic performance of the student contending with psacharopoulos and

Wood (1985) that Children born from crowded homes compete for the little resources and are

more likely to perform poorly in school as their basic needs are not supplied.

Table 3: Family sizes

Number of children 8 & Above 7-6 5-4 3-2 1
Family size (N=324) 15 47 20 15 3
Percentile rank 15 62 82 97 100

Most of the students (62%) and teachers (56%) responded that the amount of work at home

had serious consequences on the academic performance of the public day-scholars of Manga

District. They noted that majority of the students spent most of their time in doing menial

work when at home instead of devoting it to academic excellence.

On the factor of home condition on academic performance, high percentages of students

(62%) strongly agree to its impact as majority of the teacher (54%) agree. The study

established that the general home conditions like the sleeping place, source of lighting, the

family menu and other disturbances greatly affect the academic performance of the public day

secondary day-scholars within Manga District, agreeing with Hurlock (1956) that, a low home

status is unfavorable for a child to study well.

School Related Factors which Influence the Academic Performance of Public Day
Secondary Schools within Manga District

The researcher sought to find out how the school related factors such as the school’s

infrastructure, supply of teaching requirement, curriculum implementation, management style

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and the time management in school affect the academic performance of the public day

secondary schools within Manga District. The responses from the questionnaires administered

were recorded in the table 4 below.

Table 4: Responses on the school related factors

Factor Respondents Satisfied (%) Not Satisfied (%)
School’s infrastructure Students(N=360) 39 61
Teachers(N=35) 8 92
Supply of teaching requirement Students(N=360) 45 55
Teachers(N=35) 43 57
Curriculum implementation Students(N=355) 41 59
Teachers(N=35) 46 54
School management style Students(N=360) 55 45
Teachers(N=35) 34 66
Time management in the school Students(N=360) 11 89
Teachers(N=35) 2 98

As table 4 shows, a majority of the students (61%) and teachers (92%) were not satisfied with

the schools’ infrastructure while a minority of students (39%) and teachers (8%) were

satisfied. On analysis of the school laboratories, only two schools out of six had standard

chemistry laboratories and only one with physics laboratory while none of them had

laboratories for Biology, Agriculture, Computer Studies and Home Science. Further analysis

of the infrastructure found that only one out of six schools had well equipped library and five

were connected with electricity. The study revealed that most public day secondary schools in

Manga District do not have adequate learning facilities concurring with Arrigada (1988) that

physical factors, which would include availability of libraries, visual aids, and basic

equipment such as tables and chairs, have shown to have an impact on pupil achievement.

When requested to comment on supply of the teaching requirements in public day secondary

schools, most of the students (55%) and of teachers (57%) reported not satisfied while a

relatively small proportion of students (45%) and teachers (43%) were satisfied. This

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conforms to Kinyanjui (1985) that the quality of education can be judged by assessing among

other factors the adequacy of basic supplies like books, blackboards and by analyzing

examinations results.

A majority of students (59%) and teachers (54%) responded not to be satisfied with the

curriculum implementation process contrarily to low proportion of students (39%) and

teachers (46%) who responded being satisfied with the same process. It was observed that

some schools offer very few optional subjects limiting the scope of selection for form three

students. Some of these subjects attract very few students one of the reasons being issues

dealing with delivery while other classes have registered more than official required forty five

students concurring with Eshiwani (1988) that the teachers handling large numbers of students

could be overworked and thus affect the performance and achievement of the students.

Policies like vertical teaching in schools with more than one stream have proved to be

ineffective.

On responding to school management style, majority of the students (55%) reported to be

satisfied and the remaining (45%) not satisfied. On the other hand majority of the teachers

(66%) were not satisfied with management style while others (34%) were satisfied. The

majority of the teachers who were satisfied with the management style were head teachers

who were the proponents of the management approaches. Analysis of some sections which are

core in the administration and management of schools was also done. Five schools had

functional deputy head teacher’s departments, two had sciences, two had languages, one had

humanities and none had applied. Of the functional departments, very few had confirmed

heads (two for deputy, none for languages, one for humanities, one for languages and none for

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applied). It was also revealed that very few schools had functioning administrative

committees as follows; Disciplinary one, Guidance & Counseling two and Examination one.

