Determination of the class repetition rates for 2011 cohort of pupils in public primary schools in Transzoia west, Kenya

Abstract

Education remains the most critical component for economic development and social progression in any society. Governments, policymakers and civil societies have emphasised the need to invest more in education and ensure that systems of education are efficiently managed. The internal efficiency of a school is the capacity of the school system to produce graduates in the best way, without repetitions and dropouts, to ensure that resources invested in the learner do not go to waste. Class repetition and pupil absenteeism are some of the internal inefficiency issues in public primary schools of Trans Nzoia West. Comparing pupil lesson attendance rates in public primary schools in Sub-Counties of Trans Nzoia, pupil lesson attendance was lowest in Trans Nzoia West Sub County. The purpose of the study was to determine the internal efficiency of education as reflected in the repetition rates of the 2011 cohort in public primary schools in Trans Nzoia West Sub-County. The specific objectives of the study were to determine the class repetition rate in the 2011 cohort Transzoia West Sub-County. The study was anchored on the transactional-ecological model of the development framework. The study used a descriptive research design. The study population was 4336 class 8 pupils, 71 class 8 teachers, 57 head teachers and 1 Sub-County Director of Education (SCDE). Saturated sampling was used to select 52 head teachers, 66 class 8 teachers and 1 SCDE, while 404 class 8 pupils from the 5 zones of Trans Nzoia West Sub-County were selected using stratified random sampling. The reliability of the instruments was determined through a pilot study carried out with 1 head teacher, 1 class 8 teacher and 7 class 8 pupils per zone in the 5 zones to pre-test the instruments. It was calculated using Pearson’s Product-Moment correlation coefficient. This resulted in a correlation coefficient of r= 0.760, which validated the reliability of the questionnaires used. The study revealed that teachers considered poor parental support as the most crucial factor leading to pupils repeating classes. It was also established that early pregnancies led to non-completion of primary-level education by girls. The study recommends that the school administration should abolish forced class repetition from both parents and teachers in primary schools. The school administration should instead implement early intervention programs targeted at pupils showing signs of low academic performance or risk of repetition. These programs could include additional tutoring, mentoring, or personalized learning plans to address individual pupil needs and prevent repetition.