INFLUENCE OF STUDENTS’ UNREST ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN MAARA SUB COUNTY, THARAKA NITHI COUNTY, KENYA
Bedford Gitonga Misheck, Alfred Murumba Wamala, Eleen yatich & Wamichwe
P.O.BOX, 387-00902, KIKUYU
Corresponding Author: bedfordgitonga@gmail.com
Abstract: Schools not only in other regions of Kenya but also in Tharaka Nithi County are frequently plagued by student unrest. Student unrest has recently become a common occurrence in a number of Maara Sub County public secondary schools, particularly between the years of 2018 and 2021 despite efforts to curb the problem. Although there are many factors that affect students’ academic achievement in KCSE, the effect of student unrest has not been conclusively looked into. Therefore, the main goal of this study was to investigate how students’ unrest influences their academic performance in KCSE in public secondary schools in Maara Sub County, Kenya.A descriptive research design using survey method was utilized for this study. The study population was 23 045 persons that comprised 76 principals, 243 teachers and 22 726 students in 76 public secondary schools in Maara Sub County. Persistent student unrest and poor academic performance in KCSE exams rationalized the choice of the study locale. Proportional random sampling was used to select 2 principals, 4 teachers and 372 students for this study. Data was collected using questionnaires and interview guide. The main findings show that the main consequence of student’s unrest was poor academic performance precipitated by the inability of teachers to cover the syllabus and disruption of academic programmes causing students to spend longer time at home thereby affecting their academic performance negatively. Further it was concluded that students’ unrests is a precursor to poor examination performance among students since many a time students experience loss and destruction of instructional materials. It was recommended that school administrators at public secondary schools should educate their students on the consequences of unrests. They should be made aware of the losses and negative effects of unrests on academic progress and achievements. This therefore behooves the management in every school to develop mentorship programmes to help students to handle issues with care and every sense of urgency it deserves. However, a gap was established. The difference in academic performance or educational outcomes among student demographic groups as a result of unrest in institutions of basic learning is a topic that shouldattract more attention for further research.
Keywords: Student Unrest, Academic Performance, Public Secondary Schools
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Suggested Citation
Gitonga, B.M., Murumba, W., Yetich, E., & Wamichwe . (2024). Influence Of Students’ Unrest On Academic Performance In Public Secondary Schools In Maara Sub County, Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya. African Research Journal of Education and Social Sciences, 11(1), 1-10. Available online at http://arjess.org/education-research/influence-of-students-unrest-on-academic-performance-in-public-secondary-schools-in-maara-sub-county-tharaka-nithi-county-kenya.pdf