This means that few personalities are involved in the decision making process making process

authoritative as there is no delegation of power. These results are consistent with the results of

Abagi (1997) that good management style is a key factor that influences the academic

performance. From the findings, management style greatly affects the academic performance

of most public day secondary schools.

On time management, highest proportion of students (89%) and teachers (98%) were not

satisfied with time management and very low percentage of students (11%) and teachers (2%)

were satisfied with the time management in public day secondary schools. Most respondents,

attributed time wastage to regular sending of students to go back home due to non payment of

lunch fees, lateness to school of both teachers and students, teachers lateness in reporting to

school and in attending lessons, teachers early departure from school, teachers attending so

many meetings organized by unscrupulous individuals, lack of lesson recovery of unattended

class lessons and time spent by the students on co-curricular activities.

Student Related Factors that Influence the Academic Performance of Public Day
Secondary Schools within Manga District

The researcher sought to find out which student related factors such as the student’s entry

mark, sexual behavior, aspiration, attitudes towards school and peer influence affect the

academic performance of the day secondary school students within Manga District. Findings

from the questionnaires administered to both students and teachers were recorded in table 5.

Table 5: Responses on Student Related Factors

Factor Respondents SA A NS D SD

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 % % % % %
Day-scholar’s entry mark Students(N=360) 55 36 2 6 1
Teachers(N=35) 60 36 0 3 1
Day-scholar’s sexual Students(N=356) 47 32 10 5 6
behavior Teachers(N=35) 78 22 0 0 0
Day-scholar’s discipline Students(N=345) 36 49 3 8 4
Teachers(N=35) 36 63 0 1 0
Day-scholar’s aspiration Students(N=358) 25 58 1 15 1
Teachers(N=35) 54 41 0 5 0
Day-scholar’s attitude Students(360) 22 43 12 18 5
towards the school Teachers(N=35) 46 54 0 0 0
Influence from peer Students(N=340) 59 31 5 4 1
groups Teachers(N=35) 51 49 0 0 0

Majority of the students (55%) and teachers (60%) strongly agreed that the student’s entry

mark greatly affect their performance. Table 6 below supported this fact that majority of the

students (72%) attained the entry mark below the average mark (250). Since most public day

schools are classified as district day schools, they only select students after the provincial and

national schools have completed the selection consequently they are forced to select students

with low marks. In addition, day schools do not have boarding facilities, they only select

students from the surrounding regions who can operate from their homes unless they decide to

hire rooms at the nearest markets or operate from their relatives. It was established that

majority of the students who scored higher entry marks attending public day was mainly

because they could not afford other expensive provincial and national schools.

Table 6: Students’ Entry Marks

Entry marks Below 200 200-249 250-299 300-349 350 &above
Number (N=320) 12 60 20 7 1
Percentile rank 12 72 92 99 100

Asked whether the sexual behavior affected academic performance of the day scholars,

majority of the respondents (students, 47% and teachers, 78%) strongly agreed. Studies

2
indicated that high percentage of the public day secondary schools, female students had either

given birth or they were involved in baby caring. Most of the disciplinary cases reported at

guidance and counseling section involved romantic issues. Therefore, this was one of the

major distracters from academic performance.

On the effect of student’s discipline, a high ratio of students(49%) and teachers (63%) agreed

that it normally affects academic performance as it motivate the teachers to assist them and a

lot of time is not wasted in handling these cases whose remedy can even be suspension of the

student. It was also established that the public day schools which perform relatively well

reported very few indiscipline cases.

