School -home related causes of truancy and influence on pupils' academic achievement in lower primary schools, Butere West Zone in Kakamega County, Kenya
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Date
2016-06
Authors
Omutinyu, Grace
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
Truancy is unexcused and unlawful absence from school, typically without parental or
school administration knowledge or consent.Various school personnel, parents,
community and children welfare officials among others are consistently concerned with
the issue of truancy in schools. Perhaps the most pertinent question then is; what is
causing pupils to be truant from school? This research has therefore considered school
and home related factors influencing truancy in lower primary schools in Butere West
Zone of Kakamega County, Kenya and its influence on pupil's academic achievement.
Truancy is costly; it costs pupils on their education resulting in reduced earning capacity.
Pupils with the highest truancy rates have the lowest academic achievement rates. In
addition, truants are most likely to drop out of school. Pupils in lower primary school in
Butere West Zone especially in grade three have recorded most truancy rates in the past
years. Parents, teachers, pupils, the community and educational officers have associated
the vice with school and home related factors in the zone. The study was guided by
Abraham Maslow humanistic theory which asserts that our actions are motivated in order
to achieve certain needs. The study adopted descriptive research design. The target
population was all standard three pupils in Butere West Zone, head teachers, class three
teachers and parents of the truants. Stratified and purposive sampling was used to sample
six clusters, 12 head teachers, 12 class three teachers and 24 parents from accessible
population. To collect data questionnaires were administered to head teachers and class
three teachers of identified schools then interviews contacted with parents of selected
truant pupils. A pilot study was carried out in two schools in the zone. The collected data
was coded and analyzed using descriptive statistics: frequencies, percentages and means.
The results were presented using frequency distribution tables, pie -charts and
percentages. The study findings revealed that teacher- pupil relationship contributed to
pupil truancy where instances of teacher harassing pupil were high. There were cases of
bullying in schools, curriculum which was examination oriented that influenced truancy
among lower primary school pupils. Also the home factors causing truancy included poor
socio-economic status -of parents, the type of families the pupils came from which were
large/ polygamous and parents' level of education where parents who had attained low
education, had more truant cases. The physical facilities and Teaching/Learning materials
did not seem to contribute much in pupil's truant behaviour. From the findings of the
study, it was clear that truancy affects pupils' academic achievement where truant pupils
performed poorly in their academics. The study recommended that the government
intervenes in schools to stop canning and illegal punishment forms that led to pupil
truancy and also step up poverty reduction programmes in order to reduce its effects on
pupil truancy.
Description
A research project submitted in fulfilment for the degree of master of education (early childhood education) in the School of Education, Kenyatta University