High percentage of students (58%) agreed as well as most teachers (54%) strongly agreed that

the student’s aspiration has an impact on his/her academic performance. When the students

asked to give the grade they aspire to get by the end of secondary education, thirty three

percent (33%) gave a D+ and below (table 7) which in Kenya is classified as a wastage grade.

Since the minimum entry grade for a student to enroll for a degree course in a Kenyan

university is C+, it meant that majority of the students (74%) do not aspire to join university.

Only few students (2%) aspire to take competitive courses in university as it requires

minimum grade of A-. Therefore, this could impact negatively towards the academic

performance of Manga District’s public day secondary schools.

Table 7: Students’ Target

Grade E D- D D+ C- C C+ B- B B+ A- A
No(N=360) 0 2 10 21 17 14 10 9 8 7 2 0
%Rank 0 2 12 33 50 64 74 83 91 98 100 100

The study tried to establish whether the day-scholar’s attitude has an effect on academic

performance where most of the students (43%) strongly agreed as majority of the teachers

2
 (54%) reported to agree. In-depth analysis established that the some students were promised to

attend public day school for the first year and they could be transferred there after to a better

school which is not normally the case. Most these students do not take their academic work

serious as they are kept in waiting. Students from relatively better public day schools tend to

work harder as they know that their schools have been performing better therefore they can

also maintain the already set standard.

The study also sought to establish if peer influence within the school affected performance.

Most of the students (59%) and of teachers (51%) strongly agreed. It was established that

when selecting specialization subjects at grade three, some students are influenced by others.

Some of the students also influence other on which subjects not to read especially the

compulsory one like Mathematics. Therefore, there is need for the students in public day

secondary schools to resist peer influence so that they could excel academically.

Teacher Related Factors which Affect the Academic Performance of Public Day
Secondary Schools within Manga District

In this section, the researcher sought to find out whether teacher related factors such as;

teacher professional qualifications, experience, motivation and work load affect the academic

performance of the public day secondary schools within Manga District. The teacher related

factors were compared with the academic performance of the public day secondary schools

within Manga District and the findings summarised by table 8.

Table 8: Data on Teachers

SCHOOL A B C D E F G TOTAL
N(%) N (%) N (%) N(%) N(%) N(%) N(%) N(%)

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Total No. of teachers 16 20 14 11 10 10 11 92
Trained 13(81) 17(85) 10(71) 7(64) 5(50) 4(40) 8(73) 64(70)
Untrained 3(19) 2(15) 4(29) 4(36) 5(50) 6(60) 3(27) 28(30)
government employed 12(75) 15(75) 8(57) 5(46) 4(40) 3(30) 6(55) 53(58)
school employed 4(25) 5(25) 6(47) 6(54) 6(60) 7(70) 5(45) 39(42)
Average teaching years 8.4 9.1 5 3.4 3.1 3.5 4.6 5.3
Av. lesson taught weekly 23 25 28 29 31 30 27 28
No. on job training 3(19) 4(20) 1 0 0(0) 1(10) 0(0) 9(10)
No. promoted in last 5years 4(25) 3(15) 0(0) 1(10) 1(10) 0(0) 0(0) 9(10)
Male 14(88) 18(90) 12(76) 11(100) 9 10 10(91 84(91)
Female 2(12) 2(10) 2(14) 0(0) 1 0 1(9) 8(9)
KNEC examiners 3(19) 2(10) 1(7) 0(0) 0 1 1(9) 8(9)
Have siblings in school 3(19) 2(10) 0(0) 1(9) 1(10) 0(0) 0(0) 9(10)
Mean ,2006-2009 5.4 5.2 3.5 3.4 3.3 3.1 3.9 3.5

From table 8, it can be deduced that majority of the public day schools employed high

proportion untrained teachers (30%) who are cheaper to pay to subsidize the teacher shortage.

Schools with high proportion of professionally trained teachers perform relatively better

concurring with Bishop (1985) that training of teachers, which is mainly attached to one’s

qualification, goes along way in equipping teachers with skills to enable them handle the tasks

a head of them. He added that qualification has been identified to have an impact on teaching.

The teachers of public day schools had few years of teaching experience (5.3years) and few

teachers being KNEC examiners which could have a negative impact on their performance

which can be deduced from the relatively better performance by schools with more average

teaching experience and KNEC examiners.

The teachers of the schools teach an average of 28 lesson per week which is above the

minimum required 27 as by the Kenyan Ministry of Education. The schools in which teachers

teach fewer lesson have been registering a better performance concurring with Sidho (1982),

2
when a teacher is overloaded, he tends to follow the way of least resistance. This implies that

the teachers are overloaded and cannot be effective.

The number of teachers on the job training are also very few (10%) with majority of the

schools not having any while those institutions with some pursuing studies have been

recording a direct proportionality with their performance. This finding conforms to Howson

(1982) that other than pre-service training, there must also be provision for in-service training,

for the constant up-dating of professional knowledge.

The level of motivation of public day schools was low as revealed by the low proportion

(10%) promoted within the last five years implying that majority of the teachers had stagnated

in the same grade for more than five years. The schools with higher proportion of the teachers

being promoted perform better. Similarly, this was aggravated by public day schools having

few government employed (58%) and more school employed (42%) teachers. This conforms

to Abuyeka (2006), who asserted that among the determinants of quality in education are the

availability of qualified and motivated teachers and other education personnel, and a suitable

environment for teaching and learning.

More male (91%) than female (9%) teachers were employed in public day schools with

teachers with higher proportion of female teachers performing relatively better. The public

day schools in Manga District being all mixed it means that there were no enough role models

for girls as reflected by their poor performance.

Few teachers had their immediate relatives in the schools they teach showing that they do not

have trust in their schools. In addition, schools in which teachers had relatively more of their

relatives performed better because the teachers were concerned with the performance of their

relatives hence that one of the school.

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CONCLUSIONS

From the study, the following conclusions were made:

i) The home related factors that influence the academic performance of the public

day secondary schools within Manga District are family size, financial burden,

work at home, parental attitude towards education and parenting style.

ii) The school related factors that influence the academic performance of public day

secondary schools within Manga District are infrastructure, teaching/learning

facilities, curriculum implementation, and management style and time

management.

iii) The student related factors that influence the academic performance of public day

secondary schools within Manga District are entry mark, sexual behaviour, peer

influence, attitude towards the school and ambition towards academic excellence.

iv) The teacher related factors that influence the academic performance of the day

secondary schools within Manga District are teacher level of education, teaching

experience, teaching load, teacher motivation and ongoing training.

RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study therefore gives the following recommendations to the parents, students, teachers,

managers and stakeholders of the public day secondary schools within Manga District:

i) The schools must be managed as corporate entities, applying the best management

practices and capacity building be intensified.

ii) Secondary schools to make partnership with primary schools that form their

catchment areas.

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 iii) The parents of the public day secondary schools should be sensitized on the

influence of the home related factors on the academic performance of their children

particularly as regards to the amount of work students do at home.

iv) The public day secondary schools management to consider ways of motivating

both students and teachers to achieve higher academic standards. This may include

involving the department of guidance and counseling especially in improving the

self image of the students and creating a desire in them to want to achieve more in

academics.

v) The community, parents and government to work hand in hand in equipping the

schools, improving staffing and offering further training to the teachers to improve

on curriculum delivery and preparedness during instructions through seminars,

refresher courses and workshops.

vi) The schools board of governors at all time to consult with head teachers in order to

employ on temporally basis qualified teachers and intensified monitoring the

curriculum implementation processes.

vii) The head teachers are encouraged to regularly consult with assistant teachers in

day to day management of the schools to enable the teachers own all the school

initiated programmes.

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